The GWS forward has walked a troubled track over the years but when at his brilliant best, like at the weekend, all the pain is worth itOne of the most extraordinary quarters of the 2023 season began with a pitiful sight, as a buckled Josh Bruce was assisted around the boundary line by two Western Bulldogs trainers. Sportspeople who tear their ACL for the first time often don’t immediately grasp the severity of it. Last week, Adelaide’s Nick Murray was doing mobility drills, giving the thumbs up to medicos and seemingly good to go. Not long after, he was tapped on the shoulder. See you in 12 months.But Bruce had been there before. He knew. He recently described the video...
They’re a mix of blithe spirits, father-son thoroughbreds and bargain basement pickups. But for all their differences, Collingwood proved in the thrilling win over Port Adelaide that they are united in their ruthlessness.As Collingwood prepared to run out at the Adelaide Oval on Saturday night, Craig McRae was in a side room meditating. Whether you’re coaching them, plotting against them, or taking them in as a neutral, centring yourself for ten or 15 minutes isn’t a bad strategy because just watching the Magpies can leave you jangled.It makes sense that Collingwood’s psychologist sits on the bench during games, a few seats up from the coach. She hammers home key messages and puts her arm around some of the more hot-headed...
They backed him, then sacked him. But could Gold Coast Suns have kept faith in coach Stuart Dew, as Carlton did Michael Voss to reap the rewards?Coach sackings are rarely edifying affairs but every now and then – Collingwood and Nathan Buckley spring to mind – they’re handled with a modicum of class and decency. Yet they’re almost always acrimonious. Stuart Dew’s sacking felt particularly grubby. It was a dog’s breakfast, really. He was made to look like a mug. They backed him, then sacked him.The press release announcing his departure was farcical, even by footy departure standards. It made him sound like he’d just passed away. Footy coaches aren’t building orphanages or splitting atoms, but they’re entitled to some...
In blowing away the Gold Coast Suns, Port Adelaide showed a full range of gears being driven by a winning mix of quirky veterans and sundance kidsThere’s an almost avian quality to how Connor Rozee moves on the football field. He hovers and lurks. He swoops and steals. He glides in, and accelerates out of a contest. On Saturday night, he anticipated the spill from a throw in, met the ball at full cruising speed, took it in his left hand, switched to his right, consulted his protractor, caressed the ball on the lateral column of his preferred foot, and let it tumble, talk, and taunt its way past the scrambling Gold Coast defender. From gather to goal-line, it took...
This year offered West Coast a chance to reset. But two consecutive floggings and the biggest losing margin in their history have the Eagles in a tailspinChapter 12 of Stephen King’s Misery ends with the line: “Then the rain came and things changed.” In King’s book, the weather turned, Annie Wilkes’ mood darkened, and Paul Sheldon forfeited his foot. When the rain came for the West Coast Eagles in 2019, they kept their legs, but lost the double chance. Since that day, pretty much nothing has gone right.It was round 22 - Richmond at the MCG. One of the great games of the pre-Covid era. In the first term, the Eagles played almost perfect football – the clean, crisp, kick-and-catch...