Radio The SEN Thread 10

[montybrasco]

Hungry for Tackling Technique​

It’s about time AFL players took some responsibility for potential injuries. Called on recently for the players’ association and its members to take action on the sling tackle and to outlaw it amongst brothers. Don’t have to always rely on legislation. Former Essendon champion Matthew Lloyd today says someone will end up a quadriplegic if players continue to charge in with heads. Anything that is a dangerous practice should always be addressed by the players and their association. It’s their welfare and it’s not worth ending up in a wheelchair in milking a free kick. The AFL umpiring department has ruled Cyril Rioli should not – should not – have been paid a free kick when he cannoned into Dean Polo. It’s been rightly been deemed Rioli initiated the contact. Let’s hope that sends a message at least to players.
I’m KB, that’s my Take

Looks like it’s the SEN Tuesday Curmudgeon Brothers tag team to do battle with all takers today as Hammerhead Smith agrees with Killer-Diller Kev by quickly putting a camel clutch hold on the players’ association for being happy to look after drug problems, gambling issues, drinking problems, and social responsibility indiscretions of players but tending not to look after them or care what happens on the footy field. … He adds, “When they do want to make a statement it’s something as ridiculous as Jobe Watson suggesting a sit-down strike before the start of the season.” Putz queries the AFLPA wanting a say in so many peripheral things when the health of the players should be paramount. I'd throw money into that mix as well.

KB tags into the discussion by being critical of the sling-tackle that the “brothers!” should have vetoed themselves. … Putz tags back in quickly over the confusion surrounding high tackles. He references the Monday night footy shows that weirdly tried to prove their ducking-Eagles scenarios by showing West Coast players having what seemed to be standing side headlock moves applied. KB was also bemused by footage of terrible tackles applied by the Kangas. … Of course there is no shortage of partisan analysts in the footy media cherry picking any anti-Eagle free kick stats to suit their case and effect rationale.

KB: You keep reading about the West Coast players dropping their knees, lowering their centre of gravity, all those sorts of things. Last night when I watched some of the action on 360 they kept showing all these free kicks. North Melbourne’s tackling was appalling! It was so crude; every one of their players just went straight for the head. Bang. Now if I was Brad Scott I wouldn’t be talking about lowering centre of gravity or techniques, I’d be saying their technique is appalling at the moment! … There was no lowering the body or techniques there, not one of those players went for the hips, they all went for high contact. Every one of them.

Putz forces a tag back in after KB bemoans the very, very poor tackling and he turns is attention to the now mostly quiet Hawks coach, Alastair Clarkson now being silent after Cyril Rioli went searching for a free kick. “Well there is a deal of hypocrisy isn’t there, if you sit there one week and say ‘look what this team’s doing’ and then another week your player does something – I would say worse – and you suddenly no longer participate in the debate. I think that’s hypocritical.” Yep, kinda like when the jumps racing at Warrnambool that saves nags from the knackery doesn’t gel with the save the horses/whales/ducks/Roebuck… narrative, you simply don’t participate in the debate. Nonetheless, a mostly decisive and impressive three-count victory for the Curmudgeon Brothers.

Drat – talkback.

First caller tells KB about the arm tackle rising up to the shoulder area which, of course, has been KB’s argument since the tackling kerfuffle started. … sliding … ducking … rising star … dropping knees is actually smart … Eagles free kicks whine … Home field (see Eagles) conspiracy … Startling revelation (on a Tuesday!) from caller about Dees’ co-skippers starting on the bench being a bad move … neck injury? Who sues whom? …

Nick Darcy gets no love from either KB or Putz, mostly predicated on the swimmer’s lack of contrition … Putz reminds a caller that it wasn’t the media that put the high tackles on the agenda, it was three coaches: Clarkson, Brad Scott, and Bomber Thompson … Swans and Lions home free kick stats swing the argument further against the Weagles as the cause and effect search continues … Neeld's benching of the captains was about match-ups according to the Putz but he’s not accepting it because people read things into it. “Bad symbolism.”

And there is something bad about today being the 0-6 Melbourne membership day. Unless you like losing.

Gibberish of the Week:
Everything Carlton said about not resting players.

Quote of the Day:
The emphasis of protecting the head has given a window for the players to milk a free kick.
- Putz Smith

 

[MisterB]

4.30 today, John Quinn from GWS talking about the ACL for O'Halpin, finishes interview at 4.35 and at 4.36 sports central update and the reporter talks about O'Halpin doing his ACL and then replays Quinn's comments. What a waste of time.

This appears to be fairly common for talk radio stations. AW were nortorious for including content from interviews conducted in the programs in their news bulletins. They treat it as just a ready made source.

 

[bedford]

But 1 minute after

 

[peternorth]

Also I was listening to Harford and Robbo yesterday afternoon spruiking about Jon Anderson's Best Footballer (of the 4 codes) in Australia.


It include Tim Cahill in the List yet he plays in England.

It was great to see as a Sports nut like myself with Harford picking Billy Slater but while Robbo was spruiking the Colleague's article but could not admit that a player from another code is the best player in Australia.

thought the 4 were ablett, kewell, slater and blonde guy from the rebels.

on 360 whatley picked slater. robbo actually went with someone else - Cam Smith

 

[bedford]

Yes but how many can play the amount of positions that Goodes can play and he would have been a star in any of them

 

[peternorth]

cam smith could

 

[imadodgyumpire]

No footy player, let alone Goodes, would last a possesion as a forward in League.

It was great to see as a Sports nut like myself with Harford picking Billy Slater but while Robbo was spruiking the Colleague's article but could not admit that a player from another code is the best player in Australia.

Robbo complemented Benji Marshall off his own accord.

I have the Self Righteous Flog over the naive stupid "Gentleman Only Ladies Fobidden" and that stupid idiot Melbourne Always injured player. Both Flogs

You can't deny that Francis was a massive flog on SEN. Unrecognisable on the ABC, though. Had he been similar on SEN, he would easily be the equal/most popular presenter.

Took me 10 run throughs of that gif before I got it.

Doesn't matter, as long as you got it The gif would have saved me from most of the poo fights I'd been in, had I thought of it earlier.

 

[yaco55]

But 1 minute after

Have no problem with this - They are reporting current news.

Unsure why you are getting your knickers into a knot.

 

[bedford]

Did you hear it, its just dumb radio

 

[Contra Mundum]

No footy player, let alone Goodes, would last a possesion as a forward in League.

Robbo complemented Benji Marshall off his own accord.

You can't deny that Francis was a massive flog on SEN. Unrecognisable on the ABC, though. Had he been similar on SEN, he would easily be the equal/most popular presenter.

Doesn't matter, as long as you got it The gif would have saved me from most of the poo fights I'd been in, had I thought of it earlier.

Robert Wallls seems to have had the opposite experience. I could not stand to listen to him on AW but he is funny and even inciteful on SEN - go figure!

 

[bedford]

I have been thinking the same thing

 

[montybrasco]

Hungry for Free Agency II​

Ruckmen were once thought to be a dying breed but it appears they’re the ones now that are set to have the cash registers ticking over. Teams have won premierships with so-called leaky back-lines and ill-functioning forward-lines and lack of speed in the midfield, but the current thinking is that you need a good big man in the middle if you’re going to be a serious contender and to win the flag. Clubs are going to open up their wallets and pay a premium to get them. Already, Mark Jamar, Robbie Warnock, Trent West, and Will Minson are gettable through free agency and concessions. And already Sam Jacobs and Richmond’s Ivan Maric have already shown the value of their recruited big man. For ruck man, it’s name your own price.
I’m KB, that’s my Take

Mike Sheahan’s protégé is in the hot seat next to KB as usual on a Wednesday and free agency is dominating the talk even though it’s only round seven in the AFL according to the wannabe chief footy writer for the HUN. LeBaron-Ralph references Brent Maloney’s manager suggesting the era of the one-club player is over. That means “explore the market. Now it’s bold, it’s radical; as I say it’s an anathema to some people out there,”

JLR: Bold/Radical/Anathema
Meh: Welcome to free market team pro sport where players have a right to seek their favoured employer for whatever reasons they deem fit. Nine teams in one market? Let the fun begin.

JLR: There’s no point [Maloney] being a free agent if he can’t explore his options; same goes with Juh-mar. Juh-mar’s the one of those four ruckman who is a free agent and I think people will come thick and fast for him-
KB: What, Kareem Abdul Juhmar?
[…]

JLR: Well I don’t know if he’ll go but I think he would probably feel like “I can get good money elsewhere; I can play in a successful team elsewhere, and look what’s happened top those senior Melbourne players who have stayed around, they’ve either been retired or pushed to another club.”
KB: Like Cameron Bruce and James McDonald.
JLR: Blokes like Jamar and blokes like Brent Maloney are gonna make this decision and it’s gonna happen at the end of the year. And I think, as I say, I think it’s tough for fans to listen to but it’s the new market reality. We’ve got to get used to it.

KB asks “which ruckman would you take?” And asks whether you’d want Brent Maloney? LeBaron-Ralph thinks the Essendon midfield is a perfect fit for Maloney and also suggests the Dons are in the Dangerfield market. Wow, bombs away in 2013! I expect these two gabsters will stay away from Richmond today.

On to Maloney’s manager, Bruce Kaider for an interview on Maloney and free agency that hits a few home runs on the new system and what it means: http://www.sen.com.au/audioplayer/Audio/KB-speaks-to-Jon-Ralph-and-Andrew-Boguts-manager-Bruce-Kaider/4545

KB: Quite clearly, Bruce is just dancing on egg shells a little bit. He’s gonna go out there and put [Maloney’s] name out there and he’s gonna test the water strongly. Maybe it’s come on the back of Essendon last year, you were saying, very keen to get Brent Maloney. It’ll be fascinating to see how Melbourne responds to this and maybe even his teammates.
JLR: Exactly. I think his teammates probably realize this is the new reality now. … And it’s the new world.

Poor ole Dees. Just gettin’ kicked around and around and never seem to get cut a break.

With “The Buzz” in the studio it’s only fitting the first caller is none other than the “Fly,” as in Russel Morris.

Fly: I was listening with interest, KB, you’d remember, it might have been in January, 1991, you came into my kitchen and had a chat about me joining Richmond.
KB: Yes that’s true. I did too.

Fly: It was a similar situation that Hawthorn delisted me but I’d been around for about eight years, I was twenty-nine years old. And when it comes to making a decision you can bet you house [!] on players that are currently on lesser performing teams, they will be thinking ‘how can I maybe get to a more successful side. I’ve got three or four years left in my career at the most, and if I can maybe squeeze or pinch a premiership or pinch a finals appearance in the last three years,’ that has to be part of their consideration. Certainly the money is very important and in those days, in those early nineties Richmond didn’t have any dough, KB, as you know.
KB: Yes. What we offered you, you actually knocked it back because you were getting four times as more from St. Kilda.

Fly: It was twice as much at St. Kilda. But it’s all relative then. But St. Kilda had the team of Lockett and Frawley and Grant and Stewie Lowe and Winmar and Bourke and Harvey. And they had all these young superstars and I thought hang on, this side could potentially be a finals contender and maybe even pinch a flag. Richmond was losing David Cloke. Now they had guys like Tony Free and Matty Knights; they had a young side and I thought well maybe the success wouldn’t come for maybe four or five years. And that really made a difference with the decision making. So if Brent Maloney’s at Melbourne and as we know they’re in a rebuilding phase. Maloney’s not gonna play finals footy with Melbourne over the next two or three years. Not a chance, right. So if he’s really seriously considering wanting to be a success, and he may then go to another club. And also, what’s the famous line mate – if you want loyalty you go and buy a dog.

KB: Yes, that’s true. It’s one of Tommy Hafey’s favourite sayings.
JLR: So you reckon blokes like Jamar – Jamar, I got it right, KB – and Maloney probably should move on?
[…]

Fly: Well the nature of the business, look, you can’t blame the players and the clubs because the AFL has created this scenario so you can’t point your finger and go ‘what about loyalty.’ That has what’s been created in the past four or five years and if Jamar is seriously considering wanting success, he certainly has to seriously maybe going to an Essendon or someone on the cusp or even, imagine him at Carlton with Kreuzer? That’d be extraordinary. So they’ve seriously got to look at it, and that’s the system.
KB: Russel, I really appreciate you call. Wish you had of come to Tigers, I still might be the coach.

I have to disagree that the AFL created the free agency scenario; more like the AFLPA that represents, you know, the players.

Seems like one day it’s Melbourne membership day, the next is kick the crap out of a Dee day. Surely talkback will lend some support for the Dees’ integrity-filled, loser administration.

Johnny for Mount Martha: I’m a Melbourne supporter and I have no problems at all with Jamar and Maloney going to another club. Melbourne has a long history of disloyalty to its older players. The most recent example of course is James McDonald. But I think Robertson could have played another year and bolstered the forward line and been part of a mature group of players that would bring this younger group of players along. So I think the club can’t expect its players to be loyal when it’s not loyal to players. The good players.

Ohhhkay, that’s not what I had in mind, regards support. Help KB!

KB: So you think, Johnny, because of what happened to James McDonald and Cam Bruce – used to wear his heart on his sleeve for the Melbourne football club – he finds himself now at Hawthorn, that those older players like Maloney and Jamar who are there thinking ‘we’ll I did see what happened to cam Bruce and I did see what happened to James McDonald, you know, I’ve got to be a bit tough here, I’ve got to move on myself.’

Sheesh, that’s not helping either, KB. C’mon LeBaron-Ralphy, get in there. How about some support? Cut the Demons a break, brother!

JLR: I think when you look at the Cam Bruce situation, he took a massive pay cut, he went for a one-year deal that didn’t have a clause for a second year … he was desperate to get out of that club and I don’t know why that is the case. And I think you look at these blokes, they might be prepared to take pay cuts as well. I think Jamar is very much in the mould of wanting success rather than a big pay packet.

D’oh!

St. Kilda’s window for success is still open but the fact the whole damn premises has been boarded up with a “do not trespass” sign hasn’t dawned on these two Richmond supporters at SEN. The Saints have a who’s who of veteran talent hitting free agency in 2013 and the poor old 0-6 Dees continue to get kicked to death today.

Mensa Talkback makes its inevitable appearance with Joe from Corio who claims to be a Dockers fan and then suggests the ladder is wrong due to the false Dockers win on the weekend. With the technology of his Foxtel remote he’s deduced the Mayne goal was a point and the timekeeping should have been corrected when they realized a thirty-eight second mistake had been made. Thanks Joe, sure you’re a Dockers fan.
Talkback, eh. Back to the midweek crap-kicking of Melbourne FC.

KB asks whether the Dees have gone too early on Jack Viney because other sides are going to extract the highest draft pick they can get for Melbourne committing to him and can’t now pass him up. … “Way too early” says JLR who adds that Melbourne couldn’t have predicted they would be so terrible in 2012 and now face paying with a high pick. Those darn laws of unintended consequences. … KB throws Brad Miller in the blender of Dees’ players jettisoned, as the pounding continues.

The talkback discussion cluelessly continues vacillating on a number of free agency issues, particularly the idea of trading players before they hit free agency. … JLR sees the purported equalizing of talent due to Collingwood having no salary cap room and Melbourne plenty, simply not happening. Pies’ players mostly won’t want to leave the Asylum because of the possibility of success, he adds. … Finally the Saints plethora of free agents gets a mention with LeBaron-Ralphy seeing Goddard to possibly get tipped out.

The common thread in talkback continues with another Dees fan lamenting the free agency predictions of players migrating to strong clubs in search of success … The Maloney criticism of Brock McLean leaving Melbourne gets a good going over on SMS … The Buzz column gets trashed by KB just for a change, as does AFL360 and its high tackle story redux … Here comes the hour’s end as signified by Bill from Balaclava who is not happy that the Herald Sun paper had Collingwood stats on the left side when it was a Bulldogs home game. Sighhh.

LeBaron-Ralphy of the Day:
I hate people that have memories, KB. I was condemning everyone for criticising Karmichael Hunt then I went back and looked at some of my stuff and just got a bit quieter after that.
- Jon LeBaron-Ralph

Quote of the Day:
I nearly took off my shoe last night and threw it through my television screen watching 360 last night when [Rubbo] was talking about the high tackles.
-KB

 

[yaco55]

Did you hear it, its just dumb radio

I hear it every day.

It is good radio.

 

[paul scholes]

I don't, go down to the Bool and see how good it is. Better jumping those than becoming dog food !

Yeah it's enjoyable seeing horses that fail on the flats fall and suffer broken limbs. Maybe the dog food option is a better one!

 

[paul scholes]

Bartlett would have thrown his Zimmer Frame at the screen, not his shoe.
Did anyone hear that impersonatation of Gerard Whately ?
Very good

 

[Registered User]

^ Yep, that was funny. Whately is probably a good bloke, but talks like a total flog. He obviously went to the ABC's "Make the Absolute Most Of Every Syllable, and Maybe Even Throw In A Couple Of Extra Ones" School

 

[montybrasco]

Hungry for Clichés ​

Just got off the phone to James Hird and the more I hear from Essendon the more I’m impressed. Five/one has been a great start considering a spate of injuries and the scalp of premiership favourite Carlton. Never thought they had the depth to cover injuries but it looks like their so-called B-graders are better than I thought. They’ve also fended off advances to their stars and they’ve got new facilities on track. And I’m told if I have to revisit MY top eight, if I had to choose one team to now make it (don’t do it, KB) it would be the Bombers.
I’m KB, that’s my Take

He just can’t help himself. Most fans are aware of the mostly cream-puff draw the Dons have had to start the season with the old Teddy Bears in Lions skins, the Power of Port Adelaide, GCS, and the often inconsistent Kangas, all wrapped around one sweet afternoon against the Blues who suffered major early-game injuries. But it’s those Blues that are almost a certainty to make the eight if not top four or two. It’s amazing. He simply will not cede anything to the Blues. An Essendon coach interview turns into a backhand slap for Carlton via his opening rant.

The return of LeBaron-Ralph at eleven o’clock on a Thursday should make an easy victim for KB to slap around the way he does with his Carlton listeners. Yesterday Jonny boy stumbled through one of his self-aggrandized articles in “The Buzz” suggesting Karmichael Hunt critics owed Hunt an apology only then to discover his own feelings on the subject in the past that led to the following quote: “I hate people that have memories, KB. I was condemning everyone for criticising Karmichael Hunt then I went back and looked at some of my stuff and just got a bit quieter after that.”

Unlike the anointed journalists who get things wrong all the time due to the fact they have little real experience in running, say, a pro sports team, the consequences for business failure are real to those at the coalface. Since the H-less one is all things free agency and players market worth, let’s check out the consistency of the H-less one’s vault on players seeking their own self of interest:

AFL supporters can cop their star players heading elsewhere because deep down they know if they were offered a huge pay rise they would jump ship themselves.What they cannot handle are lies and deceit. Right now Tom Scully is playing a dangerous game with the Melbourne Football Club.
[…]
His obfuscation might give him another $50,000 or so a year on a contract, but the club cannot afford to throw its salary cap out of kilter for one player. Time for a decision. Time to let the club know he has an offer on the table elsewhere, or if not, then time to sign at the Demons.
The Buzz, June 15, 2011

Seems the protégé pontificator had changed his tune from a previous opinion on what a player should do the system works in his favour:

Nick Riewoldt is doing the smart thing by not publicly committing to St. Kilda because with every week that goes by his contract price goes up. … You can’t see him leaving St. Kilda but they can’t afford to pay him the $1 million he deserves. … They only get a decade in the game, and when you are giving up $400,000 a year, that makes up pretty big cash with which you can set up your life post-football.
Jon [LeBaron-Ralph] blog, May 20, 2007

Both teams couldn’t afford to pay so Scully should have fessed intentions, while with the same principle in play, Riewoldt should’ve held out. Scully – time for a decision; time to sign. Riewoldt – don’t commit; push price up; set up for life.

A rugby league interview with the Storm’s Ryan Hoffman gets things off to a scintillating start before KB pushes for some gossip on the alleged attempted coup d’état by either The Tackle or Mick’s Grill in an attempt to win the chief football writer position at The Sun.

KB: What’s happened?
JLR: [T]iniest incident. Wasn’t a punch thrown. …

KB: Was there pushing? Pushing?
JLR: No pushing. No punches I don’t understand [sic].

KB: Yelling?
JLR: I don’t think so. I don’t think there was really anything. [Blames other radio stations]

KB: There’s got to be something. Where there is smoke there’s fire with blue cod!

JLR references the Mark Stevens article suggesting GCS play “powder-puff football” and “showboat, theme park football” and the little master should stop kick-chasing and play up full-forward. Coaching guru, LeBaron-Ralph believes he should play forward the rest of the year. KB challenges this opinion with tenacity.
KB: Well you’ve got no chance of being the chief football writer of The Herald Sun if you’re gonna give us that sort of gibberish.

Time to rattle the talkback cage: First gripe is about Lleyton Hewitt making special comments on the game … Is all the night games during the season for Essendon going to be a problem? KB can’t believe the AFL hasn’t moved to a night grand final. LeBaron-Ralph agrees … Barry Hall to play three games for Wangaratta who are extremely excited at the prospect (Cha-ching) … Tiring early here for something to get their teeth into so KB wants to know all the new clichés in football.

Caller has a scoop to get JLR over the line for the Chief’s job at the HUN, and that scoop is the signing announcement of Travis Cloke next Wednesday on Collingwood’s Foxtel show, “The Club.” The protégé seems a little reticent to embrace the scoop … Spot on criticism of the Foxtel footy call, especially Kermit Bretheraton who “would talk all day if they didn’t shut him up,” grumbles the caller. JLR says that’s a great point. ... Hard to disagree – the blah, blah, blah of special comments is killing Anthony Hudson who is a pretty good play-by-play caller. Or he was.

“Raggsy” Goold rings in to give KB some love but lets him off the hook on the Blues start to the season. KB likes the idea of a return of Grumpy Old Men on TV with Raggsy taking the place of the late Bob Davis … More concern from Michael from Wantirna as to whether Jamar and/or Maloney will be leaving. Yep, there is just no peace for Demons’ fans. JLR is “not sure where it leads for the Melbourne football club.” … Cameron from Hillside wants to put the AFL and GWS on notice not only for GWS getting the Dees priority pick, Scully, after just two years, but now other clubs forcing the red and blue to use a high pick for Viney under the Father/Son rules. He suggests the AFL should say something because GWS don’t really want Viney (not much they don’t) and it’s draft tampering of the highest order. KB sorts him on how the rules work. No wonder he didn’t know how and why it works that way, most Demons fans are surely punch-drunk by now.

Duel callers beclown Lebaron-Ralph over his comments suggesting the Bulldogs would’ve beat Collingwood if Barry Hall was still playing. The protégé gripes that the Pies callers are a little too sensitive. He restates his argument which is his last argument before the buzzing blowfly sound serenades him out of the studio.

New Football Clichés:
Football DNA
Got a few tricks
Football IQ
Plus one (also nominated as Brad Miller’s nickname [re Pia])
Outstanding
Player density
Spreads
Important to our structure
Dirty balls (Used by Richmond’s Alex Rance)
Chaos ball (Apparently used by Dwayne Russell)

Here’s one that hasn’t yet hit here from America: football [AFL] maturation

Quote of the Day;
I can be antagonistic
KB confessing to antagonizing Dean Laidley over using “DNA” during the Thursday footy panel show.

 

[Registered User]

Where's Peakey's mobile number? I'm gunna ask him to un-ban me from the SEN sms

 

[The real Bozo]

Peaky going to have every man and there dog ringing him

 

[bedford]

I did, he's a goose

 

[Simple Jack]

I did, he's a goose

Did he answer?

If so what did he say?

 

[peternorth]

Did he answer?

If so what did he say?

i think bedfords enjoying his ban.

maybe via finey?

 

[Contra Mundum]

^ Yep, that was funny. Whately is probably a good bloke, but talks like a total flog. He obviously went to the ABC's "Make the Absolute Most Of Every Syllable, and Maybe Even Throw In A Couple Of Extra Ones" School

You mean Exxtra Oneeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeessssssssssssssss"

 

[Registered User]

^ Ha!! Yesssssssssssssaaaaaah

 

[montybrasco]

State of Origin and Father/Son adoption ideas on Thursday flood in from the Mensa Talkback Society to an extent that belies the fact KB’s ratings are sidled up with Harfboots on the afternoon shift. Forget Dees’ fans hitting the Thursday morning plonk to deal with the dulcet tones of their white whale, Denham. I’m off to the bar fridge for a morning crème de menthe, or seven, to help drown these crazy antiquated State of Origin ideas.

I think it is absolutely dead and buried. A waste of time.
- KB on State of Origin football

Quote of the Day:
They’re turning into the world’s biggest whingers I think, North Melbourne.
-KB on Brad Scott attempting to leash the Giesch about tackling.

Dehnamism of the Week:
“I feel sorry for Melbourne supporters. It must be the worst team in the league right now to follow because – you aren’t going anywhere!”

The AFL has always placed a great emphasis on player safety and health and yesterday the AFL with a seal of approval from the AFL medicos changed the fabric of the game. I do not support penalizing players like Lindsay Thomas for incidents like the one that took place with Gary Rohan. I believe the player first to the ball has every right to protect himself, and that includes going to ground, sliding into space, in the words of the tribunal. The game has been spooked by one serious injury, to Rohan, and a sprained ankle to David Swallow who stayed on the ground and played out the game and has been selected for the Suns tomorrow. The medicos concerns, whilst caring, are premature and the game is jumping at shadows. The second player sliding into a contest gets no favours from me. Read Adam Goodes. The game has always tried to protect the player going for the ball, and first to the ball. Possession has always brought the support of the game. We accept in football, Mitch Clarke landing on his head and neck millimetres form a life-destroying injury; we accept Nathan Bock breaking a leg, and Setanta O’hAilpin snapping his AC. And we applaud Jonathon Brown’s courage running head-on into packs of players and accept his facial injuries as part of the game. It’s impossible to sanitize our game for every injury concern.
I’m KB, that’s my Take

Rules, rules, rules … KB was on a Friday soap box … callers in agreement … sliding, tackling, smothering, injuries, jumping at shadows, spooked; Russian Politburo gets a mention; overreaction, yada, yada, and more yada.

A familiar topic discussion for this time of year makes its usual brief what, why, how, huh, naïve appearance with Johnny from Croydon who asks “why are they having this game on Monday night?” The question on the Blues/Saints game gets the usual “is it Monday Night Football over in the States that’s very, very popular?” from KB. That’s the usual some-of-the-parts type answer offered for MNF on free-to-air television that ended several years ago in the States because of the long-term effects of the law of unintended consequences stemming from the successful McNeil antitrust case in 1992. To every action is a reaction. Free agency – and BOOM went NFL schedule predictability. And MNF went to cable. Grunk chimed in on the topic with … not much!

Then there was Brad from Bacchus Marsh with a forewarning for SEN about Friday’s discussion point claiming two-thirds of SEN programs are discussing the whole sliding business and “it goes on day after day after day, and people turning off the radios.” Forget Nielsen ratings, SEN, you now have Brad from Bacchus Marsh. Grunk points out the amendment to the rules was only made on Thursday. One of KB’s favourite phrases is “you set the agenda.” So the host points out as much and asks Brad what he wants to talk about then. Budding program producer and radio ratings expert Brad repeats his point that people turning off their radios. KB suggest this can’t be true as he has a full board of calls on tap and adds again that any sports topic is up for discussion. KB asks Brad again if he has a topic. Goofball continues his gripe about SEN's repeated topics. “But have you got a topic you want to talk about?” asks KB again. His reply: “I just did.”
And it continued:

KB: Yeah, but that wasn’t a topic.
Goofball: That’s my view.

KB: You rang up with a criticism; you didn’t ring up with a topic.
Goofball: That’s the topic. I mean if SEN value their listeners-

KB: Well we do because we open up the lines and say “here’s the lines, you tell us what you want to talk about, and we’ll talk about it.”
Goofball: Well you guys are but it just goes on ad nauseam and everyone that I know just keeps turning the radio off and they turn it back on again and-

KB: Well stay tuned because Joe from Moorabbin hasn’t turned off. (Goofball gets hoicked) G’day Joe.

Joe moves the topic to … sliding in the AFL and agrees with a previous caller’s politburo accusation towards the AFL and claims that the AFL is acting like Stalinist bureaucrats being reactionary by making rules on the run. KB has fired up the Friday rank and file big time. Maybe Mr. Demetriou could join the Labor Party or Watermelon Party in the future? Good grief.

Regular caller Gazey wanted an apology from KB over his Norf Melbourne whingeing accusations but Rules Committee Agent No. 29 was having none of it and somewhat tersely responded to Griper Agent No. 10. KB will probably want an apology on Monday from Gazey for wasting a tip on the seemingly always inconsistent Norfaners. Living-in-the-seventies caller/ coach condemns players sliding suggesting they lack “intestinal fortitude” and this is a major concern in today’s football with a distinct lack of leadership. He then uses “The Caveman” Bruce Doull who played back in the caveman era as a reference for a player keeping his feet at the contest. KB disagrees and for the second time on Friday he revisits his own caveman moment and what must be his frightening memory of “Slamming” Sam Kekovich bearing down on him with the intent of a bowling ball.

KB Tips: Hawthorn, Geelong, Gold Coast, Essendon, Richmond, St. Kilda*, Fremantle, Collingwood, North Melbourne
(*Just ain't no luv for Carlton)

Surveying The Weekly Denhamography
a) Changes to his final eight would be North out, Dons in.
b) Bellchambers now No. 1 and close to being an elite ruckman in the competition.
c) Dons’ membership up 3,000; may now outgrow Etihad.
d) Blues’ Gibbs – two-year deal within a week; Yarran – in discussions; Kreuzer – dotting i’s and crossing t’s on a three-year deal; and Carlton expect to lose no required players.
e) Admits to feeling (see “i”) over emphatic call on Adelaide missing the eight.
f) Dangerfield to Essendon? – “Pigs might fly too.” … Anyone thinking they can get him from Adelaide is dreaming.
g) “Nah, deal done, two years for Guy McKenna. I think it’s the right decision.”
h) Doctors have too much say in the game.
i) I could be left with egg on my face.

Journalistic Semantics Department
“Pretty Much/Probably” of the Week:
I pretty much think that he’ll [Dangerfield] be re-signed to the Crows probably by no later than next month.
- Grunk Denham

Epilogue:
Grunk: You didn’t answer the question. So were you consulted by the AFL, Adrian Anderson, before this decision yesterday was made?
KB: Ahh, well, I was, I was phoned and asked what my response would be.

Grunk: And!? What was it?
KB: My response was what I said in “My Take” That I felt we should not be penalizing the player who’s first to the ball. And I find it very hard to support that sort of, ah, decision. That was my response.