AFL Season 2018

[Froggy]

Now I'm stuck with Hinkley for possibly another 4 years or so. A coach who'se achieved basically nothing and again I had to sit through another big game where he just sat there doing nothing. Worst of both worlds, didn't make the GF and he stays on an extended contract. We'll be back to impossible losses in no time.

[Ambrose Burnside]

That's two time Allan Jeans Senior Coach of the Year Award winner Ken Hinkley thank you very much

[Ambrose Burnside]

Draft day!

[Ambrose Burnside]

Luke Edwards (Pick 52)

The son of two-time premiership and 321-game Crow, Tyson Edwards, Luke has been touted as a promising talent for several years. . The second Edwards son to transition through the ranks at Glenelg and Henley High School, he burst onto the scene last year when he featured at the National Championships with South Australia as a 17-year-old. He was stationed down back for much of the carnival, where he demonstrated his ability to read the game and hit targets under pressure. He averaged 18.8 disposals, 4.3 marks, 3.3 tackles and 2.7 rebounds per-game. When given an opportunity to run through the midfield, Edwards showcased his capacity to extract the ball from stoppages and feed it to outside runners.

Isiah Winder (Pick 57)

Eaton Boomers product Isiah Winder improved his draft prospects with a stunning season playing for Peel Thunder's Colts team. He averaged 28 possessions, seven marks, five tackles and three inside 50s to finish eighth in the WAFL Colts Coaches and Award and win Peel’s Colts Players’ Player Award. His best performances for Peel’s Colts team came against Perth in round one (32 possessions, seven marks, seven tackles), East Fremantle in round two (26 possessions, seven tackles, five marks, two goals) and Swan Districts in round six (28 possessions, five inside 50s). He also played three games for Peel’s League team, where he hardly looked out of place playing multiple positions, including half-back. In 2019, he finished ninth in the Jack Clarke Medal and ninth in Peel Thunder’s Best and Fairest, capping off his year with an impressive Grand Final performance. The crafty Winder also took part in the West Australian Under 18 All-Star fixtures in 2020, further staking his claim as a draft prospect.

Did not expect to nab the son of Tyson Edwards! Winder was one I had read about as a potential Eagle pre-draft.

All in all I'm happy with the post-season. We didn't have a great draft hand, but we were able to bring in Zac Langdon from GWS and Alex Witherden from Brisbane. Very much targeted/moneyball type acquisitions to address needs without breaking the bank: forward pressure and elite disposal off half back. Langdon wanted to come home for family reasons (girlfriend has cancer ), while Witherden is from Victoria (Geelong), so we must have targeted him specifically because there's no go-home factor at play there.

Then in the draft we've brought in a big-bodied intercept defender with midfield aspirations (Elliot Yeo 2.0 ) and an exciting half forward who also has midfield aspirations.

We've also loaded up for next year as a deliberate strategy: 1x first rounder, 2x second rounders, 2x third rounders

[Ambrose Burnside]

In the rookie draft we went with Zane Trew, who sounds a bit like Matt Priddis in his bio (inside mid with clean hands who loves to tackle), and we've rookied Daniel Venables, a 2018 premiership player whose career since has been wrecked by injury (concussion).

[Vince]

I'm quite content with getting Saad as I always rated him as a high quality defender. Zac Williams I'm less sure about but from all reports is a really good pick up as well.

As for the kids, well they are all speculative but I do hope that all of them achieve great levels of success.

Going to be a very interesting 2021 AFL season that's for sure. What capacity will they allow into the grounds? Will another possible wave of Covid ruin the season? Will a vaccine save us all? Can my blues finally make finals again and potentially do some damage? I cannot wait to find out!

[Ambrose Burnside]

Oh no Froggy your man Hinkley's signed a contract extension :O

[Ambrose Burnside]

WEST Coast players have agreed to higher pay cuts across the board after being assured the club won't be saving money to splash on high-priced recruits at the end of the year.

In a move that has been praised for its efficiency and equitable nature, the Eagles have accepted a seven per cent pay cut across the list.

West Coast made the decision to double the average pay cut across the board to ensure that after one year the club will be able to right its salary cap position without stretching the pain into further seasons.

The club's professional handling is understood to have included consultation with the Eagles' leadership group and senior players, and an acceptance throughout the playing list to share the financial pain.

Rookie-listed players and first-year recruits at West Coast will remain on their standardised contracts, without pay decreases.

Double the cost, half the pain: Eagles agree to bigger pay cut

Will be interesting if big egos at other clubs screw things over for them

I've heard Geelong players have agreed to a more modest 3.5% pay cut across the board. How that will affect them going forward, I don't know.

[Froggy]

Oh no Froggy your man Hinkley's signed a contract extension :O

I'm dealing with delusional Port supporters who think that after 9 years Hinkley's gonna suddenly deliver. If we couldn't win it, let alone make the grand final with all the vic teams stuck in qld for 3 months, playing a prelim at home with fans then I can't imagine him making it to one with normal home and away games again.

[Ambrose Burnside]

Oh no Froggy your man Hinkley's signed a contract extension :O

I'm dealing with delusional Port supporters who think that after 9 years Hinkley's gonna suddenly deliver. If we couldn't win it, let alone make the grand final with all the vic teams stuck in qld for 3 months, playing a prelim at home with fans then I can't imagine him making it to one with normal home and away games again.

As far as I'm concerned the Richmond vs Port Prelim was the Grand Final.

[Ambrose Burnside]

Reports coming out this morning that Willie Rioli will cop a backdated two year suspension and will be available for selection in August. Can train with the club before that. ASADA won't appeal.

I was fully expecting four years and career over. There must be extenuating circumstances around how the test was taken. Urine substitution is considered the same as taking performance enhancing drugs (as it should be). But given the lenient suspension and how long they took to announce it (18 months FFS), something must have happened.

I don't believe Willie took performance enhancing drugs, he's a pot smoker, but that's beside the point.

My Willie is hard.

[Ambrose Burnside]

So Willie did the pee swap trick twice

gg West Coast legal team

Two weeks until Round 1. Optus will have 75% capacity in time for the West Coast vs Gold Coast game on the 21st. 75% capacity will also mean Freo home games are essentially unaffected by the limit (outside of derbies), but it will affect the ability of all Eagles members to make it.

[Ambrose Burnside]

*fap fap fap*

Shuey does his hammy after inexplicably still being on the ground with less than 10 min to go, in his comeback game from a double hammy after inexplicably still being on the ground after doing his first.

endfap

The Eagles' medical staff got their degrees from YouTube antvaxxers.

[Ambrose Burnside]

Thread's been quiet.

AFL has survived for another week after tonight's tribunal decision. Fuck me.

[Ambrose Burnside]

Well, that was a ridiculous last round

My primary interest now lies in the possibility of an Optus Stadium Grand Final. Have already spoken to Mrs Burnside, will do whatever I can to get tickets if it does eventuate. Even if I have to buy an overpriced package of some sort.

Might never get this opportunity again.

I'm not the biggest soccer fan, but a few years back Man U and Leeds played a preseason match at Optus. I made the last minute decision to go and it was an amazing night. So glad I went and saw two Premier League teams (major rivals too!) play each other (Leeds had just been promoted). Might be the closest I ever get to watching a real Premier League match. But sourcing tickets to a Perth Grand Final will be the ultimate.

As for the Eagles, we won't sack Simpson because we're not a loser club like Carlton, but if he doesn't overhaul an outdated and uncompetitive gameplan over the preseason, and we see some real strides made in 2022, he's a dead man walking

[Peppermint Lounge]

On one hand the Dogs can't possibly lose against Essendon as the shame would haunt them for generations. On the other if I had my pick for Essendon's elimination final I would've picked the Dogs on a losing streak.

[Ambrose Burnside]

Now I'm stuck with Hinkley for possibly another 4 years or so. A coach who'se achieved basically nothing and again I had to sit through another big game where he just sat there doing nothing. Worst of both worlds, didn't make the GF and he stays on an extended contract. We'll be back to impossible losses in no time.

Sack Hinkley.

[Froggy]

Now I'm stuck with Hinkley for possibly another 4 years or so. A coach who'se achieved basically nothing and again I had to sit through another big game where he just sat there doing nothing. Worst of both worlds, didn't make the GF and he stays on an extended contract. We'll be back to impossible losses in no time.

Sack Hinkley.

Let's see. We have been playing like ass the last 8 months and then pull out a game where we haven't played that in control and style in years. I'm all onboard for sure just been burnt for 10 years with this guy and we were in the same spot last year. I think we'll roll through to the GF and should win it from here though.

[Ambrose Burnside]

Played like arse for 8 months?

You finished the season as the in-form side (5 straight wins), in second place, only 2 points behind Melbourne, and trounced Geelong to set up a home Prelim. This after finishing on top last year. If this is playing like arse, I would hate to see what a Port side playing well would do

I think we'll roll through to the GF and should win it from here though.

Port have really only played one bad game all year. Against the Eagles

[Peppermint Lounge]

Second quarter Weightman frees were garbage but they paled as the second half dragged on. Otherwise it was a decent season for Essendon given early predictions.

[Ambrose Burnside]

Second quarter Weightman frees were garbage but they paled as the second half dragged on. Otherwise it was a decent season for Essendon given early predictions.

I wish the umps would ping the Doggies for all their throws. Absolute bullshit. Did lol when the umpire finally paid one ... with about 2 min to go.

Don't even have Clarko around anymore to take Gil out for coffee to talk about it.

[Vince]

Now I'm stuck with Hinkley for possibly another 4 years or so. A coach who'se achieved basically nothing and again I had to sit through another big game where he just sat there doing nothing. Worst of both worlds, didn't make the GF and he stays on an extended contract. We'll be back to impossible losses in no time.

Sack Hinkley.

Let's see. We have been playing like ass the last 8 months and then pull out a game where we haven't played that in control and style in years. I'm all onboard for sure just been burnt for 10 years with this guy and we were in the same spot last year. I think we'll roll through to the GF and should win it from here though.

Honestly, as a blues fan I would take this year off you in exchange for ours! We are so starved of ANY success it’s now gone beyond a joke…

[Ambrose Burnside]

Carlton's inability to learn from the past is just mindblowing.

Malthouse, who coached the Blues in 54 games from 2013 to 2015, said a key difference he noticed when arriving at the club after stints at the Bulldogs, West Coast and Collingwood was a lack of “forward thinking” and communication.

“I was staggered, and I still am, at the Carlton board’s preoccupation with past players and past premierships. It drags its VFL success around like a ball and chain,” the triple-premiership winning coach wrote in the Herald Sun.

“I was reminded in one (regular) board meeting that the Blues had won 16 premiership cups. I quickly informed them that they had in fact won just a single AFL premiership (1995) which put the club in the low range for number of flags won since the AFL announced itself in 1990.

Teague's a good coach. Would love him back at the Eagles. He spent three years here before leaving when Simpson was appointed.

But we seem to have targeted Jarrod Schofield from Port and Robert Harvey from Collingwood. Excellent decisions I think.

Hickmott has left to join Sam Mitchell at Hawthorn, and there are rumours that Jaymie Graham is heading off to boost his CV elsewhere after apparently coming close but missing out on the Collingwood job.

Massive offseason for a lot of underperforming clubs.

[Froggy]

Played like arse for 8 months?

You finished the season as the in-form side (5 straight wins), in second place, only 2 points behind Melbourne, and trounced Geelong to set up a home Prelim. This after finishing on top last year. If this is playing like arse, I would hate to see what a Port side playing well would do

I think we'll roll through to the GF and should win it from here though.

Port have really only played one bad game all year. Against the Eagles

Look who we were beating in those 5 games and how. We were abysmal in a couple of them but we were lucky that it was against completely shite teams like Adelaide, Carlton, St Kilda, Collingwood and with a dodgy GWS thrown in. We beat the Bulldogs who were woefully out of form too so it felt like we Port supporters weren't really sure wtf we were gonna get last week. Considering we'd gone multiple times against the crap teams managing goalless quarters and a couple of 1 goal halves, we weren't exactly ripping it up. Add to that whenever we were actually challenges the whole season, in Hinkley fashion we'd lost by trying harderer in the same disappointing manner we have been losing to the better teams the last 8 years.

It's still the concern coming into the Prelim and GF if we make it is he doesn't do any game day adjustments like ever since 2014. Last week felt the best we have played since the finals of 2014 when they were all in and solid everywhere and attacking but ask any real Port supporter, not a facebook happy clapper and none of us were confident of what we were gonna get. I also don't understand why it's OK for us to be fine with a guy who'se delivered us fuck all for 10 years because we were shit a decade ago but more than OK for any other team to turf an underperforming coach after a couple of years without any outrage. If we'd sacked him in 2016/7 we'd have been back in the finals and contending more than just the last 2 years when COVID saved his ass last year. I'll forgive and forget with a Premiership but if he doesn't win it then I want him out and someone else in regardless if we make the GF, this is his last hurrah and it hurts to think of all the wasted chances this group should have had but didn't get there due to the decisions coming from the top. I want Boak and Gray etc to win a premiership and this is their last chance.

[Froggy]

Sack Hinkley.

Let's see. We have been playing like ass the last 8 months and then pull out a game where we haven't played that in control and style in years. I'm all onboard for sure just been burnt for 10 years with this guy and we were in the same spot last year. I think we'll roll through to the GF and should win it from here though.

Honestly, as a blues fan I would take this year off you in exchange for ours! We are so starved of ANY success it’s now gone beyond a joke…

Years of shit admin, if I were a member of the Blues you should have been burning the place down a decade ago to get results. Sacking Teague was too early but new President wants to make his mark with a big new fish.

Also interesting, no one wants the Collingwood job. So much for the best job in the land.