AFL Record, Round 7, 2010 by The Slattery Media Group

THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE AFL GAME

A MODEL CAT

ROUND 7, 2010 MAY 7-10 $5 (INC. GST)

JOEL SELWOOD Brent Moloney

Why his heart beats true

Mick Malthouse

things you might not know

Todd Banﬁeld NAB AFL

› ››››››››››› ›››››››››››› ››››› ›››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ›››››››››››››››› ›››››››››››› ››››››› ››› › ›› › ››››››› ››››› ›››››››››››››› ›››› ›››› ›››› ›››› ›››››››› ›››››››››››› ›››››››››››› ›››››››› ››› ›››››››››››››››››››››› Rising Star ›› ››› ››› ››› ›››››››››››››››››››› ››› ››››› ››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ››››››››››››› ›››››››› ›››› ›››› ›››››››› ›››› ›››› ›››››››››››››››› ›››››››› ›››› ›››››››››››› ››››››››› ›››› ›› ›››› ››››››››››››› ››››››››››››› ›››››››››› ››››› › ››› ›››› ››››››››››››› ›››› ›››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ›› ››››››››››››››››››››››› ››››››››››››››› ›››› ›››››››› ›››››››››››› ›››› ›››› ›››››››› ››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ››› ››››››››››››› ››› ›››› › ››››› ›››››››››› PAGE 76 ››››››››› ›› ››› ›››› ››››››› ›››› ››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ›››››››››››››››››››››››› ››››››››››› ›››› ›››››››››››› ›››› ››››››››››› ›› ››› ›››› ›››› ››››››››› ›››››››››› ›››› ›››››››››››› ›››››››› ›››››››››››››››››››› ›››› ›››››››› ››› ›››››››››› ››››››››› › ›› › ›››››››››››› ›››››››››››› ›››› ›››››››››››› ››››››››››››››››››››››› › ›››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ›››› ›››› ›››› ››› ›››› ›››››››› ›››› ›››› ›››››››› ››››››››››››› ›››››››››››››››› ›› ››››››››››› ›››››››› ›››› ›››››››› ›››››››› ›››››››››››››› ›››››››››››››››››››› ›››››› ››››››››› ››› ››››› ›››››››››››››› ›››› ››››››› ››››››› ›››››››››› › ›››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ›››››››› ›››››››››››› ››››››› ›››› ›››››››› ›› ›››› ››››››››››››››››››› ›››› ›››› ›››››››››››› ›››› ›››››››› ›››››››››››› ›››››››››› ›››› ›››› ›››› ››› ›››››››››››› ››››››››››››››››››› ››› ››› ››››› ›››››››››› ››››››››› ›››››››››››››› ››››››››››››› ››› ››››››› ›››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ›››› ›››››››› › ›› ›››› ›››››› ›››› ›› ››››› ››››› ›› ›››››› ›› ›››› ›› ››››› ›››››››››››› ›› ›››››››››››› ›››››››››››››››› ›››› ›››› ››› ›››› ›››››››››››››››› ›››› ›››››››› ›› ››››››››› ›››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› › ››››››››› ››››› ›››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ›››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ›››››››› ›››››››››››› ›››››››› ››››››› ›››› ›››››››› ›››› ›› ›››› ›››› ››››› ›››››››››››› ›› ››››››› ››› ››››››››››››››››››› ››››››››››› ››› ›››› ››››››››› ››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ››››››››››››› ›››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ›››››› ›››› ›››› ››››› ››››››››››››››› ›››››››››››››››››› ››› ›››››››› ›››› ›››› ›››› ››› ›››››››››››››› ››››› ›››› ›››››››› ››››››› ›››› ›››› ›››››››› ›››››› ››››››››› ››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››››› ››››››››››››› ››››››››››››››››››››››››› ›››››››››››››››››››››› ›››› ››››››››› ›››› ›››››››› ›››› ››››››››››››››› ››››››››››› ›››››› ›››› ›››››› ›››››››› ››› ›››› ›››› ›››› ››››››››› ›››››› ›››› ›››››››››››››››››››› ›››››› ››››››››› ›››

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ROUND 7, MAY 7-10, 2010

Features 57

Joel Selwood

The young Cat proving to be a model player.

Brent Moloney

A Demon whose heart beats red and blue.

Moments of the decade

The battle for the TV broadcast rights.

Regulars THIS WEEK’S COVERS Geelong’s Joel Selwood features on the national cover, while Demons captain James McDonald and Dogs skipper Brad Johnson promote the Field of Women match at the MCG.

Backchat

Your say on the football world.

The Bounce

Views, news, ﬁrst person, facts, data, culture.

Matchday

Stats, history and line-ups.

Dream Team

Advice from Mr Fantasy, our Dream Team expert.

74 76 78

Answer Man Kids’ Corner NAB AFL Rising Star Talking Point

Ted Hopkins on Leigh Matthews’ theories.

THE MAGIC OF MALTHOUSE: There are plenty of things that make Mick Malthouse tick – we list 10 of them.

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feedback

Your say on the world of football

EDITOR’S LETTER

No points for style

Too courageous for their own good

We know players are well looked after financially, but when you see up close what they put themselves through during games, there’s no doubting they deserve what they get. The game has always been physically challenging and demands supreme courage. Anyone who saw the courage shown by Hawthorn midfielder Jordan Lewis against the Western Bulldogs several weeks ago will attest to this. (Lewis and Bulldog Jarrod Harbrow collided midfield in a contest, with Lewis having to be carried from the ground.) He returned to the field later, having been cleared by the medical experts. We know the stringent level of care doctors apply in these matters – they would never allow a player to return to a game if they had doubts about the player’s capacity and/or his health. But perhaps it’s time to reconsider the rule that allows players to return after knocks of the type Lewis received? ROBERT JONES, EAST MELBOURNE, VIC.

Swans’ big test

People are falling over themselves to wrap up the Sydney Swans, but who have they beaten? Four bottom sides – Adelaide, Richmond, North Melbourne and West Coast –

CRUNCH:

Hawthorn’s Jordan Lewis is met heavily by Bulldog Jarrod Harbrow in round four.

and an off-the-boil Brisbane Lions at home. Beat Geelong at Skilled Stadium this Sunday, Swannies, and then I’ll be impressed. WALTER BATEMAN, CORIO, VIC.

Scott’s good start

As a North Melbourne supporter, I just want to say how rapt I’ve been with the job Brad Scott’s doing as coach. Not only is he playing the kids – with success – but he’s also extremely effective promoting

PRODUCTION EDITOR Michael Lovett WRITERS GENERAL MANAGER, MARKETING Nick Bowen, Ben Collins, Jim Main, Peter Ryan, Callum Twomey & COMMERCIAL OPERATIONS Paul Waldren SUB-EDITORS Gary Hancock, Howard Kotton AFL CORPORATE BUSINESS MANAGER STATISTICIAN Richard Simkiss Cameron Sinclair AFL RECORD CREATIVE DIRECTOR MANAGING EDITOR Andrew Hutchison Geoﬀ Slattery DEPUTY ART DIRECTOR AFL RECORD EDITOR Sam Russell Peter Di Sisto

4 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

the club in the media. Keep up the good work, Brad. JACK FULWOOD, MONT ALBERT, VIC.

HAVE YOUR SAY

Send us your feedback. The best letter each round willl receive a copy of the AFL Record Season Guide 2010. Email aﬂrecordeditor@slatterymedia.com t di or write to AFL Record, Slattery Media Group, 140 Harbour Esplanade, Docklands, VIC, 3008.

DESIGNERS Alison Wright, Daniel Frawley PHOTO EDITORS Natalie Boccassini, Ginny Pike PRODUCTION MANAGER Troy Davis PRODUCTION COORDINATORS Stephen Lording, Emma Meagher DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Adele Morton COMMERCIAL MANAGER Alison Hurbert-Burns

AFL CLUB ACCOUNT MANAGER Anthony Palmer ADVERTISING SALES COORDINATOR Laura Mullins Advertising (03) 9627 2600 PHOTOGRAPHY Sean Garnsworthy, Michael Willson, Lachlan Cunningham AFL Photos (03) 9627 2600 aﬂphotos.com.au PRINTED BY PMP Print

� The way last week’s Western Bulldogs-St Kilda match was played generated plenty of discussion. Many observers focused on the fact only 13 goals were kicked (three of them in the last five minutes) by two of the competition’s most skilful, competitive and prolific teams, in perfect conditions with the roof closed at Etihad Stadium. This was a dour, tight affair, with two of the game’s highly regarded strategists, Bulldogs coach Rodney Eade and Saints counterpart Ross Lyon, matching wits and drilling their players to avoid ‘traps’ and pitfalls set by the opposition. This is partly the way the modern game is played, with emphasis on the protecting or guarding of space or finding ways of breaking down defensive barriers. Not for the first time in recent years, some claimed the spectacle – marked by multiple stoppages – resembled anything but Australian Football. They reiterated beliefs that coaches have a responsibility to direct the game to be played in a certain manner, in the right “spirit”. Coaches know another reality. The next club to award a coach style points – and not assess him for his win-loss record – might be the first. As the great coach John Kennedy once said, the scoreboard “is all you’ve got to show it on”. PETER DI SISTO

ADDRESS CORRESPONDENCE TO TheTHIS Editor,WEEK’S AFL Record,COVER Ground Floor, XXXX XXXXX 140XXXXXXXXXXXXX Harbour Esplanade, X Docklands, Victoria, 3008. Go9627 to aﬂ photos.com.au P: (03) 2600 F: (03) 9627 2650 E: peterd@slatterymedia.com to order prints

of this image.

AFL RECORD, VOL. 99, ROUND 7, 2010 Copyright. ACN No. 004 155 211. ISSN 1444-2973, Print Post approved PP320258/00109

6 AFL RECORD visit aďŹ&#x201A;record.com.au

SHUT DOWN

SNAP SHOT

Rd 6 Western Bulldogs v St Kilda, Etihad Stadium � There was little time or space for any player in this tough, dour contest and every kick, every tackle, every block was critical in a low-scoring match the Saints won by just three points. Typical of most of the game was this attempted smother by Bulldog full-back Brian Lake on a kick by Saints ruckman Michael Gardiner. It was a game marked by orchestrated strategic moves, with little free-flowing play and plenty of forced errors. St Kilda kicked three goals in the final five minutes of the match, having scored just four until that point. It was a classic arm-wrestle. JIM MAIN PHOTO: LACHLAN CUNNINGHAM/AFL PHOTOS

AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au 7

OUT OF GRASP Rd 6 Carlton v Collingwood, MCG

P SNA T SHO

� Normally, the football appears to take directions from Carlton’s Chris Judd. Often, he has it on a string, so to speak, dancing his way through conﬁned spaces at pace, with the ball along for the ride. However, at this moment, the football appears to have a mind of its own. It won’t be tamed. It is there to be won. Just look at the energy both Judd and Collingwood defender Nathan Brown are using in their attempt to capture it. Imagine the strain on their bodies, as they lurch and arch in ways they, ideally, shouldn’t. Their faces are taut, their eyes wired, the arms braced, as they try to bring the out-of-control football back into their possession, their maddening (or mad) desire to master chaos there for all to see. PETER RYAN PHOTO: ANDREW WHITE/AFL PHOTOS

8 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

AFL RECORD visit aďŹ&#x201A;record.com.au 9

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VIEWS NEWS FIRST PERSON FACTS DATA CULTURE

THE ORGAN

History preserved as Record goes digital Nearly 100 years of the game’s history captured by the AFL Record will be saved in digital format as part of a Victorian Government project celebrating the state. GEOFF SL AT TERY

he digital age has arrived for the AFL Record, courtesy of a generous grant by the Victorian Government as part of Victoria’s 175th birthday celebrations. The Record is on the verge of its own impressive milestone. First published in 1912, it

has been the ofﬁcial program of Victorian and Australian Football in an unbroken span. Originally published under licence, it has been wholly owned and produced by the VFL and then AFL since 1961. The Record is well named, as part of its role is to ensure that the AFL game is recorded

faithfully, providing snapshots of the way the game is played, its heroes and the decisions and the reasons behind them made by the administration of the day. In the editorial launching the Record on April 27, 1912 (round one was a little later in those days), the writer outlined the raison d’être of the Record: “The chief aim will be to give our readers the very latest items of intelligence, and in all that will be published the motto of the Record will be observed and that is “Fair Play is Bonnie Play”. The motto has long since disappeared from the masthead (since 1941, for reasons

PAST PAGES: Matthew Lloyd, the AFL’s chief operating oﬃcer Gillon McLachlan, Victorian Premier John Brumby and Neil Roberts check old copies of the Record.

unknown), but the values of those words remain. What has also disappeared is a statement from that editorial that was certainly true in those early years: “A special feature of the Record will be the diagrams of the football ﬁeld with the picked teams for each Saturday’s match in the positions they will occupy at the commencement CON T IN U ED NE X T PAGE

AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au 11

the bounce

of their respective games.” Positions may no longer exist in real terms, but we’ve retained the diagram and the positions announced for tradition, more than anything else. Last week at AFL House, Victorian Premier John Brumby noted the importance of the Record in the history of the game. “Victoria has a passionate sporting culture that has underpinned our national game of Aussie Rules and the iconic Footy Record holds a We’re giving strong place in every Victorian our history.” The Premier footy fan the was dating opportunity to himself a look back on the little by his takeovers of small reference to the great moments VICTORIAN PREMIER printers that have Footy Record. JOHN BRUMBY printed the Record For almost 90 morphed in a single years, the game’s line into today’s program was indeed public company, PMP Limited. known as the Football Record, The Government’s grant, part and sold with a raucous shout of $1.2 million of funding for an of “Recordddddd, Footy array of resources promoting Recordddddd!!”. Victorian history, under its It took on a new name, and Victoria 175 program, will see new branding, in 1999 when every edition of the Record, it became the AFL Record, since the ﬁrst on April 27, 1912, connecting itself to the available in a digital form at the burgeoning AFL brand, and the State Library of Victoria. nationalisation of the game. Said the Premier: “By Remarkably, it has been preserving the past editions of produced by the same printers the Footy Record online, we’re for all its existence as company

giving every Victorian footy fan the opportunity to look back on the great moments and people who have shaped our game.” Two of those people were in attendance at AFL House last week, 1958 Brownlow medallist Neil Roberts and three-time Coleman medallist (2000-01, 2003) Matthew Lloyd. An indication of the way the media’s fascination of the game has changed can be seen by the report of Roberts’ medal win – no more than half a dozen paragraphs at the back of the semi-ﬁnal Record of the year. In those days, the medal count

INNOVATION

Tracking the stars

TECHNOLOGY:

� In a sign of just how innovative clubs are becoming, most of this year’s jumpers have been designed so a GPS tracking device can effectively be embedded in them. As seen on the back of Western Bulldogs veteran Jason Akermanis’ jumper, the pocket stitched above the numbers, under the FFC monogram, holds the slim piece of technology. The GPS systems have been in use for several years, but were previously larger and worn under jumpers, either attached to the upper chest with a thick band (and the device sitting between the shoulder blades) or embedded in ultra-cropped vests. Usually tracked from the bench, the devices measure the minutes and distance a player runs and aerobic prowess, allowing fitness staff to decide when they need a breather during matches, and how to tailor their training loads.

Jason Akermanis‘ guernsey features the stitched pocket for a GPS device.

CALLUM TWOMEY

NEWS TRACKER

Sydney Swans ruckman Mark Seaby to miss three months with a broken ankle.

12 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

was held at VFL headquarters, Harrison House, and broadcast on radio. Roberts remembers listening to the count at his parents’ home. The Record has changed significantly over the almost century of its existence, as would be expected with the changes of need and technology, but one point has never changed. Patrons at each match have a match-specific program – in 2010 that means there are eight editions, with a total page count of 304. Each middle section of 32 pages is created specifically for each game, with the outer 48 pages common. The Slattery Media Group has produced the Record for the AFL since 1995. The AFL’s collection of Records is all but complete, with only a few years missing (1916, 1917, 1918 and 1928). A full set of Records, in bound form, is more than likely priceless but, with the support of the Government, what has been available previously for but a few eyes, will soon be available for all.

MAKING A MARK

Rocky path, but Roo arrives at last NICK BOW EN

efore and after North Melbourne’s win against Melbourne last week, Kangaroos coach Brad Scott made it clear he thought his young list was the equal of the Demons. Although Melbourne had assembled a raft of elite young players such as Cale Morton, Tom Scully and Jack Trengove through early draft picks, Scott said North had had to work harder to build its list, but was happy with its batch of youngsters. Leigh Adams is one such player starting to make his mark

FIELD OF WOMEN

14,000 reasons to turn MCG pink Before Friday night’s MelbourneWestern Bulldogs game, 14,000 people in bright pink ponchos will stand in the middle of the MCG and form a Pink Lady silhouette to show their support for Australians living with breast cancer. They will do so as part of the Breast Cancer Network Australia’s (BCNA) third staging of Field of Women LIVE, an event previously held at the MCG in 2005 and in Sydney in 2007. Here, BCNA deputy chair and Melbourne board member Karen Hayes (right), a breast cancer survivor, tells the AFL Record about this remarkable event.

ONE TO WATCH: North Melbourne player Leigh Adams has been impressive this year, one of several young Kangaroos developing nicely. Adams and his teammates wore green bootlaces last weekend as part of North’s commitment to reducing the impact of climate change.

in the AFL. Playing just his 14th game last week, the 22-year-old racked up 23 possessions as he alternated between half-forward and the midﬁeld. It continued a promising start to the season for Adams, who has played in the Roos’ past 10 games and looks set to establish himself as a senior regular. But where Morton, Scully and Trengove have seamlessly made the transition from junior ranks to the AFL, Adams’ path has been rockier. Despite captaining Vic Metro in the 2006 NAB AFL Under-18 Championships and being named rover in that year’s All-Australian team, he was overlooked in the draft before North snared him as a rookie. After quickly making an impact at Arden Street – Adams made his debut in round ﬁve, 2007, and played two consecutive games – a run of injuries stalled his progress. First he required a thumb NEWS TRACKER

reconstruction midway through 2007, then a knee reconstruction early in 2008, while lingering knee problems last year sent him in for a mid-season arthroscope. Still, Adams thinks such trials will make him a better player. “In the end, all of these things have probably been a blessing in disguise because they’ve made me work a bit harder to get to where I want to go,” he says. Adams shares his coach’s conﬁdence the Roos aree developing a talented young list. “Thirty-four of the 46 players on our list are ﬁrst-to-fourth-year g players, so we’re a young group,” he says. ys “But most of these guys intto have been able to come into n the seniors and make an impact at various stages.. in ng, “So, as Brad keeps saying, ny we’re not going to put any limitations on where we can go this year.”

What is the main message Field of Women LIVE aims to get across? The fact breast cancer affects everyone in the community. It affects women, whole families, whole communities, everywhere. It’s not selective about who it targets. We’ve made a lot of progress but the disease still affects one in nine people in this country. Thirty-eight women a day are told they’ve got breast cancer – that’s 14,000 a year. How has the AFL helped deliver that message?

Football is a fantastic vehicle because it reaches communities and families right throughout the country. And holding this event befo before a Friday night game at the n MC MCG provides a ma massive stage to h highlight the ext extent breast can cancer affects tthe community. The fact the AFL, T Mel M Melbourne and the Wes W Western Bulldogs are getting right a beh b behind such an important in initiative also h highlights the

enormous role women play in the AFL, whether as supporters, staff members or as mums taking kids to their footy games. Have you been buoyed by the way the football community supports Field of Women LIVE?

One of the things that has always impressed me, and I can only speak for Melbourne, is the way the players have embraced it. And I think it illustrates the point that everyone knows somebody who is affected by breast cancer. For guys, it’s sometimes really hard to know how to show their support and for them to be able to participate in something like this gives them a way to do so. What is it like to be on the MCG as part of the Pink Lady silhouette?

Oh, wow, it’s very emotional. I’m a breast cancer survivor of 14 years and, standing out there with men and women of all ages, you’re proud of having beaten the disease, and of your friends, colleagues and family who have been on the same journey, but you also remember those who haven’t been so fortunate. It’s an incredibly powerful experience, especially when you think of how far we’ve come. I was diagnosed 14 years ago and didn’t know a soul who’d ever had breast cancer because nobody talked about it. The visibility it’s now got is fantastic, as is the support out there for Australians affected by breast cancer. MELBOURNE WILL WEAR A SPECIAL GUERNSEY (LEFT) TO RECOGNISE THE FIELD OF WOMEN EVENT, WITH A PINK YOLK AND SLEEVE PIPING REPLACING THE TRADITIONAL RED AND A PINK LADY LOGO IN THE MIDDLE OF THE JUMPER.

Fremantle forward Des Headland out for eight weeks after knee surgery. AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au 13

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OBSERVATIONS DENIS PAGAN

A new-look Swans as the shackles are released � The season is only six rounds old but we’ve already seen teams get past defensive zones more often, the game’s pace and demands continue to rise with ever-increasing rotations, and Fremantle’s Michael Barlow and Geelong’s James Podsiadly have ensured recruiters will think twice before overlooking mature-age state-league players again. But, for me, this year’s biggest revelations have been the Sydney Swans. Under Paul Roos, the Swans have become renowned for a stop-start game-plan based on creating stoppages, forcing the opposition to play slower and wider, getting numbers back and often catching sides out on the fast break. But in his last year as coach, it seems Roos has taken the shackles off. In Tadhg Kennelly, Nick Malceski, Rhyce Shaw and Martin Mattner, the Swans have an elite half-back line that is prepared to run and carry and can kick the ball with depth and accuracy. The Swans are No. 1 for effective kicks this season, up from ninth in 2009, and are conceding the least number of turnovers in the League, 10 fewer a game than the competition average. All of which has translated on to the scoreboard, with the Swans’ average game score up from 85.8 in 2009 to 106.5 this year, and the average score kicked against them down from 92.1 to 72.8. That’s an improvement of 40 points a game. Remarkable. The Swans haven’t lost their renowned defensive edge either. Their midfield still assists their defence, they’re good at covering the opposition’s most dangerous players and their tackling around the stoppages NEWS TRACKER

SWANS ON SONG:

Tadhg Kennelly (left), Martin Mattner and Rhyce Shaw celebrate another successful outing for the Swans in 2010.

is sensational. At this stage, the Swans are on top of the ladder and don’t look out of place. But we’ll know more about them when they play Geelong at Skilled Stadium this Sunday.

hat about the Cats? Are they showing signs of decline after their incredible dominance of 200709? The biggest challenge was always going to be maintaining their intensity and hunger week in, week out. Perhaps we’ve seen enough to suggest they are not going to be as consistent in 2010. Their narrow loss to an in-form Fremantle at Subiaco last month was excusable, but their 36-point loss to Carlton in round ﬁve was pitiful. But that’s to be expected after so long at the

how to score themselves. In 2009, the Saints averaged 99.9 points in the home and away season, but this year they have dropped to 84.8. Although nearly all teams are increasingly reluctant to kick long to a contest inside their forward 50, it’s amazing how often scoring opportunities materialise when you do so quickly. The Western Bulldogs should be mindful of this after uncharacteristically slow ball movement and indecision cost them against the Saints last weekend. But I’m confident they can overcome their patchy early form and will again contend in the finals. Collingwood appears to be this year’s other main contender and, encouragingly, it seems to have adopted a more attacking mindset, with 20 of its 24 goals against Carlton last Sunday For me, this originating year’s biggest from the revelations centre corridor. have been the We’ll know Sydney Swans a lot more DENIS PAGAN about 2010’s other fast-starters, top, and I think the Brisbane Lions the old champs and Fremantle, after the remain capable of beating any next few rounds. However, side in the competition. for two clubs widely tipped to As for 2009’s other standout have big seasons, Adelaide and side, St Kilda, it has got two major Hawthorn, the immediate problems. The first is obvious – focus will be on sticking Nick Riewoldt’s hamstring injury. together, releasing the But, as serious as that injury is, if anyone can recover in time to play pressure valve, regaining confidence and then, finally, a meaningful role this year, it’s a turning their form around. champion such as Riewoldt. As for Richmond, new coach However, the Saints also seem Damien Hardwick is taking the weighed down by a game-plan right approach – playing the that appears to grow more kids and starting yet another conservative by the day. Tiger rebuild. Unfortunately, With their renowned it’s almost certainly going to all-ground pressure, the Saints be a long season for them. continue to strangle opposition teams – they are again conceding DENIS PAGAN IS A TWO-TIME fewer points than any other side, PREMIERSHIP COACH WITH NORTH MELBOURNE (1996 AND 1999), AND an average 60.2 a game – but WAS NAMED COACH OF THE CLUB’S in doing so, they have forgotten

Geelong ruckman Brad Ottens out six-to-eight weeks with “stress reaction in his foot”.

14 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

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the bounce

We strung together four quarters of footy, the ﬁrst time I think we’ve done it this year

NEW SYSTEM

Young Bomber forwards begin to take ﬂightt

ANGUS MONFRIES

kicked 26 goals between them. Despite Hurley’s natural attacking instincts and nous, seen in th the second quarter against the th Hawks when he nudged defender d Tom Murphy off the ba ball, won it and ran into an open op goal, it has been Gumbleto Gumbleton’s form this year that has b been most pleasing for Essendon fans. t After two years of not playing an a AFL game because of seriou serious back injuries, his developm development as an athletic, high-mar high-marking forward is coming a along quickly. Agains Collingwood Against on Anza Anzac Day, the 197cm Gumble Gumbleton was the Bombers’ best pl player, and he was again prom prominent last week. A As important as these yo young, tall targets are in coach Matthew Knights’ style, the presence of several

C A L LU M T WOMEY

lthough Essendon on was facing an undermanned nce last Hawthorn defence d set-up week, its new-look forward oint win took major steps in a 43-point at the MCG. n and Led by Scott Gumbleton Michael Hurley in the key posts, the Bombers kicked their biggest 3 (103) score of the season – 15.13 ghout. – and looked potent throughout. There’s plenty of upside in the ced structure – the inexperienced ve Gumbleton and Hurley have played only 24 games and ON THE ATTACK: Angus Monfries (left) and Michael Hurley celebrate Essendon’s biggest score of the season.

10 THINGS . . . PETER RYAN

The Malthouse phenomenon: WHAT MAKES MICK TICK? � There are some achievements that fly under the radar that are so preposterous in their scale they take a moment or two to register. One such record is Collingwood coach Mick Malthouse’s effort to reach 794 games at the elite level (174 games as a player and 617 games as a coach), placing him third on the all-time list of combined games as player/coach behind Kevin Sheedy and Jock McHale. It’s a mighty effort, considering the pressures on an AFL coach illustrated most obviously by the events at Collingwood last year. The team was at one stage sitting with three wins and five losses, had injuries, the coach’s contract was up for renewal and NEWS TRACKER

a perceived coach-in-waiting, Nathan Buckley, was being touted by outsiders as the answer to most questions. But here Malthouse is, less than 12 months later, with the Magpies second on the ladder, and widely considered a premiership chance again. How has he lasted in the game for so long? Here are 10 things you possibly didn’t know about Mick Malthouse:

He loves those personalities who remain unchanged regardless of the circumstances. Once a staﬀ member wins his conﬁdence and understands his requirements, Malthouse delegates enormous responsibility, to his assistant

coaches, football manager, fitness and conditioning staff, recruiters, leadership group, technology boffins, volunteers and player welfare managers. As a result, he commands enormous regard from those who work alongside him.

He is hopeless at predicting the weather, a running joke he carries with his players.

He likes to unwind with a session on an exercise bike in the club’s altitude room, grappling with a crossword, once the day’s work is done.

Apart from family, his greatest loves are the game and what he refers to as “the battle”.

He mixes the way he communicates his message, although the underlying messages

Melbourne forward Ricky Petterd to miss four months after dislocating his right shoulder.

16 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

other smaller options is allowing the Bombers to develop more scoring avenues. Angus Monfries, David Zaharakis and Alwyn Davey chipped in with four goals between them against Hawthorn. Monfries, the most experienced of the three with 97 games, said the Bombers had been working on making it difﬁcult for opposition defenders to move the ball out of the Essendon forward line. “It’s good to have the big guys to kick to, but we are a really young group down there and we just go into games with the mindset of competing and bringing the ball to ground,” he said after picking up 15 possessions and kicking a goal last week. “Once we did that against the Hawks, we focused on having plenty of forward pressure when the ball was up for grabs, and we did that really well. “We stuck to our plan and strung together four quarters of footy, the ﬁrst time I think we’ve done it this year.” With Zaharakis averaging more than three scoring shots a game, Davey showing strong

I N V E S T I G AT I O N

MANIC MONDAY: St Kilda and

AFL imposes betting sanctions

Carlton will meet in just the 15th Monday night clash this round.

FIXTURE

Blues, Saints have Monday on their mind CHR IS K ENNA

onday night football has been a rarity since its inception in 1952 when Essendon, with champion spearhead John Coleman booting 13 goals, thrashed Geelong at the Brisbane Exhibition Ground. It didn’t return until round four of the 1995 season, when Richmond defeated North Melbourne by 49 points at the MCG. There have been 14 matches on a Monday night,

are consistent. Last season, for example, he stood in a cherry picker to conduct an indoor training session that focused on structures, much to the amusement of the players.

Malthouse understands that, as a senior AFL coach, you have to nitpick and nitpick again, continually striving to improve the team. It explains why he sometimes appears hard to satisfy, even when the team’s performance on the day is good. Such is the role of the coach aiming for a premiership. Despite this, he regularly expresses his respect for the players’ eﬀorts.

Malthouse is unrelenting in emphasising the importance of defence. He knows that premiership teams invariably come from one of the four clubs NEWS TRACKER

with an average attendance of 37,863, but last season’s St Kilda-Collingwood clash attracted 46,880 fans to Etihad Stadium and drew one of the biggest television audiences of the season. The AFL will hope this trend continues. Carlton and St Kilda this round play in the only Monday night game for the season, in response to the AFL’s support of Mother’s Day weekend when just two games

that concede the least points in a season. It is a responsibility he places on the shoulders of every member of the team. One of his many memorable lines last season was: “We all dream of greatness. The greatest thing you can be tonight is being great for your teammate.”

Inside the coach’s box, he has an uncanny instinct for how the game is unfolding, predicting events before they happen. He expects considered, well-made suggestions to come his way and he can make multiple decisions at once. Occasionally, he’ll stop everything and remind everyone to help the bloke on the match-up board. His sense of humour keeps everyone sane when the pressure is at its ﬁercest, but don’t fall into the trap of barracking. It won’t be tolerated.

the bounce

will be played on Sunday. No doubt broadcasters will be interested in the fans’ response, as AFL television discussion heats up ahead of a new arrangement starting in 2012. With the inclusion of the Gold Coast and Greater Western Sydney clubs over the next two seasons, Monday night football is likely to become a real consideration for the AFL, with an extra timeslot required from 2012.

Pre-game, Malthouse always has a kick-to-kick in the rooms with Dale Thomas. The habit started by chance, Collingwood won that day and it became a routine.

He knows that every goal (scored or conceded) counts, regardless of the state of a game. Last year, the reason why he is never content was rammed home when one goal separated the diﬀerence between third and fourth spot on percentage. Collingwood ﬁnished fourth. Peter Ryan is the author of Side by Side: A Season with Collingwood, published by The Slattery Media Group.

� The AFL has suspended Port Adelaide assistant coach Matthew Primus, a goal umpire, two interchange stewards and a timekeeper for betting on League games. And the Western Bulldogs have been fined $7500 after one of their directors was found to have bet on a game. Primus, pictured, has been suspended for the Power’s next two games after it was discovered he placed a $20 multi-bet involving Geelong and Carlton in the 2009 NAB Cup semi-final. The bet was placed on behalf of a punters’ club made up of eight Port Adelaide players and coaches. AFL goal umpire Chris Appleton was stood down for the rest of the 2010 season after he was found to have placed four bets, totalling $60, on the 2009 Grand Final. He did not umpire in the match. Two AFL interchange stewards – Wayne Siekeman and John Wise – have also been stood down for the rest of the season. Siekeman placed bets totalling $17.50, while Wise’s bets totalled $9. AFL timekeeper Matthew Hollington was stood down for five weeks for placing one $5 bet during the 2009 season. The Western Bulldogs were fined $7500 after it was discovered club director Geoff Walsh had placed five bets between December, 2009, and February, 2010, totalling $50. “All AFL players, coaches, umpires and officials should be in no doubt that betting on the AFL is prohibited,” the AFL’s general manager of football operations Adrian Anderson said. MICHAEL LOVETT

CEO Ian Robson says Essendon could consider moving its training and administration base from Windy Hill. AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au 17

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the bounce

PLAYERS WE LOVE

Lenny Hayes ST KILDA

� Looks can be deceiving in the AFL. At first glance, Lenny Hayes doesn’t look like the ferocious, ball-hungry midfielder who is the heartbeat of the St Kilda side. The casual observer might be fooled by the clean-cut appearance, chiselled good looks, and hair that never seems out of place. But watch Hayes for four quarters – one will probably do – and you quickly get a different perception of the former Sydneysider. Here is a player who doesn’t just enjoy a contest, but lives for it. Hayes has a tremendous appetite for winning the football, and won’t stop until he gets it. He will run all day for his team, until the time when coach Ross Lyon decides he must give his star on-baller a rest – to see Hayes’ exhaustion in the moments immediately after he comes to the bench is a fascinating insight into how far an athlete can push his body. Even the experts get it wrong sometimes. Just last weekend, Hawthorn legend Dermott Brereton admitted on SEN Radio he had underestimated Hayes’ value as a player, and hadn’t appreciated quite how good he is. This after a 200-plus game career that has yielded such honours as

three All-Australian awards, a best and fairest gong as well as a handful of top-three finishes, not to mention a third-place finish in last year’s Brownlow Medal count. Before Saints supporters get too irate, they should consider the comments of another major voice in the football media – Garry Lyon – during last year’s qualifying final against Collingwood. As Hayes and Nick Riewoldt teamed up to propel the Saints into the preliminary final, the former Demons captain told Triple M listeners that Hayes would be one of the first names chosen in his best Australian Football team. Best team of all-time, that is. St Kilda fans, of course, have loved Lenny for years. Time and again, he has stood up when his team is in desperate need. Now, with the injured Riewoldt stuck on the sidelines, the Saints need Hayes, their 30-year-old stand-in skipper, more than ever. Last round against the Western Bulldogs, Hayes typified his team’s never-say-die attitude. As the Dogs threw everything at the Saints, Hayes stood tall, laying a team-high seven tackles as he refused to let his opponents slip away. And he gave as good as he got too, at times appearing omnipresent on his way to 35 disposals. Once again, he had answered the call. As he always does. JOHN MURRAY

There’s a fresh new team in the AFL You won’t believe the big names lining up for 3AW in 2010. New recruits Brian Taylor, Tim Lane and Richo will join cult hero Dennis Cometti, Robert Walls and ‘Lethal’ Leigh Matthews. And there are even more names on our team sheet. Like Tony Shaw, Mike Sheahan and footy’s First Lady, Caroline Wilson, just to name a few. With a fresh new team like this, in 2010 Melbourne’s own 3AW is football.

Home team v visitors tonight

AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au 19

the bounce

FAMILY AFFAIRS

Bridging the generation gap

100 games Danyle Pearce Port Adelaide Steven Dodd Fremantle Brock McLean Carlton

COL HU TCHINSON

n recent times, the skill and brilliance of Geelong star Gary Ablett and Essendon atson have captain Jobe Watson drawn inevitable comparisons with their famous fathers. It raised a quirky question: How many men have played with a father-son combination? The table oppositee features a list of thesee men (and those they played with), and you can see it is not a recent phenomenon.. In fact, family history was created at the Brunswick Street Oval in round three, 1912, when the Geelong team trotted out from the dressing room to play Fitzroy. Bert Rankin, aged 19, was making his ﬁrst appearance for the Pivotonians (as Geelong was then known). Amazingly, 12 of his teammates had played in matches with his father, Teddy, who had retired less than two years earlier, aged 38. In 1915, Bert’s brother, Cliff, made his debut for the same club and more became teammates of two generations of the Rankin clan. Sixteen players achieved the feat, including the versatile Billy Wilton, who managed just 20 matches during a three-season career. Surprisingly, 13 of his appearances were with Teddy and three with Bert. Twenty-eight years after Teddy’s retirement, his third son, Doug, played in the same Geelong team as Alan Marsham. Marsham’s father, Harry, had been a teammate of Teddy, Bert and Cliff. Another famous family dynasty produced the next instance. Charlie Pannam snr NEWS TRACKER

50 games Scott Harding Port Adelaide Matt Campbell North Melbourne Harry Taylor Geelong Matthew Kreuzer Carlton Tom Hawkins Geelong Cyril Rioli Hawthorn Kurt Tippett Adelaide The list includes those not necessarily selected but on the verge of milestones.

BOMBER BLOODLINES: James Hird (top) played with

Tim Watson and was an established star when he was a teammate of Watson’s son Jobe (above). A proud Tim Watson shows oﬀ Jobe after a game in 1991.

was a Collingwood star from 1897 until the end of 1907, when he switched to Richmond for his last season. One of his sons, Charlie jnr, made his debut for the Magpies in the third round of 1917, by coincidence also at the Brunswick St Oval. Two of his teammates were Dick Lee and playing coach Jock McHale. Both had been teammates of his father. McHale also coached brothers Alby and Charlie Pannam jnr. Remarkably, in the opening round of 1942, the same coach instructed Magpies ﬁrst-gamer Lou Richards, who was a grandson of Charlie Pannam snr. In 1947, he also coached Richards’ brother, Ron, for the ﬁrst time. McHale also coached his own son, John, during the early 1940s, in addition to other father-sons George and Les Angus, Syd and Hugh Coventry, Jack W. and

Jack T. Green, Jack Monohan snr and jnr, and Bill Twomey and his sons Bill jnr and Pat. When Essendon legend Dick Reynolds made his debut in round one, 1933, one of his teammates was Tom Clarke. They played the last of their 28 matches together at the end of the following year. Seventeen years were to pass before ‘King Richard’ made his farewell appearance as a 36-year-old in the 1951 Grand Final. He had announced his retirement 12 months earlier, but was persuaded to make a comeback in the premiershipdeciding match. One of his teammates that day was Clarke’s son, Jack, aged just 18. They sat on the bench together as 19th and 20th men. Ten talented Bulldogs shared

Bomber Andrew Welsh suspended four matches for kneeing Hawk Xavier Ellis.

20 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

careers with both Ted Whitten snr and jnr. Three of them became Brownlow medallists: Gary Dempsey (Footscray, 1975), Barry Round (South Melbourne) and Bernie Quinlan (Fitzroy) who tied in 1981. Two others, Stuart Magee and Laurie Sandilands, captained the club, as did Dempsey. Another of the 10 – Peter Welsh – was a club best and fairest winner, along with Dempsey. Two legendary North Melbourne families provided another father-son link. In 1981, brothers Dean and Glenn Dugdale were named in the same teams as experienced defenders David Dench and Ken Montgomery, who had both represented the Kangaroos with the Dugdale patriarch, John, 12 years earlier. Dench was also a teammate of Laurie Dwyer (1970) and his ﬁrst son, David (1984). The talented Brent Crosswell played in winning Grand Final

Tim Watson was in the same Bombers team as Ken Fletcher 55 times, and 16 times with Dustin Fletcher

teams for Carlton and North Melbourne before spending his last three seasons with Melbourne. In his last year (1982), one of his teammates was Alan Johnson. Seven years later, Johnson was a Demons teammate of Crosswell’s son, who played under the name Tom Kavanagh. Essendon features in an unusual set of circumstances. Tim Watson was in the same Bombers team as Ken Fletcher 55 times from 1977-80, and 16 times with Fletcher’s son Dustin in 1993-94. Dustin has been a teammate of father-sons Tim and Jobe Watson, as well as Anthony and Darcy Daniher.

Ten Cats played with Gary Ablett snr and jnr, and three of them – Steven King, Peter Riccardi and Brenton Sanderson – also played with Nathan Ablett during his brief 32-game career with the club. Surprisingly, the following players, whose careers spanned at least 19 seasons, did not have an opportunity to be named in the same team as a father and later a son: Kevin Bartlett, Bill Cubbins, Vic Cumberland, Jack Dyer snr, Robert Harvey, Tony Lockett, Simon Madden, Bill Mahoney, Dave McNamara, Roger Merrett, Alby Morrison and Paul Salmon.

THOSE WHO HAVE PLAYED WITH A FATHER AND A SON

COL HUTCHINSON IS THE AFL’S STATISTICS AND HISTORY CONSULTANT.

Steven King, Peter Riccardi and Brenton Sanderson played with Gary Ablett snr, Gary Ablett jnr and Nathan Ablett.

TWO OF THE BEST: Peter Riccardi played with Geelong superstar Gary Ablett snr (left) and later teamed up with Gary jnr (right).

GEELONG Bert Dalton, George Haines, Len Martin, Billy Orchard, Percy Scown, Joe Slater and Billy Wilton played with Teddy Rankin and son Bert. Les Armstrong, Rupe Brownlees, Basil Collins, Alec Eason, Dick Grigg, Les James, Harry Marsham and Percy Martini played with Teddy Rankin, Bert Rankin, and Cliﬀ Rankin. Sam Newman played with John Yeates and Mark Yeates. Ronnie Burns, Ben Graham, Glenn Kilpatrick, Aaron Lord, Tim McGrath, David Mensch and Brad Sholl played with Gary Ablett snr and Gary Ablett jnr.

FOOTSCRAY Charlie Sutton played with Ted Ellis and Lindsay Ellis. Les Bartlett, Gordon Casey, Gary Dempsey, Stuart Magee, Gary Merrington, Stephen Power, Bernie Quinlan, Barry Round, Laurie Sandilands and Peter Welsh played with Ted Whitten snr and Ted Whitten jnr.

NORTH MELBOURNE Charlie Cameron, Johnny Gregory, Johnny Lewis and Jack Lynch played with Syd Barker snr and Syd Barker jnr. Ken Montgomery and David Dench played with John Dugdale, Glenn Dugdale and Dean Dugdale. David Dench played with Laurie Dwyer and David Dwyer. Adam Simpson and Glenn Archer played with Ross Smith and Jesse Smith.

COLLINGWOOD Dick Lee and Jock McHale played with Charlie Pannam snr and Charlie Pannam jnr. Phonse Kyne, Alby Pannam, Jack Regan and Marcus Whelan played with Syd Coventry and Hugh Coventry. Tony Shaw played with Wayne Richardson and Mark Richardson.

ESSENDON Dick Reynolds played with Tom Clarke and Jack Clarke. Tim Watson played with Ken Fletcher and Dustin Fletcher. James Hird, Mark Mercuri and Joe Misiti played with Tim Watson and Jobe Watson. Dustin Fletcher played with Anthony Daniher and Darcy Daniher.

CARLTON John Nicholls and Sergio Silvagni played with Laurie Kerr and Peter Kerr. Bruce Doull played with Sergio Silvagni and Stephen Silvagni.

FITZROY Norm Johnstone played with Dan Murray and Kevin Murray.

SOUTH MELBOURNE Ron Clegg played with Bob Pratt snr and Bob Pratt jnr.

MELBOURNE Alan Johnson played with Brent Crosswell and Tom Kavanagh.

HAWTHORN Michael Tuck played with Peter Hudson and Paul Hudson.

,7¶6 )227< :,7+287 7+( 58/(6 For a no holds barred view on everything footy, join Gerard Healy and Dwayne Russell, 6pm-8pm Monday to Thursday. Sports Today - only on 3AW 693.

AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au 21

the bounce

SCORING TRENDS

For answers to Hawks’ woes, look at last quarters PETER RYA N

f all the recriminations and theories abounding about Hawthorn’s form, it’s worth noting the Hawks have won only one last quarter since Geelong overran them in round 17 last year. In that game, the Cats kicked 5.3 (33) to Hawthorn’s 1.4 (10), a Jimmy Bartel point kicked after the siren handing the Cats the contest. Up until that point (pardon the pun) in 2009, Hawthorn had won eight last quarters, lost seven and drawn one. This season, it is one of three teams (Adelaide and West Coast are the others) that have lost every last quarter. At the finish, the Hawks have been as disappointing as a soft apple. In its 2008 premiership season, Hawthorn won the last quarter in each of the first nine rounds and finished the season with 19 last quarters won and just six lost. Last weekend, the Hawks went scoreless in the last quarter for the first time since round eight, 2006, punctuating a trend that has seen the club kick 14.10 to 26.25 in final quarters in 2010. To be fair, up until round four this season, they had excuses, not finishing a game with four fit men on the bench. And they played good football against two likely top-four finishers (the Cats and the Bulldogs) without getting the four points. Adelaide (8.16 to 24.18 in final terms) and the Eagles (30.23 to 16.17) have bigger differentials in terms of scoring, but the Hawks have conceded more scoring shots in that stanza.

NEWS TRACKER

FADEOUT: Hawthorn players trudge oﬀ the MCG last week after failing to score in the ﬁnal quarter.

RECOGNITION

Hawks, Swans in Kokoda tribute

� Hawthorn and Sydney will play a Kokoda tribute game in round 10 at the MCG, with the Hawks to wear a special guernsey (below, worn by Lance Franklin). In recent years, players and staﬀ from both clubs have walked the Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea. The clubs hope the game raises awareness of the signiﬁcance of the Kokoda Track in Australian war-time history and raises funds for the Kokoda Track Foundation, which supports those who live along the track.

NEW LOOK:

Lance Franklin models the guernsey the Hawks will wear in the Kokoda tribute match against the Swans.

LAWS OF THE GAME

New rule has stemmed the rush of behinds NICK BOW EN

he deliberate rushed behind rule is working well, despite an incorrect free kick being paid against Essendon’s Henry Slattery last week, AFL umpires’ manager Jeff Gieschen says. Umpire Scott McLaren ruled Slattery had deliberately rushed a behind against Hawthorn, despite the Es Essendon player being close to the goal-line with Hawk forward L Lance Franklin bearing d down on him. Gieschen acknowledges M McLaren erred (he won’t u umpire in the AFL this w weekend), saying the rule w brought in at the start was of last season to eradicate bl blatant deliberate rushed be behinds, such as when pla players kick the ball 15 15-20m backwards across

Richmond signs sponsorship deal with energy company Australian Power & Gas.

22 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

the line, handball the ball over their heads or walk the ball over the line when under no pressure. “Before Slattery took the ball over the scoring line, he had been knocked off balance by an attempted tackle, was in close proximity to the line, and had Lance Franklin closing in on him from one to one-and-a-half metres,” Gieschen says. “In that situation, the player should always be given the benefit of the doubt.” Gieschen acknowledges players have taken time to adjust to the rule – in particular to realise they can still rush a behind when near the goal-line and under direct pressure – but says, six rounds into the rule’s second season, the players’ understanding of it is sound. This was reflected in the behind Port Adelaide’s Josh Carr rushed against the Saints in round five which, Gieschen says, was correctly not penalised. Similarly, Gieschen says errors like that made by West Coast captain Darren Glass in last week’s clash with Fremantle, when he kept the ball in play just inside the goal-line but lost control, allowing Docker Michael Johnson to score a goal, are becoming rarer. He says some clubs seemingly won’t concede a behind in any circumstances, but that is based on those sides’ playing philosophies rather than a lack of understanding of the rule. Importantly, the rule has had its intended effect, largely eliminating blatant deliberate rushed behinds. Just four free kicks were awarded for deliberate rushed behinds last season – all of them correctly, he says. Gieschen says that given the penalty for a rushed behind is so severe – “in most cases the other side will have a kick for a certain goal” – it makes sense that only blatant breaches are penalised. However, Gieschen says umpires will continue to enforce the rule vigilantly, to ensure the type of blatant rushed behinds that became a blight on the game in 2008 do not creep back in.

VA L E

ADELAIDE- RICHMOND BY THE NUMBERS

STATISTICS

A tale of woe for Tigers and Crows

PLAYERS USED

TOTAL

DEBUTANTS

<50 GAMES

>100 GAMES

Adelaide

33 (1st in AFL)

5 (equal 3rd)

Richmond

33 (1st)

6 (equal 1st)

NICK BOW EN

ichmond was expected to struggle this year. After finishing 15th last season and subsequently farewelling 12 players, including club stalwarts Matthew Richardson, Joel Bowden, Nathan Brown and Kane Johnson, the young Tigers were widely tipped to win the wooden spoon. But the more-seasoned Adelaide was seen as a likely finalist. Coming off a desperately unlucky 2009 semi-final loss to Collingwood, and given the impressive development of midfielder Bernie Vince and

AVERAGE SCORES FOR

AGAINST

Adelaide

63.2 (15th)

102.3 (14th)

Richmond

62 (16th)

126.2 (16th)

KICKS

LONG KICKS

SHORT KICKS

Adelaide

15th

10th

Richmond

16th

MARKS

CONTESTED MARKS

Adelaide

9th

7th (equal)

Richmond

16th

14th

HANDBALLS

HANDBALLS RECEIVED

Adelaide

4th

3rd

Richmond

14th

TACKLES

RUCK DUEL CLEARANCES

Adelaide

15th

Richmond

16th

10th (equal)

DISP. PER GOAL

INSIDE FWD 50 INSIDE FWD 50 PER GOAL

Adelaide

16th

15th

13th (equal)

Richmond

15th

16th

6th

HITOUTS Adelaide

8th

Richmond

16th

power forward Kurt Tippett, many thought the Crows could ﬁnish in the top four. Six rounds into 2010, however, the Crows sit 15th

on the ladder, with just the Tigers beneath them. Both are winless. How did this happen? The following statistics might provide some insight.

McIntosh a true legend � Australian Football lost one of its ﬁnest players last Monday when West Australian great Merv McIntosh died after a heart attack. He was 87. McIntosh was an inaugural inductee to the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 1996 and was made an inaugural legend in the West Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2004. The Perth champion played 217 games in 17 years, with the fairytale ending coming in his last game, the 1955 Grand Final, when he helped the club end a 48year premiership drought by beating East Fremantle by two points. McIntosh, a ruckman, won three Sandover Medals, three Simpson Medals, seven club best and fairests and a Tassie Medal. PETER RYAN

DOROTHY KIX CULTURE

A return to the good old days � The advantages of being semi-retired are many; among them, one has the option, every now and again, of taking up where one left oﬀ, hence my return to this space this week. (Other options include lounging around until mid-morning in slippers and a dressing gown, studying the habits of sparrows while a cup of tea warms the palms of your hands, or scouring newspaper business pages for covert tips from analysts.) Those of us partial to the game’s peculiarities, quirks and absurdities would have got a kick out of last weekend’s round, in the same way one might get a buzz from, say, downing several pre-meal Campari aperitifs, or landing a quaddie with a 50-1 shot in the last. While others were likely debating the merits of the full-press

NEWS TRACKER

defence or what constitutes the deliberate rushing of a behind, there was plenty else to savour. Like the return of the post-siren torpedo punt for goal, the waving of a wooden spoon by a patron in the outer at AAMI Stadium, and the contextual use of the olde-worlde football term “knackers” in a dissertation by Hawks great Dermott Brereton on his former club. Middle-aged types might instantly have shouted “He’s done a Blight” when Sydney Swan Daniel Bradshaw went back and slotted a torpedo goal after the three-quarter time siren at the SCG against the Brisbane Lions, referencing the magnificent goal Malcolm Blight kicked after the final siren to win a game for North Melbourne at Princes Park in 1976 (the kick was later measured at about 82 metres). Bradshaw’s goal wasn’t as long (he connected from way outside 50 and it sailed through quite high), but in today’s safety-first approach

to the game, where the he ‘torp’ he ‘to ‘‘t tor orp rp’ p’’ is is only rarely used, Bradshaw dshaw d ds dsh sh ha haw aw w deserves three cheers. s s. As does the gent who ho playfully ho p pllay play ayf yfu ful ully lly lyy brandished a wooden spo sspoon po poo oon on n at a AAMI Stadium last Saturday. tturday. tu tur urd rda day ayy. In ay. n the tth hee 1820s, the University of of Cambridge C Ca Cam am mb mbr bri rid idg dge gee presented a wooden spoon poon p po poo oo on n to to students with the lowest eest es stt marks ma m ark rks kss in in day, d da day ay, y,, in in many m ma any nyy a maths exam, and today, sports played in Commonwealth monwealth m mo mon on nw nwe wea ea ealt alth lth h countries, it is the mythical thical th thi hiccal al award for a team ﬁnishing hing h hi hin ing ng g last. las la asst. ast. t. Notwithstanding the fact actt there ac act th the theere erree are aree still 16 games left, thee Port Po Por Port rtt Adelaide Ad Ade A Adelaid del ela lai aid de de fan was simply stirring Crows. g tthe th hee Cr Cro C ro ow ows ws. s. (Those quaddie punters rss referred rref reefe fer err rre red ed d to to earlier would know that at one at on o nee betting be betti bett b etti ttin in ng agency has already paid aid id d out ou outt on on Richmond ‘winning’ thee ssp spoon.) spo po poo oon on. n.) .) And as for Brereton, n, he n he wasn’t wa was wasn sn’t n’tt term te ter rm m “G’day “G’ “G “G’da G’d day ayy greeting anybody (the term knackers” is commonly used footy ly u ly us use sed ed d in in ffo foo oo oty tyy circles), but merely suggesting ggesting gg gge ges est stin tin ing ng g som so ssome om me me players show more, um, m courage. m, co cou cour ura rag ag age ge. e.

IT T’S BACK: T’S BA BAC CK K: IT’S

Dani Da an nieell Daniel Brad Br Bra ads dsh sh ha aw w Bradshaw unllea un ea assh heed d unleashed po post stt-s -si sirren en n a post-siren torp to tor rpe ped edo do o punt pun p pu unt nt torpedo la las ast stt week. we weeek k. last

DOROTHY KIX IS THE AFL RECORD’S RECO RE REC CO OR RD D’S ’S S RESIDENT SAGE.

The AFL launches a women’s mentoring program aimed at advancing the careers of women working in the football industry. AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au 23

For information on viewing in 3D mode go to Samsung.com.au/tv. Samsung 3D LED TVs combine LCD screens with LED edge-lights.

JOEL SELWOOD A MODEL CAT Joel Selwood epitomises Jo eeverything good about AFL football. Tough and A ccourageous, loyal and respectful, the steely-eyed re 21-year-old is into just 2 his fourth season at the h eelite level but has already a achieved more than most ccould dream of in a lifetime. MICH A EL LOV ET T M

t’s not surprising some AFL people puff their chest and feel good inside when it comes to talking about young Geelong star Joel Selwood. By anyone’s language, S Selwood has ticked all the right b boxes from the time he played h his ﬁrst competitive game with S Sandhurst under-10s in the B Bendigo Junior Football League in the late 1990s. Now, barely into his fourth sseason at AFL level, Selwood se h has motored th through the

AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au 57

JOEL SELWOOD system much like the way he plays – with precision, surety and a steely focus that has set him apart from most young players who have made the jump from junior ranks to elite company. Just go to his CV. Already tucked in his trophy cabinet are premiership medals in 2007 and 2009, All-Australian selection in 2009, the 2009 Michael Tuck Medal as best on ground in the Cats’ NAB Cup premiership and the Ron Evans Medal as the 2007 NAB AFL Rising Star. He has played 76 of a possible 81 games since he stepped out in round one of the 2007 season against the Western Bulldogs at Docklands, when Dogs veteran Brad Johnson ran amok kicking eight goals to lead his side to a 20-point victory. That game was just one of 10 losing sides Selwood has played in. In other words, he has an 87 per cent success rate, a remarkable feat. Although the Cats recovered after the round-one loss to defeat Carlton, Selwood was to be rested for the round three game against Melbourne. He was happily munching on a pie in the stands when he was told to get to the rooms – Nathan Ablett had pulled out at the last minute. Suddenly Selwood was running around in his ﬁrst match at the MCG so he was rested the following week when the Cats lost narrowly to Hawthorn in Launceston in round four. Then came the game that might have sparked Geelong’s turnaround. The Cats lost to North Melbourne at Skilled Stadium on a day that did not sit too well with many at the club. Roos veteran Adam Simpson had a ﬁeld day, collecting 41 disposals and three Brownlow Medal votes as Geelong paid him little or no respect. Some home truths were delivered after the game, and history shows the Cats not only recovered, but proceeded to cut a swathe through the rest of the

58 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

BALL MAGNET: With the aid of a Jimmy Bartel bump,

Joel Selwood helps himself to another possession against Richmond at Skilled Stadium last Sunday.

Those desperate attempts at the ball and the opposition have become Selwood’s trademark competition, starting with a 157-point demolition of a hapless Richmond the following week at Docklands. But lost in that round-ﬁve defeat to the Kangaroos was the fact Selwood received his nomination for the NAB Rising Star award. The 18-year-old had done all he could on a

disappointing day in front of the Cats faithful, winning 25 possessions – but more importantly – showing the ferocity lacking in some of his more experienced teammates by laying nine tackles. Those desperate attempts at the ball and the opposition have become Selwood’s trademark.

The source of that desperation can be traced to the backyard games he played in Bendigo with older twin brothers Adam and Troy and younger brother Scott. Four boys going hammer and tong is bound to build competitive spirit and probably explains how all four have made it to

AFL level, Adam and Scott at West Coast and Troy with the Brisbane Lions. This weekend, the brothers reach 300 games combined – Adam and Scott have played 123 and 28 respectively for the Eagles, and Joel, with 76 games for the Cats, has just nudged ahead of Troy’s 72 appearances for the Lions. By late next year, the Selwoods should be second only to the Daniher clan (Terry, Neale, Anthony and Chris played a combined 752 games) for the number of games by four brothers. In that time, they should pass the Cordner family (376 games for Don, Ted, Denis and John), the Hiskins family (375 games for Fred, Arthur, Stan and Rupe) and the Rose family (374 games for Bob, Bill, Kevin and Ralph). The Cordner, Hiskins and Rose clans were from another generation when you were able follow your brother to his club if you were good enough; the Selwoods are products of the current AFL system, which gives players little say in where they end up. Adam and Troy were taken in the 2002 National Draft, Adam at No. 53 and Troy at No. 19, and they could not have ended up further apart – one in Perth, the other in Brisbane. Joel came via the same system but the drums were beating a little louder that he might be even better than his older siblings. “He is a cross between James Hird and Nathan Buckley. He’s one talented kid,” Garry Bryan, Selwood’s under-15s coach at Sandhurst, told Australian Football Quarterly in 2005. “In most games, Joel would spend equal time on the bench and would be rotated through defence, midfield and attack and he was a pleasure to coach. He wasn’t selfish and he has got terrific leadership skills. “I have no doubt he will make it. He has the mind, the ability and the dedication.” The slow on Selwood was his injured knee, which kept him out of the 2006 NAB AFL Under-18 Championships and restricted him to three appearances for the Bendigo Pioneers in the TAC Cup. But he had been earmarked from a young age. “He has clean

hands,” AFL national talent manager Kevin Sheehan said back in 2005. Selwood came through the national under-16 championships and was part of the AIS-AFL Academy team that toured Ireland in 2005. Fortuitously, Geelong had Selwood under its wings even before he was drafted. As part of the AIS-AFL Academy program, eek at an graduates spend a week hat’s ahead AFL club learning what’s d. should they be drafted. cted by the Selwood was selected Cats as their intern and, for rown up someone who had grown supporting the club, it was like letting a kid loose in a candy onths later, r, store. Just over 18 months me true Selwood’s dream came ead out byy when his name was read a Geelong as the No. 7 selection at raft. the 2006 NAB AFL Draft. ral clubs He slipped by several which were worried that lem was off Selwood’s knee problem riety; had the bone-on-bone variety; oncern, he there not been that concern, would have been a top-three selection.

when it was later pointed out he was the ﬁrst Ron Evans medallist, he realised he had not mentioned Evans in his speech. He phoned Evans’ widow Andrea and told her how delighted he was to win the award named in her husband’s honour. Selwood made his way into AFL ranks in the same season Hird and Buckley retired. His former junior coach thought the teenage Selwood reminded him of a cross between the two – you wonder what the comparisons might be in another decade. WINNING FEELING: Joel Selwood’s career has been marked by team and individual success in a short time, including the 2009 premiership.

he Cats, who o ff a had come off ng 2006 disappointing season, got lucky and today Selwood iss a revered he club’s figure. He is part of the outed as a leadership group, is touted o the delight deligh ht future captain and, to h of Geelong fans, has indicated he will be staying put when his contractt expires son. at the end of this season. n and from m “Joel has stepped in espect of day one earned the respect h everyone at the club. The way he pares and plays, the way he prepares the way he conducts himself is ts the gamee first-class. He respects and that was evident from the first time I met him,” Geelong on said afte er coach Mark Thompson after B Rising Selwood won the NAB Star Award in 2007. rd, he As part of the award, He is a al Ron received the inaugural Evans Medal, named in cross between honour of the former AFL James Hird and an, Commission chairman, Nathan Buckley. He’s nd Essendon president and d Bomber star who died one talented kid earlier that year. GARRY BRYAN, SELWOOD’S JUNIOR COACH, nce During his acceptance DESCRIBING HIM IN 2005 nked speech, Selwood thanked eople, all the appropriate people, hom he including NAB for whom r, but is now an ambassador,

FACT FILE

Joel Selwood

Born: May 26, 1988 Recruited from: Sandhurst/Bendigo U18 Debut: Round 1, 2007, v Western Bulldogs Height: 182cm Weight: 86kg Games: 76 Goals: 27 Player honours: All-Australian 2009; NAB AFL Rising Star 2007; premiership sides sides 2007, 20077, 2009; 200 2009; Michael Michae Mic haell Tuck Medal 2009; pre-season premiership side 2009. Brownlow Medal: Career votes 37

LIVING HIS DREAM:

Demon star Brent Moloney plays with the passion you would expect from a lifelong Melbourne supporter.

T N E R B T R A E H E OS H W N O A DEM

60 AFL RECORD visit aďŹ&#x201A;record.com.au

MO BEATS

ys oloney pla M t n e r B r midﬁelde n for elbourne od passio o M h d d e il s h o c n rd of fate, his reason ha Y In a twist . e v There is a e T WO M E le s C A L LU M . n rt on his a io e s h s e is s h ob with an adult ns is now o m e D e th

Y E N O L O M UE L B E H T ND A D E R E TH R O F E U TR

wo days before last weekend’s match against North Melbourne, Melbourne midﬁelder Brent Moloney headed home to South Warrnambool on Victoria’s south-west coast for his grandmother’s funeral. As he gathered with family and friends at his parents’ home, Moloney, a keen Demons supporter as a kid, wandered into his old room to see if anything had changed. It hadn’t. His bedroom walls remained adorned with posters of his Melbourne heroes and double-page spreads of the MCG, with Demons paraphernalia everywhere. The trip home was tinged with sadness, but the momentary look back at his past gave him a chance to reﬂect and appreciate how far he has come. “It really made things seem a bit surreal. You have to hit yourself to realise it’s

all happened, because all I wanted as a kid was to run out on the MCG for Melbourne, and I’m very fortunate to get that opportunity each week,” Moloney said. “You can’t take it for granted because you never know when your last game could be, and going home last week for the funeral really put that in perspective. “My Nana followed my career very closely, she was always watching and listening, and always gave me advice when I was a kid. I’ll never forget her.” It was a meeting at Noosa Surf Club at the end of the 2004 season with then-Melbourne coach Neale Daniher, however, that guaranteed Moloney would have a chance to don the red and the blue. Until that point, it seemed Moloney’s passion for the Demons would remain part of his past. Geelong had selected the tough midﬁelder with pick four in the 2003 NAB AFL Pre-season Draft as a 19-year-old. Having

Moloney vowed simply to be been overlooked in the national himself, and soon enough he draft just weeks before, Moloney endeared himself to the club admitted to having doubts about with his hard-working and his football future. determined approach. “I wasn’t sure what I was Having only started going to do, and then I went pre-season training on January and trained with West Coast, 5, 2003, it took Moloney close to which had offered me a couple half the season to build of weeks with them. I up a strong fitness really enjoyed that base. He made and thought I his debut in might get picked All I wanted round 14 that up as rookie, as a kid was year, holding his but when I to run out on spot for the rest came back to of the season. Warrnambool, the MCG for His hard Geelong invited Melbourne running and me to Skilled BRENT MOLONEY no frills attitude Stadium and I impressed many had a day there,” at Geelong, and he Moloney said. added grunt and quality “I had a look through the to a midfield already brimming club and ‘Bomber’ (coach Mark with talent. Thompson) was really good. Moloney played inconsistently They said they were going to in the first half of 2004 and, take me in the pre-season draft. in round 14, tore a tendon I was pretty lucky, but it shows in a finger, which still bears that it really doesn’t matter what a prominent scar. He number you go, it’s what you do returned before the end when you get to an AFL club.” AFL RECORD visit aflrecord.com.au 61

BRENT MOLONEY

CROWD FAVOURITE:

Brent Moloney is hell-bent on helping Melbourne end its long premiership drought.

e needeLOdNEY ty, whPTicAINhDAw was li a e n h o NEITZ ON MO w s r e VID e n p k t e eren ut w b FORMER CA iff d d e a is f o ra s it b w a few eyebro There were a of the season, playing in round 22 and in three finals. He appeared entrenched in the team and excited about forging a successful career with an emerging club. “I felt very comfortable. I remember being in Noosa with a few of the Cats boys after the season, and we were pretty happy. It was a bit of a surprise really that we made the preliminary final and made so much progress in one season,” he said. “I was thinking, ‘This is going to be a pretty exciting career’.” His excitement was tempered when his manager interrupted the holiday with a phone call. “He said ‘What do you think about getting traded?’ and I said I didn’t want to go anywhere. I was happy. He said there were a few clubs interested and that Melbourne was one of them. I was a little bit taken aback and had to really think about it then.” Daniher wanted to meet him, and flew to Noosa. The pair shared a beer or two, and the deal was sealed. Geelong needed to trade one of its midfielders to secure Richmond ruckman Brad Ottens, who wanted to leave the Tigers for the Cats. Moloney was contracted but put his hand up to depart in a complicated three-way deal that saw the Demons receive Moloney, Geelong Ottens, and Richmond two first-round draft picks (12 and 16). In Geelong’s 2004 annual report, president Frank Costa 62 AFL RECORD visit aflrecord.com.au

told members it was “a difficult decision to part with Brent Moloney, a fine player and an even finer young man”. Moloney said the conversation with Thompson was “pretty emotional”, but he isn’t bitter about missing out on the success the club has had since he departed. Melbourne, his childhood passion, could now be the focus of an adult obsession. Champion Demon David Neitz, captain from 2000-07, remembered Moloney coming into the club and immediately creating an impression. “He came through the door with tight jeans on, some kind of extreme look going on with the dyed hair and was a bit ahead of fashion,” Neitz said. “There were a few eyebrows raised at that moment, but we knew he was a bit of a different personality for our club, which we needed. “The thing about Brent is his dedication to get on the training track and put in so much hard work. He does not leave a stone unturned trying to get the best out of himself and that’s been happening right from the outset at Melbourne. “He’s a very passionate guy across a whole range of things and, when it comes to footy, he really wears his heart on his sleeve. As a teammate, you know he’s always there.” Moloney’s passion for the game was evident when the AFL Record met him for a 30-minute

interview at Junction Oval following a skills session and team meeting. Sitting on a park bench at the picturesque ground, Moloney spoke in an honest and spirited manner, complimenting a couple of his teammates as they walked past. Sharply dressed in designer jeans and a tight black jacket, it’s easy to see the strongly built Moloney loves his club and wants it to be successful. In some ways, he’s playing like you would expect a lifelong supporter to play – aggressively and with his heart on his sleeve. That hard-nosed style, Moloney said, has its roots in Warrnambool. Renowned for its harsh, cold weather, Warrnambool has produced the likes of Brisbane Lions captain Jonathan Brown and teammate Matt Maguire and Hawthorn’s Jordan Lewis, tough types who never take a backward step. Moloney is in that category. “Those guys don’t shirk an issue and that’s the way footy is played down there. I had good coaches and we trained hard as kids and did a lot of competitive drills. My old man taught me how to play that way and that’s the way it is down there,” the 26-year-old, who now resides in innerMelbourne suburb Windsor, said. Gary Walsh, president of South Warrnambool Football Club, said Moloney was always competitive as a junior, a great

ball-getter and always hard at the ball. Clearly, old habits die hard. On one occasion in the under-18s, Moloney’s South Warrnambool was pitted against Colac and, speciﬁcally, Hawthorn premiership player Luke Hodge. You can easily imagine the battle. “We were coming through together in the Geelong Falcons, and he was ahead of me but we were always competing against each other. He was a super player as a kid, and this day we were both in the midﬁeld,” Moloney said. “They ended up getting the win and he ended up p named best on ground I think, but I’ll never forget that game. Our teams weren’t the nicest of rivals.”

HARD AT IT: Moloney

said it was ingrained in him as a youngster to never take a backward step.

BRENT MOLONEY Until last season, Moloney’s time at Melbourne had been marked by injury. He had a strong 2005 season, but played only 25 matches from 2006-08 as he battled osteitis pubis and a serious shoulder injury. In 2009, having done only 75 per cent of the pre-season, Moloney had his best year, averaging 24 disposals and finishing second in the best and fairest. He led Melbourne in handballs, long kicks and hard-ball and loose-ball gets, and was second in inside 50s. We haven’t This year, won a flag since Moloney has been 1964 ... I’ve got one of the best two or three on the the chance to do ground in at least everything I can two of Melbourne’s to get us there wins, collecting BRENT MOLONEY more than 30 touches against Richmond and the Brisbane Lions. As his club’s leading possession-winner for the season, with 158, he is clearly relishing his midfield role. The only secret behind his career-best form is the fact of putting my hand up. That’s he completed his first full my background – if you’ve got AFL-level pre-season in eight something wrong, you don’t be years. In previous years, he a sook about it, you just keep pushed himself to the limit but, going. But you learn from in the lead-up to this year, he these things.” pulled himself back for the A more mature approach, benefit of his body, having however, hasn’t subdued learned from past mistakes his passion for the game when he pushed too hard. and his club. “We’d train six days a week, At last year’s best and fairest and I used to run on Sundays as count, after accepting his well, and that’s probably why I runner-up award, Moloney hit got osteitis pubis,” he said. out at former teammate Brock “Instead of going for a swim, McLean, who quit the Demons I was going for a run and it was to move to Carlton. hurting me. The little things also In a not-so-subtle swipe, make a big difference. Before, Moloney told fans: “We are on when I was a little bit sore, I’d a straight line and we will not try and grind through instead

FACT FILE

Brent Moloney Born: January 28, 1984 Recruited from: South Warrnambool/Geelong U18/Geelong Debut: Round 14, 2003, v Port Adelaide Height: 182cm Weight: 86kg Games: 96 Goals: 23 Player honours: 2nd best and fairest 2009 Brownlow Medal: Career votes 8

CLEAR RUN: Brent Moloney’s outstanding start to the season can be attributed to his ﬁrst full pre-season in eight years.

deviate ... if you don’t want to be on that straight line go to Carlton, go wherever.” Some people liked it, others didn’t, but it was leadership encapsulated, and correlated with Moloney’s elevation to the Demons’ leadership group in 2009. Moloney has made a conscious effort to take younger players under his wing, including organising an annual mid-year boxing camp in Warrnambool for ﬁrst-year players. In another sign of his growing maturity, Moloney has pulled back on his instinctive style that often saw him go with one

of his best weapons, his raking right-foot kick. With the way the game has changed in recent years, the long bomb is, for now, yesterday’s hero. “The game changes and you’ve got to change with it. As a kid, in my first few years, we had some good forwards and we just had to get it in there as quickly as we could,” he said. “I’ve had to lower my eyes and I’ve worked really hard on my kicking technique and hitting that short kick.” Moloney has a part-time role as an ambassador for the MCG, where he works for the Melbourne Cricket Club, promoting the ground. The stadium he used to revere is now his home turf. A passionate supporter has become a passionate player. Everything he wanted, well, almost everything, has come to fruition. “We haven’t won a flag since 1964, and I went to a few finals as a kid hoping we’d break through,” Moloney said. “As a player, I’ve got the chance to do everything I can to get us there as quickly as possible. I’m going to do that.”

BRENT MOLONEY ON... COACH DEAN BAILEY � I have a really good relationship with Dean. He’s very approachable and is open to ideas from the leaders and players. I think he’s a super coach. We’re on the right track and everyone’s right behind him.

64 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

THE MOST IMPROVED DEMON � Deﬁnitely Mark Jamar. In the didn d id dn nt past few years, he didn’t have any conﬁdence cee in in his his h body and I think hee mig might m mi igh ght htt is is have questioned his ability. He’s the best st st tap ruckman I’ve played to.

THE FIELD OF WOMEN EVENT � The entire club, including tthe he p he pl players, are right behind th this hiss eevent. Any way we can h he hel help ellp lp p people aff ffected ffe ecct cteeed db byy breast brrreeea b astt as ccancer, ca can an nce we’ree happy nc nce happ ha hap appy ppy pyy to to give g giv ive vee ou our o ur support. rtt. t

THE NICKNAME ‘BEAMER’ � At the Geelong Falcons, someone realised my initials were BM, and started calling me ‘Beamer’ Beam Be Bea B ea am m as in th th hee BMW car the and a it just an stuck. s

MAX HUDGHTON

Relaxed Max honoured as a St Kilda hero Max Hudghton ended his 234-game career without a premiership, but with the universal respect of the football world. PETER RYA N

he opening question to former St Kilda full-back Max Hudghton seems innocuous enough. What is the first thing that comes to mind when you reflect on your career? Down the phone comes laughter then a reflective, yet unsentimental, response: “What comes to mind when I reflect on my career?” he says, mulling the question. “The fact that I never won a premiership.” Caught somewhere between surprised and feeling stupid, I manage a lame response: “It’s still the first thing that pops into your head?” “Well, pretty much. That was the reason why I played,” Hudghton says. From the sidelines, the first thing that pops into most heads when they think of Hudghton was his desperation to be as good as he could, to stop whatever power forward he was

matched against during a game. Within his sinewy frame lay a tough, courageous player who would stretch and strain and strive to win one-on-one contests, generally against players taller and heavier than he was, players he always respected but never conceded to. Although blessed with pace and agility, it was his mental application that allowed him to perform as well as he did for 13 seasons. “People say, what motivated me? Fear used to motivate me as a full-back because I was fearful I was going to get my pants pulled down. If you look at fear in another way; fear is a motivator for success. The mental side was important playing in that position.” It is tough playing full-back and few have expressed its challenges as eloquently as Hudghton. He carried the responsibility on his shoulders, but never shirked it. The jobs he confronted caused him concern in the build-up, but when he executed the task well, he received a great buzz. “Worry is the wrong word (to describe exactly what he felt). Everyone worries about their performance – maybe they MENTALLY TOUGH:

The former champion full-back, who thrived on playing on the game’s star forwards, will be recognised by the Saints with a lap of honour on Monday night.

66 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

phrase it differently – but, if you Hudghton held himself break it down, everyone worries. together with great dignity I don’t think I necessarily worried. during that emotional period, I think I just wanted to be a expressing the reality in a valuable contributor in regards way that was both considered to having an influence on the and honest. best forwards,” Hudghton says. “I think it was a small portion “I thrived on playing on the of my career as a whole, so if best forwards. I loved it. That we’re talking about my career, it was why I played because I (missing the Grand Final) played loved the thrill of playing on a part, but not a huge part,” he says. the good players, the big boys. I “I just had to cop it on the would not have changed it chin and train my butt off for the world.” and make sure I was Hudghton kept prepared in case I got adapting as the the opportunity I loved the game changed, to play. Although thrill of playing reinventing I was bitterly himself and disappointed that on the good becoming more the team lost and players, the aware of his I didn’t get the big boys game or, as he opportunity to play, MAX HUDGHTON describes it, his it was just part craft. “You learn of life.” to analyse the Notice what the words game as it is unfolding, whereas “bitterly disappointing” when you are young, you are just describe: the team losing. To helter skelter. You go at it like a Hudghton, team always ruled, maniac,” he says. even when it was hard. Hudghton grew up and played “It was probably one of the football in (and for) Victoria more difficult things I’ve had to until he was 17 (he played deal with in my life, but I’ve been alongside Simon Prestigiacomo blessed that I have not had to at Research as a youngster) deal with any sickness or health before moving to Queensland issues,” he says. with his family. Talented, he On Monday night, his wife played in a premiership with Anya and children Josh (six), West Brisbane before St Kilda Aaron (four) and Aysha (two) drafted him at No.15 in the 1996 and others close to him will be draft as a 20-year-old. at Etihad Stadium when he is He played in the Grand Final recognised by the Saints with loss to Adelaide in 1997 on the a lap of honour before the way to becoming a Saints great, Carlton game. a club champion without the He hopes the occasion will individual honours to show for give those closest to him the it. His reward was the respect of chance to reflect on the big part everyone in football. they have played in his career. Hudghton’s 234-game career Not one for the fanfare, and a came to an end when he officially person who has always worked announced his retirement to fans outside football (in construction) the day after St Kilda’s 12-point and now has a part-time role at loss to Geelong in the 2009 Grand Collingwood, Hudghton sees Final. He did not play on the big the night as a chance for him to day, his last appearance for the thank others. Saints coming in round 20, 2009, Like all great defenders, he is but he was a key part of St Kilda’s not one to dwell on the past. “I story last year, the decision not to knew my time was up,” he says. play him in the decider a difficult “I was quite happy to step away one still debated. and am very relaxed about it.”

Moments of the

2000-09

Bringing the game to our screens The battle for television broadcasting rights has become as intense as the game itself, and footy fans are the big winners. ASHLEY BROW NE

rom 1957 until 2001, for every football season bar one, the Seven Network and football were seemingly joined at the waist. There was an air of comfort and familiarity at the start of every season because you knew what you were going to get with Seven’s AFL coverage in the late 1990s and early 2000s: large doses of Bruce McAvaney, Sandy Roberts and Dennis Cometti, Robert ‘Dipper’ DiPierdomenico on the boundary line and a cavalcade of retired players in special commentary roles. If you picked a team in position from those who had worked on Seven’s football coverage over more than four decades, it would give the equally mythical ‘Team of the Century’ from any AFL club a run for its money. What explained the network’s love for the AFL? It went back to when the Herald and Weekly Times owned Channel Seven

ON THE MOVE:

Dennis Cometti has called for Channel Seven and Nine over the past decade.

(Melbourne) – HWT long understood that football was part of the city’s DNA, that it attracted people in mass numbers. Executives such as Ron Casey (later president of North Melbourne), Gordon Bennett and Gary Fenton ensured football remained front and centre of Seven’s programming, and if there were more games to be covered than there were available programming spots, Seven’s ﬂedgling pay-television outﬁt, C7, covered what was left. Other networks also understood football’s power. When Channel Nine launched The Footy Show in 1994, with its mix of entertainment, personality and breaking news, it became an instant ratings hit. Occasionally on air, but more regularly behind the scenes, Nine made it known it wanted a slice of the television rights. The network missed out on two occasions in the 1990s and determined that, in order to win the rights from the 2002 season onwards, a different approach to the bidding process was needed.

As usual, Seven put in its bid to cover the AFL exclusively but, this time around, it was competing not just against another network, but a consortium. The Nine and Ten networks, together with News Limited (part-owner of pay-television operator Foxtel), put in a bid of $500 million over ﬁve seasons and from the start, the bid was given serious consideration by the AFL. Seven owned the right to match any bid, a right it had ing a previous bought during n, but ultimately negotiation, o match the offer chose not to ortium. of the consortium. ecember In late December FL chief in 2000, AFL executive ofﬁcer Wayne ade the Jackson made ment announcement d to a stunned football and media y, or community, se who at least those ady left hadn’t already town for thee summer hat from holidays, that

The return of Seven meant the return of Bruce McAvaney to AFL broadcasting and his partnership with Denis Cometti, who returned to Seven, has made Friday night football ‘must-see’ television for even the most casual fan. With the Federal Government’s revisions to the television sports anti-siphoning list due to be

announced soon, negotiations for the next round of AFL ghts will attract television rights plenty of attention. tention. With multi-channeling, ti-channeling, nternet television digital and internet and smart phones hones added to the mix, how w we watch footy in the futuree will be markedly diﬀerent to the he days when one network – Seven even – showed the lot.

T H E A F T E R M AT H

� Seven came back from the cold in 2007, partnering with Ten to win the television rights from 2007-11 in a deal worth $780 million. The Fox Footy Channel was disbanded, but Fox Sports cut a deal to broadcast four matches a week on its Fox Sports channels. 68 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

2002, Seven was out and the consortium was in. It was a deal that mirrored those of many major overseas sporting leagues, which had long ago determined their sports were too large to be covered by just one network. The Friday night and two Sunday games would be aired on Nine, Ten would show a Saturday double-header (and curiously, all the ﬁnals), while the new Fox Footy Channel would broadcast three games a week (two on Saturday and one on Sunday). With the new deal came some channel swapping. Cometti moved to Nine, Anthony

GAME ON: For many decades, AFL football was Channel Seven’s main vehicle

with regulars such as (from left) Bob Skilton, Peter Landy and Lou Richards. But then came Channel Nine and The Footy Show, starring Sam Newman (above), which put a new player in the battle for the television rights.

Hudson and Robert Walls went from Seven to Ten, and Dipper moved away from the screen but was still heard on radio. Long-time football journalists Stephen Quartermain and Eddie McGuire were ﬁnally given the chance to call games on television although, for McGuire, it led to the awkward situation of him broadcasting Collingwood matches while also serving as the Magpies president. It only emerged once Nine lost the rights at the end of 2006 that it was the network’s decision, not his, to have him work Collingwood games. Meanwhile, McAvaney and Roberts, without the footy,

contented themselves with the handy consolation prizes of tennis, golf and Olympic and Commonwealth games. Because of Seven’s history with – and affection for – the AFL, it was sorely missed. But, at the same time, the new broadcasters brought a sense of excitement and innovation to the AFL coverage. Friday night games, which by now were the marquee matches of the round, often made for compulsive viewing, and included memorable moments such as Wayne Carey’s ﬁrst match for Adelaide against his former North Melbourne teammates, Jason McCartney’s

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comeback game for the Roos after the Bali bombings, and Nick Riewoldt’s heartbreak after breaking his collarbone in his ﬁrst match as captain of St Kilda. With veteran journalist gs, McGuire directing proceedings, Nine covered these matches as if they were news events and the coverage was generally outstanding. For its part, Ten used Saturday nights to pioneer match-ups that are now blockbuster matches every season, such as Dreamtime at the ’G (Richmond-Essendon) and Sydney Swans-Collingwood at the Olympic Stadium in Sydney, which attracted 72,000

fans in 2003. And it drew record ratings and critical acclaim for its Grand Final broadcasts. Stephen Quartermain’s “Leo Barry, you star” call of the last few seconds of the 2005 Grand Final will be remembered as an iconic piece of AFL television commentary. ASHLEY BROWNE IS THE EDITOR OF BACKPAGELEAD.COM.AU.

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AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au 69

Col Hutchinson

timeon Our AFL history guru answers your queries.

NAME GAME

Which players hold the record for kicking the most goals in a quarter?

Demon Hawk

PRUE, ARMADALE, VIC

CH: On ﬁve occasions a player

has scored eight goals in a quarter. Melbourne’s Harry Davie was the ﬁrst to achieve the feat in the last term against Carlton at Princes Park in round 14, 1925. In round 13, 1929, Magpie key forward Gordon Coventry had a golden opening quarter against Hawthorn at Victoria Park. During the 1934 season, Swans star Bob Pratt managed the tally twice at the Lake Oval – against Essendon in round three and Carlton in round 13. Bulldog Kelvin Templeton registered eight goals in the last quarter of his 15-goal performance against St Kilda at the Whitten Oval in round 13, 1978. Seven goals in a quarter has been achieved nine times. The most recent case was at Subiaco Oval in the last round of 2007 when Essendon’s Scott Lucas ran wild in the last half hour of play against West Coast. Ironically, the Bombers lost by eight points.

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

70 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

NO QUARTER GIVEN: Magpie

champion Gordon Coventry kicked eight goals in a quarter in 1929, while Essendon star Scott Lucas kicked seven in a term in 2007.

AFL mystery men Richard Burton Maynard � Born on August 20, 1897, Maynard was recruited locally and played seven matches for Essendon in 1921. He wore guernsey No. 6 and was a 173cm, 66kg back pocket/half-back ﬂanker. It is believed he died in Queensland. His brother Harry represented Richmond twice in 1914.

Billy Stephens � Footscray was impressed by Stephens’ form as a centre halfforward for Geelong seconds and Williamstown. He played his ﬁrst match as a 19-year-old for the Bulldogs in round 16, 1937. He ﬁnished his senior career a year later after seven appearances in the No. 36 guernsey. He made his presence felt with a 180cm, 79kg physique.

If you have any further information regarding the above mystery men, including their date of death, contact Col Hutchinson on (03) 9643 1929 or col.hutchinson@aﬂ .com.au.

� In previous years, we have mentioned players whose names suggest they should be at other clubs (e.g., Swan, Power, Crow, Lyon, Roos, Hawke). To that list can be added a not so obvious example: 208cm Melbourne recruit Max Gawn. Gawn is a variation of the Middle English given name Gawayne/Gawain, the name famously borne by one of King Arthur’s Knights of the Round Table. The name probably derives from the Old Welsh elements gwalch (“hawk”) and gwyn (“white”). A variation of Gawn is Gavin which, besides being the given name of several players (Brown, Wanganeen, Exell, etc.), is the surname of two players. Barry Gavin played six games for North Melbourne in the 1960s and was Hawthorn’s physiotherapist for many years; and Hugh Gavin was one of the game’s early champions, a member of two Essendon premiership sides (1897 and 1901) and Champion of the Colony (equivalent to the Brownlow Medal) in 1903. KEVAN CARROLL

ROUND 7: ST KILDA vs CARLTON

WHOâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S YOUR PICK? Introducing the 2010 AFL Team Canvas

Available at AFL Stores and participating AFL Club merchandise stores. RRP $100. Selected teams only. Collingwood, Geelong Cats, St Kilda, Western Bulldogs, Essendon, Hawthorn, Carlton and West Coast Eagles. Real size of canvas is 20 inches wide by 30 inches tall. Canvas is supplied stretched and ready to hang.

timeon

COLLECTABLES

Stick to these

Rick Milne

A weekly look at collectables, memorabilia and all footy things stored in boxes and garages.

I have a set of TAB stickers from the 1980s, with one each for the then 12 VFL clubs. Do these have any value? TARA, VIA EMAIL

RM: These are reasonable items

and, although readily available a few years ago, few seem to have survived. They are worth about $8 each in good condition.

I have a “Series One VFL Champions” plastic record, with sleeve, of Collingwood’s Len Thompson. These were produced by Ampol in the 1960s, with one player from each club, and the champion Magpie ruckman signed mine for me. Value? VIC FILIPOU, VIA EMAIL

RM: These sell quite well. Other

discs included those featuring South Melbourne’s Bob Skilton and Richmond’s Royce Hart. Each record contained a sticker in club colours and was issued by radio station 3UZ. If you have the entire set, it would be worth about $150. Without the stickers, maybe $100.

I have a set of playing cards featuring photographs of North Melbourne players, including Wayne Carey and David King. Any value?

A SURE BET: TAB stickers from the

1980s are relatively rare and are valued at about $8 each.

club, but they did not appear to be popular. Maybe $3 each for star players and $2 for others. I have a “premium” football card, signed by Hawthorn’s Jason Dunstall, from a set of 1993. Value? MATTHEW, VIA EMAIL

RM: I am not a fan of premium

TONY, VIA EMAIL

RM: Not much, Tony. A set of

playing cards was issued for each

issues as most collectors end up with hundreds of “common” cards trying to get one “premium” card. I feel it is a bit like Lotto and don’t rate them at all.

RICK’S RARITY

� Most adult football fans remember Scanlen’s bubble gum cards, but not so many will remember the set of large posters issued in 1971. They came folded with your stick of gum and were poorly printed. They were not a hit at the time and Scanlen’s went back to normal cards the next year. As a result, any of the set of 24 posters is tricky to ﬁnd. This one features St Kilda’s Carl Ditterich looking suitably ferocious and is worth at least $50.

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.

WATCH BEFORE THE GAME SATURDAY NIGHTS ON TEN

beforethegame.com.au L ADDER SAM 32 LEHMO

DAVE

ANDY

FITZY

MICK

TIPSTERS

FITZY Western Bulldogs Port Adelaide Hawthorn Collingwood Brisbane Lions Geelong Adelaide St Kilda

72 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

MICK Western Bulldogs Port Adelaide Hawthorn Collingwood Brisbane Lions Geelong Richmond St Kilda

SAM Western Bulldogs Essendon West Coast Eagles Collingwood Brisbane Lions Geelong Adelaide St Kilda

DAVE Western Bulldogs Port Adelaide West Coast Eagles Collingwood Brisbane Lions Geelong Adelaide Carlton

LEHMO Western Bulldogs Port Adelaide Hawthorn Collingwood Brisbane Lions Geelong Adelaide St Kilda

ANDY Western Bulldogs Essendon Hawthorn Collingwood Brisbane Lions Geelong Adelaide Carlton

This week, special guest appearances by ADAM COONEY & MARK WILLIAMS

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KIDS’ CORNER

VNED IV F TO FIIN

Sudoku

� Solve this puzzle by ﬁlling in the empty squares with the nine letters of the player’s name. You must make sure you use each letter only once in each row, column or small box of nine squares. Do not guess, as there is only one correct solution.

JAMES HIRD J

S E I

A R J

H D

I A M

D I

1 Who has captained Melbourne the most times?

West Coast Eagles?

QUICK QUESTIONS

2 Who was the ﬁrst coach of the

I D

3 Who was Collingwood’s last

Brownlow medallist?

4 Which club did Fremantle coach Mark Harvey arvey

play for? 5 Which club president was also captain

of the same club?

I THIS WEEK’S ANSWERS 5 QUICK QUESTIONS: 1. David Neitz (175 matches); 2. Ron Alexander; 3. Nathan Buckley (2003); 4. Essendon; 5. Stephen Kernahan (Carlton). SPOT THE DIFFERENCE: Extra tooth in mascot’s mouth; yellow stripe missing from bottom of its jumper; scarf missing from fence; tongue missing from mascot’s shoe; extra glint in Crow’s eye. B IG G MOUTH: MOU MOUT M MO O H: BIG SCRAMBLED SCRA SC S CRA AM MBLE BLE LE L ED FO FOOTBALLER: OTBA BALLER ER: ER CRYPTIC CRYP C RYP YPTIC TIIC T C FOOTBALLERS: FOOT FO F OO OO OT TBALLERS: LE

74 AFL RECORD RE R EC CO COR OR O RD visit RD viis vvis isit it aﬂ aﬂrecord.com.au record..co om m.a .a au

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NAB AFL RISING STAR

Pride of the Lions

Todd Banﬁeld has surprised everyone yone with his bril brilliant illlliiian an a nt star sstart st tar a t to the season, inc including the Lions’ coaching staﬀ. CALLUM TWOMEY

t is credit to 19-year-old Brisbane Lion Todd Banfield that, in the past few months, he has let his football do the talking. Quiet and reserved off the field, Banfield’s persona change once he runs on to the ground is dramatic, morphing into an exciting and flashy forward who has sparked the Lions on several occasions this year. The fact he has become an important member of Michael Voss’ line-up has, however, been somewhat unexpected. Before being selected in round one to make his debut, Voss admitted Banfield’s pre-season had been so good (and unexpected) that he was effectively forcing himself into the side. Banfield had played well in My pace the NAB Cup, is one of my leading Lions strengths, so I assistant coach try and use it as Jade Rawlings to suggest he much as I can had “come from TODD BANFIELD nowhere”. the club and they Six games help me out with into his career and everything I need opposition clubs are to work on,” he said. probably thinking the same “But there are a lot of players thing, especially the Sydney fighting for a spot at the moment, Swans, who saw Banfield at his so I know if I play a couple of bad blistering best last week. games, I could easily be playing The speedy forward gathered reserves the next week.” 15 disposals and kicked three You get the feeling, goals in his team’s 20-point loss, however, that Banfield has and was nominated as the round guaranteed his position for six NAB AFL Rising Star. But a little while to come. Banfield is hesitant about singing Using his pace and evasive his own praises. skills at the feet of key forwards “It has been unreal so far this Jonathan Brown and Brendan year, everyone is great around Fevola, he is in the right spots

2010 NAB AFL Rising Star Nominees

OFF AND RUNNING:

Lion speedster Todd Banﬁeld has made a ﬂying start to his AFL career.

Round 1 – Chris Yarran (Carl) Round 2 – Daniel Hannebery (Syd) Round 3 – Ryan Bastinac (NM) Round 4 – Nic Naitanui (WCE) Round 5 - Jack Trengove (Melb) Round 6 - Todd Banﬁeld (Bris)

THREE THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW 1

Banﬁeld lives with fellow Lion Niall McKeever, an Irish recruit.

2 He played with fellow

2010 NAB AFL Rising Star nominees Nic Naitanui and Chris Yarran in junior ranks.

3 He is interested in

animals and, naturally, the lion is a favourite.

more often than not, creating and kicking goals. “My pace is one of my strengths, and not everyone has real pace so I try and use it as much as I can. It is a bit surreal, though, that I’m crumbing to the likes of Brown and ‘Fev’,” he said. “Two years ago before I was drafted, I would never have thought of it, but they’re two great athletes and I couldn’t ask for much more.” Banﬁeld’s strong pre-season was a result of his decision to focus on his endurance, his kicking, and how to set up at

stoppages, as well as getting some handy advice from teammate Daniel Rich, who was also drafted from Western Australia in the 2008 NAB AFL draft. “I knew ‘Richy’ from playing school footy against him, and he was always a star,” Banﬁeld said. “I played state under-16s with him, and when I got drafted (at pick 41), he called me up about 30 seconds after I found out. Watching him last year, he made me want to work harder. The way he plays is inspiring.”

Each week throughout the home and away season, a panel of judges will select the nominee for the 2010 NAB AFL Rising Star. At the completion of the season, one outstanding player will be chosen as the 2010 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 fulfil their dream of playing in the AFL.

76 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

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LAST LINE

Applying data laterally

Matthews the chief executioner

n the late 1960s as a Carlton reserves player starting to get an occasional run in the seniors, I once had the daunting privilege of coming up against Hawthorn’s young superstar Leigh Matthews. The encounter was brief, and it left me shocked. Scarcely a half of football but it was embarrassing. I was taught a humbling lesson about what it meant to excel in elite sport. Although we were about the same height (I played at 177cm; Matthews at 178), I was a puny 68kg next to his compressed battleship frame weighing in at 86. For some reason, I thought I possessed At the Lions, enough silky skills, speed and footy we placed a lot smarts to compete of emphasis on with him. But tackling numbers. pretty quickly, I realised otherwise. Most important This heavyset was also the type bloke was amazingly at him to get it of tackles quick off the mark, back. It hurt. LEIGH MATTHEWS agile and simply In a recent dazzling. In my face conversation was the reality of exceptional with Matthews, he described talent executing sublime football this facet of the game involving skills. It was a painful tutorial, getting the ball back from the but at least there was a measure opposition as effort. Based on of how far I still had to go. previous experience, But there was even more to I’m inclined to add the words: learn. He was winning the ball driven desire and blessed talent regularly and I was scarcely both ways, with and without the getting a touch. And when I did ball. He calls it execution under – bang! A tackle that made me pressure, and I fully agree. gasp for air and think I was going Our conversation followed to die, and the umpire didn’t on the heels of comments he even blow the bloody whistle. made recently on television It immediately dawned on me and on aﬂ.com.au. In a website that this bloke hated it when an column, Matthews attributed opponent of any kind had the the astronomical increases in ball and would go hard and fast handball numbers, often now

78 AFL RECORD visit aﬂrecord.com.au

LETHAL LEIGH: He

might have looked angelic in his early days, but Leigh Matthews was one tough customer.

outnumbering kicks in a game, to the exponential increase in interchange numbers. He wrote: “This handball footy has evolved because the pressure on the ball carrier has never been hotter. While specialist tackling numbers have honed good technique, it is the large numbers of players with the energy to surround the footy that is the main catalyst for the increased need to handball because of the difficulty in finding space to deliver an unpressured kick … “It is the use of the interchange bench to rest players regularly that enables them to play with such high energy in their spurts on the field.”

As a four-time premiership coach (with Collingwood in 1990 and the Brisbane Lions in 2001-03), Matthews explained the basis of his coaching philosophy: “My chief role was to inﬂuence talent to make the effort when it got harder, when an opponent had the ball,” he said. “At the Lions, we placed a lot of emphasis on tackling numbers. Most important was also the type of tackles, which we reviewed in video post-match. These included our highly rated categories of special tackles in active play and missed tackles, along with the trapping-type tackles.” His other highest priority was execution. “Assuming the effort was there, the result of the game invariably hinged on how well the individual talent and the team executed when they had the ball,” he said. Consequently, he believes one of the keys to coaching is to make sure the available talent is in the right place at the right time. He mentioned on Channel Seven recently that too much emphasis is being made of the concept of a ‘game-plan’, at the expense of the idea of execution. He suggested the term is a convenient one being used more as way of promoting the game and not explaining it. “It’s mystifying the game,” he said. “What coaches and commentators are fond of calling a game-plan is perhaps better described as strategies, themes, principles and team rules.” When champions such as Matthews are hunting you down, there is no time to follow a script. You can only execute the best you can, and when he’s got the ball, hopefully reciprocate. TED HOPKINS IS A CARLTON PREMIERSHIP PLAYER AND FOUNDER OF CHAMPION DATA. HIS CURRENT PROJECT IS TEDSPORT, A HIGH PERFORMANCE DATA ANALYSIS AND CONSULTING SERVICE.

From the Top End to a start with the Demons≥

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