corowa

Cricket does not now get the TV coverage that it once received. I can remember seeing regular reports and even live coverage of Sheffield Shield matches. This doesn't happen now. How many of us could name the best players in each State team, or which ones are pushing for national selection? And when less cricket is shown live on TV interest in the game will dwindle considerably. Recent on field bloopers and general boorish sledging do little to enhance the once popular sport.

What a huge difference a few wins makes. Add increased skills and a much more positive supporter confidence and you've got, for the first time in years, a 'destination' club. We can attract 'top' players, the likes of Gaff and Sloane who would slot straight into the team. Gone are the days of hoping we can 'jag' a couple of 'depth' players at other clubs who might, but probably won't, cut the mustard. We are joining the Geelongs and Hawthorns who couldn't care less about the annual draft and who have simply waited for 'lesser' clubs to develop young talent before plundering them. How sweet it is!

Obviously Adelaide don't have a memory as long as mine. The mongrels pinched Scott Thompson when he was just hitting his straps with us. No suggestions from them that he was a traitor for leaving us. And I wonder what they think about Gibbs going to them from Carlton.

Knowing that if they're playing well at Casey they will get their chance. There's bound to be injuries or loss of form. Hawthorn, Geelong and other 'successful' teams seem to be able to keep 'fringe' players. Part of a successful club culture I guess.

I watched Rodney Grinter hand out more than a few 'punishments' over several years. Whilst 'stupid' behaviour, we still loved him and appreciated the intense pressure he applied.

If it wasn't a former MFC champion we wouldn't be having this discussion. The few times I turned them on their inane, childish and uninteresting topics of conversation were interspersed between long segments of advertisements. Having said that, the method of their dismissal was disgusting.

One surprising absentee from the list is Jim Stynes. I would think that his revolutionary ruck style, incredible endurance and the number of successive games he strung together, would earn him a place on the list. Of course winning a Brownlow in a landslide would also point to this.

An inform Max Gawn gives our midfielders a great chance of gaining clearances from centre bounces, boundary throw ins and ball ups. You don't give up an advantage like this. We don't have many! Sign him up. Quickly!

You've picked a great team, Big Carl. For what it's worth my team is as follows: B M Whelan D Hughes S Wight HB B Lovett G Hardeman S Woewodin C R Flower B Wilson S Tingay HF G Lyon D Schwarz L Jurrah F J Farmer D Neitz A Jakovich R J White J Stynes T Viney Int G Wells S Alves A Johnson N Jones E A Yze Ger Healy S Febey B Green

I wonder if the perceived 'poor' pick 31 for Jack Watts might have been influenced just a tad by Jones and significant others coming out and listing his weaknesses? Didn't make any sense to me as a wise strategy at the time. Still doesn't.

14 pages of comments on Harley Balic is incredible. How many games has he played at Fremantle? Just as well we're not expecting an Ablett or a Dangerfield.

We are a sad lot! With all respect to young Balic, he's hardly a household name at Freo, as indicated by the number of games he's played for them. I look at the players linked to other, more successful clubs, and shake my head in wonder. Apart from Lever - and what a great get he will be, if we get him - we are still not a destination club.

I can't for the life of me understand why Jones, Goodwin and Mahoney would make negative comments about Watts if they intend to get rid of him. It's a bit like putting an ad in the paper if you're selling your car. 'Clutch slipping, engine running on 3 cylinders, brakes dodgy.'

Fair enough, MW. Collingwood die-hards might not agree with you. I guess I'm more of a sentimentalist. I'm old. I attended the 1964 grand final. I liked the 'good old days'. But each to his own.

With his name, and I don't mean Sam, would he ever be satisfied or allowed to play with ease at a club other than Collingwood? It just doesn't seem right. My 10 year old grandson is in a similar position, regarding name. His other grandfather played in five winning grand finals for Melbourne. This little bloke gets around with grandfather's number on his Guernsey. I'd hate to think he might play at a club other than Melbourne, should he make the grade

I have no doubt that our recruiters have 'crawled over broken glass' to try to get 'quality' players to MFC, and they might yet do so, though it's starting to look unlikely. The sad truth is that as a team, we offer less chance of on-field success than do nearly all other clubs. Given this we are an unattractive destination that would likely appeal only to those who could be paid well in excess of what they'd get at another club, those who are unlikely to get a regular game at their existing club, or masochists. We have few players who would 'walk in to top sides' to use for trades, and if we traded them we could possibly be worse off. Any good young players we have can be 'poached' by the successful clubs under the guise of free agency after we have developed them. The only likely way to entice a club to part with a 'gun' is to offer ridiculous compensation, such as picks 2 and 3 for one player. Though with our history of disappointing draftees, this might not be so ridiculous. Sylvia & McLean one year, Scully & Trengove another, are just some of our mediocre choices.

With our luck this could very well happen this time next year.

How can 'successful' clubs offer 'big bucks' to 'steal' good players from other clubs? Unless, of course, that these 'big bucks' are in brown paper bags of the kind notoriously associated with dubious politicians. How can the Hawthorns of the competition keep most of their players, when many would be paid only a fraction of what they would get if they went to clubs like MFC? Does on field 'success' provide greater and longer inducement than 'wealth'? Not for the likes of Ablett and Scully and perhaps Franklin. 'Top' clubs don't need to rely on top draft picks, they have a much more reliable system available to them - it's called 'free agency'. All they have to do is sit back and wait for 'weak' clubs to recruit and develop top young talent and then plunder them with offers of providing a winning and successful environment. It is reported that Geelong could get Frawley and Clark to add to Rivers. How would we look with Taylor, Hawkins and Stevie J in our team? And how would Geelong look without them? Free agency? It will destroy many teams and create a two tier competition, if it hasn't already done this. Hawthorn have won 53 of 66 'home and away' matches in the last three years. We have won 10 and lost 56. Is it any wonder that many of us give up in disgust.

Didn't Robinson contemptuously state that we were 'bruise free'? Would he want to play with 'pansies'? I wonder what those who claim that we wouldn't want Lumumba because he is a '[censored]' would think of getting Robinson? When you talk of [censored] there are [censored] and then there's Robinson!

Is Clark still on our list? I ]f so, then how can he just 'walk' to another club? Could you imagine a club like Collingwood let him do it? The media would already be full of their threats.

I'm beginning to think that the possibility of immediate success might be as much of a lure as big salary. Whatever it is, 'top' clubs continue to become stronger while the lesser lights flounder. Look at Hawthorn in recent years. Key backs were missing so they 'recruit' Gibson and Lake. They were poor in the ruck division they get Hale and McEvoy. They had no early draft selections but they have heaps of appeal to players at unsuccessful clubs. In the mean time we'll get all excited about 3rd grade rejects from other clubs. The AFL needs to fix this up before we become a two tier competition that few of us from 'weaker' clubs will attend.

I feel that the club must take a strong stand against the stupidity of last night's decision, regardless of the whether there is little or no chance of having the decision changed. It is an outrage, and meekly accepting it would go against the grain of everything we have gained since the appointment of Paul Roos. We need to stand up and be counted. With the wide support of the football public the AFL would have to be seriously embarrassed by the whole thing. Could you imagine Eddie accepting such an outcome if it was a Collingwood player? When you compare this with the elbows to the head dished out by Gibson and several others last week that 'got off', it shows how farcical the whole judicial process is.

You're a nicer bloke than I am, Pates. I said when he defected that he was not good enough to break into Freo's midfield and, so far, I've been right. A pox upon, I say. His run at Freo so far is much deserved. and may it long continue.

I'm proud to say that Tiger Ridley was a close friend of mine. With 130 games (until cut down with a knee injury) including 5 grand final wins, his record is one that few players will ever match. In relation to great rovers at MFC, I would suggest that Frank (Bluey) Adams would have been as good as any. Des Healey and Collingwood fans might not agree.

Ian (Tiger) Ridley once told me how he came to join MFC. He was playing for Hamilton Imperials (I think) and was joint winner of the league's best and fairest (with Clyde Laidlaw who also went to MFC). Jim Cardwell called into the bank in the bush where Ian was a teller. Wanting to create an impression, Ian stood on a box behind the counter to increase his modest 5 feet 4 inches of height. In those days there were no zones or drafts and clubs had to compete vigorously to recruit players. Ian had lost his teeth through a gum infection, so Jim, on behalf of MFC, told Ian they would buy him a set of dentures if he signed with MFC. Of course Ian signed, but he doesn't remember ever getting the dentures. He was a handy pick-up, playing 130 games - including 5 winning grand finals - before a knee injury cut short his career.