Macca

What's the go with Fritsch? Is he at full training and ready to go? I'm in favour of managing a few especially if we can't move from 4th but Fritsch needs match practice if available

Cutting to the chase, the game needs 4 goal umpires for starters and state of the art technology to help the goal umpires If the AFL do that, the angst will subside As things stand, we can almost bank on another controversial goal line moment and that could decide a final

That's right and I wasn't having a go at you anyway The point is that the review system is farcical so we can't expect correct results... it's in the lap of the gods So with the Petracca kick (and other numerous examples) the review process was inclusive either way And the review process (if used) in the Crows/Swans game could easily have been inconclusive as well and they might have stayed with the soft call The system we have in place is garbage and because of that, it can't be relied it We don't know what we're going to get. Grainy video, how many angles? It's a joke of a system And the goal umpire is out of position because he has to get out of the way of the milling players (or risk getting crushed) In the Crows game and with regards to the shot at goal, the umpire isn't even in the picture because he can't be. He can't stand next to the post as that's the players domain By contrast, the players have to get out of the way of the field umpires (or risk getting reported)

But the review process is farcical with shoddy technology. So we'll be waiting around for skewed results There will be no consistency and confusion will reign supreme At a guess, I reckon I've seen about 50 reviews and nearly every time I'm none the wiser on what the correct outcome should be

If the Gold Coast can build an above average off-field crew to surround Hardwick, he and their team will have a chance If he has to build the club up on his own, that's problematical. Just hanging on to their young talent is a task in itself O'Neil, Gale, Balme & Caracella were as much a part of Richmond's rise to success as Hardwick was. Not forgetting Dustin Martin and his 3 Norm Smith medals A 6 year deal? Is part of the contract including the new caveat that only a 6 month payout is required upon dismissal?

How on earth can the AFL justify not having their own GM of football? And how long has it been now?

The technology around the goal line could be so sophisticated that we'd have no need for goal umpires at all (so instead of sacking them, they'd become surplus to needs - at the highest level) Cricket is heading that way and we've seen certain types of adjudicators become obsolete because of technology (tennis linespeople etc) Soccer linespeople only flag the obvious off-sides I believe? Otherwise they let the play go and let VAR decide But as someone else here mentioned, the cost might be the reason that the AFL are using such a shabby system currently You get what you pay for

You're not suggesting that the AFL likes to remain in the news 24/7 by keeping the punters yabbering on about issues that could be resolved? haha There are conspiracy theories and then there are factual occurances (repeated ad nauseum)

Excellent points and well researched, SD My observation of the double chance for finishing 4 is that more and more supporters view that opportunity not as a fail-safe (if the QF is lost) but as a real chance to win the QF and therefore have a much greater chance of playing in a GF Because as soon as a QF is lost, a feeling of dread emerges. You get a 2nd chance but that pathway means that a PF berth means you're up against a well rested opponent (if you get that far) So personally, I view the QF as a must win

So tennis linespeople no longer get abused. Why? Because by and large, they no longer exist because of the tracking technology (apart from clay court tournaments) Cricket umpires are now more like orderly's (effectively) VAR in soccer day by day is now being accepted by even the strongest opponents of said technology. Sooner or later, 98% of soccer fans will live with it and most will embrace Numerous other sports have gone ahead in leaps and bounds embracing technology So what do we do in the AFL? ... we hang on to a 19th century style of thinking and sack goal umpires to satisfy our bloodlust

I'd fix the system first ... 2 goal umpires at each end of the ground backed up by a sophisticated goal line camera system (with a chip in the footy to make sure whether the footy has been touched or not) See how that goes and then maybe have 1 or 2 captains call's I'm actually surprised we haven't seen a lot more goal umpiring errors ... but what we have seen are a lot of referrals. Which should tell us something about the lack of surity of the adjudications In other words, if the goal umpires are unsure of the obvious, there lies the problem (system issue)

The umpire in question has almost certainly made similar calls when not in the right position to do so. And probably got it right on most occasions, if not every time But the AFL asks him to make judgement calls under duress so therefore, mistakes are going to occur. It stands to reason So it's an impossible situation where the umpire has been shunted away from the correct position through no fault of his own We've got our pound of flesh but the problem will remain Nothing has been solved because the next time we see a mass of bodies near the goal line, the goal umpire will probably be in the wrong position to make the correct call Some would call it a toxic environment but because of the universal hatred of umpires in general, we prefer to blame the a-end of a major problem

So we once again are blaming the a-end of a problem So goal umpires have to make decisions in completely chaotic situations and we want exact results? Ludicrous The goal umpires cannot consistently get into the correct position to adjudicate correctly (for obvious reasons) There's often a mass of bodies where the one goal umpire should be ... how do you fix that? For a start, there should be 2 goal umpires and maybe even 4 at each end if points scraping in near the behind posts are to be adjudicated correctly And then backed up by a state of the art camera system, VAR style Also, the football should have a chip in it so as to see the balls actual path The AFL are cashed up to their eyeballs so why are we still asking goal umpires to adjudicate in 19th century type conditions. It's insane The goal umpire in question should be given a written apology, not sacked It's pure amateur hour once again

The AFL might try and make the pathway easier for those teams finishing 5th to 8th but I'm not sure how you would do that without compromising the system we have now However, we might see more EF winners reach the PF as the years go on For instance, I can possibly see Carlton winning 2 finals and maybe even GWS as well as long as they actually make the 8 Right now, there's not that much between all the finalists as compared to other seasons

Also, in that final 4 system, the winner of the first semi got a 2 week break before playing the loser of the 2nd semi (who only got a 1 week break in comparison) The overall results indicate that winning the 2nd semi was a big advantage And with the final 8, the QF has over time become an extremely important game to win In the modern game, fresh legs, rest and recovery is a big deal in our sport but perhaps it always has been Just history repeating itself, SD?

8 goals from JVR, Smith & Melksham is more than reasonable especially with Fritsch to be added (sooner or later)

@Redleg A very nice run by Pinstriped and running 2nd to a proven G1 performer in Mr Brightside is an achievement in itself ... an excellent ride by Ben Allen to tail the winner throughout I had a good day thanks to David Gately's tips ... why bother reading the form when Gator can do it for you?!

Carlton won from 4th in 1945, Essendon in 1949 & 1965 won from 4th and Richmond in 1969 won from 4th And no team ever won from 3rd until we entered the final 5 era in 1972

Interesting stat from the past Under the old final 4 system (which ran from 1931 until 1971) no team that finished 3rd ever won the premiership Yet at least a couple of teams won the flag under that system from 4th position And North won their first 2 premierships from 3rd place under the final 5 system (which came into operation in 1972)

I distinctly remember hearing the saying back in the 70's and it might have started then (or perhaps it goes back a long way) So it's at least 50 years old and I reckon the connection relates to the leading full forward and those who passed to that player in that position

Well, you push the envelope but don't cross the line Lyon has twice rested 8 or 9 players on the eve of finals. Brad Scott did the same To me, it's not about resting players, more so avoiding any more injuries As it stands, Fritsch is still out and we've run out of tall forwards who can impact games (good luck Smithy!)

If Port beat Freo the odds are that we'll be finishing 4th so whoever finishes 1st or 2nd will be what it is So the chances are that win or lose, we will probably finish 4th (if Port win their last 2 and the Lions beat the Saints) There might be an upset result which would therefore change everything. Mine is a hypothetical where any resting of players is dependant on how the other results go By the last Sunday of the season we'll know what we have to do (or not do) First of all, we need to beat the Hawks

The point is do we want to risk imjury to any of our best players in a dead rubber? (if the Swans game is a dead rubber) And people are the same all over especially when it comes to winning at all costs

So is Harley Reid a potential difference-maker like Gawn, Petracca or Oliver? If so, take the punt and secure the player. We might have to pay overs with regards to draft picks but that's the price you have to pay We're a team in contention so to make that an ongoing feature, adding a star enhances our attributes Why fall out of the window?

Well, good to have to you back, Wyl When it's all said and done, we all barrack for the same footy team @cowboy_from_hell used to say the same thing all the time and he was right By the way, he was the OP of that infamous thread ... "Relax, we've got this"