CSM: Chapter 6.
6. Creating History. A quick recap (for those who might not be in the know) – in 1980, the ladder comprised a final five. This involved the best finals system Australian Rules Football had ever seen, which worked like this: Week 1 1st gets the week-off – a rest, as a reward for finishing first. Qualifying Final: 2nd vs 3rd Elimination Final: 4th vs 5th. The loser is eliminated from the finals race. Week 2 Second Semi Final: 1st plays the winner of the Qualifying Final. The winner goes straight into the grand final. If 1st won (and they usually had an advantage as a side coming off a week’s…
CSM: Chapter 5.
5. Night Robbery. People are always saying that ‘the game’s changing.’ That’s partly correct. The game has evolved. Players have gotten fitter, stronger; their kicking (generally) sharper, longer; their capacity to play in various positions more flexible. So, in those ways, the game has changed. Fundamentally, though, the game itself has remained the same. It’s still about winning the ball, about being first to it, about pressuring the opposition when they have it, about finding your way to goal, and about kicking a better score than your opposition. None of that’s changed. None of it ever will. Attitudes have, though. Take State footy, for example. There was a time that…