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...
Against a backdrop of complex issues named for a man of multiple talents, Essendon and Richmond’s contrasting styles delivered sweet pandemoniumFootball is constantly lurching from the sublime to the farcical and the execrable. The Sir Doug Nicholls Round was no exception. Like the man it honoured - a boxer, footballer, professional sprinter, Minister, social worker, Governor and leader of his people – the round contained multitudes. From the riveting (Collingwood), to the rickety (Carlton) and wretched (West Coast), this round had the lot.You have to suspend disbelief as a football fan sometimes. An hour after a coach who denies an accusation of pressuring an Aboriginal couple to terminate a pregnancy stepped down, the league endorsed a Voice to Parliament. A...
The rise of Geelong and Collingwood proves the game has changed since Richmond’s premiership years. Can the Tigers evolve to find success again? “As a football club, I reckon we fail well,” Richmond CEO Brendan Gale said in the lead up to Saturday’s clash with West Coast.He’d just been pipped for football’s top job by the company man. His team couldn’t take a trick. His coach was cranky. Half his list was sidelined. Against Gold Coast, at a ground they hate, against a team that always brings out the worst in them, they looked tired, confused and frustrated. They gave away 50 metre penalties, flubbed kicks across goal, and sprayed easy sets shots. They’d addressed their deficiencies, but completely regressed...
It depends whether John Longmire’s young team can buck a dispiriting historical trend dating back almost four decadesAs Sydney looks to create modern history in 2023, selective memory across the Swans’ collective is critical to their ability to contend for this season’s AFL premiership.Among the truisms in football is a trend Sydney must reverse after their humiliating 81-point loss to Geelong in last year’s grand final to claim their first flag since 2012. Continue reading...
It was a big weekend for two players who marked their 300th and 350th AFL games respectivelyTwo champions of the sport, two men taken in the same draft but with completely different career trajectories, celebrated major milestones over the weekend.Shane Edwards was hoisted up and carried off following an astonishing comeback win over Brisbane. Edwards was nearly a Brisbane player himself. The Lions’ chief recruiter was desperate to get him, but was outvoted by senior figures at the club. They settled on Albert Proud, who ended up in jail. Continue reading...