To Hell...
We all have clouds of different colours in our lives, and our spirits soar and plunge with the weather. For a lot of us, its all about maintaining a safe distance from disaster, consolidating life`s gains and keeping the wolf from the door. Finding this balance has never been my strongpoint - when I sink its all the way into the drain, and when I swim its on top of the finest barrelling wave. Frustrated by restricted access to my little girl, struggling health, money issues and the Burners` upset loss to East Burwood, I`d been circling the plughole for a couple of weeks before I ventured to Morton Park to face not only the might of the Balwyn Tigers, but Ladies Day.
Blackburn
Vs
Balwyn
The champagne flowed almost as fast as the conversation in the pre-game luncheon - the girls day had finally arrived and the focus was on all things that were not football. It was as if a boomgate had been lifted and this coming together was a celebration; the sisterhood had a green light and they put their feet to the floor. Indeed, so much oestrogen in the one room had strange chemical reactions on all in attendance. Whilst the women were dominant the men were, well, a little scared, serving wine and food in the manner of the old eunichs - helpful, humble and quiet. There was good reason for this - as the dessert plates were cleared from the tables, the noise had built to a near deafening, sauvignon blanc driven level and some of the girls had dangerous looks in their eyes. I high-tailed it out of there as soon as I saw a clear path to the door. Not that there weren`t a few good sorts amongst them; I just didn`t think it was a great idea to get myself cornered by the WAG of a 200cm ruckman, or for that matter, a nuggetty back pocket.
It was always going to be more comfortable boundary-side, but not by much. As the Balwyn side ran onto the field my heart sank. Our big blokes are young, tall and can jump; theirs are monsters with bodies hardened by many seasons of footy at AFL level - even their shortest player had arms like Arnie Schfarrtzentigger. "Don`t worry", Dicko the mindreader said beside me, "they`re really slow."
They weren`t, and toyed with the young boys from Blackburn like a tabby with a fluffy new mouse. With scores level at 1/4 time, Dicko flashed me an optimistic "I told you so" expression, and again later in the match when the margin got as close as 15 points. But his clairvoyance only goes as far as his next beer, and I gazed on bleakly as reality stomped all over hope, the Tigers power forwards stepped on Burners backmen, and well-drilled runners skipped away from Blackburn`s undermanned on-ballers.
It wasn`t a thrashing, and a valiant effort from the red`n`black given a senior list still missing 20 through injury. The best footy, however, came from Balwyn, including some great running team goals and a few towering pack marks in the goalsquare. Best for Blackburn were Stefan Denadic and Sam Macaulay. The visitors were led well by Nick Smith, with Murray, Boyce, and Sinclair performing well.
BLACKBURN 5.2 6.5 8.9 13.14-92
BALWYN 5.2 10.8 12.11 17.18-120...
I trudged off home and was violently ill, in red and black, wincing at the irony.
...And Back a Bit
Using Barossa Shiraz as a stimulus package, I took a few days to recover from the "recession I had to have". Things are never as bad as they seem: it turned out I wasn`t the only flu-sufferer who`d coughed up blood, my painful joints weren`t bone cancer but "golfer`s elbow" (the real tragedy being that I`ve not played golf for over a year), and the money issues came good. The real kicker came in the form of a blonde angel who shone her light on me once more. "Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!" she squealed with delight, breaking free of the witch and bursting into my arms. In that moment I stood atop the mountain, watching the sun`s rays flooding the clouds below. Nothing mattered after that....well, almost nothing.
Blackburn
Vs
Knox
This fine Saturday, the Burners were, as they say, on a hiding to nothing. Needing to win all 4 of their last games to make September action, they faced a club desperate to avoid relegation. Still without a full list, Blackburn were expected to win comfortably; the real challenges coming afterwards with games against Norwood, Vermont and tearaway ladder leaders, Scoresby.
Looking over the teamsheets I noted that we were resting one or two players who might have played with late-season "niggling" injuries. When Macca told me we were "finessing" our way through this week, I was dubious.
I felt better when I saw the rather dicky away strip the Knox boys were decked out in - a funny looking blood-orange number better suited to drapes. "They can`t possibly win in that", I snickered. "We did." replied KD, reminding me that because neither club had their own away strip, the requirement was to don the one supplied by the EFL.
Watching the game itself felt a bit "dancing with your sister" weird. The Falcons threw all they had at the home side, and could have been closer at 1/2 time but for inaccuracy in front of the sticks. Blackburn were "finessing" their way through the contest, and to be honest the footy wasn`t great to watch. The big news was Tosh Elder, one of the Burners` backline stars this season, who tragically went down with what appeared to be a serious knee injury early in the game.
Despite their best efforts, Knox never got closer than 3 goals and played like the bottom side. Blackburn`s finesse was just enough, but if the boys produce the same over the next 3 games they`ll watch the finals from the stands. Still, next week, for all of us, brings a new story.
Jye Sigersma was good all day for the Falcons, booting 5, while Tuminello in his 1st game back stood out for the locals.
BLACKBURN 5.4 12.5 15.10 19.15-129
KNOX 3.7 7.11 12.13 13.16-94
We all have clouds of different colours in our lives, and our spirits soar and plunge with the weather. For a lot of us, its all about maintaining a safe distance from disaster, consolidating life`s gains and keeping the wolf from the door. Finding this balance has never been my strongpoint - when I sink its all the way into the drain, and when I swim its on top of the finest barrelling wave. Frustrated by restricted access to my little girl, struggling health, money issues and the Burners` upset loss to East Burwood, I`d been circling the plughole for a couple of weeks before I ventured to Morton Park to face not only the might of the Balwyn Tigers, but Ladies Day.
Blackburn
Vs
Balwyn
The champagne flowed almost as fast as the conversation in the pre-game luncheon - the girls day had finally arrived and the focus was on all things that were not football. It was as if a boomgate had been lifted and this coming together was a celebration; the sisterhood had a green light and they put their feet to the floor. Indeed, so much oestrogen in the one room had strange chemical reactions on all in attendance. Whilst the women were dominant the men were, well, a little scared, serving wine and food in the manner of the old eunichs - helpful, humble and quiet. There was good reason for this - as the dessert plates were cleared from the tables, the noise had built to a near deafening, sauvignon blanc driven level and some of the girls had dangerous looks in their eyes. I high-tailed it out of there as soon as I saw a clear path to the door. Not that there weren`t a few good sorts amongst them; I just didn`t think it was a great idea to get myself cornered by the WAG of a 200cm ruckman, or for that matter, a nuggetty back pocket.
It was always going to be more comfortable boundary-side, but not by much. As the Balwyn side ran onto the field my heart sank. Our big blokes are young, tall and can jump; theirs are monsters with bodies hardened by many seasons of footy at AFL level - even their shortest player had arms like Arnie Schfarrtzentigger. "Don`t worry", Dicko the mindreader said beside me, "they`re really slow."
They weren`t, and toyed with the young boys from Blackburn like a tabby with a fluffy new mouse. With scores level at 1/4 time, Dicko flashed me an optimistic "I told you so" expression, and again later in the match when the margin got as close as 15 points. But his clairvoyance only goes as far as his next beer, and I gazed on bleakly as reality stomped all over hope, the Tigers power forwards stepped on Burners backmen, and well-drilled runners skipped away from Blackburn`s undermanned on-ballers.
It wasn`t a thrashing, and a valiant effort from the red`n`black given a senior list still missing 20 through injury. The best footy, however, came from Balwyn, including some great running team goals and a few towering pack marks in the goalsquare. Best for Blackburn were Stefan Denadic and Sam Macaulay. The visitors were led well by Nick Smith, with Murray, Boyce, and Sinclair performing well.
BLACKBURN 5.2 6.5 8.9 13.14-92
BALWYN 5.2 10.8 12.11 17.18-120...
I trudged off home and was violently ill, in red and black, wincing at the irony.
...And Back a Bit
Using Barossa Shiraz as a stimulus package, I took a few days to recover from the "recession I had to have". Things are never as bad as they seem: it turned out I wasn`t the only flu-sufferer who`d coughed up blood, my painful joints weren`t bone cancer but "golfer`s elbow" (the real tragedy being that I`ve not played golf for over a year), and the money issues came good. The real kicker came in the form of a blonde angel who shone her light on me once more. "Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!" she squealed with delight, breaking free of the witch and bursting into my arms. In that moment I stood atop the mountain, watching the sun`s rays flooding the clouds below. Nothing mattered after that....well, almost nothing.
Blackburn
Vs
Knox
This fine Saturday, the Burners were, as they say, on a hiding to nothing. Needing to win all 4 of their last games to make September action, they faced a club desperate to avoid relegation. Still without a full list, Blackburn were expected to win comfortably; the real challenges coming afterwards with games against Norwood, Vermont and tearaway ladder leaders, Scoresby.
Looking over the teamsheets I noted that we were resting one or two players who might have played with late-season "niggling" injuries. When Macca told me we were "finessing" our way through this week, I was dubious.
I felt better when I saw the rather dicky away strip the Knox boys were decked out in - a funny looking blood-orange number better suited to drapes. "They can`t possibly win in that", I snickered. "We did." replied KD, reminding me that because neither club had their own away strip, the requirement was to don the one supplied by the EFL.
Watching the game itself felt a bit "dancing with your sister" weird. The Falcons threw all they had at the home side, and could have been closer at 1/2 time but for inaccuracy in front of the sticks. Blackburn were "finessing" their way through the contest, and to be honest the footy wasn`t great to watch. The big news was Tosh Elder, one of the Burners` backline stars this season, who tragically went down with what appeared to be a serious knee injury early in the game.
Despite their best efforts, Knox never got closer than 3 goals and played like the bottom side. Blackburn`s finesse was just enough, but if the boys produce the same over the next 3 games they`ll watch the finals from the stands. Still, next week, for all of us, brings a new story.
Jye Sigersma was good all day for the Falcons, booting 5, while Tuminello in his 1st game back stood out for the locals.
BLACKBURN 5.4 12.5 15.10 19.15-129
KNOX 3.7 7.11 12.13 13.16-94
