AnUltimateRessie
Norm Smith Medallist
- Jan 14, 2022
- 7,171
- 13,403
- AFL Club
- Geelong
Season 36, Round 16.
August the 6th, 2023 saw the opening of the 36th season of Sweet F.A, and it’s been an adventure since with threads spammed, games won, drama unfolded and plenty of penalty points given way.
Now, to stay in the hunt for the premiership, teams must Qooty to Survive.
A recap on the path to a premiership so far.
It hasn’t been quite the season that the Fighting Furies had imagined after making the semi final in season 35 and making moves in the off-season, but they aren’t quite ruled out of the premiership race yet.
Waiting for a Break:
It was a tough start to the season for the Fighting Furies as they waited for their break in the season that came in round three.
Opening weekend saw them travel to the colosseum to battle against the West Coast Wonders. ShaunDuggan felt comfortable in front of goals as he kicked five, but it wasn’t enough for a win as they fell by 11 points.
The leadership was comfortable in their ability to not be stuck in the mud but that confidence soon disappeared when the Gold City Royals embarrassed them in front of home fans by 79 points.
They took to round three with some time off and the time to re-think their game plan.
Momentum is King:
After an undeserved break, it was time to welcome the Bombers and beat them on their home deck by 26-points. It was Rioli8217 that kicked five goals this time around while NaturalDisaster found some form to assist their side to their first victory of the season.
The Furies needed to carry this momentum into the next round and begin to lift them away from the bottom of the ladder, but they couldn’t get the job done against the East Side Phoenix.
The Phoenix seemed to pack up and go home after being 34 points up heading into the final break and the Furies used that to kick back to just a three point margin.
A big win against the Dragons in the sixth round had confidence rising before the king of momentum again refused them any sales, sending them losses against the Warriors and Gumbies.
All to Play For:
Coming out of round eight, the Fighting Furies were sitting as wooden spoon favourites but their season was still to play for and the Furies showed it with an 18 point win against the Roys and a 28 point win against the Bears.
Those two victories had them jump to 10th but another slip up with another back-to-back loss saw the Swamprats defeat them and a flogging from the Old Boys to ruin the party and send them back down.
Today:
Incredibly close wins in round 13 and 14 have them still in the hunt for a premiership, but a late team sheet violation and a four point deduction makes the path more complicated than it needed to be.
The Roys, Dragons, and Royals all need to lose their round 16 clash and the combined Roys losing margin and Furies winning margin needs to equal 200 points for a Furies finals berth to happen.
Statistic Leaders:
Hit Outs: NaturalDisaster (162)
Kicks: Frederico_WA (128)
Handballs: crazywildhorse (143)
Marks: crazywildhorse (70)
Tackles: Frothies Mcveigh (72)
Goals: ShaunDuggan (44.17)
Dream Team: Frothies Mcveigh (994)
If votes submitted in the rate the opposition MVP thread equalled simulation performance the Roys would be comfortably winning the wooden spoon, but alas it does not.
A Sudden Rise and a Fall To Follow:
The script to start the season couldn’t have written itself better, with a high scoring affair against the Coney Island Warriors opening the Roys season. Goals were on everyone's mind with Mooch putting 11 through the middle and tigs2010 finding seven of his own alongside 41 disposals to start the season with a 38 point victory.
All the attacking power at the Roys must have been drained in the opening round though as they couldn’t find enough scoreboard pressure to beat the Gumbies in round two and the Ophidian Old Boys in round three.
A Long Wait for a Vacation:
Wins against the Las Vegas Bears and West Coast Wonders in rounds four and five had their season back on track and sitting fourth in the standings and even better the Roys were able to end the Wonders undefeated start to their season.
Consecutive 48 and 46 point losses against the Swamprats and Demons shattered their confidence and screams of an unfair fixturing of the byes rang through the hierarchy of the Roys but that soon rang out when a 41 point victory against the Bombers and a four goal haul from Barrels gave them back a top six position.
A slight tumble in round nine against the Fighting Furies wasn’t helpful but one more win before the bye had them go into a vacation in high spirits.
The Run Home:
The Roys were sitting just inside the eight after their bye and followed it up with a big win to begin to claim a spot in finals but back-to-back close losses now have them sit eighth with a simple equation to solve.
The Roys must win this match to make finals or hope that three other teams also lose with them.
Statistic Leaders:
Hit Outs: DERRINALPHIL (174)
Kicks: 3KZ is Football (142)
Handballs: Zevon (158)
Marks: Pure Grunt (75)
Tackles: tigs2010 (69)
Goals: Mooch (52.30)
Dream Team: Pure Grunt (1088)
Captains, please be aware that the team sheet for your team must be submitted by 11:59 AWST on Thursday.
