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Footy tipping more importamt than Superannuation
Australians spend twice as much time working out their footy tips each week than they do planning their superannuation, a survey has found. Respondents spent an average 22 minutes a week sweating on their football tips but only 10 minutes on their financial futures, Industry Super Funds spokesman Garry Weaven says. "Winning the office tipping competition might provide $100 and bragging rights, but sorting out your super could mean thousands extra in retirement," Mr Weaven said. The Newspoll market research findings showed only 84 per cent of the 753 adult respondents knew the name of their super fund.
Footy tipping grabs high marks over super in attention stakes WestAustralian/25Sep06
Molly Meldrum: 'Let's all get behind the Storm' Roy Masters/SydneyMorningHerald/26Sep06

Brownlow: No joy for fans of also-rans
September can be pretty depressing for clubs that miss the finals. And tonight's Brownlow Medal is likely to leave the also-rans of 2006 feeling even more unfulfilled. While it was never adequate compensation for missing the chance of a premiership, the medal count at least provided an opportunity for teams down the ladder to bask in the glow of their own stars being officially endorsed as the best in the competition. It enabled the perpetually downtrodden in football's pecking order some bragging rights.
The Article Rohan Connolly/TheAge RealFooty/25Sep06

Source: The Age RealFooty Photo: John Donegan (cropped) 2006 BROWNLOW COUNT Red Carpet Arrivals HeraldSun Red Carpet Arrivals Getty Images Red Carpet Arrivals afl.com.au Red Carpet Arrivals TheAge RealFooty TOP TEN VOTE GETTERS Adam Goodes (Syd) 26 Scott West (WB) 23 Daniel Kerr (WC) 22 Chris Judd (WC) 21 Brad Johnson (WB) 19 Matthew Pavlich (Freo) 15 Brendon Lade (Port) 15 Shaun Burgoyne (Port) 15 Paul Chapman (Geel) 14 Jonathan Brown (BL) 13 ST KILDA VOTE GETTERS Robert Harvey 12 Nick Dal Santo 10 Lenny Hayes 8 Nick Riewoldt 8 Fraser Gehrig 6 Brendon Goddard 6 Jason Gram 5 Luke Ball 3 Leigh Montagna 3 Samuel Fisher 2 Matthew Maguire 1 Max Hudghton 1 Brett Voss 1 More Brownlow glory for Goodes Sydney star Adam Goodes claimed his second Brownlow medal last night with a stunning end-of-season charge to overhaul crowd favourite Scott West, who was again left a close runner-up for a second heartbreaking time. Goodes, who became the first Aboriginal and the first player from a non-Victorian club to win the coveted medal twice, secured best-on-ground performances in the final two rounds to steal the lead from West, who could only secure one vote in round 22 to Goodes' three. In the end, Goodes finished with 26 votes - three ahead of West on 23 - after hitting the front with one round to go, safe in the knowledge that he had dominated the match against Carlton. "To be honest I was hoping I would have a draw with Scotty West - he has had a fantastic career and to draw with Scotty West would be a dream come true," Goodes said. "It's pretty hard to put into context at the moment . . . to be honest we have a grand final this week and that is what I am getting ready to prepare for." The Article Michael Gleeson/TheAge RealFooty/26Sep06 Brownlow's men in black tie do league proud Kenneth Nguyen/TheAge RealFooty/25Sep06 Adam's too Goodes, but more promised Mark Robinson/HeraldSun/26Sep06 Goodes, better, best Matt Burgan/Sportal/AFL/saints.com.au Round by Round Votes Jason Gram and Kaite Williams Source: The Age RealFooty Photo: Viki Lascaris (cropped) Lets be focussed on Success by 'saintsRrising' . . . The Swans measure their performance not like other teams . . . possessions etc are not measures they care about . . . they care more about measures of control . . . control of the game. All their focus is on team performance. Superior team performance. When they do not have possession they are the hardest working team in the AFL. They know by working hard then, that they decrease the effectiveness of their opponents and increase the likelihood that they will gain control of the ball again. They are the best team in the AFL without the ball. The Saints do not put enough emphasis on this vital part of the game. Offensively the Swans are a much better team than many give them credit for. What they do however is that they play to their strengths . . . and combat their weaknesses. They know there midfield is individually not as good as some, but use team play with tempo and lock down tactics to deliver superior performance. The Swans like the Crows are superbly drilled in set plays. Flashy looks good, is exciting to watch . . . but is low % play. The Swans eschew flash for hard work. Now you can be successful by mimicking the Swans . . . not by a carbon copy . . . but by making the most of your strengths and by combating your weaknesses. . . . The Board realised that our move to Tassie was affecting our success . . . and this have now been changed. Fitness and training management was way behind what is required for an elite AFL Club. This is now changing . . . The Post 'saintsRrising' saintsational.com John Longmire by 'StKildonan' bigfooty.com So what are the attributes that Longmire brings to Sydney? How much of a contribution has he had toward their success? Longmire has coached the Sydney reserves in most of their games this season. They were just successful in the Grand Final. According to Caro: "The Sydney forward structure is terrifying in its diversity, and Longmire is one of its chief architects. He has helped to resurrect Davis, made Hall clearly a better player at 29 than he was when he came to Sydney at 25 and turned Ryan O'Keefe, who scraped on to the Swans' list, into an All-Australian half-forward". But Sydney are not known for their devastating forward line, more for their strangling style of play. They don't outscore their opponents, they prevent opponents from outscoring them. Sydney tends to flood and slow down play. The number of stoppages in a Sydney match can make it boring. Sydney is not out there to entertain - they're out there to win. Their team is talented enough to win without employing boring, negative tactics, but the boring, negative tactics is a consequence of their disciplined approach to playing football. I liked the style of play that Grant Thomas had St Kilda playing. The fast paced, free flowing exciting style of play. St Kilda got worked out though. Our forward line, for one reason or another became one dimensional and opposition teams were able to negate it's effectiveness. Longmire might be able to address that. The discipline that Roos brought to the Sydney team is their strength. It makes them more consistent. They are one of the hardest working teams when the opposition have the ball, and they are one of the most patient teams, retaining possession until an opportunity arises in the forward line when they have the ball. The style leads to low scoring matches, but it also leads to success. I don't want to adopt the Roos style game. I want to have the exciting game style. In 2004 when we won the preseason comp and the next ten in a row, we showed that the exciting style can also bring consistency. Will Longmire bring the disciplined Roos game style to St Kilda or will he adapt to the available resources (players) and develop our exciting style in his own manner. Thread 'StKildonan'et al/bigfooty.com Reference to Caroline Wilson article 'Time has come for Longmire' The Age Realooty 24Sept06

Brownlow wagers pour in for Goodwin
Scott West and Simon Goodwin were backed heavily yesterday as Brownlow Medal punters opened their wallets. TAB Sportsbet took $33,000 on the medal during Sunday trading hours, $11,000 of which was for the Western Bulldogs' ball-magnet West. And Goodwin the subject of the perennial Brownlow leak has firmed from $10 into $7 after a flood of money from the rank-and-file punters. TAB Sportsbet already holds $1 million in win and place bets on the medal and expects that figure to have doubled by the time counting starts tonight
The Article Jon Anderson/HeraldSun/25Sep06
Our Brownlow Medal stats HeraldSun/25Sep06
Fav's miss red carpet Andrew Ramsey/TheAustralian/25Sep06
Brownlow Medal betting HeraldSun/24Sep06
Brownlow Medal Dogs quinella Jackie Epstein/HeraldSun/24Sep06
HeraldSun Tips l Champion Data stats
Top Contenders AAP/HeraldSun/25Sep06

Harvey may become second-highest of all time
. . . St Kilda's Robert Harvey needs only 10 votes this year to become the second-highest vote-winner of all time. Harvey (193 votes) would surpass Hawthorn's Leigh Matthews (202 votes), but is unlikely to reach Gary Dempsey (246 votes for Footscray/Kangaroos). St Kilda assistant coach Jason Cripps said the dual Brownlow medallist was set to get into double figures after another great season. "I think he will poll 10 (votes). (Nick) Riewoldt was our most consistent, and (Nick) Dal Santo was a little bit up and down. He wasn't as consistent, but had some brilliant games," Cripps said.
Woey: Pin Brownlow on West Jon Ralph/HeraldSun/24Sep06

Brownlow Medal backing up
. . . St Kilda's evergreen Harvey did that by ignoring the hype after his '97 win. Already used to the stifling pressure of taggers and expectation, he just rolled on like nothing had changed. He ignored the requests for appearances, didn't allow himself to be wrapped up in the hype and kept on dominating at will. Incredibly, he improved on his 1997 average of 30.2 touches per game. "He is mentally the toughest athlete I have seen come through the club in my 12 years," said St Kilda assistant coach Jason Cripps, formerly Harvey's teammate. "His mindset when players go to him at the start of the game is that he knows he has prepared himself better than them and he will grind them into the ground. He has done that all his career." If Harvey needed any extra motivation, it was provided by the Grand Final loss of 1997. "No doubt, everyone was bitter over the summer and it came out when we made the Ansett Cup grand final and we were on top halfway through the year," Cripps said.
The Article Jon Ralph/HeraldSun/24Sep06

Out for the count
"Congratulations to Chris Grant for winning the most number of Brownlow votes for season 1997," Wayne Jackson, then AFL chief executive, bellows into a microphone after a long night of reading out surnames at Melbourne's casino. Channel Seven's television cameras cut to Robert and Danielle Harvey, the soon-to-be-wed young couple who in this brief, but decidedly uncomfortable moment, look like they've been mistaken for flashing winners' grins only moments earlier. "However," Jackson continues, "however," he has to say again, now struggling over the suddenly animated crowd, "Chris was suspended for one match. He is ineligible." With that, guests begin to boo. "Therefore I declare Robert Harvey of the St Kilda Football Club the winner of the 1997 Brownlow Medal."
The Article Caroline Wilson/TheAge RealFooty/23Sep06
The 10 Brownlow moments Renee Switzler/TheAge RealFooty/24Sep06

Brownlow Medal - which Saints are invited?
(All club captains and former winners are automatically invited)
Saints Invited - Dal Santo, S Fisher, Gram, Riewoldt, Harvey, Ball
Saints ineligible - Baker, Hayes, Hudghton
Past 10 Year Winners: 1997 and 1998 - Robert Harvey
All Teams List TheAge RealFooty/25Sep06

Few kicks to be had when there's no game to see
. . . St Kilda, in view of its crippling list of injuries, did better overall than Geelong this year. Moreover, St Kilda was unlucky enough to lose the vital double chance in this year's finals, partly because of the unusual precedent set by the AFL in overturning the result of a match against Fremantle. Maybe the failure of St Kilda was also its own fault. There is another reason for Victoria's failure. In one sense, the new AFL rules are somewhat biased against the poorer Victorian clubs. Admittedly, the official salary cap - the ceiling on total payments to players by each team - is an equaliser, and to be applauded. The strange exception is that the salaries of coaches, chief executives and other vital officials are not part of the salary cap. Richer clubs can afford an excellent coach and a caravan of assistant coaches.
The Article Geoffrey Blainey/TheAge/24Sep06
Fans sink boot in HeraldSun/24Sep06

Vote of confidence for Thompson
. . . The popular Lovell's axing will be the only change to Thompson's assistant coaches and that job will shortly be advertised. Lovell had been at Geelong for two seasons after taking over when Daryn Cresswell resigned mid-contract at the end of 2004. Cresswell will not be interviewed for another stint at Skilled Stadium.
The Article Greg Denham/TheAustralian/25Sep06
Cats stick with Thompson Caroline Wilson/TheAge RealFooty/25Sep06
One year to prove 2006 an aberration Caroline Wilson/TheAge RealFooty/25Sep06
Mark Thompson survives Mike Sheahan/HeraldSun/24Sep06
Zebras fight off Cats for flag hat-trick Sean Cusick/TheAge RealFooty/25Sep06
Geelong stick with their Thommo . . . so we have free run 'saintsRrising' et al/saintsational.com

McRae seeking to become a coach
Triple Brisbane premiership player Craig McRae is keen to move into the coaching ranks. McRae, a specialist forward for most of his career, has already been interviewed by Richmond and Port Adelaide . . . Hawthorn has axed Matthew Ball after three seasons. Ball, the older brother of St Kilda's 2006 captain Luke, averaged 20 possessions in three senior games this year for a career total of 17 games.
The Article
Greg Denham & Andrew McGarry/TheAustralian/26Sep06

Clubs go for Spida
Hawthorn says it has attracted healthy interest for disgruntled ruckman Peter Everitt, but has warned it will only strike a deal at the right price. While Sydney openly expressed its interest in Everitt last year, it has yet to discuss whether it will trade for the 32-year-old this season. Everitt and the Hawks have agreed to part company, but while he might not find himself at Sydney, Hawthorn is confident there are plenty of Victorian clubs waiting to swoop.
The Article Jon Ralph/HeraldSun/24Sep06
If Kosi is NOT a ruckman, what is he????? 'st.mart' et al/saintsational.com
Bloods win first flag in VAFA's A-section Cameron Noakes/TheAge RealFooty/25Sep06
Pressure on Beveridge for a ruckman, so: 'Oh When the Saints' et al/saintsational.com

Uncertainty still surrounds Geelong board
Geelong remains unsure whether a petition calling for a spill of the board will go ahead. A day after the Cats selectively released their review, guaranteeing coach Mark Thompson's contract next season, chief executive Brian Cook said former vice-president Denis McMurrich was yet to declare his hand. Last week, McMurrich announced he had a petition ready to call a special general meeting and would lodge it with the club today. While a report suggested McMurrich might not go ahead with the petition, Cook, who spoke with him late last week, was not so confident.
The Article Ashley Porter/AAP/TheAge RealFooty/26Sep06

Buckley resigns as skipper, Clement set to lead Pies
The longest captaincy in Collingwood history has come to an end, with Nathan Buckley announcing yesterday that he intends to relinquish the post, in all likelihood to James Clement. A year after the club first gave thought to the timing of a change of his leadership, Buckley, 34, said that his diminishing ability to train and set an example on the training track had persuaded him that it was time to draw a close on his long reign . . . As to his own successor, Buckley anointed Clement, his 30-year-old deputy who is a strong chance to win his third consecutive best and fairest award, the Copeland Trophy, next week.
The Article Stephen Rielly/TheAge RealFooty/26Sep06
Buckley to stand down AAP/ABCSport/25Sep06

Butt out of Blues' business
. . . Demetriou was quoted in The Australian on Saturday saying: "We do not know what Fraser Brown's intentions are, but, if he was to join the Carlton board, the AFL would have very serious concerns." He said the league had sought legal advice and had been told "we could act on those concerns". It was a none-too-thinly veiled reference to Brown's part in Carlton's salary-cap rorting exposed three years ago, exposure that led to the toughest sanctions on any club in AFL history.
The Article Mike Sheahan/TownsvilleBulletin/26Sep06

Aussies go for speed
Australia's International Rules side will be full of pacy ball-carriers again, with Gary Ablett, Andrew Raines and 2006 Rising Star Danyle Pearce being considered for the 25-man squad. The Australian selectors will meet again on Tuesday as they whittle down a list of about 40 candidates. While injuries and other commitments mean there remain doubts on availability, the side will be laden with the cream of the AFL's running crop.
The Article Jon Ralph/HeraldSun/24Sep06

30-match fixture a fair option
To argue that finishing fourth is better than fifth in the AFL is a statement of the bleeding obvious. Its truth was amply demonstrated last weekend with Sydney's brave performance at Subiaco giving it passage to a home preliminary final and flag favouritism, while the Magpies' off day had them eliminated. No informed observer can doubt the crucial importance of final ladder positions for teams' finals prospects. But, apart from some groans by some St Kilda fans that the AFL decision in the "sirengate" game in Launceston was the difference between the Saints finishing third and sixth, there has been surprisingly little discussion of how 2006 unfolded, given the narrow margins involved. A single win separated third from sixth, fourth to sixth was decided by a few percentage points, and seventh and eighth were one and two half-games back. The fact that 22 matches are played in a 16-team competition means the luck of the draw is critical in determining these finely measured spots on the ladder. Only at the end of the season can an assessment of who benefited/suffered from quirks of the fixture be properly made.
The Article Peter Fuller/TheAge RealFooty/24Sep06

Daryn Cresswell still playing tough
Daryn Cresswell was sitting on the balcony of his rented apartment at the Hyatt Coolum golf resort on Monday morning when his lawyer rang to relay what, on the face of it, should have been the best news he'd had in a long time. After a woman had accused him of sexual assault nine days earlier, Cresswell's life had been turned on its head. A 35-year-old married man with three children and a career full of promise as a future AFL coach, he was suddenly cast in a very different light when the woman's complaint became public knowledge. Only a day before his name, and the allegation, was broadcast and printed around Australia, he'd flown to Melbourne to be secretly interviewed for the St Kilda coaching job, which would officially become vacant a day later when Grant Thomas was sacked.
The Article Trevor Grant/HeraldSun/23Sep06

Saints move on coach
St Kilda's coaching sub-committee met for the first time on Thursday as it prepares to begin interviews next week to find a replacement for Grant Thomas. But president Rod Butterss, who is spokesmen for the committee, said last night the club would not be driven by time as it seeks to appoint a new coach. He said he would not discuss the identity of prospective coaches . . . Despite being under contract to Port Adelaide next season, speculation has been rife that the Saints would like to speak to Mark Williams about his future. Williams was unavailable for comment last night.
The Article Daryl Timms/HeraldSun/23Sep06

Selling home games outlawed by AFL
Clubs may make a commercial decision to sell a "home" game, but the game must then be played in neutral territory. "Whatever we choose to say, certain clubs were forced to do it because of their financial situation, but it jeopardised four points," Demetriou said. "There's no club selling a home game next year unless it is selling it into neutral territory. It's policy."
The Article Mike Sheahan/HeraldSun/23Sep06

Daryn Cresswell speaks out
Former champion Sydney footballer Daryn Cresswell says he was "hung out to dry" over a recent sex allegation . . . He said he had met her at the Storey Bridge Hotel while watching the live TV coverage of the Sydney-West Coast qualifying final on September 10. He declined to discuss the circumstances surrounding the allegation, saying he had engaged a lawyer and was considering his legal options . . . The next day he was secretly interviewed in Melbourne for the St Kilda coaching job, which was about to become vacant. Two days later, after the allegation against Cresswell became public, St Kilda, which had only just started interviews, announced he had not made the short list.
The Article Trevor Grant/HeraldSun/23Sep06

Pair brought swaggers, not daggers
Contrary to scuttlebutt, Mark Harvey did not come to Fremantle to take Chris Connolly's job. He came to enhance his standing as a coach, knowing that the Dockers represented a timely union for both parties. If Harvey wished to further his career as coach, his friend and fellow Essendonian Robert Shaw was seeking refuge from the grind of coaching. Fremantle would provide Shaw with an escape and safe passage into a new career as football manager. In Perth, Harvey's arrival, in particular, was swiftly branded as an insurance policy in the event that Connolly's career collapsed. It didn't. Once in deep water, Connolly has steered the ship into deep September, thereby keeping his own career afloat. When the Dockers encountered high seas - and a tidal wave of external criticism - before the mid-season break, Harvey remained steadfast and loyal to Connolly.
The Article Jake Niall/TheAge RealFooty/22Sep06

Victorian teams not dead and buried
. . . "This is a national competition that is becoming extraordinarily competitive," he says (Demetriou). "Every club is looking for an edge and that edge comes in preparation of teams, recruiting, which is becoming an exact science, coaching, a quality club environment and lots of other things - medical science, rehab . . . At the moment, there are teams that are doing it a bit better than others. Four non-Victorian teams made the finals, as did four Victorian teams. There wasn't that much in it (for the top four). It could easily have been Melbourne, it could easily have been Collingwood."
The Article Mike Sheahan/HeraldSun/23Sep06

The legend of the Bloods
. . . The Bloods came out of a series of discussions led by McLean, for the Sydney players believed that the football world expected them to tumble in 2003. In his book, Any Given Team, McLean relates how a young player - whom he will not name - pointed out that South Melbourne once was known as the Bloods. As the discussion rolled on, players passed comment upon the passive nature of the club's longtime symbol, the swan, in the context of a warriors' game such as Australian football . . . The Swans' doctor, Nathan Gibbs, is wont to say that he can tell when the team is playing well: it's when he treats more head injuries. When Kirk won the best-and-fairest last year, he told the audience in his speech: "The reason we won the flag was because we played for each other and we bled for each other" . . . "It's a bit of a road map to where we want to get to," said co-captain Barry Hall this week. "If we don't follow the guidelines and the indicators and stuff like that, we don't succeed. It's pretty black and white."
The Article Martin Blake/TheAge RealFooty/23Sep06

Eagles, Dockers strike gold in the west
. . . The West Australian clubs, for the first time, were among the last four standing in the national competition this season. But it is the potential for future growth, both in economic and football terms, which has positioned the Eagles and Fremantle to become super-clubs of the AFL . . . "The biggest issue for us is the size of the stadium," (West Coast chief executive Trevor) Nisbett said. "There is enormous opportunity for expansion if we can get the right venue. In time we could get 60,000 members and be comfortable that every one of them who wants to come to the footy, plus the general public, can get a seat. That is a possibility within seven years" . . . "Both clubs are in a terrific position. Fremantle has the same, enormous potential that we have."
The Article Chip Le Grand/TheAustralian/23Sep06

Victorian country footy resurgent as AFL teams slump
For two years in a row Victoria hasn't had a team in the AFL's top four and it smarts local fans something awful. But Victorian Aussie Rules supporters are a hardy mob and they've found foot-balling pleasure away from the bright lights of the AFL. Country football is riding high on a resurgence of support. This weekend up to 270,000 Victorians will flock to country matches right across the State. That's nearly three times the crowd that will go to the AFL Grand Final.
The Article Tony Eastley/ABC Radio/abc.net.au/22Sep06

World Footy News 'Clanger'
. . . Non-Victorian clubs and the AFL have been quoted as saying that the dominance of the non-Victorian teams is cyclical, yet I challenge this legitimisation. Port Adelaide was admitted into the AFL in 1997. They have already won the same amount of Premierships as the Bulldogs and St. Kilda, seasoned football clubs in the country's 'elite-most league' . . . Whilst mergers can be dangerous in that they can put people off the sport altogether, if handled properly they can be managed. Perhaps St. Kilda supporters would prefer to follow a joint Saints-Dogs side in Melbourne, than have to watch their now interstate-based club on television.
Opinion: Memo to AFL - Victoria needs you! Ash Nugent/WorldFootballNews/22Sep06

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