CSM: Chapter 12.
12. Trading: Part II (1983 – 1985). In my earliest years of high school, other things diluted my focus from football: beginning to socialise, girlfriends, schoolwork, just that whole angry, independent teenage thing where you start thinking about stuff for yourself. For a short period there (two-three years), whilst I still followed Collingwood, the fanaticism plateaued. Of course, this could’ve had more to do with Collingwood themselves plateauing. I’d been introduced and apprenticeshipped to Collingwood during a period they were regularly making grand finals, as if it was their birthright, and a time they were headed by the t-shirted Tommy Hafey, and led by a group of players who were…
CSM: Chapter 10.
10. Cakewalk …? Finishing top in the Final Five system was a massive advantage. All you had to do was win one final and you were into the Grand Final. That meant, as a grand finalist, you’d played one game in three weeks, whilst your opponent would’ve played three. Your side had a chance to rest and your players had additional time and less duress to recover from injuries. On the flip side, your opposition was going through the wringer, playing hard finals filled with pressure, the threat of elimination constantly looming over them. It was brilliant, and the way finals should work: finishing top should come with benefits no…