Luke Beveridge’s side were lopsided, occasionally astonishing and frequently bewildering – and now rue another lost yearIt’s no way to live your footballing life. You’re being well beaten at half-time. You trail the tackle count 43 to 23. You’re lucky not to be further behind. You send Rory Lobb, who’s no Gary Dempsey, into the ruck. You kick three goals in two minutes. You overrun your bogey side and get the four points in Geelong for the first time in twenty years.You then have to wait. You stew for 20 hours. Your finals fate, for the second year in a row, is wedded to Carlton. You look at their outs – Cripps, Docherty, Pittonet, Motlop. You gather as a playing...
Goal review debacle and shock results killed off some suspense but last weekend’s upheaval shows nothing is certain in footballAs the AFL was reminded again last weekend, to its significant chagrin, there is no such thing as a certainty in sport after a round that damaged reputations and decimated finals hopes. Not only did a goal review farce sink Adelaide and further dent the battered commodity known as the integrity of the competition, a string of shock results in the penultimate round has largely robbed the AFL of a fairy-tale lead-in to the finals series.The suspense is not completely killed off as flag contenders jostle for position but the final round of the season is not the blockbuster envisaged earlier...
After another terrible loss, Carlton is a club in tatters with the coach, captain and CEO staring down the barrel of frustrated fans and angry “assassins”When Brian Cook was CEO of Geelong, he had a folder on his computer for all the vicious emails he received from fans, coterie groups, and board members. He labelled it “Assassins”.It’s easy to forget just how dire things were at the Cats when he took over. The coach and captain walked out. The team was useless and the club had no money. Garry Hocking was forced to change his name by deed poll to ‘Whiskas’ to rustle up 100 grand. “The organisation had no structures, no layers,” Cook told writer James Button. “It was...
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...
Players and fans are making a strong stance for greater inclusion in the game through their guernsey designsWith only three rounds remaining in the regular season of the AFLW, this weekend’s Pride round is pivotal as teams make their last dash for the finals and look to cement their place in the top eight.That this round, which is important to so many fans and players of the women’s game, comes at such a meaningful time adds to its gravity and underlines the seriousness with which the issue of LGBTQ+ inclusion is taken within the sport. While rainbow flags, guernseys and socks will add colour and joy across all the grounds during round eight, the white-line fever will step up a...