AFL Record, Round 13, 2011

THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE AFL GAME

ROUND 13, 2011 JUNE 17-19 $5 (INC. GST)

Josh Kennedy Eagle soaring to new heights

round 13, june 17-19, 2011

features « 57 SCOTT

THOMPSON

The Roos defender who punches above his weight.

NICK BOWEN reports.

58 JOSH KENNEDY

Traded for Chris Judd, he’s now a star in his own right.

NATHAN SCHMOOK reports.

regulars 4 7 25 53 70 74 76

How t Backchat write ao The Bounce sho rt story Matchday PAGE 18 Dream Team Answer Man Kids’ Corner NAB AFL Rising Star

Sydney’s Sam Reid.

78 Talking Point

64

ROBERT MURPHY

Ted Hopkins considers the confusion over kicking efficiency and kicking eff ectiveness.

8

THIS WEEK’S COVER Key forward Josh Kennedy is one of the reasons the Eagles are fl ying high in 2011.

Which player hates washing dishes?

The highly skilled Bulldog dog reaches 200 games.

COVER PHOTO: MICHAEL WILLSON

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EDITOR’S LETTER

Demons take a step backwards No end to flooding

I am amazed that fl ooding now seems to be accepted as the norm in our game.

Rare is it these days when virtually all 36 players are not in one half of the ground for a considerable amount of time.

This has inevitably led to more ugly congested packs, players running into each other, and many more mistakes.

Mistakes arise when the player with the ball looks up and has no one on the forward line to kick to, leading to unproductive sideways handballs or kicks sideways or backwards.

Clogging of forward lines makes it so much more diffi cult for even champion forwards to score.

In the Geelong-Hawthorn game last week, the Hawthorn coaching staff gave the team little chance to score in the final quarter.

The few times the ball passed the Hawthorn centre line, the Geelong backmen were able to clear with opponents near them.

Several games this season have been boring and unwatchable.

Flooding, in my mind, is a blight on our great game.

KEVIN LACEY, HAWTHORN, VIC.

Hawk in for rough time

As someone who’s been through achilles tendon surgery, I’d like to wish Jarryd Roughead all the best in his rehabilitation.

My heart sank when I saw big ‘Roughy’ go down on Saturday

GENERAL MANAGER, COMMERCIAL OPERATIONS Darren Birch AFL CORPORATE BUSINESS MANAGER Richard Simkiss AFL RECORD MANAGING EDITOR Geoff Slattery AFL RECORD EDITOR Peter Di Sisto

4

AFL RECORD

PAINFUL: Jarryd Roughead has a

long road ahead as he recovers from his torn achilles tendon.

night. Yes, I’m a Hawthorn man and I can’t help but think how much we’re going to miss him – especially given his form as a pinch-hitting ruckman. But I also know how painful and frustratingly long the recovery after achilles surgery can be.

Good luck, Roughy. I’m sure with all the support you’ll get from the Hawks medical team, you’ll be back firing in 2012.

NEVILLE MARKSON, GLEN WAVERLEY, VIC.

Blues definitely coming

A couple of years ago, everyone was getting stuck into Carlton supporters over the Blues’ marketing slogan ‘They Know We’re Coming’. OK, it may have been a bit premature and opposition supporters had a good

PRODUCTION EDITOR Michael Lovett WRITERS Nick Bowen, Ashley Browne, Ben Collins, Paul Daffey, George Farrugia, Katrina Gill, Ted Hopkins, Adam McNicol Jason Phelan, Peter Ryan, Nathan Schmook, Callum Twomey, Michael Whiting SUB-EDITORS Gary Hancock, Howard Kotton, Michael Stevens STATISTICIAN Cameron Sinclair CREATIVE DIRECTOR Andrew Hutchison

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laugh at our expense. But, this season, I reckon that slogan is just about spot on.

With Chris Judd going strong, Marc Murphy joining him as an elite midfielder and Michael Jamison fast becoming one of the best key defenders in the competition, we look a genuine top-four side. It might not happen this year, but make no mistake, we’ll give flag No. 17 a shake soon.

RICHARD BAKER, GLENELG, SA.

HAVE YOUR SAY

The best letter each round nd will receive the 2011 AFL Record Season Guide.

Email aflrecordeditor@ slatterymedia.com or write to AFL Record, Slattery Media Group, 140 Harbour Esplanade, Docklands, VIC, 3008.

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» Melbourne’s disappointing

effort against Collingwood last Monday was yet another setback in its quest for respect.

In isolation, a heavy loss by a young and developing team to the defending premier ought not cause panic. But the Demons were outplayed in all aspects of the game in front of a massive crowd in the marquee match of the Queen’s Birthday long weekend.

Notwithstanding a long list of injuries, Melbourne has publicly maintained its desire to consistently play smart, attractive and – above all – winning football.

Yet it continues to falter after taking what appear to be positive steps forward. An impressive win over Essendon in round 11 had many believing the Demons were finally ready to move beyond their ‘potentially good’ status and collect a big scalp such as the Pies, who were significantly undermanned.

Off the field, the club has its house in order: it is debt-free, thanks in part to the rallying work of president Jim Stynes, a and earlier this year posted a membership record (more tthan 36,400, some 10 per cent up on the previous mark). u Gaining credibility for its football remains a critical fo objective. o PETER DI SISTO

PRINTED BY PMP Print ADDRESS CORRESPONDENCE TO The Editor, AFL Record, Ground Floor, 140 Harbour Esplanade, Docklands, Victoria, 3008.

T: (03) 9627 2600 F: (03) 9627 2650 E: peterd@slatterymedia.com AFL RECORD, VOL. 100, ROUND 13, 2011 Copyright. ACN No. 004 155 211.

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E M O C E B M E SEE TH

L L A F O M A E T T S E T A E R G E H T

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9

Daniel Wells

12

The Roos’ ray of sunshine.

What we loved

The stars and heroes of round 12.

20

Life After Footy Ex-Lion Garry Wilson counts his chickens.

I’ve always been keen to play one last game of footy

Ricky Ponting, p16

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THE

Making the move to reignite a career

is more difficult than being forward, as he had to improve his fitness base, but he is relishing the opportunity.

Sometimes change happens mid-season. The modern game (and particularly the sub rule) is forcing players to be versatile.

Lyon made this point when discussing the use of veteran Steven Baker forward last Friday night.

“You have to be multi-positional now,” he said. “Otherwise it puts too much running pressure on the others.”

Baker might become what Jake King has been this year for Richmond. Lyon’s comments point to another change

E

PETER RYAN

very week, somewhere around the AFL, you can bet a coach walks into his office and announces to anyone prepared to listen he has an idea to reinvigorate a career and, in turn, strengthen the team.

Sometimes coaches draw on history, as Ross Lyon appeared to do when he moved St Kilda’s Nick Dal Santo to half-back a month ago and cited former Melbourne player Alan Johnson and the Brisbane Lions’ Marcus Ashcroft as examples of quality midfielders who added defensive aspects to their games late in their careers.

Occasionally, a player’s positive qualities are so obvious that other options must be explored.

Collingwood’s Leon Davis and Carlton’s Chris Yarran both fit into this category, with similar remedies employed to reinvigorate them, the logic of the moves less apparent to most when they happened than they are perceived now.

Both spent the pre-season and early part of the season adapting to the move from small forward to running defender, their daring runs stretching opposition defences.

The moves might have historical precedents – think Adelaide’s

You have to be multipositional now ROSS LYON

NEW ROLE: Leon Davis has been starring for Collingwood since he was moved from attack to defence.

Andrew McLeod and the Eagles’ Peter Matera – but the strategies are a perfect fit for today’s game.

In a season where long kicking and marking contests have returned to the forefront, defensive crumbing has become a massive asset.

Davis and Yarran can set up behind the ball on the second

last line of a defensive press, ready to pounce on a contest or explode through the middle.

Both have added a spark to solid, well-disciplined defences.

Watching Davis rebound from defence is like watching the multi-ball mode suddenly explode into a pinball machine.

Davis admits playing back

happening as the game evolves.

Since the high-rotation era began, the mid-game tactical mismatches orchestrated by coaches rarely happen.

Occasionally, a player may be pushed deep into the goalsquare in an attempt to exploit a height or pace difference, but good defences can usually reshuffl e to nullify any perceived mismatch.

Occasionally, a spell in the middle might provide a spark (as was the case with St Kilda’s Stephen Milne in last year’s qualifying fi nal)

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7

Hawthorn’s Jarryd Roughead to miss rest of season after surgery on ruptured achilles tendon in his left leg.

Naitanui and Clarke are skilled tap ruckmen, are useful third men up and provide big bodies around the stoppage, creating space for teammates.

Importantly, they can run and spread, and can be defensive if the ball is heading in the opposition’s direction.

The success of this tactic is a credit to the imagination of teams’ coaches.

As are all the moves. That’s why arguments about whether development or recruitment is more important defy logic.

Every player will need to adapt and develop long after they are recruited.

With the right mindset and good coaches, anything is possible.

NOVEL TRIP: Jack Riewoldt (front right) leads some Tigers’ hi-jinx on the bus back from Sydney with Chris Newman (left), Brett Deledio (middle left), Mitch Farmer (standing) and Tom Hislop

LONG ROAD BACK LONGROADBACK

SHINING IN NEW ROLES

Travel plans go up in smoke

Forward to defender:

Chris Yarran (Carl) Leon Davis (Coll)

Midfielder to defender:

F

KATRINA GILL

Nick Dal Santo (St K) Into the middle:

Robin Nahas (Rich) Mark LeCras (WC) Defender to forward:

Andrew Walker (Carl) Lewis Roberts-Thomson (Syd) Jake King (Rich) Forward to more ruckwork:

Jarryd Roughead (Haw)

ootball departments are well-oiled machines.

The players adhere to a strict routine of training, preparing, playing and recovering to maximise their performances for the duration of the season.

Every little thing a player does between games is

monitoredandmeasured monitored and measured, from the number of kilograms he loses during a game and the minutes he spends training during the week, to the amount of Powerade dispensed at half-time.

If travel is involved, the players receive a list of what to pack, where to be and when, and have boarding passes made available to them at the airport check-in.

So, it would take something monumental and entirely unforeseen to throw a club’s plans into chaos. (In 2001, the collapse of Ansett saw then AFL commissioner and Australia Post managing director Graeme John help organise an Australia

When they’re not playing PLAYER

8

What or who scares you you most: most:

What domestic chore d do you refuse to do:

Favourite TV show:One thing you can't eat:

Grant Birchall Hawthorn

HeightsI hate cooking

I

Packed To The Rafters

Nuts

Matthew Boyd Western Bulldogs

Spiders

Cleaning C ng g toilets t

M Your Mother How I Met

ves Olives

Andrew Walkerr Carlton

Horror moviesWashing

W

ng g

M Marngrook Footy Show Fo F

Michael Hurley y Essendon

Brendan McCartney tney

Washing W ng g dishes

The Inb Inbetweeners b

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cooking

Andrew Carrazzo's squid ink pasta

Tomatoes and spicy food

TWITTER ACCOUNT PHOTO: JACK RIEWOLDT’S

but predictability is more often preferred.

As ever, much of the coaches’ good work is done away before game-day, identifying where players can best suit the team, assessing their capacity to fulfil those roles and then, importantly, training them to do the jobs as expected.

Consider Sydney Swan Lewis Roberts-Thomson’s move forward in the past two weeks. Patience is required, from coach and player (and supporters).

That’s why Andrew Walker’s performance forward in 2011 reflects well on both coach Brett Ratten and Walker.

Walker has kicked 30 goals and his tackling pressure is complementing the mix Carlton is creating forward of centre.

Last week, Ratten called Walker “a modern small”, an interesting description of the agile 190cm forward, before settling on him being a “medium tall”.

That struggle to fi nd a description indicates Walker is exactly what you want in the modern game: fl exibility.

Also creeping into the game is the secondary tall at the centre stoppage.

West Coast’s Nic Naitanui and Fremantle’s Zac Clarke have been playing roles that appear a throwback to the 1950s, a time before Geelong’s Russell Renfrey and Melbourne’s Ron Barassi defi ned the ruck-rover role, when clubs played two talls in the middle.

Geelong’s Joel Selwood suspended for four matches for striking Hawthorn’s Brent Guerra.

Sitting on the bus for 10 or 11 hours with the boys was fun NATHAN FOLEY

Post jet to fly the Hawks to Adelaide for a semi-fi nal against Port Adelaide.)

Last Sunday, a volcanic eruption some 13,000km away in Chile, cast a cloud of ash and fog over Australia’s eastern seaboard and stopped fl ights into and out of Melbourne.

Three teams, Essendon, Richmond and the Brisbane Lions, were affected by the airport closure.

The Bombers were stranded in Perth, the Tigers in Sydney and the Lions in Melbourne.

All three were forced to stay an extra night in a hotel and hold impromptu recovery sessions, with no timeframe immediately offered on when they would be able to return home.

Richmond offi cials, dealing with the additional complications of a six-day break and back-to-back games interstate (Brisbane this weekend), made the decision to hire a bus to take the party back to Melbourne on Monday.

“With the uncertainty about when planes would be operating at Melbourne airport, we decided the best course of action would be to use a different form of transport,” Richmond football manager Ross Monaghan said.

“Due to the limited information we had after the match, we did not want to take the risk that we would need an extended stay in Sydney.”

As fate would have it, only a couple of hours into the Tigers’ 11-hour road trip, flights resumed.

The Bombers and Lions both secured flights home and arrived at their destination before Richmond rolled into Melbourne.

Before the 960km journey, the furthest the current group of Richmond players had travelled by bus was the 60-minute trip from Punt Road to Geelong in round six last season.

The players had access to

ice packs throughout the trip, and fitness coach Matt Hornsby made sure the bus stopped every two hours, so the team could get out and stretch.

“It was a big trip but it wasn’t too bad. I thought it would be worse,” Richmond midfi elder Nathan Foley said. “(We watched) a few DVDs and a few of the boys were pretty entertaining. Jack Riewoldt and Alex Rance were very good.

There were a few card games and time passed by pretty quickly.

“It was a good bonding experience. Sitting on the bus for 10 or 11 hours with the boys was fun. To be honest, I don’t feel any different at all. It won’t affect us at all this week.” » The AFL organised for Hawthorn Hawthorn charterr flflights for oldCoasttotravelto old travel to to and Gold Coast to travel eston for their game this Launceston nd. The two two clubs clubs were were weekend. due to leave a day ahead of ormal schedules. schedules. their normal

GREAT EAT EXPECTATIONS

Brilliant illiant Roo finally ofinally silencing encing g the critics ecritics NICK BOWEN OW EN

T

here have been great expectations expectationson onDaniel Daniel Wells for most of his nine-year AFL career.

Theirr origins can be traced rst two twoseasons seasons back to Wells’ first selectedby byNorth North after hee was selected urne with the No. 2 pick in Melbourne 02 draft. draft. the 2002 eamless and graceful grace ful So seamless midfielder’s entry to was thee midfi in 2003, 2003, he he looked looked aa the AFLL in ion-in-waiting . champion-in-waiting. fanned the the flflames of Wellss fanned ames of ofty expectations in his those lofty he won won the the second season, when he oaches’Association AssociationBest Best AFL Coaches’ Young Player award and fourthin inNorth’s North’s finisheddfourth d fairest. best and there, But, from there, fans many of his fans becamee critics.

Despitee a third g in placing inNorth’s North’s est and 2006 best

fairest and three other top-eight finishes (2005, 2008 and 2010), many felt Wells wasn’t living up to his potential.

Mitigating circumstances, such as hip and groin problems that restricted him to seven games in 2009, were often given scant regard.

North coach Brad Scott put the expectations on Wells into perspective after the Kangaroos’ round-seven loss to Geelong this season.

We’re fortunate to have Daniel Wells really leading the way BRAD SCOTT

RAMPANT ROO:

Daniel Wells is in career-best form for North Melbourne.

He said if Wells lived up to the expectations those outside the club had of him, he would be “the best player we’ve ever seen”.

Nonetheless, Wells’ form this year has been so good many critics are now fans again.

What has stood out is how well-rounded Wells’ game now is. Although he is best known as a classy, explosive outside player, his inside play at stoppages has been elite.

His 15-possession fi rst quarter against Gold Coast last Saturday night is a good example of the infl uence Wells has been having on games.

In the opening four minutes, he won two centre-square clearances, his long kicks into the Roos’ forward 50 leading second and third th to their second match mat goals of the match. work ked back He also worked into defence to t thwart t Gold Coast attacks attac and ran back hard hard d the th other in nto the open way, getting into Suns with his to hurt the Suns precision kicking. kiccki as a quarter It wa was dom as d dominant ass A Andrew Sw S Swallow’s 171 17-possesion first rs term aga a against Ad Adelaide a we week earlier.

Wells didn’t dri d drift out of the gam g game either, ma m maintaining his work h w rate th hrou throughout to finish nish hbest b on ground wit ground w with 33 possessions. possessio It cont tin continued his outstand din 2011 outstanding form thatt has ha him averaging g a career-high c 24.3 possessions possesssio a game.

He also leadss North N for inside 50s andd goal go assists and is ranked ranked second seeco for contested possessio ons possessions.

After the Suns g am Scott a game, paid tribute to Wel lls’ emerging Wells’ leadership qual itie qualities.

“We’re fortunate fortun nate to have Andrew Swallow Sw wal and Daniel Wells really rea lllyleading the way for (Lev i))Greenwood, Gr (Levi) (Ryan) Bastinac, Bastinac,((Be (Ben) Cunnington, thoseetype ty Cunnington, those of players,” Scott sa aid. said.

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9

Adelaide chairman Rob Chapman declares coach Neil Craig has “unequivocal” support of the board.

ESSENDON SLUMP

Bombers puzzled by nosedive CALLUM TWOMEY

T

he most puzzling thing about Essendon’s three consecutive losses is that, on the surface, it is hard to pinpoint exactly what’s gone wrong.

On statistics alone, it is difficult to chart the areas that have cost the Bombers games against Richmond (round nine), Melbourne (11) and Fremantle, by 34 points last week at Patersons Stadium.

The key indicators in today’s football include contested possessions, clearances and inside-50 entries. These are generally considered crucial to creating scoring opportunities.

Essendon’s tallies in these areas in the past three weeks are close to those it posted in the fi rst eight, when they sat third on the ladder with five wins and a draw.

The Bombers’ contested possessions have dropped, on average, by only seven a game, while their inside 50s have fallen slightly, from 60 a game to 56.

Their clearances in the past three games, despite the absence of key midfielders Jobe Watson (in two of the games), Heath Hocking (all three) and Sam Lonergan (one), have increased since round eight, from an g of 37 a game g average to 42.

So what has happened? The Bombers are clearly winning less of the ball than they did in the opening eight games, collecting on average 41 fewer disposals a game.

In the past three games alone, they have lost the possession count by 58, 82, and 74 respectively. That – combined with skill errors when in possession – has been damaging.

Essendon is also having fewer shots at goal. Although their inside 50s have barely changed, the Bombers have averaged 10 fewer scoring shots a game in the three-week down period.

It might be argued the absence of Watson was more of a loss in attack than it was in the midfi eld.

Watson kicked 13 goals in the

Rounds ounds 1-8

Round Rounds ds 9-12

Contested possessions160153

160

153

Clearances3742

37

42

Contested marks1712

17

12

Marks inside 50138

13

8

Kicks217191

217

191

Long kicks6656

66

56

Short kicks7356 Handballs154139 Disposals371330

73 154 371

56 139 330

Disposal efficiency7368

73

68

Tackles6968

69

68

Tackles inside 501312

13

12

Inside 50s6056

60

56

DO NUMBERS TELL THE STORY?

17

11

Scoring shots2920

29

20

Disposals per goal2231

22

31

% goals scored from inside 50s2819

28

19

1

3

Quarters of six goals or more conceded13

» Jill Lindsay’s lifetime of devotion to her favoured sports – softball and Australian Football – was a honoured posthumously in the h 2 2011 Queen’s Birthday honours list.

Lindsay, who died in February, was honoured with the Order Of w A Australia for her contribution to

AFL RECORD

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(average) verage)

Goals1711

Lindsay honoured with OAM

10

opening eight games, and his creativity and leadership in the forward line was critical.

In the games he missed with a hamstring injury, Stewart Crameri and David Zaharakis, particularly, had little infl uence.

Something much more simple, however, might be the core reason for Essendon’s three losses: lapses in concentration have defined each loss.

In the first eight games, only once did Essendon have an opposition team kick six goals uarter against againstit. it.That That in a quarter he final quarter agains againstt was the against ngwood in d fifive, Collingwood inround round bootedtwo two when the Magpies booted goals in time-on. time-on. he past three weeks, w weeks, In the ver, Richmond (in however,

the third quarter), Melbourne (third) and Fremantle (fi rst) have kicked six or more goals in a term.

Following the loss last weekend, coach James Hird said the first-quarter blowout was indicative of a trend that had crept into the Bombers’ game.

“We lost our structure a couple of times, which was disappointing, because we’ve talked about that.

The first quarter was very disappointing. We just didn’t way we we should should start the way have ” Hird have, Hirdsa id have,” said. was an an “There was with the the way way issue with were our players were setting up.”

KEY BOMBER: Essendon

is hoping skipper Jobe Watson will have more influence now he is back from injury.

softball and her work as an AFL administrator, a role she held from 1970 until her death.

AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou paid tribute to Lindsay.

“Jill devoted a wonderful life to softball and to our game because she enjoyed the thrill and rewards of sport, the camaraderie it produced, and the life lessons that are taught with the highs and lows of competition,” Demetriou said.

“She did not seek recognition and fame, but only to ensure the sports she loved prospered, and I’m delighted Jill’s legacy

has been acknowledged to the wider community.

“On behalf of Jilll’s friends and colleagues at the AFL, we are extremely thrilled with this honour for her and her family, and we continue to miss her.”

Also recognised was former Melbourne player and Australian Test cricketer Max Walker for “service to cricket and to the community”. Walker played 85 games for Melbourne from 1967-72.

GEOFF SLATTERY

THIS IS AN EDITED VERSION OF A STORY THAT FIRST APPEARED ON AFL.COM.AU

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Brisbane ane Lions defender Jed Adcock to miss time after surgery to repair a broken fi nger.

THINGS WE LOVED FROM ROUND 12 SMOKIN’ CLOKE

TOO BIG, TOO STRONG: Travis Cloke

» If Collingwood had lost

last year’s Grand Final, many any fingers would have been pointed ointed squarely at Travis Cloke, who squandered two golden n opportunities to bury St Kilda lda before half-time of the historic toric contest that ended in a draw.

Of course, despite a quiet performance in the replay, Cloke became a premiership player and all was forgiven.

This season, Cloke has produced career-best football and, most pertinently, has apparently arrested the goalkicking issues that have plagued him.

The Queen’s Birthday clash with Melbourne last Monday is a case in point.

In a near best-afi eld eff ort, the hulking (196cm/108kg) left-footer racked up 22 disposals (15 kicks and seven handballs), took seven marks and bagged a career-best 6.1. He had previously kicked fi ve on fi ve occasions, and had fi ve against the Demons just 18 minutes into the second term.

Cloke has kicked 29.17 in 11 games this season, at a conversion rate of 63 per cent – a signifi cant improvement on his pre-2011 rate of 49.5 per cent. Barring injury, he should obliterate his previous best season tally of 40 in 2008.

Walker has been a revelation in attack, tallying 30.10 Cloke is playing like he believes he can mark everything – and he often does. The 24-year-old led the AFL in contested marks last year with 57, and is on target to smash that, and the record of 75 set by Richmond’s Matthew Richardson in 1999. He has already claimed 45 contested marks, 16 clear of nearest rivals James Podsiadly (Geelong) and Josh Kennedy (West Coast).

12

AFL RECORD

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hauls in one of his seven marks on the way to kicking a career-best six goals against Melbourne in the big Queen’s Birthday clash at the MCG.

Aside from goalless downers against Collingwood and Essendon in rounds three and four, he has averaged 16 touches, five marks and 3.3 goals a game.

J-POD ROCKS THE ’G

» Geelong spearhead James

HAPPY CATS: Travis Varcoe embraces star

forward James Podsiadly, who made a mockery of his poor MCG record with a six-goal haul against the Hawks.

THE SKY WALKER KER

» Before this season,n,Carlton’s Carlton’ss

Andrew Walker had kicked kickedjust justt 37 goals in 103 games, es,with withaa best season tally of 10, 10,inin2007.

2007.

Walker had alsoo managed managed just four multiple-goal -goaleff efforts, ortts, with a best haul off three three (twice), (twicce), amein inlast lastt the last of which came year’s elimination final loss iinn Sydney. It was a sign gn of of things thing s to come.

Despite talk out of ofCarlton Carlton that Walker would be be tried triedas as a leading forward, many manyBlues Blues fans expected the experimentt to to be short-lived and Walker wo would uld eventually be reassigned signed to defence or the midfi field.

However, Walkerr has attack, been a revelation innattack, tallying 30.10, including nine uding nine multiple-goal eff orts. rts. tingsalone, alone,, In his past two outings Walker has slotted 11.0 11.0(comprising (comprising a career-best six against ainstPort Port ainst the Adelaide and five against Brisbane Lions last week). week).

Podsiadly was supposed to be a flat-track bully, and a fi zzer on the big stage at the MCG. After all, he had bagged 33 goals in nine games at Skilled Stadium, but just 11 in nine appearances at the MCG. But, in a huge game against Hawthorn under lights at the MCG, the clever left-footer took just an hour to dramatically alter such perceptions.

By the 24-minute mark of the second quarter, Geelong had scored 10 goals, of which Podsiadly had contributed a personal-best of six. Most devastatingly, after a series of strong contested marks, he had piled on four goals in 12 minutes.

Last year, Podsiadly kicked five goals six times, drawing 13 Brownlow votes. He should again be in the votes after this eff ort, which, despite failing to add to his tally in the second half, was enough for many experts to award him best-afield honours.

JUMPING JACK VERY FLASH

» Richmond spearhead

Jack Riewoldt hasn’t been as spectacular this season as he was during his Coleman Medal-winning 2010 season, but last week he supplied one of the highlights of the round.

With two minutes remaining in the third term and the Tigers trailing the Swans by 11 points on a rain-sodden SCG, Riewoldt took centre stage.

When teammate Brett Deledio fired a shot at goal from outside 50 and the ball dropped just short, Riewoldt launched himself on to the back of Swans defender Ted Richards and somehow clung to the slippery ball as it was going away from him, and as he did a 360-degree spin.

It was a fantastic mark. The type we have come to expect from Riewoldt.

BEN COLLINS

The weight is over

“Yes, it might well be

the best laptop ever made.”

“At just 1.32kg…17millimetres thick…the Series 9 is a good looking machine, the best-looking laptop ever made.”

John Davidson, The Australian Financial Review

First release at

Fremantle’s David Mundy to miss six-to-eight weeks with a “high” high”ankle ankle sprain. sprain.

UNDER-18 CHAMPIONSHIPS

MILESTONES ROUND 13

Smith’s six catches the eye in Vic Country win

AFL LIFE MEMBERSHIP

Barry Hall Western Bulldogs

350 GAMES Stephen McBurney Umpire

AFL 200 CLUB

D

Shaun Burgoyne Hawthorn Gardiner St Kilda Michaell Gardiner

200 GAMES Robert Murphy Western Bulldogs Shaun Ryan Umpire

150 GAMES COACHED

Alastair Clarkson Hawthorn

150 GAMES Ray Chamberlain Umpire

100 GAMES

Mathew Stokes Geelong Shannon Byrnes Geelong Hamish McIntosh North Melbourne Nathan Foley Richmond Michael Pettigrew Port Adelaide

50 GAMES Callan Ward Western Bulldogs Jacob Mollison Umpire The list includes those not necessarily selected but on the verge of milestones.

14

AFL RECORD

KATRINA GILL, JASON PHELAN AND NATHAN SCHMOOK

visit afl record.com.au

ivision one teams Vic Country, Vic Metro, South Australia and Western Australia enjoyed comfortable wins in round two of the NAB AFL Under-18 Championships.

Vic Country on-baller Devon Smith kicked six goals in the 33-point win over Northern Territory at Visy Park last Saturday. Smith had 27 disposals, seven clearances and seven inside 50s in a display that caught the eye of the AFL’s national talent manager Kevin Sheehan.

“Smith gives the game energy every time he goes near the ball; he’s electrifying,” Sheehan said.

“He plays with great intensity and you top that off with great skill, pace and agility. He’s a prolific ball-winner and just an exciting player to watch.”

Vic Country had plenty of contributors on the day.

Tall forward Todd Elton is an imposing figure at 197cm, but moved like a midfi elder in gathering 23 disposals and booting two goals.

Sam Dobson and Brett O’Hanlon were also impressive in forward roles and took nine and eight marks respectively.

Jake Neade was the Territory’s best player with 21 touches and six inside 50s, while Jed Anderson, whose 22-disposal effort was punctuated by a brilliant pack mark, was also prominent.

Anderson has been selected

by Greater Western Sydney as part of the new club’s zone concessions, but will spend this year in the Territory.

Vic Metro forward Jonathon Patton booted six goals to propel his team to an emphatic 85-point win against Queensland, also at Visy Park, last Saturday.

Patton, who took 11 marks and has been described as a young Jonathan Brown,

FUTURE DEMON:

Jack Viney had 17 disposals and five clearances for Vic Metro.

is widely regarded as the favourite to be picked fi rst overall by Greater Western Sydney and his performance only enhanced his credentials.

“We saw why he is talked of so highly. Patton is a special talent up forward. His contested marking and his marking on the lead are excellent,” Sheehan said.

“He tracks the ball so well in the air. He’s got a great leap, takes off early to make it nearly impossible for the defender behind him to spoil and (grabs) the mark. He was a little bit off target today, but he was still the most important player on the ground.”

M

etro ruckman Billy Longer, a hard fi gure to miss at 202cm, used his height and bulk to advantage and was also a key player in the win.

Metro’s midfielders took control of the contest in the second half. Toby Greene worked tirelessly to fi nish with 24 possessions and a goal, while Jack Viney (bound for Melbourne via the father-son rule) was also busy with 17 touches and five clearances.

Liam Sumner also caught the eye, winning 20 disposals.

Hawthorn father-son prospect Tom Curran, son of Peter, worked into the game after a

slow start and fi nished with 15 possessions and two goals.

Richard Newell was Queensland’s best with 17 touches, while Jackson Starcevich and Tom Fields also ranked among their team’s best.

Starcevich is the son of former Magpie Craig and Fields is the son of ex-Bomber and Swan Neville.

South Australian captain Chad Wingard delivered on his promise as a potential top-fi ve pick at this year’s graft, guiding his team to an easy 75-point win over NSW/ACT at AAMI Stadium last Saturday.

Wingard picked up 24 possessions, including 18 in a dominant fi rst-half. The Sturt on-baller, who also won five clearances, was shifted out of the midfield in the second half, and finished the game on the bench.

Forward Matt McDonough (five goals), Ben Kennedy (four) and utility Sam Mayes (four) combined to kick 13 of the team’s 19 goals.

Kennedy and McDonough, both 17, are ineligible to be drafted, but can be listed by Greater Western Sydney.

Midfielder Mitch Grigg (23 possessions and six clearances), attacking defender Alex Forster (22 and nine

Graham Wright appointed Hawthorn’s recruiting and list manager. Wright has been with the club since 2007.

marks) and Rory Laird (19 disposals) were also prominent.

Ashley Morris was lively across half-forward for NSW/ACT, amassing 25 touches and six marks and kicking a goal. Defender Matt Lodge also gathered 25 possessions and showed great courage, taking an inspirational pack mark in the first quarter.

Collingwood scholarship holder Jarrod Witts (17 hit-outs and 18 possessions) enjoyed a good battle with Brodie Grundy (14 disposals and 20 hit-outs).

West Australian midfielder Stephen Coniglio was dominant in his team’s emphatic 87-point win over Tasmania at Patersons Stadium last Sunday.

Coniglio, regarded as the best junior midfielder in the country and a likely top-two draft pick, kicked four goals from his 22 disposals The talented 17-year-old, yet to decide if he will pursue cricket or football, did his best work in tight at the stoppages, winning a game-high seven clearances.

He headlined a long list of star performers for Western Australia, with talented forward Chris Yarran (not eligible for this

year’s draft) taking 10 marks and booting five goals.

Damaging left-foot midfi elder Dayle Garlett starred in the first half and fi nished with 28 possessions and 10 inside 50s, while tough on-baller Jaeger O’Meara had 26 possessions, fi ve clearances and six inside 50s.

Midfielder Jesse Lonergan was Tasmania’s best player, finishing with 19 possessions and six clearances.

THIS IS AN EDITED VERSION OF STORIES THAT WERE FIRST PUBLISHED ON AFL.COM.AU

FIGURES RELEASED

Mid-year report: membership, ratings up ADAM McNICOL

T

he number of footy fans who are members of AFL clubs continues to grow, with almost

640,000 people joining the 17 AFL clubs this year.

Even when the 10,865 members who have joined expansion club Gold Coast are removed from the figure, last season’s record total of 614,251 (the fi nal fi gure is calculated at the end of June) has already been exceeded.

“The clubs are doing phenomenally well,” AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou said earlier this week as the League released its figures as part of its mid-year review.

“They’ve done an absolutely outstanding job of seeing memberships grow for the last nine or 10 years.”

Overall, television ratings have also increased slightly, although the number of people watching football on pay television channel Fox Sports has increased 23 per cent.

The first ‘QClash’ between the Gold Coast Suns and the Brisbane Lions (round seven) drew a record pay television audience of more than 357,000 people.

However, crowds have fallen slightly when compared to 2010.

Last year, an average of 37,483 people attended the 96 games

played by the end of round 12.

In 2011, the average attendance at the 93 games (some rounds have had only seven games so each club can have two byes) played by the end of round 12 is 36,617.

The Essendon-Collingwood Anzac Day match drew the highest attendance (89,626), with three other MCG games (Collingwood-Carlton in round three, Geelong-Collingwood in round eight and RichmondEssendon in round nine) drawing in excess of 80,000 people.

“Everyone knows we’re obsessed with getting people to go to the footy,” Demetriou said.

“It’s the whole thing that drives our strategy. The crowds are holding up really well. We think our total attendances will be about three per cent ahead of last year.”

The AFL also said participation numbers were up and outlined its major challenges for 2012, including securing the fi nancial future of 18 clubs, “bedding down expansion” while protecting the game’s heartland and securing funding for future infrastructure projects.

WIN – THE ULTIMATE

FOOTBALL EXPERIENCE! Go to 3aw.com.au/footy and put yourself in the draw for great weekly prizes and a chance to win the Ultimate 2011 Toyota AFL Grand Final Experience.

Each week, be listening to the 3AW footy broadcast and if you hear your name and call back before the end of the match, you’re a winner.* Visit 3aw.com.au/footy and register today.

Full terms & conditions at 3aw.com.au AFL Authorisation Code: GFAFL11/29

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15

Saint Brett Peake and Eagle Jack Darling each fi ned $900 for making makingnegligent negligentcontact con on ntac tac ta acwith t withananumpire. umpire.

PONTING FOUNDATION

Going into bat for the Roos – and kids with cancer

I’ve always been keen to play one last game of footy RICKY PONTING

PETER RYAN

W

hen Australian cricket star Ricky Ponting stands at the crease, he is calm.

The turf at his feet is free of rubble or distracting spike marks; he likes to settle into his stance with the crease clean and clear.

To focus the mind, he recites a sporting mantra: ‘Watch the ball’. He says it as the bowler turns to run in, when the bowler is halfway through his run, and as he is about to deliver the ball.

“I just give myself one thing to think about. Hopefully, that keeps all other thoughts out of my mind,” Ponting said.

It is a habit he has refi ned during a Test career that has seen him face 20,827 balls.

Ponting is calmer in that environment than when watching his beloved North Melbourne, the team his cricket-playing uncle Greg Campbell and his mother Lorraine tipped him into.

“I’m shocking,” he admitted when asked what he is like when watching the football.

His love of footy has not dimmed since a broken arm saw him stop playing at about 14.

“I’ve always been keen to play one last game of footy. A few times a year I have a dream about being out there and playing,” he said when interviewed last week, just before the latest round of Cricket Australia contracts were announced.

That dream, of course, had to be put on hold so he could become one of the greatest cricketers the game has seen, with a Test batting average of 53.51, 39 centuries and the Australian captaincy from 2003-11.

This week, his focus will be on North Melbourne as it plays Essendon in a game dedicated

16

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NOBLE CAUSE:

Ricky Ponting is lending his name to the North MelbourneEssendon game this week to support families of children with cancer.

to the Ponting Foundation, an organisation Ponting and his wife Rianna started to support families of children with cancer.

“The foundation is about helping families through the whole battle of childhood cancer, from the day of diagnosis until well after they hopefully get the all clear,” Ponting said.

He began lending his support to raise money for the Children’s Cancer Institute of Australia for Medical Research about eight years ago. Soon enough, he saw a possibility to take a more active involvement and the foundation was born to help families of children with cancer.

“One thing we learned was a lot of families (in that situation) were from the country and both parents had to give up jobs and find accommodation in town,” he said.

“There was no real support structure for those families, so we are looking after the whole journey now.”

Eighty per cent of children with cancer survive. The Roos-Bombers game is an opportunity to raise money and awareness about the foundation’s objective: to support families post-remission, as well as during treatment.

Ponting’s sporting journey began with North Launceston Junior Football Club (North

full-back Nathan Grima’s former club) and Mowbray Cricket Club. He made his Test debut in December of 1995, just before his 21st birthday.

T

he Launceston product has thrown his support behind North Melbourne’s venture to play two games a year for the next three seasons in Hobart, from 2012.

His connections will be invaluable as the club endeavours to implement a program that not only includes the games, but also provides genuine benefi ts to grassroots football and the Hobart community.

“I’m excited about them going down there,” Ponting said. “It’s really exciting for the state.

The thought of both venues, Launceston and Hobart, being used for AFL football is great.”

Through the internet, Ponting has kept in touch with the club’s efforts throughout a cricket career that has often seen him wake up on the other side of the world during the height of the footy season.

His favourite player is Glenn Archer, but his face lights up at the thought of Wayne Carey, the Krakouer brothers and the Kangaroos’ premierships in the 1990s. More recently, Andrew Swallow’s first quarter against

Adelaide had Ponting in raptures.

He approaches footy as a fan but, hear him talk about the sport in which he excels, and it is not hard to draw lessons relevant to football. He even jokes that the pre-game mood before taking the field in cricket depends on how many Victorians are in the team.

“If you have a few Victorians in your team, there is normally a bit of ‘ra ra’ going on,” he said.

Not too much, though. Like football, the trick to approaching a contest with the right mindset is about being in control.

“What leads to a 50m penalty in footy is probably like a bowler sledging a batter,” Ponting said.

“It just shows you have done something you have not been in control of. You’re taking yourself away from the moment.”

It’s a philosophy Kangaroos coach Brad Scott, a master of controlled aggression as a player, would agree with.

Football teams need to take the field with a collective mindset conducive to making the right decisions, executing the skills well and hitting the contests hard. Ponting said the Australian cricket team would always talk about playing opponents on skill, rather than emotion. It was particularly emphasised when playing teams of lesser ability.

“If you get too wound up and play them on emotion, you bring

St Kilda’s Brendon Goddard, out of contract at the end of 2012, 012, “hopes� hopes to tostay staywith withthe theclub. club.

them back into the contest. If you play them on skills, and skills only, and focus on that side of things, then generally (results) look after themselves,� he said.

Such a mature attitude has helped Geelong and Collingwood move through a period of success without dropping ‘should-win’ games.

It helped the Australian cricket team put together unprecedented winning streaks.

Above all, Ponting loves the contest between bat and ball. No longer does he need to dominate the bowler, as he once tried to when young. Now the contest is about not getting out.

Being in control. Understanding what is required to succeed.

In a game of instinct, cricket, like football, has gained greater understanding of what decisions are best by using statistics and game analysis. “There has been a fair bit of debate about this with us over the last couple of years,� Ponting said. “Are we taking it too far and are we forgetting about the hard work of batting and bowling and getting yourself physically right (by) worrying about the analysis side of it.

life, you get a whole lot back.â€? “The biggest thing I learned about the feedback side of things is to make sure I know them ďŹ rst,â€? he said. “Even in team meetings, I’m very selective about what I say now because (the message) can be very broad.

I have tended to say less in team meetings and get to the guys a bit more individually or in smaller groups and try to communicate with them.�

RESPECT: North Melbourne legend Glenn Archer, Ricky Ponting’s favourite Roo, embraces Brent Harvey after the skipper recently equalled Archer’s games record for the club.

“As far as I’m concerned, you can’t get enough of that stuff. You can’t affordd to be surprised by one shot or one ball that an opposition bowls through the course of a match.�

As quickly as he moves into a cover drive, he ďŹ nds the football parallel. “Like footy, you know the running patterns and where (Lance) Franklin leads all the time and what he is likely to do when (Sam) Mitchell gets the ball,â€? he said.

Right now, the Australian cricket team ďŹ nds itself in a period of transition with new players selected before they are quite the ďŹ nished product. It is a familiar position for AFL clubs.

Tassie trip up for grabs Ponting knows his role is to help fast-track young players’ development and has learned the best way to provide feedback and instruction to get results. “The biggest thing I learned about the feedback side of things is to make sure I know them ďŹ rst,â€? he said. “The more time you spend with players individually and show a bit of compassion and not (treat them) only as batters or bowlers or teammates, the better. If you know a bit about their personal

 A range of fundraising activities will take place during this round’s Essendon-North Melbourne clash at Etihad Stadium. Volunteers will be collecting donations at the game in return for instant scratch and win cards that give fans an opportunity to win a trip for two to Tasmania or one of 20 cricket bats signed by Ricky Ponting.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, GO TO PONTINGFOUNDATION.COM.AU

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MELBOURNE’S OWN AFL RECORD

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17

Collingwood’s Brad Dick has reconstructive surgery after injuring his knee in a VFL match last weekend.

FROM THE BEGINNING: Peter Yeldham

EXPERT ADVICE

says the key to writing a good story is getting the start right.

Short story comp – tips from a master storyteller NICK BOWEN

S

tarting a new story is never easy. Staring at a blank Word document or piece of paper can send all sorts of doubts racing through your head.

But if you are thinking of entering the 2011 AFL Record short story competition, don’t let that put you off. Even the best writers can struggle for inspiration. Acclaimed writer Peter Yeldham spoke with the AFL Record this week to pass on his tips on how to write a great short story.

With a short story, even the first line is very important PETER YELDHAM

Yeldham, 80, has been writing for more than 60 years, predominantly as a screenwriter.

His credits include 1980s Australian mini-series All The Rivers Run, The Timeless Land

and The Heroes. For the past 15 years, he has concentrated on novels, with his latest, Glory Girl, published last September.

Yeldham says his starting point for any story is to develop interesting characters that readers will sympathise with.

“I’ve got to come up with a couple of decent characters I really like, because if you don’t sympathise with them, you’re not going to get too far with the story,” Yeldham says.

“The more you think about the characters, the more the story seems to build itself.

“With this short story competition, for example, you could probably have a character who played 10 years ago and a youngster who’s dead keen to get into the AFL. “With the retired player, you might ask yourself: what’s he doing now? Does he regret getting out of the game? Is he nostalgic about his glory days?

“Things like that start to build a character.”

Yeldham puts signifi cant time into such character development, from coming up with the right names through to speaking with people from the character’s background. For this short story, he says he might try to speak with a former AFL player.

Yeldham does not always plot out his storyline from the outset, but devotes signifi cant time to its opening, to ensure it hooks the reader.

“With a book, the fi rst page is the most important of the whole lot. It’s got to grab somebody,” he says.

“I’ll spend a week or two on that just trying to get it right.

Once you’re happy with that, the rest seems to fl ow.”

“With a short story, even the first line is very important.”

And if you suffer a case of the dreaded writer’s block, Yeldham says the best cure is to re-read what you’ve already written.

“Becoming your own critic is really important,” he says.

» For details on how to enter the competition, see page 79 or go toafl.com.au.

18

AFL RECORD

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Richmond’s Matthew White accepts reprimand and carry-over points for tripping Sydney Swan Craig Bird.

Richmond

THE GOOD LIFE: Garry Wilson can afford to relax, having semi-retired through smart investments after football.

PHOTO: MICHAEL WILLSON/AFL PHOTOS OS

Wilson a lionheart in footy and business PAUL DAFFEY

G

arry Wilson, the courageous former Fitzroy rover, was knocked around so much that he played the fi nal years of his career wearing a helmet, which was unusual in the early 1980s.

He says he was knocked out five or six times and, on about 20 occasions, fi nished a match with blurred vision.

But the repeated blows have done nothing to dampen his talent for figures. During an interview in his apartment in Melbourne’s Docklands precinct near Etihad Stadium, Wilson, 57, recalls with great clarity how much he was earning as a Board of Works clerk when he made his debut with Fitzroy in 1971, aged 17.

He knows the number of finals he played (seven). Most of all, he knows the number of chickens he housed in his sheds outside Melbourne, chickens that helped make him a wealthy businessman.

Wilson was earning $38 a week as a clerk in 1971. His footy earnings were $35 a week.

He won his first best and fairest award in 1972, when he was 18. In all, he won five best and fairests in his 268-game career.

He finished third in the 1978 Brownlow Medal and second the following year. It’s not hard to glean that he would have liked a little medal in his trophy room.

“Everyone would like to win one,” he says.

Away from statistics, it’s notable Wilson played the last few years of his career as a professional. He spent his

20

AFL RECORD

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weekdays swimming and going to medicos to enable him to get over injuries. He wanted to milk as much as possible out of his career, which finished in 1984 when he was 31.

“I probably worked as hard as anyone,” he says. “I think I got the most out of myself.”

Towards the end of his career, Wilson struck up a friendship with David Lurie, a solicitor who was a member of a Fitzroy coterie group. Wilson was interested in property and had an ambition to move into real estate at the end of his career.

Lurie introduced Wilson to the merits of negative gearing. “By 31, I had built up a reasonable property portfolio,” he says.

Two years after his footy career had ended, Wilson was offered the chance to go into a chicken-meat business on the Mornington Peninsula. He took his willingness to take risks on the property market into his new business venture.

He started with two sheds on his property at Moorooduc.

Those sheds housed 80,000 birds. Then he built another two sheds. His sheds gave him the capacity to house 140,000 birds.

Wilson bought two properties in West Gippsland and kept increasing the number of chickens he housed. By 2003, he had sheds with the capacity to house 332,000 chickens.

I don’t think of myself as some sort of genuis GARRY WILSON

More than five batches of chickens are turned over in those sheds every year.

Wilson was selling a lot of bird.

He sold out of his business in two steps before moving into semi-retirement in 2008. When asked how much he made, Wilson revealed only that he “did well” out of chickens.

His current job is project-managing a 20-apartment development on the old St Macartan’s school site in Mornington.

“I don’t think of myself as some sort of genius in business,” he says. “The degree of difficulty in playing footy is much greater. I nearly killed myself playing footy.”

Wilson and his wife Roslyn have two adult children, Lee and Shaun. The couple lives in Frankston South and has an apartment at Mooloolaba on the Sunshine Coast. They use the

QUICK HANDS: Not even the odd

stray dog could upset Garry Wilson’s concentration on the ground.

Docklands apartment mainly during the AFL fi nals and the spring carnival.

Wilson plays golf at The National club in Cape Schanck on Saturday afternoons. For several years, he played golf with ex-teammate Bernie Quinlan.

His most enduring friendship from footy is with Alan Thompson, the 1970s Fitzroy wingman who lives in Warrnambool.

Wilson credits footy with teaching him discipline and a work ethic. He is grateful the game provided a path to a happy and successful life.

AFL RECORD PROMOTION

T

A decade of savings

he end of fi nancial year presents some great opportunities to improve your financial situation.

MBF Tasmania’s General Manager, Eric Granger says that young people often put off private health insurance, not realising that by delaying cover they could end up paying more in the long term.

“Since the government’s introduction of the Lifetime Health Cover initiative, people who delay getting hospital cover beyond their 31st birthday will be likely to pay higher premiums when they eventually purchase cover.”

Lifetime Health Cover (LHC) was introduced to encourage younger Australians to take out – and maintain – hospital cover for ten continuous years. It

works by adding a 2% loading to the regular premium payable for hospital cover, for every year you’ve delayed getting health insurance beyond your 31st birthday up to a maximum of 70%. Once attracted, the loading will apply for 10 continuous years of paid hospital cover. The government website privatehealth.gov.au will be able to tell you more about the Lifetime Health Cover loading.

Eric says you may be able to minimise – or even avoid – this loading but you need to act before 30 June.

“If you’ve already turned 31 and haven’t purchased

hospital cover by 1 July, you may be required to pay the 2% loading for each year you are over 30. So someone who takes out hospital cover at age 40 might pay up to 20% more for the same level of cover as another 40 year old who has enjoyed the benefits of continuous private hospital cover.”

To find out more visit your local MBF centre before June 30.

MBF is part of Australia’s largest privately owned health insurer, Bupa, who operate under the respected brands of HBA, MBF and Mutual Community.

By delaying cover you could end up paying more in the long term

Together, they proudly look after and care for the needs of more than 3 million Australians with a vision to help their members live longer, healthier, happier lives.

Bupa’s well known health insurance brands MBF and HBA have proudly been associated with the Hawks for more than 20 years, however, for the first time this year, the Bupa logo appears on the Hawk’s shorts and feature prominently on the Clubs’ match ball at all the Hawks home games.

Bupa-proudly supporting the Hawthorn Football Club.

AFL RECORD

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21

Melbourne’s Jack Trengove fined $1800 for making contact with an umpire.

HOMECOMING

Persistence pays offfor local hero MICHAEL WHITING

F

ive years after leaving Tasmania to chase an AFL career, Gold Coast midfielder Sam Iles returns to the Apple Isle on Saturday a rounded, professional player who has seen plenty in his time away from home.

Iles will be part of the Suns team taking on Hawthorn at Launceston’s Aurora Stadium, a two-hour drive from where he grew up in Hobart.

The 23-year-old started with Collingwood, but played just seven matches in his three seasons with the Magpies.

After spending much of his time with Williamstown in the VFL, followed by a season with the Box Hill Hawks after Collingwood delisted him, Iles

learned to make the most of his opportunities at any level.

That’s why he was so excited to get the call-up from the Suns as the No. 3 pick in the 2010 NAB AFL Rookie Draft – even if it meant another season in the VFL. “It’s the best choice I could have made,” he said. “You

Record falls, but Leonard still a great of the game » Johnny Leonard’s name might

have disappeared from one of the game’s oldest records, but his place as one of the greatest coaches of all time is assured.

Last week, Geelong coach Chris Scott broke Leonard’s 79-year record for most consecutive wins from debut when he guided the Cats to their 11th consecutive victory in another epic contest against Hawthorn.

As the Cats held on by five points, Scott bettered Leonard’s effort when the fi rstyear South Melbourne coach led his side to 10 successive wins to start the 1932 season.

Incredibly, it was only a one-year stint for the playing coach who originally left his home state Western Australia at the end of 1930 to coach in country Victoria.

22

AFL RECORD

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Leonard was one of the best players of his era, playing 146 games for Subiaco in the WAFL from 1922-30. He won the Sandover Medal in 1926 and 1929 and was a fi ve-time best and fairest winner for Subiaco.

At the end of 1930, Leonard applied for a clearance to South Melbourne but Subiaco refused to let its star go. Instead, he headed to Maryborough in the Ballarat Football League, guiding the club to a premiership in his fi rst year.

The following season, South Melbourne appointed Leonard captain-coach and he lured two stars from Subiaco (Brighton Diggins and Billy Faull) as the Bloods set about building a ‘foreign legion’ that eventually went on to win the 1933 premiership – the club’s last before the 2005 premiership triumph.

spend 12 months with the younger guys who were already at the club, so it was good to build that bond and mateship with them so we had a base at the club before the uncontracted guys came up.”

Iles won the Suns’ best and fairest award in 2010

English-born Leonard was renowned for his good manners and, in his opening address to South Melbourne players in 1932, his fi rst word was “Gentlemen …”

However, Leonard did not stay around to enjoy South Melbourne’s success in 1933. After taking South to fourth spot in 1932 and losing the fi rst semi-fi nal to Collingwood, he accepted a job offer back in Perth in 19333 with Ross Faulkner.

After spending a year working with the iconic football manufacturer, Leonard was appointed coach of West Perth in 1934, taking the club to premierships in 1934 and 1935, and later he built a struggling Claremont into a powerhouse of WA football.

When he arrived at Claremont in 1938, the club had not won a WAFL premiership but his impact

and, despite his relative inexperience in terms of AFL matches (14), finds himself in an unusual position.

Along with Danny Stanley (who played five matches with Collingwood), Iles is considered one of the club’s mid-tier players, trying to

was profound, taking it to three successive flags (1938-40).

Leonard coached less than 200 games in the WAFL but his strike rate was phenomenal – five premierships in eight seasons.

MICHAEL LOVETT

LEGEND: Johnny Leonard was one of the best players and coaches to come from Western Australia.

Port Adelaide forward Justin Westhoffsays “everyone is on notice” after the club’s slow start to the year.

BACK HOME: Sam

Iles returns to his home state Tasmania this week when the Gold Coast Suns take on Hawthorn in Launceston.

BREEDING GROUND

Falcons flying high in the big time

W

CALLUM TWOMEY

learn from the experienced players such as skipper Gary Ablett and Michael Rischitelli, and then passing on advice to the Suns’ teenagers.

“The things I can pass on to the younger guys have to do with training and professionalism,” he said.

“Every week, there are only 22 spots, so there are always going to be guys who miss out. We (he and Stanley) have played a lot of football in the VFL and you know how disappointed you are when you play ‘twos’. But in the end, all you can do is play the best footy you can and we’ve passed that on to the younger guys.”

Iles said his family and a couple of mates planned to make the drive north to watch the Suns take on the Hawks.

The former Sorrell and Clarence junior said he had played at Aurora a couple of times in his teens and was looking forward to playing at the ground again.

hen Western Bulldogs midfielder Luke Dahlhaus played his fi rst game last week against St Kilda, he became the eighth debutant this season to hail from the Geelong Falcons in the TAC Cup under-18s competition.

Dahlhaus followed Carlton’s Ed Curnow, North Melbourne’s Luke Delaney, St Kilda’s Tom Simpkin, Port Adelaide’s Jasper Pittard, Geelong’s Allen Christensen, Adelaide’s Luke Thompson and Fremantle’s Jayden Pitt as products of the Falcons to play their first AFL games this season.

There are 48 players on AFL lists this year to graduate from the Falcons’ program, with 32 having played this season.

They include five club captains: Jonathan Brown (Brisbane Lions), Nick Maxwell (Collingwood),

Cameron Ling (Geelong), Luke Hodge (Hawthorn) and Gary Ablett (Gold Coast.)

Falcons region manager Michael Turner said it was demographic factors, facilities and strong personnel that combined to make the club so strong at producing AFL draftees.

“All those things coming together breeds a good youth culture, which we obviously tap into,” Turner said. “Our main purpose is to help players reach their full potential, but there’s no doubt our core business is to try and get as many players drafted into the AFL as we can and, on all the key performance indicators, we’re the No. 1

junior club in Australia at doing that.”

After Dahlhaus was overlooked for last year’s NAB AFL Draft Combine and state screening session, Turner approached the AFL and requested the 18-year-old be given an opportunity at the screening.

The request was granted; Dahlhaus tested well, was rookie-listed by the Bulldogs and elevated last week.

“It was great to see him play the way he did on Friday night.

We thought he could do that, and Luke thought he could, so sometimes it’s just about being given a chance,” Turner said.

DEBUTANTS IN 2011 FROM THE GEELONG FALCONS WhenGames Jasper Pittard (Port Adelaide)Round 1 vs Collingwood10 Ed Curnow (Carlton)Round 1 vs Richmond9 Jayden Pitt (West Coast)Round 1 vs Brisbane Lions6 Allen Christensen (Geelong)Round 2 vs Fremantle6 Luke Thompson (Adelaide)Round 4 vs Port Adelaide9 Luke Delaney (North Melbourne)Round 9 vs Brisbane4 Tom Simpkin (St Kilda)Round 11 vs Collingwood2 Luke Dahlhaus (Western Bulldogs)Round 12 vs St Kilda1

Six inducted into Hall of Fame HONOURED: (back from left) Michael

Voss, Nathan Buckley, James Hird and Mark Ricciuto (and front) Graeme Gorringe (respresenting his father Horrie Gorringe) and Tony Charlton were last week inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame at a function at the Palladium at Crown Casino in Melbourne.

The AFL announced Michelangelo Rucci, Stephen Phillips and Bruce McAvaney have been appointed to the selection committee, replacing the retiring Tom Reynolds, Tim Lane and Leigh Whicker.

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don’t you just love away games?

109

There’s nothing like seeing your team play interstate.

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now you’re flying *Departing Melbourne to Sydney. Seats are limited and may not be available at peak times or on all flights. Checked baggage charges apply to all Saver Fares. Pre-pay $12 online for up to 23kg of checked baggage per person per one way flight, $17 by phone on an existing booking, or pay $40 at the airport for the same allowance. Change/ cancel fees apply. The applicable change or cancel fee will be the fee published on our website on the date you request the change. Fare is one way on the net, or $20 more by phone. A credit/debit card surcharge of $4.50 per person one way is applicable for all flights within Australia. Fare is correct as at 6 June 2011 and is subject to change. Visit www.virginaustralia.com for more information.

SCOTT THOMPSON

Adaptable Roo now turning defence into attack North Melbourne’s new-found key position depth has allowed defender Scott Thompson to add a more attacking streak to his game. NICK BOWE BOWENN

N

orth Melbourne’s Scott Thompson used to spend most of his games conceding height and weight to the com competition’s elite power pow forwa forwards.

Despiite these disadvantages, d Despite the 193cm 193ccm defender defen never took a backw ward step against the backward likes of the t Western Weste Bulldogs’ Barry Hall Halland H andGeelong’s G Camero on Moone Cameron Mooney.

Thom mpson performed per Thompson so well as a key defender he fi nished second in i the Kangaroos’ Kan 2009 best and an nd fairest.

How wever, th However, this season, his role in North’s North’ backline has not ticeably changed. c noticeably Although coach Brad S cott can still s match him Scott up on the opposition’s u most dangerous m dan key fforward – like he did with Sydney w Sydn Swans cco-captai co-captain Adam Goodes in n round 10 – he has inc reasingly been sent to increasingly small ler opponents. oppon smaller Last Saturday Saturday night’s game ag gainst Go against Gold Coast was a go ood example. exam good Thomps son’s opponents oppo Thompson’s included Danny Stanley S (1 (186cm), David Swallow w (186cm) (186cm and Nathan Krakoue er(182cm).

(182cm Krakouer None of the three th hurt North on n the the scoreboard scor under Thomps son’s watch, watc while he was Thompson’s able to p provide th the Roos with plenty of o drive from fr defence.

Thom mpson finished ni Thompson with an equa al season-high seasonequal 25 possessi ions, mat possessions, matching his effort from from the the previous p round against A Adelaide Adelaide.

Thom mpson told the AFL Thompson Record h his game was still built on defen nce, with with his focus defence, simply to t beat his his man. But the fact remains rem mains he heis increasingly becom ming one of North’s becoming mostt attacking attacki n defenders.

He is averaging more than 19 disposals a game – up from 17 in 2010 – and is ranked sixth at the club in total possessions and fourth in rebound 50s (39).

In round 10 against the Swans, Thompson showed his growing preparedness to counter-attack, running off Goodes to kick two goals in the space of five minutes – just the second and third goals of his career.

Thompson says his changed role this year is refl ective of the greater depth in North’s key defensive stocks. Where the Kangaroos were once forced to ask undersized players such as Thompson, Michael Firrito

We’re really starting to understand each other’s games SCOTT THOMPSON

(190cm) and Josh Gibson (189cm, now at Hawthorn) to fight out of their weight divisions, they can now call on Luke Delaney (194cm), Nathan Grima (192cm) and Robbie Tarrant (196cm).

Although North is still trying to settle on the right backline structure, Thompson says such new-found depth and the ability of Firrito and himself to play on talls and smalls gives the Roos a flexibility they have not had in the past.

“We’ve got a few stocks now, which is good. It puts a bit of pressure on the defenders to perform to keep their spots,” Thompson says.

“We’ve also got the adaptability to be able to adjust to whatever the opposition line-up is each week.

“We have got the tall options if a team wants to go tall and players who can play small if they go the other way.”

Thompson is not fussed what role he is given each week.

“It’s good playing on the big players because the opposition use them a lot, so they take you to the ball,” he says.

“But it’s also good playing on someone who (the opposition) doesn’t look to go to every time, which gives you the chance to zone off and help out your teammates.”

Zoning off was something Thompson did effectively against the Brisbane Lions in round nine.

With Delaney assigned to Lions skipper Jonathan Brown in his debut game, Thompson regularly ran back with the flight of the ball to cut off Brown’s leads.

He finished with a game-high 10 one-percenters in an outstanding performance that earned him four votes in the AFL Coaches’ Association Champion Player of the Year award (the fifth-highest vote tally in the match).

Thompson says it was a conscious team tactic to get back and help Delaney against Brown. Longer term, it’s the sort of defensive teamwork Thompson hopes will come to define North’s back six.

“We’ve had a few years together now and we’re really starting to understand each other’s games,” Thompson says.

“You look at a team like Geelong, which is probably the best at zoning off and helping each other out. Hopefully, one day we can get to where they are, just helping each other out.”

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57

JOSH KENNEDY

Eagle soaring to new heights After three horror seasons, West Coast is emerging as one of the stories of 2011, winning winning seven of its first 11 games and looking at a possible return to the fi nals. At the centre tre of the stunning resurgence is the man the Eagles secured in the Chris Judd trade, key key forward Josh Kennedy, a popular young player leading his team on and off the fi eld. ld.

I

NATHAN SCHMOOK

t is a situation West Coast had become all too familiar with over the past three seasons, but against the Western Bulldogs at Patersons Stadium a month ago, the boot was fi nally on the other foot.

It was round nine and the Bulldogs, preliminary finalists in each of the past three seasons, were being embarrassed by last year’s wooden spooner in a game that confirmed one team’s fall and signalled the sudden arrival of another. And Josh Kennedy was the star of the show.

The 23-year-old key forward is a confidence player, and kicking three of the game’s fi rst four goals and another heading into quarter-time did his self-belief no harm.

It was his 10th goal, however, converted from long range deep into the fourth quarter,

58

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that summed up the young leader’s standing at West Coast, three-and-a-half years after he reluctantly left his fi rst club Carlton as part of the Chris Judd trade.

As the ball sailed through at the city end, every Eagle on the ground flocked to celebrate with Kennedy, as he became just the fourth West Coast player to kick at least 10 goals in a match.

It was a celebration that quite plainly displayed the great respect the Eagles have for one of their key on and off-field leaders.

The club’s leadership and development coach Peter Worsfold, who has played a big role in the young forward’s off-field evolution since he arrived at West Coast, calls it Kennedy’s “magnetic charm” “Everyone was so happy for ‘JK’ when he kicked his 10th goal, but it wasn’t just about

that. It was all about the the genuine genuine honest ‘fella’ he is anddthe the extreme hard work that hathe’s he’s put in,” said Worsfold, d, the brother of senior coach ch John.

John.

“The players want to to be be around him and he brings rings them together.”

Kennedy has booted ed 34 34 goals goals this season to rapidly emerge emergeas as one of the competition’s n’s most most influential forwards and andthe the centrepiece of the Eagles’ gles’highly highly effective tall forward line. line.

His running abilityyisiselite elite for a player of his sizee (194cm (194cm and 99kg) and he sitss third thirdin in in the competition for contested ontested marks this year, behind nd Collingwood’s Travis Cloke, Cloke,with with 29. Importantly, when n he doesn’t take the mark in a pack cksituation, situation, his opponents rarely do. do.

Despite his rapid on-field rise, Kennedy has never

ALL SMILES: Josh Kennedy Kennedy is is enjoying his his time time back back in in Western Western enjoying Australia after being reluctantly traded to to West WestCoast Coastfrom from traded Carlton in the Chris Chris Judd Judddeal. deal.

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59

seen himself as a leader. He simply “puts the old head down and bum up and trains hard”, earning respect that way.

That was his approach early in 2005 when he moved to Perth from Northampton, a small town in Western Australia’s mid-west, to give him the best chance of being drafted.

And it was his approach again when he arrived at Carlton as the No. 4 draft pick at the end of 2005 in a side that included Anthony Koutoufi des, Nick Stevens, Lance Whitnall and David Teague, now an Eagles assistant coach.

It is worth noting that the respect Kennedy has earned at West Coast was to a great extent matched at Carlton.

Blues legend, and now president, Stephen Kernahan, recently said it breaks his heart every time he watches Kennedy play. To lose him, the club’s all-time leading goalkicker said, was “horrific”.

After 22 games and 11 goals in two injury interrupted seasons, Kennedy was reluctant to leave Carlton. But for the Blues to secure Brownlow medallist Judd, Kennedy became a necessary part of the Eagles’ compensation package, alongside draft picks No. 3 (47-game midfielder Chris Masten) and 20 (delisted forward Tony Notte) at the 2007 NAB AFL Draft. It is a trade many now see as ‘win-win’.

Still a laid-back country lad in many ways, Kennedy said he liked routine and struggled with change, and uprooting for the third time in three years wasn’t easy.

“Probably the hardest thing was leaving the blokes at Carlton,” he told the AFL Record as he prepared to fly to Adelaide for last Saturday’s match against the Crows.

“I’m not really good with change, but that’s part of life.

Coming back home I got to be around my mates and see my family. I get to see Mum and my little sisters and I get to see them grow up, which is great. It’s something I don’t regret doing.”

QUICK KENNEDY FACT 60

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ON TARGET: Kennedy has

been accurate this year, kicking 34.18 for the Eagles.

O

n arriving at West Coast, Kennedy immediately set about earning the respect of his new teammates the only way he knew how, and he built relationships with players and coaches quickly.

Worsfold said Kennedy’s work ethic stood out and it was obvious immediately he was going to be a future leader of the club. It took him two seasons to earn an official role.

“I remember we were walking to a hospital visit late in 2009,” Kennedy recalled, “and Pete grabbed me and quickly said, ‘Mate, you’ve just been nominated for the leadership group. Have a think about it and get back to me’. I didn’t know what to think.”

Kennedy hasn’t looked back since and a lot of his recent improvement as a leader can be attributed to a cutting-edge

personal development program the Eagles implemented ahead of the 2010 season.

It is a program run in conjunction with the University of Western Australia, and was designed to build the life skills of the Eagles’ leadership group players and help them make a difference with others – namely their teammates.

Part of the program is being paired with a “pillar of society” who acts as a mentor, and Kennedy found himself regularly catching up with retired Australian basketballer Andrew Vlahov.

One of the sport’s most influential fi gures in this country, Vlahov played 347 National Basketball League games, competed at four Olympics and owned the Perth Wildcats for a six-year period from 1999.

“Knowing him and being able to bounce stuff off him has been

great,” Kennedy said. “Just to have a chat over lunch has been amazing and we still keep in contact now.

It’s been great for the past year and a bit.”

The program, Worsfold explained, gave West Coast leaders the skills required to pilot their “leadership pod” – a group of Eagles players under their wing, so to speak.

Kennedy heads a group of players that includes Masten, Bradd Dalziell, Jack Darling, Eric Mackenzie, Mark Nicoski and Brad Sheppard.

The name that jumps out of that group is Nicoski, himself a respected senior member of the team and a mentor to young Eagles forwards Gerrick Weedon, Ryan Neates and Lewis Broome.

It’s a situation Worsfold said might not have sat well with Kennedy initially, but Nicoski has become a player he

Josh Kennedy had an interesting and varied life growing up in Northampton. His fi rst job was on the cash register at the local Supa Valu supermarket and in Year 6 he held the record for the triple jump.

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can go to for feedback on his leadership style.

Kennedy said he felt a little uneasy about his leadership role during 2010 (his first year with an official role) and he constantly looked for aspects of his style to change, often assessing himself critically.

It took an assurance from captain Darren Glass and veteran leader Dean Cox that he was voted into the group because of who he was and what he had done since arriving at the club. “Don’t change,” they said.

Kennedy has since had a relaxed approach with his ‘pod’, but he is flourishing as the team’s on-field leader in the forward line, marshalling players as the team implements a set of detailed – and so far successful – game strategies.

Assistant coach Peter Sumich, who kicked more than 10 goals in a game twice for West Coast (11.8 in 1992 and 13.3 in 1993), described Kennedy’s reading of the game as “outstanding”.

“Most good forwards have that. He’s got it and probably a little bit more,” the Eagles forward line coach said.

“His understanding of the game and how the ball is coming down the field is exceptional, so that (organising his teammates) is something I’m trying to work with him on, without taking too much away from his game.”

Sumich was conservative in his assessments of Kennedy, believing he still had signifi cant development in him before he was a “really good player”.

But the former full-forward said Kennedy had the talent to eventually develop an on-fi eld presence like that of Brisbane Lions captain Jonathan Brown.

“I think he’ll have that down the track,” Sumich said. “He’ll build that aura about himself.

That’s the way I’m reading it, but I think he’s 12-24 months away from that. Then he’ll be an even better player.”

Away from the game, Kennedy is a workman who likes to get his hands dirty, in Sumich’s words, and he has kept himself busy, starting transport business Small Moves with the man who employed him for a year when he moved to Perth in 2005.

He is described as genuine, honest, humble and dedicated by 62

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ELATED: Kennedy’s

10-goal haul against the Bulldogs in round nine had his teammates jumping for joy.

those spoken to for this article. change it just because people What you see really is what you think it’s different or it looks get with Kennedy. silly. I’ll stick with it.”

There is one signifi cant quirk Kennedy has an ally in in his game, however, and it Sumich, who learned during his is the stuttering run-up he has playing career that a forward’s developed for his set shot. set-shot routine is not something The unique lead-in, which sees that should be forced on them.

Kennedy take a flurry of small “My philosophy on steps before goalkicking settling for is that three normal everyone runs strides, became differently; a talking point you mark the last season. ball differently, Kennedy had so set shots kicked 34.6 are the same,” after 12 games, Sumich said. but suddenly “There’s no his accuracy use in anyone deserted him telling him PETER SUMICH and he kicked this is the best 7.13 for the way to do it, rest of the year, because you’re with the ‘stutters’ becoming changing something he’s happy more pronounced. with. I’m a big believer in that.

“Because it’s something “I know he gets a bit of different, I think everyone criticism about it, but at the end wanted to talk about it and it of the day, it’s working for him. did get out of control last year,” “I had a lot of people tell he said. “But it doesn’t get to me me how to kick and it didn’t anymore and I’m not going to work. I went back to what I

He’ll build that aura about himself. That’s the way I’m reading it

FACT FILE

17

JOSH KENNEDY

Born: August 25, 1987 Recruited from: East Fremantle/Carlton Debut: Round 6, 2006 v Collingwood Height: 194cm Weight: 99kg Games: 78 Goals: 124 Player honours: Carlton pre-season premiership 2007 Brownlow Medal: career votes 3

thought was best and had a lot better results.”

Kennedy’s on-field results speak for themselves this season, and the infl uence he is having as an off-fi eld leader is clear when you speak to anyone at West Coast.

He has clearly brought plenty to the table himself, but he also appears in part to be the product of a club that has fanatically set about finding young leaders and giving them the tools they need to succeed.

Midfielder Scott Selwood is another player in the Kennedy mould, respected by his teammates for the example he sets and this year voted into the leadership group at the age of 21.

Glass is highly respected at West Coast for the job he has done since taking over in difficult circumstances and he has clearly been the leader West Coast needed as it rebuilt its off-field culture.

But, with the skipper turning 30 last month, the club has one eye on its future leadership structure, and Kennedy is well placed to be a big part of it.

Selwood said his popular teammate had taken a giant step with his football over the past two years, and he could be poised to take another big stride with his leadership over the next two.

“Josh is seen as one of those blokes, along with Beau Waters, who could really take the helm and he would have no problems fitting in straight away,” Selwood said.

“All the boys just love him and he’s one of those blokes you love having on your team.

He’s a great leader on and off the field.”

200-GAME MILESTONE

BULLDOG

MURPHY A BREED OF HIS OWN The versatile Robert Murphy plays football as it should be played, his continuous movement hard to contain and exciting to watch. He reaches 200 games with his body back in shape and the ultimate success still in his sights. PETER RYAN

S PHOTO: LACHLAN CUNNINGHAM/AFL PHOTOS

ome people play to their personality. Robert Murphy appears to be one such player.

He can go forward or back, write a newspaper column without, it seems, tweeting, play the game at a manic pace yet enjoy listening to alt-country. He reckons he was a bit of a loper in his early days, a glacier. But it’s hard to recall that time.

They say he can be cheeky while still showing respect, and you have no reason to doubt that when you see him play. For goodness sake, he kicks equally well with his left, and right.

Consider the impact of his versatility.

No one knows where his best position is, even after 199 games. But they know he provides value wherever he goes.

At one stage, he even held down centre half-forward, a player who could lead, mark, swing and go. For much of his career, he has been a sweeping half-back flanker, a defender who attacks.

“Flanker is almost a dirty word these days,” Murphy said.

Some players want to settle, fi nd their spot and hang on. Not Murphy.

Switching from one end of the ground to the other has never concerned him.

“Maybe it’s because I haven’t overthought the whole thing.”

That’s another thing. He thinks when he’s off the field. Lets instinct take over when on it.

Murphy said he learned what was required as a forward when matched up on the Sydney Swans’ Ryan O’Keefe during a game he guesses happened in 2004.

“I could not believe how much ground he covered. It was a real eye-opener. I thought, ‘Wow, that’s how to go about it’,” he said.

He applied the lesson well soon after, playing centre half-forward in 2005 and early 2006. Until a legitimate tackle from Collingwood’s Anthony Rocca caused Murphy’s

Flanker is almost a dirty word these days

BALANCED: Robert

Murphy is one of the AFL’s unique personalities, someone who respects the game’s values but can also be the life of the party .

AFL RECORD

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65

knee to buckle, he was flourishing in the role.

“I really loved it,” he said.

“I loved that freedom of getting an opponent and matching yourself against them and seeing if you could beat them.”

That competitive instinct is the part of the personality often hidden. Alongside the gifts, it is what has made him successful and enduring in a game that tests everyone.

Not long ago – or so it seems – Murphy was wearing No. 27 for the Calder Cannons in the 1999 TAC Cup decider on the MCG on AFL Grand Final day.

He was a month off off recording recording the fastest time that year ove overr five metres metresat atthe theAFL AFLDraft Draft Camp (0.97 seconds). That November, the 17-year-old from Warragul in Victoria’s east became the Bulldogs’ fifirst pic pickk (No. 13 overall) in the draft.

Soonafter afterhe hewas was draft. Soon listed in the theAFL AFLmedia media guide as weighing weighing71kg.

71kg.

That’s a positive in a year that has been a bit of a black cloud ROBERT MURPHY DESCRIBING HIS IMPROVED KNEE INJURY

“I would have lied, too.

That would have been about 65,” Murphy said, refl ecting on his likely weight when departing the Cannons.

How time flies. Now Murphy is about to play his 200th game.

His milestone crept through the house like someone wearing slippers, not wanting to wake anyone.

“It’s a funny one. That last little bit has snuck u upp on me,” he said.

From game 150 to now battle. was a battle.

A troublesome knee did not seem to be healing.As As healing. his 26th and

27th birthdays passed, he had cause to wonder whether there was something not quite right about a man his age having to walk down the stairs side-on.

It is a sentence that carries some insight into the resilience required to play 200 AFL games.

It is about then – not for the first time in our phone conversatio conversation, nor the last – Murphy’s e Murphy’s sself-deprecating laugh clatters dow the line. It is a clatters down manneris sm that adds warmth mannerism to any con nv conversation with him, even this this one on that focuses on football in in n aa year that has been disappoin nti for the Bulldogs. disappointing “Probab bly a month or two “Probably ago it wass almost a like a state of shock,”” Murphy M said of the emotions that th came with being in a team so far off their best.

“We wer een really sure why weren’t things weere happening out on things were the field, or why things weren’t happenin ng happening.”

That turbulent ttu time has passeed. The mood has passed. cha an changed to one of deete determination.

The gr g group resolved to turn th the situation around a and the mindset b became positive again.

Murphy’s knee was als a also beginning to feel bet tte for the first time for better years “ years.. “That’s a positive in

FACT FILE F

Robert Rober rt Murphy M

BALL CARRIER: One of the features of Murphy’s game over the past few seasons has been his run from defence.

2

Born: JJune un 9, 1982 Recruited Recruit ted from: Warragul/Gippsland Warrag gul U18 Debut: Ro Round 19, 2000 v Carlto Carlton on Height:: 18 186cm Weight: 82kg Goals: 150 Games:: 199 1 honours: International Player ho Rules Series Ser 2002, 2003; S pre-season pre-sea aso premiership 2010 side 201 10 Brownlow Brownl low Medal: career vvo votes 31

a year that has been a bit of a black cloud,” he said.

It’s a positive for all football watchers, too. His balance allows him to play football with the same economy of movement a skateboarder employs, a hip shake there, a shift in weight here and he can find space.

He has become one of the code’s continuous movers, able to turn a quick game into a frenetic one.

“It’s probably born out of fear at being caught by one of the big gorillas,” he said. “I’ve always been pretty thin as well, so the best way to avoid that is to get on the move.”

The characteristic made him difficult to play on. It also won him respect. During 2009, Murphy’s style was shown to Collingwood’s midfield as an example of the type of proactive approach individuals needed to take if they were to become part of a good team.

Now, though, the game is changing and so is the Bulldogs line-up.

Watching Murphy in recent weeks has been like watching a car chase on television. The occasional back-up, three-point turn and squeal off in a different direction as options ahead of him close up.

He admits the Bulldogs are refining their game to play the right tempo at the right time.

To observers, it seems they are seeking to play football with the rhythm of a Pixies record: fast, slow, fast. There is work to do.

Right now, at times, watching them play is more like tracking a loose umbrella caught in a gale.

But the effort is undeniable.

Murphy keeps persisting, refining, adapting, as he should: “If I play on, things tend to open up a bit. It doesn’t always work out. I probably make as many mistakes as anyone in the competition, but I still think the positives outweigh the clangers.”

Again, he’s being self deprecating. Murphy is a beautiful kick, able to execute the skill on both sides of the body. His coach at Gippsland Power, Peter Francis, described his kicking as exquisite.

Of course, Murphy is not perfect – no one is – but he has an outstanding philosophy that

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helps him keep the effi ciency rate in perspective.

“You have to spend a bit to make a bit when it comes to kicking,” he said. “I have always aimed at least to keep fronting up and keep having a go at putting the ball into a good space for my teammates to score.”

Performing the skill as he does under pressure is an aspect of the game Murphy makes look much easier than it is. “You don’t have much time,” he admitted.

It’s one hell of an understatement, the sort of laconic comment elite sportspeople often make without much thought. But Murphy follows up, his gift for illustrating what is happening on the field better than most.

“When you’re out there (playing), there is so much going on, you are like … sirens are going off in your head and it’s quite manic out on the ground.”

Murphy is such a good football communicator because he has never forgotten the feelings fans have.

Last Monday, he sat in the stands at the MCG watching Collingwood play Melbourne and was aware how ‘obvious’ decisions seemed from the elevated position.

“From level two or three, it (the game) looks like a grid or map, ‘Oh that is easy. It (the footy) goes from A to B and then to C,” he said. At ground level, he knows the view becomes completely different. There are, he said, people running at you from all directions.

Sitting among the throng, it also dawned on him how many people watch him weekly make mistake after mistake.

Thankfully, Murphy said, any embarrassment after an error quickly dissipates when playing because there are too many other, new things to think about.

Embarrassment is a great word for a footballer to use to describe such a situation.

ALL CLASS: Murphy’s skills by hand or foot place him in the elite category in the AFL.

» “When I was going well, I

loved playing half-forward, but there were probably more lean days and you were quite reliant on the fl ow of the game, so I think I am a better half-back flanker. But those days when we were up and going, playing half-forward was a bit of a highlight.”

In the hyperbole-fi lled world teammate why he was better that football is now part of, than most at overcoming the perspective on potential mistakes can embarrassment often be lost. that A bit of comes with old-fashioned mistakes. embarrassment is “I’ve probably about the extent perfected it of what a player because I have should feel when had more what he tries fails. practice at it Murphy has – as than anyone.

MURPHY ON THE DOGS’ FINALS LOSSES many footballers When it comes do when relaxed to getting on – the mix of humour and desire with it after making a blue, about right. Recently, he told a practice makes perfect,” he said.

I probably look in the rear view mirror a bit too much

ROBERT MURPHY: FROM A CLEAN-CUT PUP TO A SHAGGY DOG THE MANY FACES, SMILES, HAIRSTYLES AND SIDEBURNS – OF ROBERT MURPHY, 2000-11.

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Where does Murphy enjoy playing most?

The Bulldogs did not make a blue when they chose Murphy.

He has been part of a group good enough to make the past three preliminary finals. The losses hurt. He admits he still occasionally reflects on what happened at the end of the past three seasons.

“I probably look in the rear view mirror a bit too much,” he said.

But he is careful to qualify what such reflection represents.

He is not mourning the passing of an era, more instilling the emotion as a taster of what might lie ahead. “I really hope this slump we are going through is just a blip.”

That’s a tale that remains to be told. What can be said is that, for a decade, Murphy has made the game better. Not just for the watcher, but for those who want to get closer to understanding the modern footballer’s reality.

That’s why this milestone is one he should celebrate with pride, as the 18th Bulldog to reach 200 games.

“I’m sure everyone is proud when they get to certain milestones, but this is one I’m pretty happy with because for a while there, it seemed a long way off.”

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The City of Melbourne is a corporate partner of the 2011 Toyota AFL Premiership Season. www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/whatson

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Our AFL Lh hi history ist sto orry guru answers your queries.

col hutchinson

NAME GAME

Spear-carriers » St Kilda youngster Tom SHARP-SHOOTERS: St Kilda and Sydney great Tony Lockett and Collingwood champion Peter McKenna (right) both had sequences of over 100 games without failing to kick a goal.

Prolific Pie

What is the record for the most consecutive matches in which a player has scored a goal?

NICHOLAI, YARRA GLEN, VIC.

CH: Peter McKenna is regarded

as one of the most accurate key forwards to play the game. In a span of 120 matches from round one, 1968 – or more than six seasons – he produced at least one goal a game for Collingwood. At the Junction

Oval in found four, 1974, his Fitzroy opponent Harvey Merrigan held him goalless until the Magpie star was forced to leave the field with an ankle injury in the second quarter. Each of Tony Lockett’s last 114 matches was similarly productive. The sequence began when he was a St Kilda player in round 10, 1993, and continued until his farewell match for Sydney in round 12 of 2002.

GENUINE SENIOR FOOTBALLERS » As a 20 year-old, Norman Brookes booted two goals in two senior appearances as a forward for St Kilda in 1899. Later, he became one of Australia’s greatest tennis players. The 1911 Australian singles champion won Wimbledon titles in 1907 and

1914. He then became a key administrator and was knighted for his services to sport. The former Melbourne Grammar student was 90 when he passed away on Grand Final day in 1968. Two years earlier, he had enjoyed the Saints’ only premiership success.

Do you have knowledge of any players who are close to 90 or older, or who reached such an age before calling it a day? Contact Col Hutchinson on (03) 9643 1929 or col.hutchinson@afl.com.au.

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Ledger made his AFL debut recently, becoming the first with that surname to play at League level. Ledger derives from the Old German personal name Leodegar composed of the elements liut (“people” or “tribe”), plus gar, (“spear”): hence, “people-spear”/“spear of the people”. Though just 178cm, Ledger should, by name at least, be the Saints’ spearhead. Gar (or ger) appears in a few other AFL names, some not so obvious; for example, the surnames of Luke Hodge and Patrick Dangerfi eld. Hodge is a medieval pet form of Roger, which derives from the Anglo-Saxon hrothgar, made up of hroth, “fame” and gar. Hodge famously possesses a spear-like pass. Dangerfield – nothing to do with danger – is a corruption of a name shared by some French villages: d’Angerville.

This name, with ger in the middle, is derived from an Old Norse personal name meaning “God’s spear” – a good omen for a future leader.

KEVAN CARROLL

WRITE TO ANSWER MAN The Slattery Media Group, 140 Harbour Esplanade, Docklands, 3008 or email michaell@slatterymedia.com

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rick milne

Ask the expert about all your footy memorabilia.

I have Matty Richardson’s old Devonport Blues jumper which he wore when he played for them.

It has been signed by him and also states, ‘where it all began’ on the No. 20. Would this be worth anything?

L. MATHEWSON, VIA SMS

BACK TO HIS ROOTS:

A signed Devonport Blues guernsey worn by former Tiger champion Richardson as a youngster has been valued at $3500.

RM: ‘Richo’ is one of the best-

loved – and best-collected – footballers in the modern era.

This one’s a classic! I would reckon it is worth $3500 plus.

I have dug up from my wardrobe two Herald Sun books in reasonable condition. conditi The 1962 Hu ttchesso book has Errol Hutchesson (Collingwood) on tthe fron front and inside features ‘Po ‘Polly’ Farmer, Ted olly’ Fa Whitten, Bob Skilton Ski lltonand andso on. It phot ofor forevery eve club. has a team photo The 1963 1963 book boo okhas hasGeelong G players playerrs John Watts W and John De Devine and Essendon Esssendon players Ken Keen Fraser Frase and Brian Sampson.

Brrian Sam a curious curi I am to know whether k wh I have I got g someth rare? something DEAN FISHER, FIS ADELAIDE, SA. ADELAID

RM: De R Dean, g great ma agazine but magazines, easyy to find. nd They n their many sold in thoussands at a the thousands time, so $30 each is time, abou ut their limit. about I havee the invitation inv and two two tickets tick to

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the chairman’s circle lunch for the Bears v Footscray game on May 7, 1989, at Carrara. Any value?

JOHN WILD, VIA EMAIL

RM: John, I’d love to able to tell

you these are worth some good dollars. Unfortunately, I’d say you might get $20 tops.

I have a set of football cards – published years ago by Mobil. All face shots, including some of the greats – Jack Clarke, Bob Skilton, Ron Barassi, Kevin Murray, Allen Aylett, Ted Whitten, Hassa Mann, Verdun Howell, Graeme Arthur, John Nicholls, Brian Dixon, John Schultz, Wes Lofts, ‘Polly’ Farmer, Ian Law, ‘Doc’ Baldock, Billy Goggin, Carl Ditterich, Doug Doug Wade, etc. Are they of value??

BARRY YOUNG, VIA EMAIL

RM: Barry, Mobil released four sets of large cards of 65, VFL footballers in 1964, 1965, he 1966 and 1971. Strangely, the ten. first set turns up the most often.

Yours are worth about $10 each, while those from 1971 sell for $20 each.

CONTACT RICK MILNE mrpp@iprimus.com.au or drop him a line: 5 Cooraminta St, Brunswick, Vic, 3056 or call (03) 9387 4131.

One query per reader.

RICK’S RARITY

» In the old days, well before

radio, television, telegram, telephone, email, SMS, Twitter, Skype and all the rest, there was only one way for a footy club to contact a player – by mail. This letter, sent to South Melbourne star Bruce Sloss on May 25, 1911, lets him know he has been chosen to play that weekend against Collingwood.

Let’s hope there weren’t any mail strikes, as no one would have turned up to play! That such a letter has survived is remarkable. Very is y rare, itit is worth maybe $500. $500.

BRAINS

answers at bottom of page

Find the 5 DIFFERENCES between the 2 cards

Use the picto-clues to find out the AFL player’s name!

______ ______

_-___

The Saints won their only AFL premiership in 1966 beating which side by a solitary point?

A. Collingwood

NEW!

B. Geelong

C. Hawthorn

D. Melbourne

Silver CODE cards and enter codes to play

Answers: 1. new pony tail, logo above “Hankook” reversed and stretched, no logo on the top of footy, bigger arms, blue sock 2. Andrew Walker 3. J-Pod 4. Collingwood

4

Can you guess this AFL Player’s NICKNAME?

AS SEEN ON TV

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SPOT THE DIFFERENCE

FIVE TO FIND

SPOT THE DIFFERENCE: Ear and mouth of Bulldog changed on Ben Hudson’s jumper; black and red stripes swapped on Brendon Goddard’s right sock; ‘E’ and ‘B’ of sponsor logo swapped on Ben McEvoy’s jumper; Liam Picken’s right hand changed to a fi st; red stripe on Picken’s jumper changed to blue.

EXTENDED PLAYTIME The AFL Playground outside the MCG will continue to operate for the rest of the season due to popular demand.

The playground, the coolest fan zone for kids looking to test their footy skills and warm up before watching the footy, attracted more than 14,000 kids and families in the first nine

rounds of the season.

Located below Gate 6, the playground features activities of all types for kids, with club mascots also in attendance.

It is open 90 minutes before the start of the match until the end of the half-time break.

Visit afl.com.au/ playground for more information.

FREE ENTRY Scrambled Sc S crra am mb blleed Footballer: Fo F oot otb ba all ller er: Cryptic Cr C ryyp pti tiicc Footballers: Fo F oo ottb ba alllleerrss:: BI B IG MOUTH: MO M OU UT TH H:: BIG

74 AFL L RECORD R EC RECO RE CO COR OR ORD RD visit viis vvis isit itafl afl afl flrec record.com.au rree ord.com.au

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Bulked-up Swan on the rise Young Swan forward Sam am Reid Reid is is going going from from strength strength to to stre strength. ength. LUKE HOLMESBY

S

am Reid’s initiation to the AFL taught him plenty about what was required at the top level.

Brought in by the Sydney Swans for last year’s round 22 match against the Brisbane Lions, Reid found himself alongside Lion man-mountain Daniel Merrett.

Although he performed admirably (gathering 13 touches and taking eight marks), he realised he needed to work on his strength if he was going to match it with more established players.

“He’s quite a strong bloke, so that gave me an idea I needed to put on a bit of size and strength to match it with the key defenders if I was going to be a key position player,” Reid said.

So, in his second pre-season with the Swans, Reid hit the weights room, but was cautious not to go too hard on his developing body.

“I put on about four or fi ve kilos since,” he said. “They’ve told me up here they don’t want me to put on too much too quickly. My body probably won’t be able to handle it if I stack it on too quickly.”

The difference has seen Reid become a vital part of the Swans team this season.

He has played every game and his performance against Richmond last weekend earned him a nomination for the NAB AFL Rising Star award. However, much like his team, Reid was wasteful in front of goal and finished with 2.5.

Although disappointed with his conversion, he said he was encouraged by his ability to win the ball in front of goals.

“It probably was a surprise.

I didn’t kick straight but I

2011 NAB AFL RISING STAR NOMINEES Round 1 Dyson Heppell (ESS) Round 2 Luke Shuey (WCE) Round 3 Mitch Duncan (GEEL) Round 4 Jasper Pittard (PA) Round 5 Brandon Matera (GCS) Round 6 Jack Darling (WCE) Round 7 Zac Smith (GCS) Round 8 Shane Savage (HAW) Round 9 Reece Conca (RICH) Round 10 Jack Steven (STK) Round 11 Jordan Gysberts (MEL) Round 12 Sam Reid (SYD) FAMILY DOUBLE:

Sam Reid has joined his brother Ben in winning a NAB AFL Rising Star nomination.

look at the positives,” he said.

“I had six shots at goal in the first half, so I’ll take that any day of the week.”

Reid’s nomination came exactly one year after his older brother Ben was nominated for his role in Collingwood’s Queen’s Birthday game against Melbourne.

Although two-and-a-half years older than Sam, Ben took longer to get settled at AFL level, but has now become a vital part of the Magpies’ back six.

And the little brother couldn’t be happier for him. “To see him getting a full season in and playing finals was a bit of motivation to show what you can really do,” Reid said.

“When he was drafted

by Collingwood, he was even lighter than I was when I first started. He had to stack on a bunch of weight and he stacked on a fair bit pretty quickly. It took him a while

for his legs to adjust and to pick up the pace of AFL.” They are the fi rst brothers to earn Rising Star nominations since the Brown twins, Nathan and Mitchell, in 2008 and 2009.

The Reids played together in the same junior team when Sam was just 11 and also briefl y played on each other in a NAB Challenge game earlier this season.

And there is every chance they will be opposed to one another when the Swans take on the Magpies at ANZ Stadium in round 14.

Reid said there had been little banter between the two.

“No, he’s been all right. It’s mostly constructive (advice) he’s been giving me. I’m looking forward to playing (the Magpies),” he said.

Reid might be establishing his AFL career in a different state to his brother, but he said he had built a close network since

THREE THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW

1

Reid wears the No. 20 jumper, as does his brother Ben.

2

He is not the only Sam Reid at AFL level. The Western Bulldogs also have a Sam Reid, who has a younger brother also named Ben.

3

Recruited from Wangaratta Rovers, where Mick Nolan and Bob Rose also played.

arriving at the Swans after being drafted with pick 39 at the 2009 NAB AFL Draft.

“That’s what makes this club such a tight group,” he said.

“Everyone’s in the same boat.

Most guys are from (outside Sydney) so, when they come here, they don’t really know anyone outside the club.

“You are forced to hang around the guys from the footy club and it does make you bond a lot quicker and get to know each other.”

Each week throughout the home and away season, a panel of judges will select the nominee for the 2011 NAB AFL Rising Star. At the completion of the season, one outstanding player will be chosen as the 2011 NAB AFL Rising Star winner. He will receive an investment folio, a dedicated personal banker, a financial planner and the Ron Evans Medal, all courtesy of the NAB. The NAB Rising Star award is the final stage of the NAB AFL Rising Stars Program, which supports grassroots players and football communities and helps young Australians fulfi l their dream of playing in the AFL.

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Applying data laterally to analyse and understand the modern game.

Efficiency no longer the most effective way to go

SHORT AND SWEET:

Grant Birchall is part of a Hawthorn side that has reworked its game-plan to include short precision kicks to lead-up targets.

S

eparating total kicks into the fi ve categories of long, short, ineffective, clanger and ground, along with their respective definitions, was introduced at the start of the 1996 season.

My purpose in devising the categories was to measure and better understand kicking effectiveness, not efficiency.

Consequently, the fi ve categories have become familiar language and the offi cial standard for categorising kicks.

Back then, only total kicks and kicking efficiency – total kicks per goal or kicks per inside 50m – were the dominant measures.

Efficiency was in vogue.

Denis Pagan was coaching North Melbourne and, with Wayne Carey at his disposal, the Roos were winning games using the ball effi ciently.

Fellow coaches of the day, including Kevin Sheedy, Leigh Matthews, Malcolm Blight, Mick Malthouse and David Parkin, shared similar views: they were influenced by master teachers John Kennedy, Allan Jeans, Ron Barassi and Tommy Hafey.

They all adhered to the philosophy that overuse of the ball up-field involved unnecessary chances to lose possession going forward, providing extra time for opposition defenders to marshal themselves.

It made sense, because that’s how football was

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played throughout their respective eras.

The meaning of effi ciency stems from the principles of thermodynamics, which measures the level of maximum output achievable from a given amount of energy input.

The manner in which Sheedy’s Bombers won the 2000 flag resembled how previous premiership teams had prevailed. Quick territorial gain via long kicking was king.

Efficiency won premierships.

It was easy to say while dominant forwards often kicked 100 goals or more in a season and there were no alternative stats.

Properly measuring effectiveness required affordable access to computers, vision of all games and knowledge of capture methods, data mining and analysis techniques.

Other endeavors such as economics, sales and marketing, investment and weather reporting were embracing new

methods, while football was still trying to catch up.

At the time, scoring conversion aside, I wanted to demonstrate that outperforming an opponent in effective fi eld kicking was the dominant factor in winning games, more so than effi ciency.

Subsequent seasons capturing and analysing data vindicated this initial premise. By now, I would have hoped this should not surprise.

Yet many commentators and coaches appear to be confused.

Instead of quoting effective kicking rates, they continually refer to them as rates of kicking efficiency, which they are not.

Efficiency is a formula based on measuring energy quotas and output. Effectiveness is a classification system and involves notating the execution of each classifi ed event.

What is the major problem?

The renowned authority of management theory and practice, Peter F. Drucker says: “It is fundamentally the

confusion between effectiveness and efficiency that stands between doing the right things and doing things right.

“There is surely nothing quite so useless as doing with great efficiency what should not be done at all. Yet our tools, especially our accounting concepts and detail, focus on effi ciency.

“What we need is (1) a way to identify the areas of effectiveness (of possible significant results), and (2) a method for concentrating on them.”

In the foreword to this year’s AFL Prospectus published

by Champion Data, Parkin recounts: “So five decades have seen significant change. We used to play straight and train round – now it’s reversed.”

Increasingly, football looks like a game of chess and chaos theory tossed around like a garden salad. Identifying the new areas of effectiveness is not the same challenge as it was in 1996.

The number of strategic short kicks backwards and sideways was scarcely noticeable then.

The majority of long kicking was of an attacking variety, whereas now it is defensive.

Coaches once frowned upon short kicks to a contest anywhere on the field. Now, short precision darts forward of centre seeking fast lead-up players are encouraged.

The value of measuring effectiveness in preference to efficiency does not change. It is the game itself that changes, which is why a revision of the kick categories matters.

TED HOPKINS IS A CARLTON PREMIERSHIP PLAYER AND FOUNDER OF CHAMPION DATA. HIS BOOK THE STATS REVOLUTION (SLATTERY MEDIA GROUP) WAS RELEASED LAST MONTH AND IS AVAILABLE VIA FOOTYBOOKCLUB.COM.

SHORT STORY COMPETITION BROUGHT TO YOU BY VIRGIN AUSTRALIA

The 2011 AFL Record Short Story Competition is open to all football enthusiasts. We’re looking for the ultimate short story on the 2022 AFL World Rules. Entries must be previously unpublished and no longer than 2000 words.

The winning entry will be published in the2011 Toyota AFL Grand Final Record.

THE SHORT STORY COMPETITION HAS TWO GOALS: 1. To promote fine short story fi ction

about Australian Football.

2. To fantasise about the future of Australian Football.

THE TOPIC

AFL 2022: the game has gone international, with professional teams playing in Zones across Asia, Europe, America, South America, the Pacifi c and Australia.

Every four years, the world unites to play for the AFL World Rules.

This is the story of the 2022 World Rules – the second since the inaugural event held in Australia in 2018, to celebrate the 160th anniversary of the birth of the game.

The first AFL World Rules was won by a team from Japan, beating Australia by two points (15.10.100 to 14.14.98) before 101,200 people at the MCG. The event is held from October 15 to November 20.

1ST 2ND 3RD

THE STORY MUST INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING ELEMENTS:

How the game became international.

The Australian team is drawn from all leagues, including the AFL. The game took off internationally from 2013 with huge crowds across the globe.

Writers can concentrate on one Zone, describing the impact of the game on the local culture and how it has overtaken soccer as the “world game”.

The story can take the reader anywhere – from a team perspective, from an individual perspective, preparing for the series, the fi nal ... Let your imagination run wild.

The Laws of The Game are broadly the same, but innovations can be included in the text.

Preliminary events must be held internationally.

Total word count must not exceed 2000 words, but must not be less than 1000 words.

2 V AUSTRALIA RETURN INTERNATIONAL PREMIUM ECONOMY FLIGHTS TO LOS ANGELES 2 PACIFIC BLUE RETURN INTERNATIONAL ECONOMY FLIGHTS TO FIJI 2 VIRGIN AUSTRALIA RETURN DOMESTIC ECONOMY FLIGHTS

WIN

Competition entry closes midnight, August 7 For entry and terms and conditions visit aflrecord.com.au/shortstory

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