Recent content by Earls Smother

It's a funny year like that. I've walked out of the Richmond and Freo wins and the general crowd sentiment is the same - relief but no real joy. Maybe it's just that our expectations are much higher? Both finals wins were hardly comprehensive, but we bloody loved them. I think we are suffering...

Agree with this. The short breaks add up. Sides seem to cope ok with one, but are more affected by multiple in a row. We were 31 points up at half time, 22 points up at three quarter time and still 19 points up with 4 minutes to go. People saying we had a poor second half or poor last quarter...

Playing Devil's advocate here, but we picked 1 less last week in the 22. Kennedy got a rest and will be better for it. Anyone who doesn't think Hewett looked a step off last week wasn't watching. He has only had a 6 day break (2 in a row) and certainly doesn't get any sharper when he is sore...

Rolling the dice our way to try and win it for us? It's ridiculous that our best attacking mid is expected to man theirs. Waste a negating player on Daicos, not our best chance of bursting forward our way. If he was left as the match-up then other players have ****ed up.

Not going round in circles. You believe one thing, I believe another. To pick out 3 moments in a 120 minute contest is cherry picking to suit yourself. I believe the biggest factor in who won was their dominance in the second half of the second quarter. We looked relatively comfortable up to...

Against certain teams it is the major issue. I'm not asking for anything. I'm posting an observation on a game already played. Where have I said that? All other things being equal, the quicker sides have the advantage. You don't think other sides are capable of blocking, being on the move...

You call the opinion opposite to yours nonsense, but what you have written is equally nonsensical. Yes, leg speed is only 'a' factor, but with Collingwood and Carlton it is 'the' factor that enables them to match or better us. We have them covered in most areas, but they are significantly...

I'm only replying to your post as it's the last one. There have been a number of comments on speed around the contest, with arguments for both sides. What I would ask is, which team would have won the game if you swapped Nick Daicos with Hewett? They both win the ball, they both have good...

Anyone being honest would agree with this. The tough close loss looked a monty when Saad couldn't hang on to the greasy ball and spilled the mark. Unbelievable effort really. You and others have butted heads over Russell, but to have us fit enough to do what we did is a real credit to our...

It's almost like the AFL made us play a practice match 6 days earlier, in the middle of a 38 degree day. Look what happened with GWS and Adelaide the week after they played in that round 1 stinker last year. Flat as buggery. Cerra, Gov and Cotts the best examples, just didn't want to be there.

With the 6 day break between rounds 0 and 1, plus potentially hot and humid conditions, it just makes sense to leave borderline players out. Martin and maybe Marchbank might be looked at the same way. We have the depth, so use it to our advantage. We already have an advantage over Richmond with...

You will only have a purchase confirmation email at this stage. I ordered a number of multi-day tickets on behalf of others last year, and they weren't available until days before the round started. Someone else copped that job this year, but I did order a ticket to the GWS v GC game. I just...

Yeah I remember receiving letters to upgrade in years when we were doing well. I wonder whether anyone used the 50 year rule to enter the ballot last year as a priority 1? The 4 prelim clubs obviously all enlisted for the ballot, so whilst we missed making it, you still needed to know your...

Has anyone ever tested this option? I raised the bat this year but I'm not game to risk giving up Legend's Lounge (having only got it 2 years ago). I'd imagine you'd have to be at least 80 to have used this option in '99 and maybe it didn't exist then?

My assessment was only that we preferred not to play the 3 together, particularly after Adelaide ran all over us in Gather round. We had been winning, but not impressively in the first 4 rounds. If Pitto was emergency in round 1 then he was technically available, but I will concede he was...