|
Thursday, June 26th, 2008 at 8:13 am
BY STEPHEN BAKER
THE AFL Players Association has endorsed a tough new drug-testing regime as the League attempts to crack down on out-of-season illicit drug use.
In an exclusive report in today ‘The Age’ newspaper, a new testing regime will involve players allowing drug testers to take hair samples in tests for substances like cocaine and other amphetamines.
It is believed that illicit drugs can be detected in follicle samples for up to eight weeks.
Hair testing will be trialled in October and November as soon as this year.
If found guilty, however, players will not receive a strike against their name - a move understood to be behind the players’ support for the trial.
It is understood that the AFL will push to continue the trial if the tests reveal wide-spread recreational drug use during the off-season.
The report says that the AFL is also expected to reveal the results of its ramped up in-season testing results from last year in the wake of a number of drug scandles that rocked the competition in 2007.
FOOTYHEADS: Should out-of-season results be included as strikes against players if they fail an illicit drug test?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Thursday, June 26th, 2008 at 7:33 am
BY STEPHEN BAKER
SPECULATION continues to intensify about the immediate playing future of disgraced former West Coast star, Ben Cousins.
An announcement on the thirty year old’s playing future is tipped to be made today.
Despite the denials of Port Melbourne Football Club president Barry Kidd yesterday, that Cousins had made no official contact with his club, ‘The Borough’ continues to top the list of rumoured destinations for the 2005 Brownlow medalist.
According to a report in today’s Herald-Sun newspaper, it is not sure at this stage, whether Cousins will play, or merely train with a VFL club as he attempts to rebuild his shattered career.
Both the AFL and AFL Victoria, the VFL’s governing body, have green-lighted Cousins’ return to football in this state if he chooses to.
Port Melbourne coach, Gary Ayers, said he was unaware of any moves by the 2006 premiership player to join the VFL powerhouse.
The VFL’s transfer deadline expires on June 30.
FOOTYHEADS, should Cousins resurrect his career through the WAFL in Western Australia, or should Victoria be the place Ben attempts to resurrect his career?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 at 9:39 am
BY BRAD KLIBANSKY
FORMER controversial West Coast Eagles captain Ben Cousins is set to make a shock return to football this year.
As reported in today’s Herald Sun, it’s believed Cousins will register with a VFL team before Monday’s deadline.
AFL rules do not allow him to play for VFL clubs Collingwood and Geelong - effectively AFL reserves teams - which means Cousins will play for one of 12 VFL clubs, including Tasmania.
Cousin’s manager Ricky Nixon confirmed last night that several clubs had contacted him about Cousins playing for them next year and this step is the strongest indication yet Cousins will attempt an AFL comeback in 2009.
It’s believed one club has said it would draft Cousins if he was mentally and physically fit, and if he makes himself available.
FOOTYHEADS, what are your thoughts on Cosuins’ return? Will he play AFL in 2009?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Thursday, June 19th, 2008 at 8:45 am
BY STEPHEN BAKER
A number of former champions have weighed in on the proposed move to a twilight Grand Final.
Calrton legend, Anthony Koutoufides as well as Collingwood premiership captain and 1990 Norm Smith Medalist, Tony Shaw believe that the biggest match on the AFL calendar should stay a day game.
Speaking on SEN radio this morning, the former Carlton skipper and 1995 premiership player said that he preferred the game to stay in it’s traditional place.
“I prefer to play at 2.40pm - the way it’s played at the moment,” said Koutoufides.
“Playing during the day was always something I preferred even throughout the season.”
“A day Grand final, to me, when the sun is out and the players are playing at their best, I don’t thnk you can beat it,” he said.
The Carlton legend said he believed that playing a Grand Final would likely have an impact on players’ preparation for the big game.
“Obviously, there’s so many hours throughout the day that you have to wait when you’re playing during the day,” he said.
“You get up in the morning, before you know it, it’s time to get to the ground. Definitely with a night game, you go for a walk and need to do a few things in the morning because you just can’t laze around all day, so it is a different preparation.”
Former champions-turned-commentators, Robert Walls and Tony Shaw said that the move to a night Grand Final was lamentable, but invevitable.
Shaw said he did not support the change to a twilight fixture.
“I’m a bity of a traditionalist so I think it will cause a lot of hiccups in a lot of areas,” he said.
“I think a lot of sports have gone down that track and being a traditionalist I don’t like it, but I think it’s just the way of the world and it’s now all about the dollar in front of a lot of other things in our great game.”
Channel Ten special comments doyen, Robert Walls also said that a twilight Grand Final was the price to pay for the other benefits that broadcast rights money brings to the game.
“(A twilight Grand Final) has to be considered because, the TV networks, they provide so much money that enables them to promote the game, develop the game so it has to come into consideration,” he said.
Walls also said that the change to a night Final was following the trend of sports around the world.
“I think we’re conditioned to watch sport at nights nowadays and that’s the way it’s heading.”
FOOTYHEADS: IS A TWILIGHT GRAND FINAL AN INEVITABILITY?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Thursday, June 19th, 2008 at 7:45 am
BY STEPHEN BAKER
A twilight Grand Final could be a reality as early as next season, according to AFL CEO, Andrew Demetriou.
Mr Demetriou, in a report in today’s Herald-Sun newspaper, expects the Seven and Ten networks to push hard for a night grand final before their current broadcasting agreement expires at the end of 2010.
“I know that between now and the end of the agreement, we will be asked about (a twilight Grand Final), again,” said Demetriou.
While wary of the widespread public support for the Grand Final to remain a daytime event, Mr Demetriou foreshadowed the inevitability of a twilight start given the amount of money television pumps into the game.
“Our view on the twilight Grand Final is (it’s), something that we wouldn’t do this year,” he said.
“Our view hasn’t changed but you have to anticipate what is coming up. The broadcasters are paying a very substantial amount of money for the rights and they have been very good.”
It is anticipated that the match would begin at five o’clock to appease broadcasters in their hunt for bigger ratings numbers, as viewer numbers would be included in the industry’s coveted prime-time audience figures.
Ten Network sports chief, David White, made clear his continued support for a night Grand Final.
“My interest is well documented,” said White.
“I’m very keen on a twilight Grand Final. I’ve got little doubt at some point in the future there will be a twilight Grand Final. Not sure how far into the future,” he said.
Despite the claim from broadcasters that a night or twilight Grand Final would increase audience numbers, a day Grand Final consistently remains among the most watched events on Australia’s television calendar.
The 2007 Grand Final between Geelong and Port Adelaide drew an audience of 2.57 million viewers, while the 2006 match drew an audience of 3.15 million and the 2005 Grand Final, a viewing audience of 3.39 million people.
FOOTYHEADS: Do YOU want a night or twilight Grand Final, or should the biggest match on the AFL calendar honour tradition and stay as a day time fixture?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Thursday, June 12th, 2008 at 9:29 am
BY STEPHEN BAKER
AFL boss, Andrew Demetriou has defended the match review panel’s finding that allowed two-time Brownlow medalist Adam Goodes to avoid suspension for a head-high bump on West Coast’s Adam Selwood.
In an exclusive interview with radio station SEN, Demetriou said he was comfortable with the panel’s explanation of their finding.
“I think the Adam Goodes decision they got it right, from what I understand,” he said.
“I know the match review panel’s explanation that the player had his head up, he didn’t have his head over the ball as before, and Adam Goodes obviously made contact and he received a reprimand,” said Demetriou.
The League chief refuted suggestions that Goodes escaped any penalty for the hit.
“He (Goodes) got the number of points and he’s ineligible for the Brownlow medal now, so he didn’t get off scott free. I think they got it right.”
Demetriou also threw his support behind AFL Operations Manager Adrian Anderson and his efforts in minimising head and neck injuries.
“I think Adrian Anderson has done a sensational game with the laws of the game committee,” he said.
‘If you think about players bending over the ball, we were really fortunate as a sport not to have more serious injuries from that.”
“Overall, the bottom line is we have just seen in the latest injury survey, we’ve had less head injuries than we’ve had in previous years and I think that’s a reflection of the new rules.”
Demetriou also lauded the players efforts to change their tackling style in adjusting to rule changes.
“I think players have adapted incredibly well to a new system which says that the head is sacrosanct.”
“You’ve got to be very careful, and I think players have changed how they tackle players now - they’re not as aggressive in going at the players who’ve got their head over the ball.”
FOOTYHEADS: Is the game better for recent rule changes?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Thursday, June 5th, 2008 at 8:54 am
BY STEPHEN BAKER
A new Gold Coast based club will join Victoria’s TAC Cup competition next year as the AFL prepares for the introduction of a seventeenth team in 2011.
Today’s “The Age” newspaper understands that the AFL will announce the move later today.
Queensland’s most promising junior footballers have been offered two-year deals to play in Victoria’s under eighteen competition from next season rather than nominating for this year’s National Draft.
It is believed that the idea of staying in their home state, while enhancing their potential to play AFL with the expanded team in 2011, was used as a major selling point for the targetted players.
Under the terms of the contracts, players who sign on would be “warehoused” for when the Gold Coast expansion franchise enters the competition.
While a club name and jumper design is yet to be formalised, former Brisbane triple Premiership captain and Brownlow Medalist, Michael Voss, is the frontrunner to be named as coach.
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Friday, May 23rd, 2008 at 2:58 pm
BY STEPHEN BAKER
THE North Melbourne Football Club may still receive the financial sweeteners promised to them by the AFL, despite advising the league that they will not play games on the Gold Coast in 2009.
League CEO, Andrew Demetriou, confirmed today that despite snubbing the AFL’s push to relocate them to the Gold Coast, the club believes that it remains entitled to over $1.2 million dollars promised to the club to as part of their deal to play three “home” games at Carrara next year.
“We don’t walk away from agreements,” he said.
“We’re very consistent, we’ve got a great record on that but the fact of the matter is that we’ve got on-going discussions with the North Melbourne Football Club.”
“They’ve made it clear that they don’t want to play on the Gold Coast and we respect that, they’ve said clearly… that they want to play all their games in Melbourne, so we respect that and we’ll do what we can to accomodate that.”
Mr Demetriou bristled at suggestions that the Kangaroos were loathe to initiate formally breaking the contract, fearing the loss of their cash bonanza from the AFL.
“It’s not about the cash,” Mr Demetriou argued.
“It’s about the fact that they’ve got a great desire, which we respect, to play all their games in Melbourne and if they want to be the North Melbourne Football Club we should respect that.”
“North Melbourne Football Club wants to play every game in Melbourne and we respect that,” he repeated.
FOOTYHEADS: Should North still receive the money promised to them for playing three “home” games at Carrara if they refuse to be fixtured to play there?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Friday, May 23rd, 2008 at 2:29 pm
BY STEPHEN BAKER
AFL chief, Andrew Demetriou has launched a scathing attack on the Melbourne Football Club in the wake of Jeff Kennett’s call for the Demons to relocate to the Gold Coast.
Mr Demetriou ruled out any chance of Melbourne relocating to the Gold Coast, saying that locals wanted a team of its own after being snubbed by North Melbourne last year.
Despite closing the door on a Demons move north, Mr Demetriou said that the comparisons between the North Melbourne and Melbourne clubs was worth noting.
“I think the Melbourne Football Club is in a worse position than the Kangaroos Football Club were last year,” he said today.
“North Melbourne Football Club hasn’t got the level of debt that Melbourne has, they are performing better on-field and they certainly didn’t post a significant loss, so the Melbourne Football Club is not in a great position at the moment, but… they’re doing their best with their new CEO to turn that around.”
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Friday, May 23rd, 2008 at 12:11 pm
BY STEPHEN BAKER
THE AFL’s working paper on list creation for teams on the Gold Coast and in western Sydney could mean an extended stay in the lower regions of the AFL ladder for some teams, according to Bulldogs’ president, David Smorgon.
“I don’t know about the bottom (of the ladder) for a long time but its going to be very hard to rebuild your team quickly, he said.
In what could be seen as a possible swipe at Fremantle and Essendon, Smorgon said he believed that under the proposed draft concessions for a seventeenth and eighteenth team, there would be no quick fixes for clubs forced to rebuild after relying on recycling older players.
“Clearly with the concessions, in whichever form they’re going to be finalised, it’s going to be very difficult for clubs - particularly those with an ageing list that are now having to look at getting rid of a lot of those older players - to come and bring talent into their club and think that they can get to the top very quickly.”
FOOTYHEADS: Will rebuilding clubs struggle under the AFL’s list creation proposal for the Gold Coast and western Sydney teams?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Friday, May 23rd, 2008 at 11:49 am
BY STEPHEN BAKER
Western Bulldogs president, David Smorgon has welcomed a League review of the Annual Special Distribution fund.
He said that while the Bulldogs had drawn heavily on the fund in the past, he wasn’t alarmed that a number of wealthier AFL clubs have successfully lobbied the AFL to bring forward its review of the Annual Special Distribution scheme.
“It’s not alarming news at all because we knew back in 2005 when the deal was put in for the next four years that it was always going to have a time where it was going to be reviewed - as it should be reviewed,” he said on SEN radio today.
Smorgon said that he didn’t view the ASD scheme as a handout.
“The reason for the ASD fund is to try and equalise what is a very unequal competition,” he said.
“We don’t regard it as a handout, the AFL don’t regard it as a handout, we regard it as an entitlement to offset a lot of the inequalities of the competition and the two basic reasons why the ASD is there is to balance up stadium returns and low membership from a historical perspective.”
“They’re the two major factors that account for the dollars that are given to the special distribution fund every year and we support the fact that there’s going to be a review on it,” he said.
Smorgon said that receiving ASD funds had forced his club to be more disciplined with its finances and was delivering returns on the field as well.
“We have to sit with the AFL and go through our finances, we have to go through our business plan we are under a very strict criteria,” he said.
“Frankly, its led to a much better Western Bulldogs footy club, having to comply with these policies and these requirements - and we’re better off for it and we think its been a very helpful and essential part of the resurrection of the Western Bulldogs footy club.
FOOTYHEADS: Should the Annual Special Distribution fund stay in place or should the AFL stop propping up financially stricken clubs?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Friday, May 23rd, 2008 at 11:37 am
BY STEPHEN BAKER
OUTSPOKEN Western Bulldogs president, David Smorgon has slammed Jeff Kennett’s call for Melbourne to relocate to the Gold Coast at a charity fundraiser last night.
“I told the panel members to fire up and give our paying audience something, but I didn’t expect the explosion we got from Jeffrey Kennett,” he said today.
Speaking on SEN radio, Mr Smorgon said that he believes that the club’s future remains in Melbourne.
He also said that he was yet to see proof that Victoria cannot support ten teams.
“I took issue with Jeff last night when (he) said that Melbourne should become the Gold Coast Demons,” he said.
“I took issue with him because I, like many people, have heard for the last thirty years, twenty years, the last ten years and again last night, how Melbourne can’t sustain ten AFL clubs,” he said.
“Some of the smaller clubs that are based in Melbourne have, by example, shown those critics and those skeptics that things can turn.”
Smorgon said that although Melbourne have struggled on and off the field for longer than most clubs, the right leadership can make a difference.
“It was only 12 years ago the Geelong footy club had a debt of $9m and they were talking about moving the Geelong footy club away from Geelong,” he said.
“I reminded Jeff that it wasn’t that long ago that Hawthorn had to seek a merger with Melbourne becasue they were that far out and desperate. Have a look at the league ladder now, have a look at the Bulldogs’ situation,” he said.
“Things can turn around and that’s where you need new enthusiasm, a new business plan.”
“That’s where Andrew Demetriou last night to his credit said look; Paul MacNamee is the new CEO at Melbourne, we’ve got to give him some time to put his plan into place and thats where things just need to be put in perspective - as compared to the doomsayers saying Melbourne can’t sustain ten clubs.”
Smorgon agreed that while most observers saw relocation of a Victorian team as inevitable no one wanted it to happen to their club.
“Everyone thinks that everyone else should do it and that was what Jeff alluded to last night.”
FOOTYHEADS: Can Victoria continue to support ten AFL clubs? Should the Demons think about relocating to the Gold Coast?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Thursday, May 22nd, 2008 at 8:18 am
BY STEPHEN BAKER
THE AFL is set to strike a new collective bargaining agreement with club coaches.
The Commission and club CEO’s have approved the new deal in principle, but may not come into effect for another twelve months.
The new agreement, reported in today’s The Age newspaper, recognises annual leave entitlements, provides for a day off each week during the season as well as professional development leave to attend seminars and the like designed to improve their coaching skills.
League CEO, Andrew Demetriou, said that the new agreement attempted to mend perceptions of the a lack of support for coaches from the competition.
“As an industry, the coaches haven’t had the recognition that other areas of the game, such as players have received in the past.”
“They deserve to have some some consistent terms and conditions without us interfering in areas such as financial remuneration
Coaches Association boss, Neale Daniher welcomed the new agreement and said that he was pleased that the league was moving to improve its relationship with club leaders.
“Andrew agrees that this is truly the last frontier for the AFL in terms of its working relationships,” he said.
“The commission has agreed that the relationship needs to improve on several levels.”
FOOTYHEADS: Do you think that coaches deserve a better deal?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Friday, May 16th, 2008 at 1:39 pm
BY STEVE BAKER
ANDREW Demetriou has responded to reports published today on a push from the Melbourne football club to restrict access for the new Gold Coast franchise to players over twenty five.
Mr Demetriou said that while he wasn’t swayed by Melbourne’s proposal, the League would consider input from all sixteen clubs as part of the process of establishing player lists at new clubs earmarked for the Gold Coast and western Sydney.
“We’ve met the sixteen clubs and we met with the president’s last week,” he said today.
“A sub-committee has been formed with all the views of the clubs and they’ll come back with recommendations and I’m sure that they’ll consider Melbourne’s view.”
“I don’t necessarily think it’s a great idea , but that’s not up to me, it’s up to the subcommittee.
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Friday, May 16th, 2008 at 1:23 pm
BY STEPHEN BAKER
AFL CEO, Andrew Demetriou has shut the door on the possibility of a State of Origin clash for the 2009 season.
“It won’t happen next year I can assure you of that,” he said today.
Mr Demetriou said that although there was widespread support for a return of the concept following last weekend’s blockbuster ratings and a seventy thousand strong crowd, the league needed time to decide on what form representative football would take in the future.
“I don’t think we can kill it off,” he said.
“I think we’ve got to consider how it can be best used, how effective it can be if we have it, perhaps, on a cycle, but I’ll be interested in getting feedback from all our stake holders to see what ideas they’ve got,” he said.
“We certainly wouldn’t do it every year, we certainly wouldn’t do it every second year.”
“What format it takes, we’ll wait and see”
FOOTYHEADS: When should the next State of Origin game take place?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Thursday, May 15th, 2008 at 8:16 am
BY STEPHEN BAKER
FORMER North Melbourne defender and Shinboner of the Century, Glenn Archer, believes that Matthew Scarlett is a better full back than Stephen Silvagni.
In his weekly column for the Herald Sun Archer says he rates Scarlett the best full back because “he beats his man in the air, he marks one-on-one, he’s sensational on the deck, has clean hands when he gathers the ball and runs it out of defence.”
Stephen Silvagni, controversially named at full-back in the AFL’s Team of the Century ahead of a raft of contenders such as Fred Goldsmith, Jack Regan and David Dench, held his own for more than a decade and played on some of the greatest forwards in the history of the game.
Silvagni consistently managed to restrict AFL goals record holder Tony Lockett as well as Gary Ablett, Jason Dunstall, Wayne Carey Warwick Capper, John Longmire and Matthew Lloyd.
FOOTYHEADS: Who is the better full-back: Matthew Scarlett or Stephen Silvagni?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Thursday, May 15th, 2008 at 7:15 am
BY STEPHEN BAKER
THE AFL is poised to complete a stunning backflip on its decision to axe the traditional Grand Final pre-game motorcade.
Following a storm of criticism after last year’s pre-match entertainment, today’s Herald Sun has revealed that the popular motorcade to honour retiring players and Hall of Fame inductees is likely to return for this year’s big game.
It is understood that league powerbrokers were briefed by Peter Jones, the pre-match entertainment impresario, and that the return of the motorcade is considered a fait-accompli.
The AFL’s chief broadcasting and commerical officer, Gillon McLachlan confirmed that the league were considering a backflip yesterday saying that last year’s recognition of retiring players had been slammed by footy fans.
“I didn’t think the way we presented the retiring players worked very well and maybe the simplicity of the motorcade does work,” he said.
“People liked it and it is something we will look at revisiting.”
“People love it and understand it. We tried to over-complicate that and try something different,” he said.
FOOTYHEADS: Do you want the Grand Final pre-match motorcade to return?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Wednesday, May 14th, 2008 at 11:06 am
BY BRAD KLIBANSKY
THE AFL have introduced new laws to avoid further interchange chaos
Teams which field extra players because of confusion at the increasingly busy benches will be penalised with a free kick and 50-metre penalty, the league has announced.
The same penalty will apply if a club does not correctly notify the interchange steward of a change or if a player does not enter or leave the arena through the interchange area.
The new regulations will be introduced in Round 9.
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Wednesday, May 14th, 2008 at 7:00 am
BY STEPHEN BAKER
THE AFL has introduced tough new rules on team interchanges in the wake of the Sydney Swans extra man fiasco in round six this season.
Under the new rules, the emergency umpire will be able to award a free kick and a fifty-metre penalty for clubs who put an extra man on the ground.
If the team who puts an extra man on the ground has the ball in their attacking area, the ball will be brought back to the centre circle and then the fifty-metre penalty applied from there.
An interchange “holding area” will also be established where players from both sides who plan to rotate must wait with an AFL steward before entering the ground.
The centuries old rule of the opposing captain calling for a head count has been consigned to history.
A number of clubs have criticised the changes.
In today’s Herald-Sun, North Melbourne’s Donald McDonald labelled the changes as a “really positive move.”
Other clubs such as Collingwood described the new rules as “harsh”.
FOOTYHEADS: Do you support the new interchange rules?
Have your say, FootyHeads!
Friday, May 9th, 2008 at 3:58 pm
ANOTHER weekend, another chance to look at where the value is for punters.
ANDREW LOWTHER: “After last week’s tidy little collect it’s time to continue this run of good form.
I think that the Dream Team will win, and Lance will earn the Allen Aylett medal. So I’ll have $10 each on that double.”
Dream Team $10 head to head at $2.08
Lance Franlkin $10 at $15 to win the Allen Aylett medal.
STEVE BAKER: “I can’t go past the Big V.
$10 on the Vic’s to win between 1-39 points and $5 each on Judd, Big Jono Brown and Jimmy Bartel to win the Allen Aylet medal with Sportsbet.“
Victoria to win between 1-39 points = $2.45. Chris Judd and Jonathon Brown both at $17, Jimmy Bartel $15 to win the Allen Aylett medal.
Have your say, FootyHeads!
— Next Page �
|
|
