The big Footy issues from every angle, dissected by a team that follows the game closer than anyone else wherever you are around the planet. This is your ultimate guide to the AFL. This is the Fox Footy Podcast.
We've hit the cold depths of winter and this is when the pretenders and contenders are truly separated. It's why the all important power rankings are so crucial at this time of the year as we attempt to get a firm grasp of those premiership contention trends. Will go through the eighteen team rankings, dissect all the big issues in fair or fast, and there's a lot of them. This week the Mailbag, the wisdom of Kevin Sheedy, the expert tips,
and a lot more. On the Fox Footy Podcast, Ben Waterworth with you as is Crow's Comma belivea Max Law. Hello MAXI.
They won a close game and used up all of their terrible, terrible losses in the space of about twelve minutess what an incredible Friday night.
That was close losses over how many forever about.
Seven dec I think somehow it's quite impressive.
It was a very good effort from the Crows. We'll talk about that very shortly. Also joining us is our hard working night our a bit flat after the Tigers disappointment from Saturday. Jack Jovanovski Hello, JJ.
Hello, Well, it's good to be back. It wasn't It wasn't pleasant viewing on.
On Saturday, though first quarter was okay.
It was promising, too promising. It builds up the expectation.
It's quite some thing to be in the office when you get when Jack's doing Richmond team tips and he particularly and he confidently.
Nail it every week. Who's coming in and out of the side.
It's not Richmond enough because of course he's a very good objective reporter. Well, but no, his knowledge of some very fringe Richmond plays he is quite astounding.
Well, I mean i'd like to think that I get close sometimes. I mean there are a few.
Did you not get the exact four ins and outs a week or two ago?
I did, and I let everyone know about it.
Yeah, it was good.
But it doesn't sound like you're being because I brought it up this time. So it's fine.
Just apologies for no record last week and this delayed drop. I was sick last week and then we initially we had a sort of replacement team ready to go. Sea was also ready to host.
Apparently Zita has quit on us like three times in a row. Let's be honest here. Look, I'm not saying that he needs to be dropped for team morale reasons, just permanently to the reserves, but I think it's a consideration.
Anyway. We're here and we're recording, and that's the most
important thing. Just a quick word on the Hall of Fame last night, I can't remember in probably since working here, just a such an emotional is not the right word, but there was just so much content, I suppose in last night in terms of the wonderful storylines of Aaron Phillips and Daisy Pierced getting in in the same class, and of course that beautiful moment where Aaron paid tribute to her dad, Greg Phillips is also in the Hall of Fame as well, So that was that was fantastic,
The absolute sportsman's like speech from Peter Daly, who was clearly the most in demand person post event, and Gary was just Gary, like he just totally own the room, like it was his own sportsman night. But we sort of got the rollercoaster of emotions there.
It was a fantastic knight, and so the Peter Daly one was the best one for me because I haven't really heard of him. To be honest, I'm not a sandful expert. I know some of my footy history, but a lot of it. But that's why ideally you induct these older players when they have the chance to be at the event, give a speech, tell the stories they've been telling their grandkids and everyone else for fifty years, but they've reversed them perfectly and they can do all
these incredible lines. Jerry did a fantastic job interviewing them. He always does and gets the best out of them. It's a fantastic night and you can understand why so many of the people who are involved always say it's the best night on the footy calendar, because it would be so much fun to be around that vibe.
Nick Revolt and Luke Coodge also inducted as well. Revolt well, it was of eligible a couple of years ago, but was in person, yes this time. And of course Luke Codge the fresh guy into the Hall of Fame. But let's go max into the power rankings, where we've got Collingwood and Geelong at the top and then we've got who's Adelaide over Brisbane, Brisbane over at Brisbane over Adelaide despite the result on the weekend, but so did we learn do we learn much about either team in from that result?
So I thought what Matthew Nick said after that game was absolutely perfect, both in his suit of your narrative birth perfectly, but I think it was also an incredibly honest admission that we were lucky because we deserve some luck, we will do some luck, and therefore we can't go out of this night saying oh yeah, we're totally fine. We're a contender now. Like the simplified narrative is okay, they beat the Braining Premiere is great, win Adelaide's finally
for real, But you know there was some fortune in it. Yes, they kicked in accurately at the start of the game, and yes they had a role in Brisbane not kicking a goal on the fourth quarter, But clearly Brisbane had their chances and could have probably should have won.
And I think Chris Fagan, as respectfully as he possibly could suggest said postgame, we lost that game.
Yeah, I think you said we should have won. Yeah, So, which I think is totally fair. So if anything, I came out of that game slightly more confident in Brisbane, who I was worried about because they hadn't had that many great games and the Essendon game at home the week before was less than impressive. But no, they showed a lot on the road and tricky conditions against another
good team. But Adelaide lived up to the standard at least of that game, and it was a quality watch, which is what we wanted and not what we got. Sometimes over the last couple of weeks.
Yea, if the Crows win, are sorry. If the Lions win. The disposal camp by seventy two, jack clearances by nearly twenty, contestable by nearly thirteen by thirteen, inside fifties by thirteen, and I think uncontested marks by eighteen, which we know is their go to style. It's say Brisbane wins that, maybe not nine times out of ten, but ten times out of ten. So there's a lot of learnings for the Lions to come away with.
I think there's there's a lot of good in that. But then also Max, I would ask you, are you concerned about the inability to capitalize on that dominance because we've seen a few times this year now and you know, Kingy's and these kinds of people will question the Danaher absence and Ty Gallup came into the time, so you're getting a few different a few different looks at different sort of forward mixes. He concerned at all about their inability to actually capitalize.
Yeah, yeah, that's actual thing I think looking I think it was on first crack they showed that last year they were fifth for forward efficiency in terms of turning inside fifty into goals, twelve or thirteenth this year. So that's a genuine drop off, and logically Danaher's absence as one of the better key forwards in the comp is going to play a role in that. You know, they're nine and three with a draw in a good position.
They have got a hard run home, so some tough games and if they drop those, they could be in trouble of dropping in risk of dropping out of the top four. But I think that that's a flow that is fixable because you can just have sometimes a very efficient day and w and that can win you a final. So it's not the most devastating one, but it's a concern in the same way that I've been concerned about
the lines for a little while. The percentage is still not the worst in the top eight anymore because a few teams have had some troubles, but it's certainly the worst amongst the top five. Although I look at the top four in the ladder now Collingwood, Brisbane, Adelaide, Gelong that for the first time sounds like the right top four right. That feels like the four best teams are in there right now.
So two teams who are not in there are Hawthorne and the Bulldogs who played as we record six six days ago, long time ago. Was this a flinch reaction though, Maxie Hawthorne went from seventh to fifth and the Dog went from third to sixth.
No, So, as I've talked about the big Bulldogs believe, I'm the world's biggest Bulldogs believer the BBB.
Yes, it's be cute.
They have done quite a lot right this season, but not beating good teams is a problem. Being one and six against the top nine it means something. It doesn't mean nothing, even if they've been competitive in every one of those games, so you have to take that into account. It's gonna hurt them on the ladder, like there are three games out of the top four. Now they can make that up over their last eleven games, but it
will be tricky, so that is a problem. They're going to end up having the same season of elimination final deciding the year and either they lose that or they go all the way to the Grand Final based.
On history the Sorry Jack they play and kild Her on Thursday night the Bulldogs. You're at the game for Hawthorne Dogs as well. Did you come away from that more glass half empty about the bulldogs prospects for this year?
I don't think so. I think it said more about Hawthorne and their response, like they really upped their intensity
and pressure from the week before. But on the Bulldogs, I think it's interesting because we hear about Bevo and how he's quoted as a once in a lifetime coach, and I think it's interesting with Sam Darcy to come back this weekend is when or will he ever truly consider moving Aaron Norton back to defense, because if there are issues in key defense and someone like Norton, who has great hands, tried.
Out key defender is a junior come right.
Through Sam Darcy's back He's going to be the focal point of regardless of whether Norton's fort or not. So yeah, and again King's being honest. This is like the big magnet move which everyone is sort of wonders about, but we never see it.
We talked about it for years. Basically, I feel like when they've had their issues last year, they fixed it by moving Rory Lob back, and Lob has had an okay year, but not the year that he had in the second half of last season, so that's their problem.
And he's had to move Lob foward during games in the second half to just to get some scoring impact because we're still not getting it from Norton, and I think Norton being a non factor last Days and Night was a big part of why they lost. So it's just something I wonder about.
I think it's their scoring has not been a problem this year. Is the thing the defense has, So that's the main thing they need to fix. If you want to sacrifice a little bit of scoring force and defense, I think that would make some sense. He does feel I'm not gonna say he's being stubborn about it, but Luke Beverytt has his intricacies. He has his ways, such as playing Ride and Gardener on the weekend. I know he has an incredible VFL form, but it felt like
a very oh that's the bevau thing to do. And then Ryan Gardner has, you know, a down night, let's say. So those are the sort of things that you have to deal with. He's trying to find a solution.
Clearly.
With Darcy in there, maybe it gives him more leverage, more options. But if they don't do something, they're fighting for one of those spots in the bottom half of the eight.
Again, that was their lowest score of the year as well.
It was their first properly bad game for the year, so we can't panic.
They weren't getting anywhere near as low score of that I reckon for the rest of the.
Year, certainly not at Marvel.
So the Hawks response was strong and we were expecting, and the Port Adelaide response was strong against the Giants.
Yeah, it felt like a completely different team after the buy, didn't they?
So the Giants are now there? Are they still in your power? They just eighth?
Then they're still ninth. They're ninth because who else am I going to put above them? It's not like there's anyone really that convincing in the bottom nine. There's more.
I think we've said a couple of times in his podcast this year there's a chasm between the top eight nine and the rest this year. But Jack, what's up with the Giants in particular, because they were the most common Premiership tip amongst I think it was thirty five Fox Footy pundits pre season and they are at the moment in some doubt you'd think to play finals.
Yes, I was one of them to tip the Giants of the flag. I guess since round six you've seen a drop off in a few key areas and have had some key injuries. I think Brenton Daniel's missing a lot of footy has been He's not great, obviously, Jake Stringer has hasn't had anywhere near the kind of start to his Jedibirst ten years he would have liked. Josh Kelly's been injured, Finn Callahan, so there are clearly some absences.
But after round six you see massive drop offs in like their ability to score off intercept from clearance and even converting their chances once they go forward. So it's a lot of the midfield has been a worry and of course like you have a few names missing there, but you just worry about their ability to actually score from clearances. Generate clearances be first at a footy. So they've been really poor in the last six rounds especially.
And if it was bad last year though, like they were bad from clearances last year and they overcame it and should have beaten the two eventual Grand finals in those finals. So you just imagine how worried we would be about them, even more so if they didn't have Sam Taylor and Jack Buckley.
The interesting thing about them, I think is Adam Kingsley really brought that Richmond style of play from his time as an assistant there, and you see the same sort of surge mentally, which is a lot of post clearance, a lot of post clearance, first of the ball pressure after the clearance. Richmond went never a really big senate clearance or contested ball team, but they were always like a post clearance team and territory after the clearance.
And the care attack is what makes the Giants look so dangerous when they get on top of someone.
But they haven't looked dangerous in the last six weeks, especially trying to move the ball from the back.
Half from a just under the job. To the power rankings, Melbourne's ahead of Carlton now and I think after I was at the game on Monday, great spectacle as always, and the D's were brave and Collingwood. I didn't come away from that game thinking Collingwood had gone down the Premiership pecking order or anything like that. It was actually almost brilliant that they found another way to win, which was what Craig mccraye's stress afterwards as well, is that that was as gutsy as it as it gets. But
Melbourne was super impressive. Arguably should have won the game, Probably should have won the game.
Actually, yeah, it's at at very least a coin flip. Yeah, that was Melbourne playing up to the standard of Collingwood, I would say, and that's why I've put them in. I don't think Melbourn's going to make the eight. I think their draws too hard and they've already lost.
Eight games, so they to go through their draw because because that at the moment they are playing better than a lot of the teams competing for that seventh Feith spot.
They've won five of their last eight and they should have won two of them. They probably you could say they should have been in Collingwood, you know, close games, thesecents happened point game, and then the Saint Kilda game as well if they hadn't kicked seven twenty one they definitely could have and should have won that, and then the Hawthorne game, which is their biggest loss of this patch. They are in it completely at three quarter time.
It's the fourth quarter blowout.
So they've had a really good eight weeks, are really like a top eight quality eight weeks. The zip and five start and some close losses and bad kicking is going to cost them a spot in the finals. I don't know if you're pulling up.
I've got to here Port Adelaide. They play in Adelaide this weekend, one of the.
Two really tough games to tip this week too one.
Then a couple of tough ones Gold Coast in Gold Coast and then Melbourne in Adelaide. So they're on the road for three consecutive games playing the other weeks.
Yes, no, so that's the problem. They've got a lot of top eight teams left, so they're going to have to take some scalps. And they've played well enough to take those gaps if they played like they did against colling.
With you say they were playing Melbourne, Yeah, no, No, they're playing the Adelaide Crows.
In Adelaide, Adelaide, That's what I mean. In the City of Churches Ring the else.
Yes.
So look, yeah, if they're good enough to take their chances, they'll get there. But I think realistically the only team that can make it from the bottom ten is Carlton, right because I think Carlton, while impressive for only one quarter against Essendon, was pretty impressive in that one quarter. And they've also got the drawer to do it. I think they've only got two games left against the top nine.
So yeah, So their next five weeks, so they've got West Coast in Perth this weekend, then North Melbourne at BMCG then they fly to Port Adelaide at the Fly to Adelaide to take on the Power. Then those two top two. There's top games against Collingwood and the Brisbane, the Brisbane games at Marvel Stadium.
And then they've got some more winnable ones after.
That Melbourn, Hawthorne, Fremantle, Gold Coast, Port Adelaide, Essendon.
There are enough games that Carlton at their best can win. You know, they're maxing out at like thirteen wins, so you're sneaking in. But if the Giants are going to keep falling over, if the board dogs are going to keep stuffing up, if the Dockers do what they did last year, there's some spots available. That's the only realistic scenario I can see. So many teams, they've already got so many losses. You can basically only a four to ten losses and there are most teams in that bottom
ten are already on eight losses. Yeah, so you need to have a miracle run. It says why those last few years we've gotten used to it almost but they're the exceptions against the rule, not the rule.
And two brave performances from Essen in the last couple of weeks and you've got them in the bottom four.
Well, Port Adelaid did win, so I did to move them up. You know, it's always tough this ranking businesses. Their midfield has had some really good periods in both of those games against Brisbane and Carlton the second and third quarters they've got on top of those games. So it's a year of not contending. We know that's sort of the point of this year. It's why they did nothing the Bombers in the trade period and the off season,
apart from drafting Isaac CaCO. But they're showing signs. Defensively, they've been better, not great, but better. And the midfield has showed some signs too, even though Zach Merrit's been moved all over the ground, like playing forward I think for the entire fourth quarter on Sunday nights. So they're doing things, they're trying things. There's reasons to be optimistic about them, even if they're not going to do a
lot of this year though. Have you said that they've won as many games the Bulldogs, who I love?
So you do love the Bulldogs? That is very true. Hey Jack, did you enjoy helping cover the West Coast v. North Melbourne Sunday?
It was a great watch, really good watch. I actually felt because I really like Andrew mcqualter, and I felt really bad for him because, like with the amount of territory dominance I had, it was just like a really hard watch as a neutual, let alone a fan of the Eagles.
Classic bottom three game, wasn't it?
It was like they realized they weren't playing at an AFL ground, so they didn't need to play an AFL standard.
Will hold your fire on the south West, will save it or save your bullets for this segment and.
Now on the Fox Foody podcast, another strong edition of Australia's favorite segment, Fair or Fast.
Big edition of Fair or Fast Strong Melbourne theme off the top, oh bias Max Max Gorn biting back at Stephen May was a tipping point for him after publicly carrying his club for many years.
Fair or Fast tipping point for Max Horn. Yes, No, I think that's a fast. I think this was just sort of relatively healthy player behavior between two veterans of a club.
Don't often see a captain push a teammate though.
No, I can understand being frustrated in that moment, and I think I could also understand getting frustrated with Stephen May. End of sentence. He could be a difficult teammate at times, I imagine based on what we've seen of him. So it's look, these things happen. It played in a very public way because of the time of the game and the platform of the game and all of that stuff.
And also the fact that cameras captured the incident and then captured Max walking straight out as well.
But the best thing about it, honestly was how he has responded ever since. One of the classiest in the game, like the doing multiple interviews afterwards with multiple different media outlets, going on radio on Monday morning is usual spot talking about it pretty openly Tuesday morning. Brother, He's just fantastic with that stuff, so he really diffused it quite an.
Jack Simon Goodwin's winging over how Ed Langdon was adjudicated after hard time alfter halftime was sour grapes fair or fast fair?
I think it was sour grapes because I think it was a pretty pretty hard tag in the first half and I can only recall maybe one or two free kicks that he gave away in the first half, So I think he was right in this sense that they might have shifted the adjudication a little bit in the second half. But it was a really tight tag. And you spoke to Billy Frampton who said, yes, one of
the hardest tags he's seen in person. Yes, he did say that, and yeah, I mean you could see on the broadcast and like our guys noted, it wasn't just Langdon who it was everyone from Melbourne who really tried to put a body in him when they could, and Langdon made sure to let him to let Nick know about it when he would have the odd stuff up.
But it's obviously hard to You can never actually fully quell his influence, but you can contain it, and I think Langdon did it as good as he could have possibly done.
I don't think I've seen Ed Langdon tag before, but I'm actually quite enjoying this approach from Simon Goodwin where he's picking players from his team to play run with slash tagging roles based on their strengths against specific opposition players at the moment. So he saw there a different guy Oliver go to Newcombe at Hawthorne a few weeks ago. We saw Langdon go to Deskos because he's a bit more of that running player as well. And Jack Viney
and Trent Rivers have also done run with jobs. Sparrow has done a job in the past. I'm not sure in this sort of specific four or five week block when Melbourne have gone on a bit of a run. But it's different from Simon Goodwin that he's just turning to a tager but only for maybe one game this season.
He is arguably since round six, the coach of the year.
It's fair statement.
Like the way that the Melbourne has turned around at season and those sorts of moves, the unique options that they've found, it's really impressive. I just like that we've finally come to a point where we're saying Collinwood deserves more free kicks, because no one's complained about that all year, have they?
That they get a few max if Geelong can fit another two star players in their salary cap. Fans have every right to be skeptical, fair or fast.
This is this was it. I mean, it was spoken on TV, so it's not clickbait, but it was the most baity comment humanly possible to make. Even though I do not doubt the veracity of the report.
Mitch Cleary quoted Steve Hawking from a coterie pregame function.
Well, and we know that club figures have no reason to exaggerate to the coterie, do they?
And Chris Scott. Chris Scott was on soon after the report aired and certainly did not deny it.
There's a realistic scenario where he is talking about over the next few years Delong's will have some cap space opening up because of Dangerfield and duncan gu through the likes camera in the club. Yes, hopefully Cameron's got more than two or three years left, but you know at some point so maybe in that context that would open up some space. But also you can always do funny things to the salary cap, and you can always move salaries around and stuff.
But Chris Scott said, in this competition where they try to equalize a much as possible, it can be a real competitive advantage if you can use your salary cap wisely.
And Geelong has clearly done so in numerous ways. There are questions over said things that I don't think they've been sanctioned other than what appear to be some looming fines over things not being disclosed. Yep. So like AfOR W player getting a car, so you know, normal stuff. Every club has this sort of stuff. Gelong just gets a lot more attention because of the appearance of abnormalities, let's say, because you know, it's like the sleepy hollow
perception of people not actually investigating the club. I think people look into the minnow.
Speaking of the Cats and big name players, Jack Bailey Smith really didn't need to host Andrew Dillon at his abode. Fair or fast.
I think that's fair. I don't know. I don't have a massive opinion on this, but did he offer?
Is that what I texted him a deal? Come over? What a chat?
I don't know if it was, he would have directly texting, But it does sound like Bailey's played a bit of a role in initiating.
Being willing to be transparent. It can't be a bad thing. And I mean he could have met it the club or maybe AFL HQ. But he's He's got a nice property out there wed Hope, so it's a nice acreage.
From what I recall, Max Southwest Western Australia just put in a compelling case for the twentieth AFL license, fair or fast.
I think if anything, West Coast North would have made them withdraw from contention.
I'm talking more about hands Over Ah.
What a odd name. I'm sure it's named after a person.
Yes, I think it is.
Look, I think it's a great option for the twentieth team, and I've long thought that w A should host the twentieth team. The problem is WA doesn't want the twentieth team. The WAFC doesn't want the twentieth team because they run West Coast and Fremantle and love the sort of duopola that they have over the state and the strong financial situation they're in. So I think that would be a
major problem to overcome. But in terms of actual realistic options, Camera's off the table because the AFOL doesn't want to cannibalize the Giants zone. It wants to give them Western Sydney and Canbra, So you can't put a team in Cambra, which would be the best option otherwise.
So I immediately think then of Nord.
I think the problem is that putting a third team in Essay is like putting a third team in WA, but every element is worse other than the history of normal.
I was about to say, though, it's because it sounds like in if you're putting a team in southwest Western Australia, it feels like it might have to be a new ish team. I don't know if you're a team coming, but nor would would be an established covers a bit like to the Dolphins, though they're not the Redcliffe Dolphins. It's got a lot of Redcliffe vibe.
Yeah, the only benefit it would have is the fact that it has the established brand and established fan base and stuff like that. But otherwise Adelaide does not have as much money as much population like they have Adelaide Over. You're going to play some great games, but it's still
a smaller area. Whether you're putting the third team in Perth itself or you're giving it that actual location of the Southwest, which I think Bunbury is what two hours say, it's a fair drive yet so it's not right nearby, so it is actually a different location which differentiates the team itself. That gives it a location. You still play the Derby's or the Derby's in Adoptus and they play their other games at hands Over if you read it a lot of that or something else, whatever's realistic. I
don't know. I think that's still the best option because there's just so much money there. There's clearly an inbuilt massive audience for footy that you can continue to build on. I mean, given the waiting lists and things like that they have for tickets there, it just makes all the sense in the world.
Nice part of the world, Bumbrey, good place to watch the sunset because it's right on the yes right western coast of so I have been there before, and it is a longer drive from Perth to Bumbrey than it needs to drive from Melbourne CBD to Geelong.
But that's okay, and it's a growing also part of the state.
I believe Jack scrap Opening Round and bring in Northern Round, fair or fast.
I go fair. I'm tended to say fast, but I think it's fair. I think that the concept that Brownie raised makes heaps of sense.
On the couch from Monday night, I believe.
Yeah, yeah, So scrap Opening Around and instead at maybe like around fifteen or sixteen round a band.
Almost now is time for holiday school holidays, term two school holidays.
Basically, and you can still have those those games hosted by those four Northern clubs at this point of the year without I guess, compromising the way the latter looks in the opening portion of the season and upsetting whoever. Because the good point he raised was in comparison to Las Vegas and the NRL is that was he called it unifying, whereas whereas Opening Around has sort of device horizes. Yeah, it's been a divisive sort of like I personally liked it,
like I don't really have an issue with it. I mean, it's makes that latter a bit hard to read.
But you know, surely it's annoying for fantasy as well, or you just not play it. I don't know how it works.
Fantasy is annoying enough on sign they're worrying about we're worrying about round. But yeah, like I could also, but like doing it at this point in the year I think makes plenty of sense too, because over two weeks makes it. I mean, like five weeks is a drag.
I think that was the other point was that the buys I just stretched out way too long at this point over five weeks this season.
You can see why because I want to have a minimum seven games one of the five weeks, so you're not missing much footy, which I also can appreciate, and like I'm not complaining either, but yeah, if you can get it over and done with within a fortnight and you can still have that like Northern States Celebration sort of time period and you can get fans up and about in that part of the country at that at this time of the year, then it's a positive.
Whether I think is normally better if you channel you're in a rob Jail.
There well because comparative to Melbourne, the weather would better, which is the important thing for the people who they want to get flying up to Queensland. Like Collegood wants to sell all its home games to the Gold Coast anyway around that time of year, so they always seem to play them up there. I think they do on a Friday night this year it's Friday. The other point on that, the idea that the buys make the season drag and we lose the momentum in the season. I
feel like that would happen anyway. No one's going to pay full incredible attention to footy for twenty five weeks. It's just unrealistic. So there's always going to be a middle dip and then it peaks back up once we get closer to the finals.
So just because we're so accustomed to like a nine game round and then once you take a couple of games out, that's the sense of losing momentum.
Does a second Saturday night game really make things that more exciting? Is it doing that? Much? Like I understand you'll have a few fan bases who dip out for a week or two when the teams have a buy, but I really don't think. I think that's just a natural thing in the dead of winter anyway, that we're going to lose a little bit more interest.
Max Fixing the MRO matrix must be Greg Swan's top priority, fair or fast.
Well, I haven't looked at every priority, but it's certainly up there. Wouldn't it be definitely fair? There's there's so much you can do to make changes that I think a lot of people agree with. There's this perception now as well that they're making purely outcome based decisions. I think a lot of it is about communication, explaining what
they're doing, explaining why they're doing it. I know Michael Christian does do some radio interviews, usually with Jared Yes, but getting out there and explaining what the process is would help a little bit in terms of people internalizing what the MRO is doing, the narratives that get pushed
out there. But also just changing it so that there are more buttons and switches to pull, hull and push and whatever would be really nice because we know that Paulka is getting three weeks is going to keep getting brought up. It had to be zero or three, and we want to have somewhere in the middle that would be nice, and changing the rules in some way would allow them to do that, although, as I've said before, you're just making more gray area so people will complain it no matter.
This has also come about because of the Tom Stewart bump on Noah Anderson. If it's a centimeters either side, that we're looking at a completely different case here.
So Jack and I were talking about this on the weekend. I believe it was in talking points on the Philosophy website. Yes, the problem with this incident is that he didn't do anything wrong, and that you felt like he should have done something wrong with what he did. It felt because it was so close to being such a devastating injury slash suspension for a player who has formed in this area too. Let's not forget that against Richmond. So was that Pristia he hit? Yeah, never Figet of course.
So fair to say Jack Reebell when we were discussing this on Saturday, well, it was quick to remind us of the plant. I'd the same question, who did he hit? And Jack very quickly deal Presty good Man oil man. So it felt like you should have done something wrong. The problem is that you can't write the.
Rules to make that exact thing that he did illegal, but you just you need to disincentivize it as much as possible. Theoretically, having already copped a massive suspension for doing a very similar thing, would disincentivize him from trying to bump someone near the ball, but a little bit off it. I don't know. It's a very want to actually monitor.
Isn't it that incident itself? I can't remember an incident where something so different could have happened despite the fact that it was a fair hit. The initial hit is fair. If the whiplash effective Anderson's head hitting the ground results in a concussion, is Stuart then liable for a three week ban?
I think it all comes back to is the act itself a reportable incident?
So that's what That was my point that we were discussing this.
We competed it to Meek.
Yes, load Meet got off because he was still contesting the ball, and even though he caused a concussion with his action, he was still doing a non reportable.
And Stewart did look like he went past the ball.
Like the ball is in a proximity, but they are not directly contesting the ball like Meek was, which I think is different because obviously, like you said, Max, people are talking about al chemo reaction. But we make that incident is the precedent that you can have a concussion happen as a result of a football accident, if you want to call it that.
Which is good, which is what people have been asking for several years now. So we've come to that point where we have got that president Now, I feel like.
Because Stewart is not directing contesting the ball, if that hit, despite it being fair, causes a concussion because of the whiplash effect, then I tend to think he might have copped a ban, which I just think is And the thing that Key makes clear last Saturday is the fact that we can't as observers of the game distinguished between whether something black and white is going to be reported or not. I think that is the biggest.
Issue because to see a clean bump, and it ultimately was a clean bump, and then so to see a clean bump like that is actually almost jarring these days. Can you think of the last clean hip and shoulder between that one and maybe Sydney Stack on Jack Viney in that Anzac Eve game a few years ago. I can't think of a like a clean hip and shoulder that was not that celebrated.
No, it's it did feel out of place, and I think that's what made it more of a reaction, a gutraw reaction.
Because what because normally these days the bumps go wrong. Yes, more bumps that go there's way more bumps that go wrong than than a perfectly done or.
We certainly paid more attention to them because they went wrong.
That's right, and Jack coss I pick it's likely call to sign a twelve point five million dollar Demon's contract extension is a wild trade script flip fair.
Or fast oh fair, one hundred percent fair if he signs this, because I mean it really did. I mean it was definitely trending in the direction of him leaving at the end of this year.
Everyone in the no seemed to think he was going to Freo.
And I just wonder whether Melbourne have just come to the table with the money, because one point four a year is an incredible amount, and I think it's really interesting when you consider the fact that Nosiah could maybe get one point two tops sort of thing. And it's a different discussion around because there's such.
Different players I'd pay more for than Nasi Wang.
And I think that's an interesting discussion, like because you like these center forward players that he talks about, but then they also talk about these damaging halfbacks who sort of do whatever they want underposed, but other reasons why you get, you know, attacking chains from the back half. I mean, I just think it's really interesting. I think one point for is a lot.
It is, but that is like changing money and convincing money the Freemantle surely can't pay because.
I was going to say, do we think he was going to get anywhere near that at Fremantle?
I think you'd be giving up what at least two or three hundred thousand a year, which over a decade is what two or three milion.
The Dogs have got a lot of guys on long term contract extensions in the past couple of years as well.
Yeah, that would that would have to play a role in that. So that if it's if it's a money thing, I mean we can accept that. It's funny how if it was a money thing and he left everyone up in arms, But if it's the money thing in these days, it's like, oh good, loyalty.
Yeah, just one. I hadn't put in Faro fast, but I think probably worth discussing is we're talking about Nasaia Wang and a Miller. Just then and now, there was a report from Caroline Wilson on Monday night that the Taylor Walker incident that saw him cop a six game ban in twenty twenty one for racially abusing a sample player, Robbi Young, Robbie Young, is partially why Nasaiah won't entertain going to the Adelaide Crows very very quickly. His manager
came out and denied it. Taylor Walker clear called his manager to gain further understanding, which Walker then revealed on radio on Tuesday morning, and then on Tuesday night it's a Walker called Wang Oh, call call, and either way that the two have had a conversation of direct conversation
to try and clear the air here. Caro still one hundred percent stands by her story as well, accused the manager, Ben Williams, of not knowing his client or not knowing, not knowing his klin, not knowing truly what wangone Miller thinks of that of this situation, it's a bizarre situation where that a report that polarizes fans, turns fans against the media, no doubt.
So.
I think Caroline Wilson has such a strong, long track record that I am sure that there is some kernel of truth to the broadness of her report, which was, to be fair, the tweet that everyone saw simplified it. The story that she gave was that one of the reasons he doesn't want to go to the Crows, and I don't think anyone expected Wangana Miller to be picking the Crows anyway. It seems like it's between Port Adelaide
and Kilda. He's got much stronger ties to Port. One of the reasons was that during the gather Around special that was on nine, Eddie Maguire talked to Text about the racism incident and the framing of it came out with him looking like the victim of Text being oh, you went through this, even though it's something that he actively did. And it is entirely realistic to me that Wangane Miller I was talking to fellow indigenous men about this and thought, geez, that's a bit rough, isn't it.
That's a bit that's not great. Don't agree with that. That's a very realistic opinion. To have, because that's the opinion I would have had while looking at that as well. I think a lot of people would have had that. So, if that conversation was had between Wangane Miller and other people, and Caroline Wilson got wind of that, which it sounds like the way that she would get that type of story, that's realistic to me. Does it mean that it's the
reason he's not going to the Crows? No, does it mean it's some reason that he has less interest in going to the Crows? Entirely possible. But managers and players coming out and denying a story also does not mean it's not true that this is always The default position is that someone said journalists report the story, it's denied by a club, a player, a manager, whoever, and everyone says, oh,
the journalists must have been lying. Journalists, in not to nine point n nine percent of chances circumstances, they're not lying. They may have been given wrong information or been talking to one person who had the wrong information and such and such, but they don't lie. So there could also be different circumstances, different views of incidents that make things more complicated than this. It's just because of the glaring
nature of this report. It sounds so big and crazy that everyone goes, well, it must be false.
And it prompted Ben Williams to get on the front foot, and it prompted Taylor Walker to reach out to the manager as well.
And to be fair with Ben Williams's statement that he put out on Monday, I think sam had been reported at first was that my client has not chosen the Adelaide Crows. He has not rejected playing for the Adelaide Crows because of the text Walker thing, which I read as he's keeping Adelaide in the mix because it makes his options broader. So it wasn't a I understand that part of the story is also being denied, but that doesn't mean that there is not a kernel of truth
in there somewhere. Even if it was reported and made into a bigger thing than it needed to be.
He's going to be and he's still very much in demanded. The Crows have had a long term offer on the table for a while, but our colleague Will Faulkner has been pretty big on the relate on as you mentioned, MAXI, the closeness that Wangone Miller has to put Adelaide in terms of the ties there a couple of good mates. His uncle is Gavin Wanganaan, who's a premiership player put Adelaide but a legend of that club. As well the fact that he still hasn't re signed it Sin Kilda
at this stage. I know that there has been some players in recent years Jack that have have decided late to resign with their club, but usually certainly more than fifty percent of the time you leave a decision this lake, you're normally not staying at your initial club.
Yeah, I think someone obviously Nasaiah's got connections and he met with jas Bergoyn and Jason on Francis already in his by week. I think it would be a you know, obviously two straight years where the Saints have copped pre devastating blows in terms of key players choosing to.
Go elsewhere battle going to the Hawks.
But I think it's also really telling that it's either going to be you know, back home, or he's going to stay at San Kilda. It won't be like he's going to leave to go to another Victorian club. So I think it's clearly clearly pull to stay at Saint Kilda. But yeah, if if I do. Guess right now, it would seem like port Adelaide, But Adelaide in terms of their direction is bloody tempting as well. I would think.
Is there a situation here where wagon a Miller leaves Saint Kilda and sin Kilda doesn't get Tom to coning?
Certainly? Is certainly?
Is there a bit of a leaning towards Tom to Coney staying at Carlton Now?
I think it's very hard to tell. Carlton's playing a bit better. I guess maybe that helps, but he'd have to give it quite a lot of money, like four or five million to do it, which is a lot of money to play for Carlton.
Yes, the Baggers. That is a long edition of Fair or Fast And it's now time for this on the.
Fox Woody podcast. It's time to open up the mail bag. Have a question for the panel tweet us every Monday morning at Fox Footy mail Bag.
I think the problem is, so we did the mail bag tweet last week, didn't do a show, and then everyone's like, oh, well, maybe they won't be a show this week. So only a few entries into the mail bag this week.
And he left overs from last week that we can you know.
I should have done that, but I didn't. That's right, because I'm very responsible. So let's just read one question from Ben not you, Ben right, who asks why do the coaches never see an incident in which their player is likely in trouble? I Eate Sam Durham, but have seen every angle and analyzed it when they are not I E. Stewart.
I think that's a fair question, to be honest.
You're not suggesting a level of citicism there are you Ben, that coaches are saying how much they've seen to suit their circumstance.
So coaches would be my hunt. I don't have a lot of intimate detail and knowledge about this, but my absolute hunchies and Jack can probably talk to it as well, because he tens press conferences, like normally every club has two to three men managers at every game, and that those media managers would be monitoring what some of the big talking points are at the time and what could
lead to questions at a press conference. And there's no doubt but even if a coach does miss an incident, that that would be at least briefed two coaches beforehand, surely, So I just think they're trying to avoid giving maybe avoid giving an opinion on it, but I think more importantly giving an opinion that might get them into some kind of trouble.
Yeah, because in the past, I think coaches, you know, you might defend your player, but you might also be attacking the matter review or the umpires for the decision in the first place, and that can get you into trouble. So that's something that's best avoided. That's why most of the time they do say I haven't seen it, because that's basically them saying no comment. Isn't it?
Yeah it is. And one of the funny things that happened out of the Hawthorne Bulldogs game was the Jack Genevan sort of want thing. It's the ball, And I think part of his whole thing is that I asked Mitchell after after the game and he said he didn't see it, like jokingly, right, as if to joke on the fact that coaches always say, oh, I haven't seen it sort of thing like, and then he laughs because
then everyone lasts because obviously has seen it. And then someone running as Hill fall up later and he didn't want to answer, was just like nah, Like he's like, do you want to answer?
It no.
So obviously these coaches, when their players and the wrong don't really want to give much of a much of an answer and opinion, which I can completely understand, and they did. They one hundred percent get briefed.
They're playing the game, they're playing the media. They know what they're doing.
I mean you see the media managers in the in the actual press box, and then you know they're listening to the radio, they're watching you know, the KO feed or whatever, and they hear all the commentary.
So I've seen them making notes what quarter one, quarter, two, quarter, three quarters four, potential talking points.
Doing their job. Thanks Ben, Thanks for everyone who wrote in this week. My dad also sent in a photo of me as a child wearing a Fox Footy channel hat, but it got automatically hidden by the Fox Footy account, which automatically hides tweets brutal, so that a cute photo of me. I was ten, I was in Fiji. It was a nice holiday from memory if you were wondering. By the way, if you do tweet it and get hidden as a reply by the Fox Footy account, it was a bot. It's not us. We know it's over
active and does probably more than it should. But it's one of the necessary evils of social media, because that itself is unfortunately a necessary evil.
Now Kevin's back.
Cheety. He has a lot of things to say. Does Kevin and I think, in honor of a big break between our last stint of sheety wisdom, we deserve a big dose dose Kevin Sheedy, who of course wrote the book Pockets of Greatness with Tom Pryor in the year nineteen ninety six, and then I read it out on this podcast for comedic value. Kevin says, last Christmas, I sat down and read about the Persians. The Christmas before that, it was about the Greeks. I like to read a
book of history when I have the time. It clears the mind and it gives you a feel. I realized that often I'm only showing one person's opinions, but it still gives you a fear. Look at the map of the world today and there's no Persia. It's not there. It's not a country anymore. What happened? Sure, it's an approximately the same place on the map as Iran, But what happened? I don't know where? Can I find out?
What's the bedding? Where called Australasia one day. Some people may say you're daydreaming, but it gives you a system basis for thought. That's how they brought in the House of Lords and the aristocracy in England. It's probably the reason that we have mayors another local government officials today. Somebody powerful dream them originally, and we'll have them until someone dreams up something better. I wonder how Princess die and Prince Charles would have gone in Henry the eighth time.
Didn't he jump off.
A few heads. It's brilliant when you when you said, when you look at the world today or the map of the world today. I thought he was going to say something very controversial.
I make sure to avoid anything particularly controversial go.
Down that path as well. Oh good to know that Kevin back in nineteen ninety six was had a time for DNM and his own thoughts with some history books.
I'm pretty sure you could look up what happened to Persia. I'm pretty sure there are.
Some books, maybe ninety six.
It would they had books in nineteen ninety six, as shown by the book.
Like you said, he only reads one person's opinions, got a different points, but the tangency goes off on like from to thing.
At the best part of it, that was all. That was all just in a row. No, I didn't edit that at all. Just consistent, just like a continuous, just Hall of Fame legend. That's what he is.
Were you were you born in ninety ninety six, Jack, No, No, No good afternoon or evening or morning to Why would you want it to just making me feel old? What do you do, Max, I'm in the same ballpark as.
You want to. You want to feel old because he picket when that contract ends, if he signs it, I'll be forty two.
Didn't she didn't you point out that it was after that. It's going to be two years after the Brisbanel I know.
That stadium will have been used actually built for a start.
God too soon, Sint kild On.
The Bulldogs kick off this round for the Shane Burst Cup.
So as I said, I think there are five pretty comfortable tips this round and two tricky ones. This is one of the comfortable ones. I'll be tipping the.
Bulldogs all the Bulldogs.
I mean, they did beat them by a million points eight weeks ago.
They did.
And Sam Darcy is back in time to face to them in the modest st kiled a thing possile. You think he's got a season ending injury. No, he's back to play.
You again the Saints quote retweeted Zeta today, Who's Zeta confirming that Sam Darcy's back, and Celta said, of course he is. They know Jack who wins Dogs? Hawthorne and adelaide u test stadium Friday night games. Ricky Henderson Cup up for great.
See this is proof the Devils don't need a new stadium. You can have Friday night games at you task in Lonceston, and I think this is one of the two tough ones. I'm leaning Hawks because of the home ground advantage, but that's the only reason.
Yeah, I'm the same. I just can't imagine them losing there.
They bet the Giants there earlier this season in a pretty good game they and they were genuinely impressive against the Dogs. Like he said that that game was about more. The Dogs played poorly, but the Hawks really lifted their level, brought that pressure. If they do that again they should win.
And think it's a bit of a turning point.
Last week just going to look at your park here, how many Friday night games to see to be the very first Friday night game at York Park.
But I bet it's also had like a probably a Tuesday afternoon game in COVID.
I'd had a well, it's obviously back in twenty twenty two we had that random Anzac Day game between Hawthorne and Sydney that started at twelve thirty during the day.
Of course, why wouldn't you It also hosted Did that hosts the final between the Dogs and the Bombers or was that in Hobart that was there was? Yeah, Giant Giants Swans also played a final there the Giants pipping. This one's from memory.
Yeah, I have to have a look. I was just looking at the Hawthorne games. Certainly Hawthorne's first of a Friday night game at York Bark. I highly doubt there would have been a Friday night game at York Park.
Besides that, to be fair, incredible fixturing. It is the best game of this weekend.
And they've had their they've had their lighting issues in the past, so let's just get it.
Didn't we have to move a game because it was going to be one of the lights wasn't working and we were worried about the power going out.
And do vaguely remember that the lines and the Giants Jake Barrett Cup up for grabs here.
Yes, Brisbane again. They just haven't been great at home this year.
Giants beat did the Giants beat them the corresponding game last year?
But that that was like they kicked like twelve goals two to seven goals sixty eight.
Slick performance, stupid lines.
But this is one of the games Jennibebis could pull out, I think, yeah, and also one of the very rare early afternoon starts at the cover.
Yes, I suppose you can't afford to do that in the middle of June, though, correct in March in Geelong? Is he still the country? Is he still the Country Game?
I hope so, because that is my favorite fake game that no one believes in.
Glen kill Patrick Cup up for grabs Also it's the country game. But also with Sandy Roberts used to call it farm Day.
Actually Kevin Sheedy invented the country game. We should be more positive about it, we should. I went, that's one of the few games I've ever covered at the ground because I don't usually do that. It was a it was a farm day, Farm Day, I remember walking through Yarra Park hay Bales and like a tractor for kids to stand. Toby would have loved that.
Would Yeah, he actually would have the excavators there will be there.
Yes, yes, Geelong Essendon have a thirty three percent winning percentage at the MCG since twenty twenty.
It's not great, no thanks Jack, will Thork and German. I think they have a lower percentage against Gelong.
To be fair, I walked to.
Walk run North Melbourne and Fremantle North Melbourne home game at Opta Stadium, just Sinclear Cup up for grabs.
This is already completely acceptable that they sold the two home games w A because they won one of them. Yes, they got over the line against West Coast. Just it means it's not a complete failure. They got their money, they got some points. They're gonna get pumped either way, surely.
Yeah, a good result. He for Freo to get the ruse in w A, but they get an opt the stadium rather than in Bunbury.
This is the month where they need to make their movie Dons and Saints and then Sydney Away, which is winnable as well. They probably should have won it last year. I did win last year because of Logan McDonald missing after the siren.
They did so a winn ten and five at the bye.
Yep, not bad.
Port Adelaide and Melbourne dom Barry Cup.
This is the other tough one. Jimmy Thompas surely.
Jimmy Thomp's Jack Watts, Jack Tringove, Ben Newton. Rather fantastic contenders there.
Just off the top of the dome, all of that.
It's incredible research.
In pleasant again, very tough tip. I'm going to go with the home team and Port Adelaide just because of the homegrown advantage.
I say Melbourne very reasonable.
They play pretty well in Adelaide, don't They had some good wins there.
In Adelaide earlier this year gather Around they lost to Sorry, take that back year before they take that year before they went to gather Aroun, didn't they.
They did the beat in this fixture last year or the year before.
It sounds all right.
The Eagles and the Blues finished the round. Callum Chambers Cup up for grab, Sam Petreski seating very stiff.
Matt Owis can't play for your own cup.
Don't be ridiculous, of course, you fool.
Uh West Coast have shown some real signs over the last couple of weeks, like took it to Geelong for three quarters, should have thumped North for three quarters. They can figure out their fourths, they might be a good team.
I think, what, Yeah, you're a big Andrew mcquarter fan. I think where pundits are starting to see the mcquarter system yep coming through went out during Adam Simpson's last year. I think punets we strugging the c A system. But it feels like in the past month it's starting to click for this young Eagle side.
They'll get reads on the tip Carlton because they just have to win. Oh, I have to win, but it would be the most Carleton thing ever. Sunday Night game too, another Sunday Night, but no Bounce in between games this week it's a six to ten star no yes, disappointing for Bounce fans. All the kiddies left to stay up to nine. Enjoy that you enjoy that? I do. I love the Fox Footy program Bounce. And Andrew gays he reads the latter and then he says, ah, no no check chief, no check chief, nah Chief.
It's good jack who wins between West Coast and calors on Carlton Carlton Baggers need to win otherwise be top of the agenda on the Fox Footy podcast next week potentially. Keep clicking back to Foxfooting dot com dot au.
Thanks for listening to the Fox Footy podcast. Like what you hear, hit subscribe and rate us on your preferred podcast platform. And for the best footy news and views, catch Fox Footy on channel five oh four. Keep clicking back to Foxfoodye dot com dot Au.