Macca

Cost 'em at least 3 points ... might come back to haunt them at the end of the game. Only saw the hit on Brady once but it may well have been helmet to helmet ... if that penalty was called, they would have been very close to the end zone. The refs might be letting things go today

Panic throw from Brady?

Too good was Novak ... a worthy champion. That's 5 Aussie opens and 8 grand slam tournaments overall. He's made 2 of the last 3 French finals so he might be able to get at least one of those in the future (Nadal is going for his 10th this year - that's just too many )

Yep, he just fell in a hole ... beware the (supposed) injured athlete hey?

It's a very hard match to predict. Maybe whoever wins this set wins the match ... but who knows?

Well, that was some 2nd set ... we could be here for quite some time.

I've tipped Seattle for a few reasons I stated a few posts back but I'd also like them to win so as to reinforce to the Packers as to what they've missed out on ... in a way that might help Green Bay to be doubly determined for next season. I know a lot of people don't like Seattle's "in your face" style but that stuff doesn't bother me. I like the way their defense often acts as another form of offense.

Yep, it is. And the way the QB's are protected now, they'll have even better numbers to stake their claim. Not saying that Aaron wasn't a worthy winner though - he was almost certainly the best of the QB's. Romo had a very good year - probably his best year in fact. Sharing the accolades around ... there's a lot of categories now. How about the most disappointed fan award? Or worst coach? I'd have a couple of candidates for those 2 would be awards

Well, thanks Al ... don't get me wrong, if we compared Dunn's year with what has happened previously, his form was a major step in the right direction. I saw him running the tan in blistering heat on his own last January and was very impressed ... my first thought was he didn't have to be doing it if he didn't want to. But getting back to having enough very good players, there's a lot of upside with a number on our list. I'm willing to bet that at least 3 or 4 players will step it up to becoming very good or better this season ... I don't know who the 3 or 4 are though I'm really hoping it's Hogan, TMac, Jamar & Viney. That takes care of the power forward (or key forward), Key back, Ruck and another midfielder. Vince and Cross are thereabouts as well (that would give us a total of 5 very good mids) If Garlett rediscovers his form, all the better. Don't like relying on small forwards though. If all that happens, we'll be on our way.

Sometimes a team just 'clicks' and before you know it, the final 8 is within reach. I'm not suggesting that we'll achieve that this season but there's a fine line between 9/10 wins and 7th or 8th spot. My discussions over the years with people who have teams in contention nearly always centres around how many very good (or better) players that team has. It's a bit formulated but it's amazing the correlation between wins coupled with top players. Take the Tigers for example ... if Maric, Reiwoldt, Martin, Deledio, Cotchin, Ellis & Rance are all playing well, they can win games ... if 2 or 3 of those 7 players are injured or aren't playing well, they struggle. With us, only N Jones & Tyson had very good seasons last year ... Cross missed too many games and Vince & Dunn nearly made it. Those 5 players were the top 5 in the B&F as well and I reckon the match committee got it right.

Yeah, well done ... Rodgers got the MVP but JJ Watt can count himself very unlucky. I think if the Texans had have made the playoffs, he might have got it. Big honour for Bridgewater though.

Depends on your definition of very good (or brilliant) I thought Dunn was good only (by league standards) Mine is just an opinion though Al, the list I made is not meant to be a definitive, accurate list. The premise of my argument is that we need at least 8 very good players (all playing well) in order to win games on a consistent basis - it's not really about any one individual. Footy is more of a team game than it's ever been but a team still needs a number of very good players (or stars) if that team is going to contend.

If at least 8 of our players all have a very good year (or better), we'll win 9/10+ games. In the last 8 years, we've never gone close to having at least 8 players who have all had a very good season. Without good players, it's hard to win (no matter who is coaching) I know that sounds rather obvious but it's often better to look at how things work rather than getting caught up in too much hope. So ... who are the 8 who can all have a very good season? (just being "good" doesn't really cut it - if one was to go through any of the top sides, it's not that hard to find at least a dozen very good players on their respective lists) I'll list 15 "possibles ... it's highly doubtful that any more than 8 will have a very good year (but it is possible) N Jones Tyson Viney Hogan T McDonald Salem* Dunn* Toumpas* Jamar Watts* Lumumba Cross Vince Garland* Jetta* *might only get to be 'good' only (for this season) I've left a lot of players out but I'm not sure any of those who are left out can achieve 'very good' status (yet)

and here it is ...

are grinners

A top strike too ... it might open up at the back now (or in the last half of the 2nd half)

The back of his elbow was hit was it not? It was an unusual knock and I'm not sure about the length of time for recovery. If it's like a corky, he should be fine. Apparently he didn't train yesterday because of an unrelated back injury but who knows? They'll need him, that's for sure.

I'm on call Monday but I'm hoping not to get that call I've been invited to a couple of functions but can't commit unfortunately. Every year is different ... for a long time I had every Monday off and that situation may eventuate again in the future. If I'm off I'll probably be posting here ... otherwise, trying to avoid the scores might prove a little tricky.

It's not just Essendon supporters who are being appeased ... a large percentage of non Essendon supporters are (or at least have been) in protective mode. That thinking is changing but from the get-go the outrage was coming from a loud (ish) minority. If this was the Chinese swimming team, Bulgarian weightlifters, road cyclists, Russian middle distance runners or American sprinters, the condemnation would have been widespread from most Australians right from the very start (in my opinion) The media would have reflected that thinking. The Melbourne media know deep down that Aussie rules fans don't want this issue and they'd prefer if it all just went away. Now, we as individual demon fans might think differently but do we speak on behalf of the large majority? As usual, the media are telling the large majority what they want to hear. The brand has been protected for the most part and too many have too many vested interests for there to be widespread condemnation. Most people I spoke to when this whole issue came out were defensive and were basically dismissing the issue. Now, after slowly changing their minds, they're sick of hearing about it. The Americans think in much the same way about their major sports (with regards to PED's) Their 4 big sports are almost certainly rife with PED use but they'd rather not know about it. The same could be said about soccer ... people are much the same all over. Hopefully the whole truth will eventually surface but I'm not sure that will happen.

Well we're going to get at least 4 sets but I'm tipping it goes 5. Could be a classic. 1 set all but the 2nd set to Wawrinka was perhaps more impressive.

Everyone's on the Pats it seems ... I just reckon the Seahawks will take advantage of an opportunity that they may have thought had slipped away from them (until the Packers gifted them a berth) I'm also thinking that this whole furore about 'deflategate' has got to have had an effect on the Patriots. And, ... if there's any truth to the controversy, then playing with fully inflated footballs might be a disadvantage for New England. They rarely fumble the football and I can just imagine the thinking if they fumble one early Defense often wins out in these sort of games and if the Seahawks bring it, they'll win.

Seattle 23 Patriots 21

Roos might try playing 2 specialist ruckmen ... we really do need a 3rd marking target (option) in the forward line and it might have to be Jamar. We'll probably go with Pedersen as the 2nd ruck/utility but that's not an ideal situation if we're looking to have a strong advantage over the opposition. If Gawn can hold down the ruck position for 70% of a game, Jamar could then be used as a big bodied forward as either a decoy or as a go-to man when the situation arises. However, Gawn needs to improve his forward line play if the above scenario was to be put in place on a regular basis. He doesn't use his height properly in marking contests ... it's never too late for him to learn though. In case of injury, Spencer is the back-up but he might come on more this year ... big blokes normally need a bit more time in the system and in the case of rucking, they need a proper opportunity. Reserves form is not always a good guide with regards to the ruck position.

Teams run the risk of getting smashed if they did that The truth is that good ruckmen nullify each other and without a good one, teams can often get exposed. Once a team gets a mismatch in their favour in the ruck they then have a greater opportunity to tap the ball to their own advantage. ... and I still believe it's too early to make an accurate judgement call on Gawn or Spencer ... neither have enough exposed form and both need a good run at it for that judgement to happen. Jamar is still the standout - he's not great but he still competes very well (in the ruck)

Yeah, Japan going out the way they did was the shock of the tournament ... their coach may be removed as a consequence. Golden opportunity for the Aussies - I reckon we'll go on and win it now. In other news ... from the 'Mirror' ... Chelsea 2-4 Bradford: Blues crash out of FA Cup as Bantams run riot at Stamford Bridge ... highlights Manchester City 0-2 Middlesbrough match report: FA Cup shock as Premier League champions dumped out ... highlights Spurs also crashed out whilst Liverpool could only draw.