AFLTips.Com Preview News
Round 13 - 28 June 2001
w: http://www.afltips.com/
e: adrian@afltips.com
* Brought to you in conjunction with BigFooty.com -
http://www.bigfooty.com/
* Play the BigFooty Fantasy Footy game here -
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+----------+
INDEX
1) Prize Draw
2) Quiz Questions from The Half Back Flanker
3) "Out of Bounds" - Phil Doyle sounds off.
4) "Weekly Round-Up" - previews of all matches from our Regular
Contributors
5) "The Quick Snap" commentary article from The Half Back Flanker
6) Quiz Answers
7) Various info about AFLTips.Com
+----------+
1) Prize Draw
This week's winner will be announced in the review edition on Monday.
Read about the prize draw here:
http://www.afltips.com/prizedraw.html
Until next time,
Adrian Groves
adrian@afltips.com
+----------+
2) Footy Quiz No. 013 - Questions
by The Half Back Flanker
http://www.afltips.com/people/halfbackflanker.html
1. Which high-flying Sydney full forward kicked 103 goals in 1987?
2. Who captained Fremantle in 1995 and 1996?
3. How many premierships have Adelaide won?
4. Name the last Collingwood player to win the Brownlow Medal?
5. Who was the leading goalkicker for St Kilda in 1988?
Answers are at the end of this newsletter.
+----------+
3) Out of Bounds
- Phil Doyle's Bit
http://www.afltips.com/people/phildoyle.html
OUT OF BOUNDS #17 - Running, Jumping and Standing Still.
The things that happen when you haven't got a gun...
The AFL laws committee met this week. There was a lot of fanfare in the lead up to this auspicious occasion. Well, actually there wasn't. There was actually bugger all fanfare.
Then the democratic processes of the people's game swung into action, with the AFL announcing that the minimum distance for an effective kick would become 15 metres.
Considering most umpires will pay a mark if you kick it a couple of yards I don't see how that's going to change anything. In fact I can't see how changing the laws is going to alter anything at all given that most umpires aren't prepared to enforce laws like deliberate out of bounds or dropping the ball.
The last time ten metres became fifteen metres was when they advertised property frontages at Craigieburn. Next it'll be the eight-point goal, and outlawing doing a handstand on the mark.
Whatever happened to the handstand on the mark? This, like the drop kick, has sadly disappeared from the game. Actually the drop kick hasn't disappeared from the game; Ian Collins is running Colonial stadium.
Your humble scribe tried to venture into The Source Of All Our Misery last weekend - the plan being to end my life by standing behind the Richmond Cheer Squad singing 'Number nine. Number nine. Number nine...'
But everyone loves the Beatles so nothing happened. The world's gone soft.
It took three different queues and half an hour before I had the privilege of paying three dollars for a pot of light beer.
Back in civilisation the Melbourne public, according to a leaked AFL press release greeted news of the rule changes with mass hysteria and delirium.
According to the AFL Wayne Jackson was feted down Swanston Street while the Australian populace thronged the streets breaking into a spontaneous rendition of the hallelujah chorus.
In another spectacular, Shane Warne (or was it Jason Akermanis), reached new heights in Australian culture with his rendition of 'It's raining men' while wearing a Collingwood crop top. this all occoured in London and apparently has something to do with football.
But then again so does someone taking an oxy torch to an ATM at the Collingwood footy club. All corrspondence on this matter can be directed to the Collingwood CIB. Personally, I never left the Hawksburn Hotel, rememeber that if anyone asks.
What Cecil B. DeMille lacked was vision.
Thankfully the AFL is filling this gap.
They have vision. They may not have a pay dispute that's supposed to have been resolved in 'a few weeks' for the last six months sorted, but they do have vision. They had the vision to prop up Sydney when many said that it couldn't be done. And now they are returned in spades by celebrating the four millionth punter through the gates at Albert Park Number Seven.
Thankfully the crowd counts at the SCG in the early nineties were entirely accurate or some cynic may suggest that we're still a few ten thousand shy of the four million tally.
Why do I get a sneaking suspicion this is less about the success or otherwise of Sydney, and more about how much bull**** you and I are prepared to accept.
Phil Doyle - pulling up sore after a brutal last quarter.
If you would like to receive the very irregular and factually unreliable Out Of Bounds directly via email then send a message to phildoyle33@hotmail.com.
Out Of Bounds can also be seen at the wonderful http://www.afltips.com/ website.
Watch out for ShirtFront magazine - coming out soon!
NB - you are one of The Elect. This email is limited to 50 addressees. Feel free to forward it, but if you do not wish to be one of The Elect then reply to this email with a request for me to perform a physically impossible task and you will be paying for Kerry Packer's kidney operation anyway. All of this is copyright Phil Doyle 2001, for whatever that's worth. Any resemblance to persons living or dead I consider a compliment.
+----------+
4) Weekly Round-Up
from our Regular Contributors
http://www.afltips.com/people/
(E-mail adrian@afltips.com if you'd like to become a
contributor.)
**********
Brisbane v. Hawthorn
Friday, 29 June 2001 - Gabba 7:40 PM
The Lions go into this match refreshed after a week's break with an unchanged line up at home. The Hawks on the other hand head in with only a 6 day break after a tough encounter with the Kangaroos and several players missing through injury.
Just why the AFL has scheduled the draw with 6 teams having one week longer than the other will remain a mystery, but Leigh Matthews must be very pleased about it.
This is the main reason I think the Lions will beat the Hawks. Hawthorn still have several players coming back from injury, and this showed in the last quarter fade out against North. A similar fadeout mightn't result in a victory this week. The Lions midfield of Voss, Black, Ashcroft and Akermanis is one of the best in the league - and with no Shaun Rehn Beau McDonald and Clark Keating should be a match for Brett O'Farrell and Nathan Thompson.
The Hawks forward line could stretch the Lions, but the loss of the vastly improved John Barker (who always plays well against his former club) will be hard to cover. However, in the Hawks favour is the fact they have no fear of the Gabba, as was shown by their magnificent victory last year, and players such as Crawford, Chick and Holland will be much better for the run last week.
This game will be a very close affair, and with rain predicted could go either way. But I think in the end the Lions will just prevail in a close match
PREDICTION: Lions by 8 points.
- Dominic Milesi
**********
Carlton v. Western Bulldogs
Saturday, 30 June 2001 - Optus Oval 2:10 PM This is an important game for both teams, particularly the Bulldogs who are a game inside the eight. Carlton have one more win under their belt and are currently 3rd on the ladder. This is probably what you would call an eight-point game. If the Bulldogs were to lose, they would have little momentum with which to take on Essendon and would be back amongst the pack fighting to get back in the eight. If Carlton lose, they could find themselves out of the top four.
A worrying sign for the Bulldogs was the return of Kouta last week. He kicked 4 goals and showed that he can get back to his best. Also former Bulldog, Jimmy Plunkett played a blinder against the Power and will be looking to do the same against his old side.
For the Bulldogs, West and Brown were the standouts against Geelong. Meanwhile the return to form of Todd Curley, the continued improvement of Nathan Eagleton and the performance by the youngsters Giansiracusa, Gilbee and Murphy are all great signs for the Bulldogs.
Two of the better midfields will be battling it out this Saturday. Players of the calibre of Ratten, Camporeale, Bradley and Hulme up agaisnt West, Johnson, Libba, Smith and Brown. The ruckmen of their respective sides, Porter and Darcy are both in great form and will have a huge influence on this game.
I'm tipping the Bulldogs to win. Carlton have been too inconsistent, in particular their forwardline. The Bulldogs have a greater number of players who can kick goals. It has not only been the midfield chipping in with goals, backmen such as Hunter and Croft have been real targets up forward this season. It's hard to say who has the better midfield but I think Darcy will be too good for Porter and this will give the Dogs the edge in that area.
Bulldogs by 10 points
Tipping
Brisbane to beat Hawthorn by 20 points
Western Bulldogs to beat Carlton by 10 points
Essendon to beat Fremantle by 100 points
Kangaroos to beat Port Adelaide by 15 points
Collingwood to beat Adelaide by 10 points
Richmond to beat St Kilda by 30 points
Sydney to beat Geelong by 20 points
Melbourne to beat West Coast by 30 points
- HahnPremium8
http://www.afltips.com/people/hahnpremium8.html
**********
Essendon v. Fremantle
Saturday, 30 June 2001 - Colonial Stadium 2:10 PM
This game has received publicity for all the wrong reasons in the past couple of weeks. The only comparison I can make to it is the recent clash between Australia and American Samoa. Essendon are starting at the prohibitive odds of $1.01 - a record. Fremantle range from an amazing $14 to $26 for the win. A more exciting bet is Fremantle at $1.30 to Matthew Lloyd at $3.20! However, Kevin Sheedy will probably ruin any chances of this by playing him full back after half time.
In fact chances are we'll get to see lots of interesting matchups - who knows, Gary Moorcroft in the ruck wouldn't be a surprise! Hardwick, Mercuri and Misiti all return - which really is frightening for the poor old Dockers.
Media outlets have helpfully been pointing out records that could be broken such as the highest score of all time and the record winning margin of 190 points. Essendon don't appear to be taking the game too seriously themselves, using the week to film an episode of This is your life for Kevin Sheedy in preparation for Grand Final week.
The fact Essendon has a few players underdone, Sheed's joy of playing people out of positions and Fremantle not been as bad as everyone reckons (West Coast are much worse) means it won't be the total slaughter everyone thinks.
But even so, the chances of Essendon losing this game are about the same as the Harlem Globetrotters losing to the Washington Generals - unless Essendon decide to use the generous odds on Freo to fund their end of season trip! Essendon are far too good to let this game slip.
Prediction: Essendon by 95 points Other games:
Brisbane by 8
Carlton by 33
North by 29
Adelaide by 15
Melbourne by 46
Sydney by 22
Richmond by 32
- Dominic Milesi
**********
Kangaroos v. Port Adelaide
Saturday, 30 June 2001 - Manuka Oval 2:10 PM
Kangaroos vs Port Adelaide. If you heard those words 10 years ago, you wouldn't have expected it to be an AFL match. To indicate even more the ever-changing face of football, the game is being played in bloody Canberra!
The game is being played in this desolate rural outpost as part of the Kangaroos search for recognition among a potentially nationwide supporter base. The Roos are a club who has a tradition of such innovative moves to evolve and survive in the business of football.
Port Adelaide is also a club with a great history and well over 100 years of tradition. Unfortunately for them, the only tradition they bring into their clashes with the Roos is defeat.
There's no doubt Port have had a good year, while the Roos have struggled. But the reversal of both teams' fortunes over the last few weeks, suggests ladder positions mean nothing and form is eveything going into this game. Port were solidly beaten by Carlton all day at Football Park last week, and preceded this with a belting at the hands of Sydney the round before. The Roos have been good, outscoring Hawthorn for three quarters last week in a narrow loss, and having wins against Fremantle and the Western Bulldogs. One would dare say the Roos have the form.
In their six encounters, these two teams have played some attractive football, but have rarely provided close contests. Port Adelaide are still yet to beat the Kangaroos after six attempts, so the Roos would take some sort of mental advantage into this game.
Port Adelaide's strength this year has been its collective on-
ball unit, but this will not be as evident with Francou and Kingsley out suspended and injured respectively. It's also doubtful that the league's premier big man this season, Port ruckman Matthew Primus, will put in his usual dominating display, if pitted against 210 cm Roo, Matthew Burton. Port Adelaide - strength in the midfield? PAH!
The Roos forward line has troubled Port in the past, and it's not uncommon for the Roos to expose the serviceable and dour Port defence. Carey-Mead, Rocca-Paxman and McKernan-D.Wakelin all look to favour the Roos because of experience, physique and form.
At the other end of the ground, I think Port's forwards may struggle against the hardened Roos defence, consisting of McCartney, Blakey, Archer, Colbert, Makepeace, King and possibly Pickett.
The Kangaroos will be looking to exert certain physicality upon Port early, and extend any mental advantage that exists. Port will need to use their leg speed to their advantage, but with their midfield encountering stiff resistance, their runners might get their hands on the footy often enough to cause problems.
THE VERDICT : Roos by 11 points.
HEAD TO HEAD : Kangaroos 6, Port Adelaide 0.
AT THIS GROUND : Kangaroos 1, Port Adelaide 0.
- Dark Avenger
http://www.afltips.com/people/darkavenger.html
**********
Adelaide v. Collingwood
Saturday, 30 June 2001 - Football Park 7:10 PM (7:40 PM AEST)
Once upon a time when Collingwood journeyed to Football Park to take on the Crows it was a case of how far the Crows.
Many things change in football the price of hotdogs, admission prices and the list goes on and on and here lays the story in trying to pick a winner between the Crows and Magpies.
The one other thing to have changed in season 2001 and that is the Collingwood football club are no longer the easy beats. They are no longer the club to pencil in as a certain win against.
And to be fair the Adelaide football club has recovered very nicely from a disastrous start to the season and seem to be traveling very nicely but it would be hard to suggest that the Crows can beat the rampaging magpies with the return of powerhouse Buckley it just keeps getting better for Collingwood.
I'm tipping the pies to win this one the football park thing doesn't worry Collingwood re there very good win against the power just a little over a month ago.
The Collingwood forward line is just action packed these days with Malloy adding long needed muscle and the very talented Tarrant who just seems to be getting better and the ever damaging Rocca roaming across half forward creating havoc.
Although traveling interstate is always dangerous it is hard to see the Crows creating an upset here, Collingwood just have too many players at present on fire and willing at long last to put bodies on the line to win a contest.
But football is a funny game and in a very close competition any thing can happen but sorry Crows supporters not tonight the pies to return to Pie Park victors again and that has to be good for football.
PIES BY ONE POINT.
- JoffaMagpie
http://www.afltips.com/people/joffamagpie.html
[As per usual, a totally unbiased appraisal of the game by Joffa... Well, at least his English is getting better...? û AA]
**********
St Kilda v. Richmond
Sunday, 1 July 2001 - Colonial Stadium 2:10 PM
Malcolm Blight reckons that the Saints can still make the eight.
To quote Blighty: 'Stranger things have happened in football...'
Richmond by 20.
- Adrian Groves
**********
Sydney v. Geelong
Sunday, 1 July 2001 - SCG 2:10 PM
If only it was a simple matter of Sydney versus Geelong.
You see, before we even consider analysing the game, we have to think up which version of Sydney and which version of Geelong will turn up. For Sydney, we have the champagne footy Swans. It's the Swans you see when Stafford and Goodes are unstoppable in the air, Schwass, Maxfield, and Cresswell run rampant, Schauble and Dunkley are upassable in defence, and you start wondering about what odds you can get for O'Loughlin to win the Brownlow.
Then there is bloody awful Sydney where none of this occurs and everyone blames Dale Lewis for things going awry. As for Geelong, they have pathetic Geelong and average Geelong.
Pathetic Geelong is the team you see pretty much every week. Let's see, besides Graham plugging holes everywhere and King dominating the ruck, you'll find Spriggs running around in circles and not achieving much (that's if you don't count the sound of female Cat fans squealing at him) and the loud chatter and moaning from the Geelong crowd about how over-rated Bizzell, Houlihan, and Milburn are.
As for average Geelong, they start to look like a team where the players actually look as if they know each other, and they'll play maybe a half of decent football before falling in a heap.
There is a third, and rare type of Geelong, and that is magnificent Geelong. Sadly for Cat fans, this type of Geelong team only appears once every three or four months, and since magnificent Geelong made an appearance a mere two weeks ago against Hawthorn, it's not scheduled to reappear until the finals are but a forlorn hope for the faithful.
So, this game will be determined by which Sydney team decides to turn up. Will it be champagne Swans or bloody awful Swans? How long is a piece of string? What is the sound of one hand clapping? If a glass of chardonnay drops of the table in the Swans corporate lounge while no one is there, does it make a noise? These may be important questions, but as a North Melbourne fan, it's not something that I'm planning on spending too much time on answering.
You make up your own mind.
I guess I should tip a winner. Hum. Okay, at the end of the game, the winning team's theme song will open with the words, 'Cheer cheer the red and the white...'
Don't ask me why this will be so, it just will be, que sera seraà..
- Shinboners.
http://www.afltips.com/people/shinboners.html
**********
West Coast v. Melbourne
Sunday, 1 July 2001 - Subiaco 2:30 PM (4:30 PM AEST)
A couple of years ago and this would have been match of the round. Now it's a do or die battle for some honour.
The Demons have had a very disappointing season and need to win to have any chance of making the finals. Their midfield which was so dominant last season has yet to fire and Farmer has had a disappointing first half to the season through injury and suspension. Meanwhile other teams have given Nicholson and Simmonds a baptism of fire in the key defensive posts and run them up the ground. Still Godfrey has emerged and Schwarz and Neitz have battled strongly but first use of the ball is critical and a loosing the battle of on ball rotations normally spells disaster, and that is whats happened to the Dees.
The Eagles are re-building and hoped to patch up their side in the short term whilst waiting for the youngsters to develop. Unfortunately for the Eagles the decision to try and stay midtable with some fill up players has backfired. Their draft picks in Sierakowski, Merenda and Prior have been injured and with them went the only chance the Eagles had of staying around mid table. Combined with the fact that McIntosh, Matera, Jackovich and Kemp who for so long have been the backbone of this side are another year older and have had poor seasons and the Eagles are struggling. Taylor who was picked as a back up for Cousins and probably the least rated player amongst the stop gap group has ended up being the best pick.
The best chance the Eagles have of winning this game relies upon Gardiner and Turnbull jumping into White and the Eagles half forwards flooding their backline leaving Cummings and Matera one out in the forward 50. Despite this the Dees will be too quick and win by 60 points.
- Amazonstud
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5) The Quick Snap
Comment from 'The Half Back Flanker'
http://www.afltips.com/people/halfbackflanker.html
"Quick, grab the tape measure!"
So, the AFL Rules Committee is proposing that, from next season, the minimum distance for a legal kick should be 15 metres instead of present 10 metres?
This is a rule change that could bring many changes to the way the game is played.
Watch any AFL team at training or doing their pre-game warm up ... the short 10 metre kick is practiced constantly as both an attacking weapon and a defensive ploy.
Suddenly, the same precision will now be required over 15 metres instead of 10. There will be greater opportunity for opposition teams to spoil or intercept short passes. Escaping the zone defence by kicking short to a teammate will become ever so much harder.
Flooding opposition forward lines should become easier, simply because players will have less area to cover in the vicinity of the kicker.
There will probably be more handball and longer kicking, meaning an even faster game. Teams that rely on a possession game, often kicking short to a teammate in the clear, will have to alter their game plan, simply because these short kicks will have to travel further, increasing the chance of a turnover.
Will this rule be adopted nationally, through all grades of all leagues (except junior grades of course ... imagine the under 8s trying to achieve a kick as long as 15 metres!)? If so, grass roots football will also have to adapt the way they play.
And umpires will no longer call 'not 10 û play on' ... instead it will be 'not 15 û play on'. For someone who has played football for most of their life this will take a bit of getting used to.
Then there is the quick kick under pressure that often barely travels 10 meters ... these will no longer be able to be marked, instead the player taking possession will have to quickly play on.
What about games in the wet and the mud ... if clean possessions are hard enough to come by now, imagine what it will be like when short kicks are required to travel that extra distance? But then, wet weather football was never meant to be pretty, was it?
Most rule changes have had a positive effect on the game, such as increasing the number of players on the interchange, but this change is possibly part of something bigger.
Perhaps the AFL Rules Committee has suggested the increase as part of their strategy to combat flooding ... it will be interesting to see what comes next, perhaps limiting the number of players within either 50m zone?
I suppose that we'll just have to wait until their next meeting in August to find outà
Feedback to this article can be sent to:
afl.info@excite.com
+----------+
6) AFLTips.Com Trivia No. 013 - Answers
1. Bob Skilton captained South Melbourne from 1961 to 1968, including being captain-coach from 1965 to 1966.
2. Collingwood recorded its highest ever score, 32.19 (211), against St Kilda in 1980.
3. Richmond have won 10 premierships û 1920, 1921, 1932, 1934, 1943, 1967, 1969, 1973, 1974, 1980.
4. Darren Jarman led the goalkicking for Adelaide in 1998 with 45 goals.
5. Mark Bairstow captained Geelong from 1992 to 1994.
Any feedback, queries and/or corrections regarding AFLTips.Com
Trivia, please send an e-mail to:
afl.info@excite.com
+----------+
7) Info about AFLTips.Com
Feel free to forward this newsletter on to your mates.
AFLTips.Com is not associated with the Australian Football League
in any way. We just talk about them. A lot.
The views expressed by the contributors are not necessarily those
of Adrian Groves. I recommend that you do your own independent
research before acting on ANY information found in this e-mail.
In fact I demand it - and let me know what you find out...
If you received this e-mail from a friend and wish to SUBSCRIBE,
go to http://www.afltips.com/ and fill out the form on the front
page.
Copyright (C) Adrian Groves, 2001
ENDS
*****************************************************************
Round 13 - 28 June 2001
w: http://www.afltips.com/
e: adrian@afltips.com
* Brought to you in conjunction with BigFooty.com -
http://www.bigfooty.com/
* Play the BigFooty Fantasy Footy game here -
http://footy.virtualsports.com.au/?partner_id=1
+----------+
INDEX
1) Prize Draw
2) Quiz Questions from The Half Back Flanker
3) "Out of Bounds" - Phil Doyle sounds off.
4) "Weekly Round-Up" - previews of all matches from our Regular
Contributors
5) "The Quick Snap" commentary article from The Half Back Flanker
6) Quiz Answers
7) Various info about AFLTips.Com
+----------+
1) Prize Draw
This week's winner will be announced in the review edition on Monday.
Read about the prize draw here:
http://www.afltips.com/prizedraw.html
Until next time,
Adrian Groves
adrian@afltips.com
+----------+
2) Footy Quiz No. 013 - Questions
by The Half Back Flanker
http://www.afltips.com/people/halfbackflanker.html
1. Which high-flying Sydney full forward kicked 103 goals in 1987?
2. Who captained Fremantle in 1995 and 1996?
3. How many premierships have Adelaide won?
4. Name the last Collingwood player to win the Brownlow Medal?
5. Who was the leading goalkicker for St Kilda in 1988?
Answers are at the end of this newsletter.
+----------+
3) Out of Bounds
- Phil Doyle's Bit
http://www.afltips.com/people/phildoyle.html
OUT OF BOUNDS #17 - Running, Jumping and Standing Still.
The things that happen when you haven't got a gun...
The AFL laws committee met this week. There was a lot of fanfare in the lead up to this auspicious occasion. Well, actually there wasn't. There was actually bugger all fanfare.
Then the democratic processes of the people's game swung into action, with the AFL announcing that the minimum distance for an effective kick would become 15 metres.
Considering most umpires will pay a mark if you kick it a couple of yards I don't see how that's going to change anything. In fact I can't see how changing the laws is going to alter anything at all given that most umpires aren't prepared to enforce laws like deliberate out of bounds or dropping the ball.
The last time ten metres became fifteen metres was when they advertised property frontages at Craigieburn. Next it'll be the eight-point goal, and outlawing doing a handstand on the mark.
Whatever happened to the handstand on the mark? This, like the drop kick, has sadly disappeared from the game. Actually the drop kick hasn't disappeared from the game; Ian Collins is running Colonial stadium.
Your humble scribe tried to venture into The Source Of All Our Misery last weekend - the plan being to end my life by standing behind the Richmond Cheer Squad singing 'Number nine. Number nine. Number nine...'
But everyone loves the Beatles so nothing happened. The world's gone soft.
It took three different queues and half an hour before I had the privilege of paying three dollars for a pot of light beer.
Back in civilisation the Melbourne public, according to a leaked AFL press release greeted news of the rule changes with mass hysteria and delirium.
According to the AFL Wayne Jackson was feted down Swanston Street while the Australian populace thronged the streets breaking into a spontaneous rendition of the hallelujah chorus.
In another spectacular, Shane Warne (or was it Jason Akermanis), reached new heights in Australian culture with his rendition of 'It's raining men' while wearing a Collingwood crop top. this all occoured in London and apparently has something to do with football.
But then again so does someone taking an oxy torch to an ATM at the Collingwood footy club. All corrspondence on this matter can be directed to the Collingwood CIB. Personally, I never left the Hawksburn Hotel, rememeber that if anyone asks.
What Cecil B. DeMille lacked was vision.
Thankfully the AFL is filling this gap.
They have vision. They may not have a pay dispute that's supposed to have been resolved in 'a few weeks' for the last six months sorted, but they do have vision. They had the vision to prop up Sydney when many said that it couldn't be done. And now they are returned in spades by celebrating the four millionth punter through the gates at Albert Park Number Seven.
Thankfully the crowd counts at the SCG in the early nineties were entirely accurate or some cynic may suggest that we're still a few ten thousand shy of the four million tally.
Why do I get a sneaking suspicion this is less about the success or otherwise of Sydney, and more about how much bull**** you and I are prepared to accept.
Phil Doyle - pulling up sore after a brutal last quarter.
If you would like to receive the very irregular and factually unreliable Out Of Bounds directly via email then send a message to phildoyle33@hotmail.com.
Out Of Bounds can also be seen at the wonderful http://www.afltips.com/ website.
Watch out for ShirtFront magazine - coming out soon!
NB - you are one of The Elect. This email is limited to 50 addressees. Feel free to forward it, but if you do not wish to be one of The Elect then reply to this email with a request for me to perform a physically impossible task and you will be paying for Kerry Packer's kidney operation anyway. All of this is copyright Phil Doyle 2001, for whatever that's worth. Any resemblance to persons living or dead I consider a compliment.
+----------+
4) Weekly Round-Up
from our Regular Contributors
http://www.afltips.com/people/
(E-mail adrian@afltips.com if you'd like to become a
contributor.)
**********
Brisbane v. Hawthorn
Friday, 29 June 2001 - Gabba 7:40 PM
The Lions go into this match refreshed after a week's break with an unchanged line up at home. The Hawks on the other hand head in with only a 6 day break after a tough encounter with the Kangaroos and several players missing through injury.
Just why the AFL has scheduled the draw with 6 teams having one week longer than the other will remain a mystery, but Leigh Matthews must be very pleased about it.
This is the main reason I think the Lions will beat the Hawks. Hawthorn still have several players coming back from injury, and this showed in the last quarter fade out against North. A similar fadeout mightn't result in a victory this week. The Lions midfield of Voss, Black, Ashcroft and Akermanis is one of the best in the league - and with no Shaun Rehn Beau McDonald and Clark Keating should be a match for Brett O'Farrell and Nathan Thompson.
The Hawks forward line could stretch the Lions, but the loss of the vastly improved John Barker (who always plays well against his former club) will be hard to cover. However, in the Hawks favour is the fact they have no fear of the Gabba, as was shown by their magnificent victory last year, and players such as Crawford, Chick and Holland will be much better for the run last week.
This game will be a very close affair, and with rain predicted could go either way. But I think in the end the Lions will just prevail in a close match
PREDICTION: Lions by 8 points.
- Dominic Milesi
**********
Carlton v. Western Bulldogs
Saturday, 30 June 2001 - Optus Oval 2:10 PM This is an important game for both teams, particularly the Bulldogs who are a game inside the eight. Carlton have one more win under their belt and are currently 3rd on the ladder. This is probably what you would call an eight-point game. If the Bulldogs were to lose, they would have little momentum with which to take on Essendon and would be back amongst the pack fighting to get back in the eight. If Carlton lose, they could find themselves out of the top four.
A worrying sign for the Bulldogs was the return of Kouta last week. He kicked 4 goals and showed that he can get back to his best. Also former Bulldog, Jimmy Plunkett played a blinder against the Power and will be looking to do the same against his old side.
For the Bulldogs, West and Brown were the standouts against Geelong. Meanwhile the return to form of Todd Curley, the continued improvement of Nathan Eagleton and the performance by the youngsters Giansiracusa, Gilbee and Murphy are all great signs for the Bulldogs.
Two of the better midfields will be battling it out this Saturday. Players of the calibre of Ratten, Camporeale, Bradley and Hulme up agaisnt West, Johnson, Libba, Smith and Brown. The ruckmen of their respective sides, Porter and Darcy are both in great form and will have a huge influence on this game.
I'm tipping the Bulldogs to win. Carlton have been too inconsistent, in particular their forwardline. The Bulldogs have a greater number of players who can kick goals. It has not only been the midfield chipping in with goals, backmen such as Hunter and Croft have been real targets up forward this season. It's hard to say who has the better midfield but I think Darcy will be too good for Porter and this will give the Dogs the edge in that area.
Bulldogs by 10 points
Tipping
Brisbane to beat Hawthorn by 20 points
Western Bulldogs to beat Carlton by 10 points
Essendon to beat Fremantle by 100 points
Kangaroos to beat Port Adelaide by 15 points
Collingwood to beat Adelaide by 10 points
Richmond to beat St Kilda by 30 points
Sydney to beat Geelong by 20 points
Melbourne to beat West Coast by 30 points
- HahnPremium8
http://www.afltips.com/people/hahnpremium8.html
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Essendon v. Fremantle
Saturday, 30 June 2001 - Colonial Stadium 2:10 PM
This game has received publicity for all the wrong reasons in the past couple of weeks. The only comparison I can make to it is the recent clash between Australia and American Samoa. Essendon are starting at the prohibitive odds of $1.01 - a record. Fremantle range from an amazing $14 to $26 for the win. A more exciting bet is Fremantle at $1.30 to Matthew Lloyd at $3.20! However, Kevin Sheedy will probably ruin any chances of this by playing him full back after half time.
In fact chances are we'll get to see lots of interesting matchups - who knows, Gary Moorcroft in the ruck wouldn't be a surprise! Hardwick, Mercuri and Misiti all return - which really is frightening for the poor old Dockers.
Media outlets have helpfully been pointing out records that could be broken such as the highest score of all time and the record winning margin of 190 points. Essendon don't appear to be taking the game too seriously themselves, using the week to film an episode of This is your life for Kevin Sheedy in preparation for Grand Final week.
The fact Essendon has a few players underdone, Sheed's joy of playing people out of positions and Fremantle not been as bad as everyone reckons (West Coast are much worse) means it won't be the total slaughter everyone thinks.
But even so, the chances of Essendon losing this game are about the same as the Harlem Globetrotters losing to the Washington Generals - unless Essendon decide to use the generous odds on Freo to fund their end of season trip! Essendon are far too good to let this game slip.
Prediction: Essendon by 95 points Other games:
Brisbane by 8
Carlton by 33
North by 29
Adelaide by 15
Melbourne by 46
Sydney by 22
Richmond by 32
- Dominic Milesi
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Kangaroos v. Port Adelaide
Saturday, 30 June 2001 - Manuka Oval 2:10 PM
Kangaroos vs Port Adelaide. If you heard those words 10 years ago, you wouldn't have expected it to be an AFL match. To indicate even more the ever-changing face of football, the game is being played in bloody Canberra!
The game is being played in this desolate rural outpost as part of the Kangaroos search for recognition among a potentially nationwide supporter base. The Roos are a club who has a tradition of such innovative moves to evolve and survive in the business of football.
Port Adelaide is also a club with a great history and well over 100 years of tradition. Unfortunately for them, the only tradition they bring into their clashes with the Roos is defeat.
There's no doubt Port have had a good year, while the Roos have struggled. But the reversal of both teams' fortunes over the last few weeks, suggests ladder positions mean nothing and form is eveything going into this game. Port were solidly beaten by Carlton all day at Football Park last week, and preceded this with a belting at the hands of Sydney the round before. The Roos have been good, outscoring Hawthorn for three quarters last week in a narrow loss, and having wins against Fremantle and the Western Bulldogs. One would dare say the Roos have the form.
In their six encounters, these two teams have played some attractive football, but have rarely provided close contests. Port Adelaide are still yet to beat the Kangaroos after six attempts, so the Roos would take some sort of mental advantage into this game.
Port Adelaide's strength this year has been its collective on-
ball unit, but this will not be as evident with Francou and Kingsley out suspended and injured respectively. It's also doubtful that the league's premier big man this season, Port ruckman Matthew Primus, will put in his usual dominating display, if pitted against 210 cm Roo, Matthew Burton. Port Adelaide - strength in the midfield? PAH!
The Roos forward line has troubled Port in the past, and it's not uncommon for the Roos to expose the serviceable and dour Port defence. Carey-Mead, Rocca-Paxman and McKernan-D.Wakelin all look to favour the Roos because of experience, physique and form.
At the other end of the ground, I think Port's forwards may struggle against the hardened Roos defence, consisting of McCartney, Blakey, Archer, Colbert, Makepeace, King and possibly Pickett.
The Kangaroos will be looking to exert certain physicality upon Port early, and extend any mental advantage that exists. Port will need to use their leg speed to their advantage, but with their midfield encountering stiff resistance, their runners might get their hands on the footy often enough to cause problems.
THE VERDICT : Roos by 11 points.
HEAD TO HEAD : Kangaroos 6, Port Adelaide 0.
AT THIS GROUND : Kangaroos 1, Port Adelaide 0.
- Dark Avenger
http://www.afltips.com/people/darkavenger.html
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Adelaide v. Collingwood
Saturday, 30 June 2001 - Football Park 7:10 PM (7:40 PM AEST)
Once upon a time when Collingwood journeyed to Football Park to take on the Crows it was a case of how far the Crows.
Many things change in football the price of hotdogs, admission prices and the list goes on and on and here lays the story in trying to pick a winner between the Crows and Magpies.
The one other thing to have changed in season 2001 and that is the Collingwood football club are no longer the easy beats. They are no longer the club to pencil in as a certain win against.
And to be fair the Adelaide football club has recovered very nicely from a disastrous start to the season and seem to be traveling very nicely but it would be hard to suggest that the Crows can beat the rampaging magpies with the return of powerhouse Buckley it just keeps getting better for Collingwood.
I'm tipping the pies to win this one the football park thing doesn't worry Collingwood re there very good win against the power just a little over a month ago.
The Collingwood forward line is just action packed these days with Malloy adding long needed muscle and the very talented Tarrant who just seems to be getting better and the ever damaging Rocca roaming across half forward creating havoc.
Although traveling interstate is always dangerous it is hard to see the Crows creating an upset here, Collingwood just have too many players at present on fire and willing at long last to put bodies on the line to win a contest.
But football is a funny game and in a very close competition any thing can happen but sorry Crows supporters not tonight the pies to return to Pie Park victors again and that has to be good for football.
PIES BY ONE POINT.
- JoffaMagpie
http://www.afltips.com/people/joffamagpie.html
[As per usual, a totally unbiased appraisal of the game by Joffa... Well, at least his English is getting better...? û AA]
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St Kilda v. Richmond
Sunday, 1 July 2001 - Colonial Stadium 2:10 PM
Malcolm Blight reckons that the Saints can still make the eight.
To quote Blighty: 'Stranger things have happened in football...'
Richmond by 20.
- Adrian Groves
**********
Sydney v. Geelong
Sunday, 1 July 2001 - SCG 2:10 PM
If only it was a simple matter of Sydney versus Geelong.
You see, before we even consider analysing the game, we have to think up which version of Sydney and which version of Geelong will turn up. For Sydney, we have the champagne footy Swans. It's the Swans you see when Stafford and Goodes are unstoppable in the air, Schwass, Maxfield, and Cresswell run rampant, Schauble and Dunkley are upassable in defence, and you start wondering about what odds you can get for O'Loughlin to win the Brownlow.
Then there is bloody awful Sydney where none of this occurs and everyone blames Dale Lewis for things going awry. As for Geelong, they have pathetic Geelong and average Geelong.
Pathetic Geelong is the team you see pretty much every week. Let's see, besides Graham plugging holes everywhere and King dominating the ruck, you'll find Spriggs running around in circles and not achieving much (that's if you don't count the sound of female Cat fans squealing at him) and the loud chatter and moaning from the Geelong crowd about how over-rated Bizzell, Houlihan, and Milburn are.
As for average Geelong, they start to look like a team where the players actually look as if they know each other, and they'll play maybe a half of decent football before falling in a heap.
There is a third, and rare type of Geelong, and that is magnificent Geelong. Sadly for Cat fans, this type of Geelong team only appears once every three or four months, and since magnificent Geelong made an appearance a mere two weeks ago against Hawthorn, it's not scheduled to reappear until the finals are but a forlorn hope for the faithful.
So, this game will be determined by which Sydney team decides to turn up. Will it be champagne Swans or bloody awful Swans? How long is a piece of string? What is the sound of one hand clapping? If a glass of chardonnay drops of the table in the Swans corporate lounge while no one is there, does it make a noise? These may be important questions, but as a North Melbourne fan, it's not something that I'm planning on spending too much time on answering.
You make up your own mind.
I guess I should tip a winner. Hum. Okay, at the end of the game, the winning team's theme song will open with the words, 'Cheer cheer the red and the white...'
Don't ask me why this will be so, it just will be, que sera seraà..
- Shinboners.
http://www.afltips.com/people/shinboners.html
**********
West Coast v. Melbourne
Sunday, 1 July 2001 - Subiaco 2:30 PM (4:30 PM AEST)
A couple of years ago and this would have been match of the round. Now it's a do or die battle for some honour.
The Demons have had a very disappointing season and need to win to have any chance of making the finals. Their midfield which was so dominant last season has yet to fire and Farmer has had a disappointing first half to the season through injury and suspension. Meanwhile other teams have given Nicholson and Simmonds a baptism of fire in the key defensive posts and run them up the ground. Still Godfrey has emerged and Schwarz and Neitz have battled strongly but first use of the ball is critical and a loosing the battle of on ball rotations normally spells disaster, and that is whats happened to the Dees.
The Eagles are re-building and hoped to patch up their side in the short term whilst waiting for the youngsters to develop. Unfortunately for the Eagles the decision to try and stay midtable with some fill up players has backfired. Their draft picks in Sierakowski, Merenda and Prior have been injured and with them went the only chance the Eagles had of staying around mid table. Combined with the fact that McIntosh, Matera, Jackovich and Kemp who for so long have been the backbone of this side are another year older and have had poor seasons and the Eagles are struggling. Taylor who was picked as a back up for Cousins and probably the least rated player amongst the stop gap group has ended up being the best pick.
The best chance the Eagles have of winning this game relies upon Gardiner and Turnbull jumping into White and the Eagles half forwards flooding their backline leaving Cummings and Matera one out in the forward 50. Despite this the Dees will be too quick and win by 60 points.
- Amazonstud
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5) The Quick Snap
Comment from 'The Half Back Flanker'
http://www.afltips.com/people/halfbackflanker.html
"Quick, grab the tape measure!"
So, the AFL Rules Committee is proposing that, from next season, the minimum distance for a legal kick should be 15 metres instead of present 10 metres?
This is a rule change that could bring many changes to the way the game is played.
Watch any AFL team at training or doing their pre-game warm up ... the short 10 metre kick is practiced constantly as both an attacking weapon and a defensive ploy.
Suddenly, the same precision will now be required over 15 metres instead of 10. There will be greater opportunity for opposition teams to spoil or intercept short passes. Escaping the zone defence by kicking short to a teammate will become ever so much harder.
Flooding opposition forward lines should become easier, simply because players will have less area to cover in the vicinity of the kicker.
There will probably be more handball and longer kicking, meaning an even faster game. Teams that rely on a possession game, often kicking short to a teammate in the clear, will have to alter their game plan, simply because these short kicks will have to travel further, increasing the chance of a turnover.
Will this rule be adopted nationally, through all grades of all leagues (except junior grades of course ... imagine the under 8s trying to achieve a kick as long as 15 metres!)? If so, grass roots football will also have to adapt the way they play.
And umpires will no longer call 'not 10 û play on' ... instead it will be 'not 15 û play on'. For someone who has played football for most of their life this will take a bit of getting used to.
Then there is the quick kick under pressure that often barely travels 10 meters ... these will no longer be able to be marked, instead the player taking possession will have to quickly play on.
What about games in the wet and the mud ... if clean possessions are hard enough to come by now, imagine what it will be like when short kicks are required to travel that extra distance? But then, wet weather football was never meant to be pretty, was it?
Most rule changes have had a positive effect on the game, such as increasing the number of players on the interchange, but this change is possibly part of something bigger.
Perhaps the AFL Rules Committee has suggested the increase as part of their strategy to combat flooding ... it will be interesting to see what comes next, perhaps limiting the number of players within either 50m zone?
I suppose that we'll just have to wait until their next meeting in August to find outà
Feedback to this article can be sent to:
afl.info@excite.com
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6) AFLTips.Com Trivia No. 013 - Answers
1. Bob Skilton captained South Melbourne from 1961 to 1968, including being captain-coach from 1965 to 1966.
2. Collingwood recorded its highest ever score, 32.19 (211), against St Kilda in 1980.
3. Richmond have won 10 premierships û 1920, 1921, 1932, 1934, 1943, 1967, 1969, 1973, 1974, 1980.
4. Darren Jarman led the goalkicking for Adelaide in 1998 with 45 goals.
5. Mark Bairstow captained Geelong from 1992 to 1994.
Any feedback, queries and/or corrections regarding AFLTips.Com
Trivia, please send an e-mail to:
afl.info@excite.com
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7) Info about AFLTips.Com
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Copyright (C) Adrian Groves, 2001
ENDS
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