Macca

It does look like the 2 new seeds are going to come in regardless of the public's view. Possibly for the 2015 season (?) I don't have a one-sided view for the change - probably 70/30 in favour. A positive for me is I believe there will be a greater incentive for a team to win a conference if the change does come in (ignoring the history of how things have panned out previously) If Goodell and the owners want change, they'll most probably get it

Another possible change that the NFL has under consideration is including an extra seed in each conference for the playoffs. This would in turn result in only the conference winners receiving a bye. The Steelers and Arizona would have made the playoffs under those circumstances (this season) A total of 6 games would be played on wild-card weekend. Here's the configuration of this season's wild-card weekend if a 7th seed was included (based on the seeding matchups of 2 vs 7, 3 vs 6 and 4 vs 5) AFC Steelers @ Pats Chargers @ Bengals KC @ Colts NFC Arizona @ Panthers Saints @ Eagles 49ers @ Packers Only Denver and Seattle would have received a bye with this new system. It could be assumed that 3 games (1pm, 4.30pm, 8.30pm) would be played on both Saturday and Sunday on wild-card weekend if the changes were made. On first glance, I quite like the idea. Only rewarding the conference leader appeals and so does a couple of extra playoff games!

According to Malcolm Conn ... Selectors to drop George Bailey from Australia Test XI in South Africa, Alex Doolan to come in

Interesting points Dave and a good post. I like the set up the NFL have with regards to the seedings but if they changed it, I'd probably reluctantly accept those changes. I like the quirkiness and the luck involved but you could make a case that some wild card teams deserve a higher seeding. There is a heavy emphasis on winning your division in the NFL and I'd hate to see that devalued too much. I'd keep it the way it is if I had any say in the matter (I'm not expecting a call ) Points tally in the "Playoff" comp ... 2 - pantaloons, Strafford, DemonDave, the master, Macca 1 - titan_uranus 0 - Gorgoroth, cowboy from hell And next week's games ... Sunday 8.35am New Orleans at Seattle (OneHD & ESPN) 12.15pm Indianapolis at New England (OneHD & ESPN) Monday 5.05am San Francisco at Carolina (OneHD & ESPN) 8.40am San Diego at Denver (OneHD & ESPN)

Geoffrey is a beauty, P-man. You are right, he's got stuck into a few Aussies previously (especially Nathan Lyon) but when it comes time to give a bit of credit, he often defers to the other teams deficiencies. It's just his style and I'm not sure he likes being too complimentary! But overall, he can be very entertaining (unlike his own batting, of course) But I agree with you, we've played some great cricket and in the process, we haven't allowed them to play very well at all. It's a combination of both factors but Johnson and Haddin have had stellar series'. And ... we've had some fantastic contributions from a number of our other players ... Kudos to Australia! As for England, the group they had that took them to the top has come to an end (they did reach no.1 status a couple of years ago - albeit briefly) They'll need to replace a number of out of form players and a few retirees. Stokes looks a player. ps - and let's not forget "boof" Clarke's captaincy has been top notch (as usual)

49ers deserved to win. Packers put up a great fight but no excuses. Keapernick was again supreme and his plays in the big moments were the key. Otherwise, there wasn't much between the sides. We had to score a TD on our last drive and fell short. Disappointed but not devastated. The better team won the day but the Packers have much to look forward to. Lacy had a great debut year and our young defense will hopefully improve. As long as Rodgers stays fit, we're always a chance. I reckon San Francisco take care of the Panthers next week. Today's game will hold them in good stead.

The following link ... Australia win 5-0 after an emphatic win in Sydney has included in it, a 15 minute video wrap-up of today's play. Brendan Julian and Stuart Clark provide a bit of an overview of the series and there are interviews conducted with Michael Clarke and Mitch Johnson. From an English perspective, here's a "Test Match Special podcast" with Jonathan Agnew and Geoffrey Boycott ... Australia wrap up the series 5-0 after winning the final Test in Sydney. The podcast also includes the presentations and interviews held immediately after the match.

Too right! And for the first time ever, we got to hear the song! Grand performance by all - unbelievable turnaround. Warnie suggested that there should be joint "man of the series" awards (Brad Haddin and Mitch Johnson) I hope they do it as I reckon it's a fitting way to reward both matchwinners.

Saints win! A road win in the playoffs! There's a first. Tense finish and as an Eagles fan, you'd just feel helpless as the Saints set up that winning field goal. Sproles getting to the half way line was clutch on that final drive (albeit with the help of a horse collar penalty) New Orleans now go to Seattle next week whilst the winner of the 49ers/Packers game goes to Carolina. The Saints @ Seahawks game has already been set for 8.35am next Sunday (our time)

... and right on cue, the Eagles score. Saints lead 20-14. Could be a cracking 4th quarter.

Saints getting on top now. Philly have only scored once in nearly 3 quarters - they need to get a hurry on. 20-7 after that TD.

Injuries cruelled you and not having Charles late in the game was a major influence on the ultimate result. Still should have won though. However, we at least know that Luck and the Colts have done this sort of thing on a number of other occasions. If Bowe had somehow got his right foot in bounds on that last drive, you probably win. Fine line. Your team had a terrific year, all the same. Especially from where you were coming from.

Colts hit the lead - unbelievable! 45 - 44. Been a terrific game despite the turnovers. If Luck gets them over the line here, it will be yet another huge comeback win. Still hoping for a KC win despite not picking them. Smith needs to get them in field goal range (at least) That's a good start ...

Another turnover leads to a KC field goal. 41-24. That might be a telling 3pts gained there by the Chiefs.

Game on and there's plenty of time. KC need to score on this drive. 38-24 currently

Yep, agreed. Dominant first half by KC. Alex Smith has been super impressive and Andy Reid's influence stands out. KC look really well prepared. Luck and the Colts have a habit of big comebacks but will the Chiefs let them?

The Charles hit didn't look that bad either - maybe when his head hit the ground? Doesn't seem to be effecting KC's scoring ability though.

Terrible drop by Richardson - now 24-7 and we've just started the 2nd quarter! Alex Smith having a good one

Excellent drive by KC. Hope Charles gets back.

Ha! These 2 weeks of Sunday playoff games are brilliant. Perfect times for the games as well. Kicking off at 8.30am is ideal. I'd keep away from this thread until you've caught up in real time!

Couple of tunes from a couple of female artists from the late 90's. The first from Margaret Urlich followed by a song from Lisa Loeb. Both singers are still active today with Lisa releasing a new album in 2013 called "No Fairy Tale." Margaret, who hails from New Zealand, now lives in Sydney. Both tracks are from their award winning early albums. ("Safety in Numbers" by Margaret and "Tails" from Lisa) Macca 14.0

Opponents for all the teams are out already for the 2014 season! ... NFL opponents (home & away) For those who are unfamiliar with how the scheduling works, the custom is that all the teams from each division plays against all the teams from 2 other divisions (one from the NFC & one from the AFC) Excluding the 6 games against their divisional opponents, 2 extra games are added for each team - these 2 games are against opponents who ended the season in the same finishing position within 2 other divisions (from within each teams own conference) ... eg (4th) Minnesota are drawn against Washington and St Louis (who both finished 4th in their respective divisions) Phew! Here's a summary of all 8 divisions and the 2 divisions that they all play against ... NFC West - NFC East & AFC West NFC North - NFC South & AFC East NFC East - NFC West & AFC South NFC South - NFC North & AFC North AFC North - AFC South & NFC South AFC West - AFC East & NFC West AFC East - AFC West & NFC North AFC South - AFC North & NFC East The BS Report (includes a preview of the upcoming games) We've got 6 posters who have put in their tips so far. Should get 1 or 2 more (I heard Strafford is going for the "Double") So ... the comp is on! Good luck!

Meant to add that the amount of TV viewers could be extremely high for the current Pakistan/Sri Lanka tests (even though the crowd numbers aren't great)

It's an extremely complex situation and one where there are no easy and obvious answers. There are so many factors at play. How much importance do Country's boards place on Test cricket? What about the players from those Countries? Do many of those players follow the money? The general public from those countries - what views do they have? The other 2 forms of the game - how much influence do those 2 variations of the game have on the fans, players and boards? The truth is, in relation to Test cricket, it's only in Australia and England where the crowds are very good and TV viewers are high. Everywhere else, the crowd numbers are often low (and it's been that way for quite some time - way before the advent of t20) England and Australia could be used as a template but can that template work elsewhere? On a positive note, the amount of TV viewers of Test cricket involving India are huge (CA benefit from that - it's why we play India every year) Do the BCCI even care about crowd numbers at the Tests? The money from TV the BCCI gets for it's test matches is astronomical. The West Indies? What happens there? The Kiwi's have never gone to the Tests in their droves. South Africa can't pull great crowds even though they have this great team. Pakistan can't play in their own country and as for Sri Lanka, who knows? I could go on for paragraphs here but it doesn't necessarily lead anywhere.

This, from former New Zealand fast bowler, Iain O'Brien ... The strange beast called confidence