Lucifers Hero

I guess they base their case on Cairns being used during the 2020 covid hubs and the Saints play a game there so it is 'fit for purpose' from a playing point of view. But in a way Cairns helps us. iirc we were slaughted there by Sydney in 2020 because of the rain and the wind...sounds just like Casey😉 Not sure how much advantage they get in Carins. The only difference would be is they fly for two hours and we fly for four. Terrible for the AFLW comp if the AFL hide the GF in some aussie rules 'back-water'. Someone, should remind Brisbane they won top spot by one point. Hardly the resounding right to host the GF. And they have played a GF at Ikon. Marvel is a neutral ground, sort of. If they want a very neutral venue perhaps the SCG. They will get the 'anti' Melbourne (the city) rivalry fans.

Thanks for all the awesome work, Kev! 👏

I dpn't get why Brisbane want Cairns or Townsville. Sure they are in Qld but the flight to Melbourne is the same or shorter. We/North would have a longer flight but not sure its much of an advantage for them. At least in Melbourne they would get a decent amount of fans rather than neither team have any fan support. Can't see how it gives them any sort of 'Home' advantage. But they are spending a lot of energy thinking about it which might be a good thing.

As the 'auto' pay memberships have rolled over is it time to start the 2023 thread? The club website is still showing the 2022 figure but it can only be a matter of time before the 2023 figures appear.

I had thought that if a certain number of clubs (3?) ask the AFL to invite a player to the first night (ie round one) they would be invited. But that could have changed post covid. Twomey would be more up to date than yours truly. His comment on Jefferson suggests there hasn't been enough high level interest whichever way the AFL determines the invitees. Not sure about night 2.

I was referring to Brownlow betting especially game bets but take your point about it going underground. But if the mainstream on-line betting agencies, that advertise on every AFL related media don't offer it how many people are going to seek the illegal ones out? Anyway an expert panel was silly suggestion by Thomas.

I can't read the whole article but at the risk of taking the wrong interpretation of it, I don't see how that would stop the same thing happening. 5 people would know who got the votes for that game. 5 people who could tip off mates to make the same bets Pell's did. At least with the umpires there are only 3 people involved who have some level of ethics to uphold, albeit there has now been a breach. A panel of experts would have almost no level of ethics to uphold no bond to secrecy and probably less trustworthy. More risk with no gain with Thomas's suggestion. Just stop game by game Brownlow betting. Keep it to the winner/placings. Better still get rid of the betting altogether!

In his podcast Twomey with Nat Edwards, he said Jefferson hasn't been invited to the first night of the draft so is unlikely to go in the first dozen. He also mentioned it is unlikely there will be swaps involving top 10 or even first round picks.

Based on those 'selections' our #37 nominally goes out to #42. Lions might have to use all their #30+ picks to get Ashcroft. So our pick might come back in a bit. Sub #40 is not where JT likes to draft from... Those selections suggest the Lions will be desperately short of points. Will have to dip into 2023/swap some 2023 picks for 2022

Thanks for that. I listened up to our pick #13. 'Shifter' had Jefferson going to WCE in the pick before ours to replace Kennedy. Toomey then said he would have taken Jefferson if on the board but will go for Allen.

Big penalty for being naive and stupid. As always with the AFL the penalty is not for the misdeed but is for being caught. Lord knows how many other not-above-board betting on AFL games/events people get away with because they are smart enough to camouflage their misdeeds and not get caught.

How the deed was done/discovered: "...one betting agency was alerted to a punter or punters placing bets on players’ votes in different matches and winning every time...By the end of the count, a red flag was beside his name...The league...then cross-checked the betting patterns with other betting partners and found the same individual/s placing similar bets. Subsequent cross-checking on the games themselves then reportedly showed Pell as the one constant. The Age reported bets ranged in size, all the way up to several thousand dollars". brownlow-medal-betting-scandal Pell's gambling 'mates' seem very naive in how betting agencies track recurring/unusual betting patterns and not very good at covering their tracks. Pell was stupid to give them the info. If it was that simple or just once he could plead ignorance. But going on the above it was for 'different matches' and if he got a share of the winnings he is in for a very torrid time.

I assume the thread relates to this: four-men-arrested-over-suspicious-brownlow-medal-betting "The investigation, alongside Sport Integrity Australia and the AFL, has focused on the illegal release of umpire votes from matches through the home-and-away season. Victoria Police alleged in a statement that a person with knowledge of the voting tally distributed the information to a group of people known to them". It may not have been an umpire.

I saw it but still don't get it...🤔

Me too. @NascentI didn't get the connection nor the joke...🤔 Would love to know what 'Stanley Bruce' meant...

Thanks @Timothy Reddan-A'Blewthat was quite a challenge. I was lucky I fluked the 'Roman Numerals' connection early in the game. Once I knew the answer it was amazing how many clues I had missed in your posts. Very clever, 'Tim'. Thanks for your work!👏

Simmonds. The MM (2000) was the year he played in a GF.

For sure, LILy would be Captain of his Roamin AFLW team. I'LL settle for VIce! I know of at least two CC (Cryptic Crossword) fans on DL @Demonstone@WalkingCivilWarwho might like to find the code🙃 I'm sure there are others!

Just browsed this thread again,. With the wisdom of knowing the answer believe it or not you are on the right track!! @Timothy Reddan-A'Blewapologies if I have hijacked your Sunday morning clue 'unleashing'.

Hey 'Tim', is it time to give a 'cryptic' clue?😉

Unfortunately, the AFL haven't published a list of the nominated NGA players. All we have is snippets from the media for a couple of the more high profile ones. Last year I couldn't find a pre-draft reference of our intention to nominate AM-W but at some stage we did. I'm wondering if the same has happened with FE-B... If we do want him we have several options to fit him into the list by changing the mix of the number of senior and rookie players.

Yes, I encourage all to submit what may appear to be 'obscure guesses' because they may just be right. And not so obscure once it is confirmed.

Thank you but I'm in shock!! My 'guess' seemed so obscure I thought twice about sending it to avoid embarrassing myself, even in private!

A somewhat similar article to some above: draft-preview-homesick-players It seems more and more players are making their club preferences known in the lead up to the draft, In addition to the 'go home' factor, the 'New Gen' is an interesting development for all draftees but perhaps more so with those from i/state: NEW-GEN, NEW RULES? "...At the risk of sounding too philosophical, some clubs believe players in their adolescence in 2022 have, on average, less patience than those of those in prior generations.... ...Young players struggling to get a senior game early in their career may already be getting impatient, but that impatience is only amplified when the avenues for fresh starts are, as mentioned, continuously growing. Couple that with the fact clubs will traditionally offer more money to get a player out and it once again becomes a perfect storm for movement." Certainly a chance for some sliders in this draft with a few highly rated SA and WA draftees but Adelaide, Port and Freo not having a draft pick inside #30 (at this stage). Will the Vic clubs be shy about taking them too highly or let them slide?

I noted that rule for Keeler, an NGA, in my earlier post. MM is a F/S so can be matched at any pick.