Macca

8 & 9 might win the NFC North! In other news the Eagles, Bills, Chiefs, Ravens, 49ers, Falcons, Cowboys & Dolphins could all create separation soon enough ... maybe even the Bucs, Ravens & Browns as well Jags & Lions, Rams will be thereabouts and should bounce back And there's a few that could battle long seasons!

Saints Chiefs Chargers

@Clintosaurus @DeeSpencer @Dee Zephyr Don't forget your tips

Of course it is layz Up until now I wasn't buying into all the talk about favouritism and the old boys club but enough is enough. I should have made the switch years ago But it needed a blatant example and we just got it. Anyone who thinks we're on fair ground is where I was for years

So the king hit by the thug is a football act this year but next year it won't be a football act And they wonder why we don't trust anything they've got to say

I see Whately did a complete about-face, as did Maher At first both were looking for guilt and indeed, both found fault ... but once the verdict was handed down, both fell into line with the group-think. Weak as [censored] Patronisingly telling Melbourne supporters to move on

The Byron Pickett type bump on defenceless players went on for years before the league acted. Never mind that a player could have ended up in a wheelchair anytime whilst the glut of deliberate bumps to the head went on (and yes, I'm aware that Pickett played for us) Laura Kane is talking about closing the loophole at the end of the season with the type of king hit that we witnessed but why not now? Simple reason ... they'd be therefore having to admit that the thug did the wrong thing and should have got weeks (in other words, it's too soon) As to whether it happens again? There's a fair chance it will happen again and it could be Maynard as the perpetrator again. After all, they've said that he had no case to answer for so why not continue?

I reckon when he kicked it, it was to a 1 on 1 ... and JVR then created separation Do that enough times and you'll kick a good score. So Gus' option to kick long was a good option Besides which, a player kicking the ball anytime, in any direction, should not be king hit There's been far too much onus put on what Gus could have done instead. And all that is totally irrelevant The thug lined Gus up and took him out with a king hit (which he has done before, 3 years ago) (and copped weeks)

The word around the traps is that up to 20 current players are part of one class action and that Gus might be one of those 20 players So why would a governing body go into bat for someone who is suing them? Especially if they know that they will be paying out 10's of $Millions regardless

Because the prosecution wasn't interested in challenging anything Read the transcript for proof ... disinterest from the prosecution is the best word to describe what went on The tribunal had already made up their minds before the hearing had even started (almost certainly under instruction from high up) And no appeal for such a heiness act? The most violent act this season goes unpunished? The sad part is that any number of neutral supporters have no problem with what the thug did. Baffling actually (maybe they want the biffo back like the 70's & 80's?)

He was kicking to a 1 on 1 much like we did in the '21 finals series. Which is perfectly ok given the circumstances Anyway, what's that got to do with Gus being king hit? Not pointing the finger at you but the victim blaming that is going on is stunning Quite obviously, the thug did the wrong thing and that's all there is to it

All that is irrelevant anyway Maynard did what he did and that's where it starts and finishes How about 'What if Maynard didn't take out a defenceless player?' Have you ever seen a player take out a player in similar circumstances when playing? And by the way, Maynard has form. He received a 2 week penalty for committing the same offence a few years ago (curiously, that prior suspension wasn't mentioned in the tribunal hearing. Or the umpires report) As Redleg said, it's a stitch up Correct The dividends alone can amount to at least $12Million per annum and that fugure can vary. You can't fight City Hall The only way for a fair deal is to become a big club ourselves. And that's easier said than done

I'm not sure the defence at the tribunal was of high standard either ... maybe 5/10 But the prosecution was quite pathetic. They really didn't say anything and it did not look like they were looking for guilt at all 0/10 And why was the make-up of the tribunal personnel changed at the last moment? Were they placed there to get the desired result? To say they were soft would be understating things

Yes, we were led to believe that Laura overuled Christian with the backing of Gil & Dillon and then sending the thug to the tribunal But what we didn't know was that the fix was on. It was all a ruse much like the thugs violent actions But then no prosection of any substance, lame questioning of the perpetrator and token references to the plight of the concussed victim etc etc The AFL hierarchy should have been horrified (Laura, Gil & Dillon) So what did they do? Nothing apart from a bs summary and no appeal. At the very least, they had to be disatisfied with the tribunal's prosecution. So why not get a 2nd opinion? They let themselves down extremely badly in terms of addressing the most violent act we've seen on the field this season

At Buffalo this week. Touch road game, SS

And a good start for all of us is to not watch Footy Classified tonight ... that smug [censored] will be in his element so I have no wish to destroy my TV

In the past Gleeson has ordinarily made any number of pointed remarks to the accused often with an undercurrent of guilt (or at least trying to make the perpetrator feel guilty) There was none of that last night. In fact it was what he didn't say that jumped out at me. And Woods was close to completely useless When considering the victim was knocked out cold for 2 minutes, Gleeson's & Woods attitudes were nothing short of callous

@layzie @Gorgoroth @JV7 @DeeSpencer @Go the Biff @titan_uranus @BDA @Dr. Gonzo @Clintosaurus @DemonDave @Dee Zephyr @Dappa Dan @SthSea22 We play for 1 point only this week but a bonus point is on offer for the creative types Niners 7.5 point favs at the Rams? Leaderboard Tipping Comp 2 - DemonDave, Go the Biff, Dr. Gonzo, layzie, Clintosaurus 0 - Everyone else 🤔

Unbelievable that the media didn't bring this up and that it wasn't used as evidence (priors) Yep, so the umpire who reported the thug on the day wasn't called for his testimony Possibly the worst prosection by the tribunal ever. Nearly everything about this whole sorry episode is wrong Most of it just beggars belief. Especially the amount of non filth supporters who think the thug did nothing wrong So the talk from these thug sympathisers is that next year the same act will carry a 3 or 4 week penalty In summary ... So apparently he's done nothing wrong but if he does the same thing next year he gets a month suspension Makes zero sense

Dillon & Kane now official members of the old boys club. Never to be trusted ever again The most violent act on the footy field this season goes unpunished

I don't believe Brayshaw was doing anything other than kicking the ball deep forward ... and to do that he had to move naturally to his right for maximum effect (power & distance in the kick) He probably saw Maynard at the last moment but probably wasn't expecting Maynard to cannon into him ... as was happens a stack of times during the course of a game

No, not legal anymore I believe. Anyway, the 30 second clock put paid to that idea anyway

Well, in the end, if the tribunal has a modicum of sense, they would have realised that Brayshaw has no choice but to move to his right when kicking It seems to me that Maynard was found not guilty on a technicality when an overall technicality should have incriminated him We only got half the story on the biomechanics

Further to the above, the tribunal members are strongly intimating that Gus shouldn't have moved to the right in the kicking action but that natural movement is all that he could do They have to appeal just on that vital piece of information. But here's the problem ... some people who have watched the game for decades don't understand the biomechanics so will those high up at the AFL know that the biomechanic's info was flawed

You need to understand the biomechanics of kicking a football When kicking long and straight on the run for a right foot kicker, to get power through the kick, the body has to lean and/or move to the right otherwise the kicker is unbalanced Same story for kicking on the left (think Buddy) And most importantly, all footballers know this including Maynard So knowing that Gus was going to lean or move right, Maynard lined him up accordingly I'm actually astonished that the tribunal didn't rebuke the biomechanist but maybe like a lot of people, they just don't get it You don't have to have played footy to know the above, simply observing is enough They also missed the stutter step as pointed out by @Ouch! here a few days ago A totally shoddy effort from the tribunal all round ... they were shown up to be rank amateurs. Or they probably just failed in their duties by design Footnote: For place kicks in other sports the kicker (if a right footer) approaches from behind, from the left moving to the right ... they never come from directly behind