Hey, Legends, welcome back to the Mason Cock Show. We've got a big episode today. We talked about the big winners, Yes, Brisbane is back, baby, Brizzie's back, Yes, and then we talk about the big losers, how about Melbourne, whether or not they had a tough game where North Melbourne's just that good. And then we also get into a bit of what's happened in the bye week and whateveryone's been up to, what I've been up to in Balie, and then we talk about clangers. There's a few good ones
in this episode, so listen in. It's gonna be an epic one. We're gonna start it right now. Our legend has been a bit of a break. Apologies, I will take full ownership of that. I've had a bit of a Balie holiday and a concussion a few other things. It's been a bit of a bit of a mixed back. But we're gonna get straight into this one. There's a lot to cover, so without further ado, Braden, welcome to the Pollen Well.
I don't want to ruin the podcast off the top, but I'm glad that you're back to I guess review one of the most boring weeks football history. Let's have a few blowouts. Oh my god, I don't know what the hell that was it, But let's get into it because we have some fifty one hundred point blowouts to review. But I want to give my clanger of the week. We'll jump straight into that. Focus on the negatives here on this podcast. Geez, that's what we like to do,
just bring it all back down to negatives. And I want to give it. Maybe someone can tell me who I'm giving this to, because I reckon there was no winners in my clanger. There's a bit of umpire, a bit of player. We'll put it out there. So Stephen May, he's been fined for well, Steve's staging. Yeah, you got fine for staging, which is a real kick in the balls when you get in fined for that. He could have bought a seventy five incher for what he got fined.
But I'll talk you through it. If you did miss it over in there and the bar, he didn't get reception, but he got tackled by Eddie Ford. So let's have a quick guess at the scales. I'd say Stephen May is weighing in ad probably about one hundred, one hundred and ten big fella and Eddie Ford. He with sideburns. I reckon he'd be sixty kilos, but without him he's probably fifty five kilos. Ringing wet. He tackles Stephen May.
Now I don't know what he's expected to do, because it was reminiscent of Chuka day Is going to the old rodeos and seeing the little feller up there on the big ball he's riding as he's bucking and bumping him off. It does a three sixty seven twenty. I thought that's a free kick. Ten eighty, no whistle? What are we doing?
Where the rules changed again? While I was gone?
They on smokers Because I didn't know what the hell was going on. He's still on his back for a ten eighty. Takes him to ground because what else is he going to do? His feet aren't on the ground, so he can't. He's not really in control of what the hell's going on. He goes right, wait on, we're still about twenty seconds away from an umpire to decision.
They both land on the ground. Replay shows that Stephen May's head does not hit the ground here, but he starts holding his head like he's can cast, which is that's disingenuous. So I won't blame him though, because when the whole rule is set up for players to take advantage of it, who are we going to blame here? Are we blaming the system or are we blaming the players? Don't hate the player, hate the game, they say. Now they're laying on the ground long enough spooning that I
start to think they're a couple. But we're waiting on this whistle. Whistle comes, everyone's like, oh there is an umpire today. Turn around, he's like, ah, I'll give that dangerous tackle and they're like, oh, sick mate, thanks. It wouldn't have been dangerous if you had a blown the bloody whistle two spins ago. But here we are, and yeah, it's not the you figure the dangerous tackler would have got the sanction, but no, Eddie Ford, he's an innocent
bystander in all of this. And Stephen May gets sanctioned for the you know, faking the head injury, which we don't want because I get the part where it's we don't want players to get head injuries, so we don't want them faking that they do have head injuries. So Stephen Maye, don't be doing that, but that everyone involved in that, I'm giving them the clangu.
There's to full spill the whole thing. You've come hot firing shots fired from the beginning of this podcast.
Well, when your life is shit, Mace, you just want to sit down and watch some games of footy over the weekend and get a little bit of bloody joy in your life. And I have to watch that shit. Look at that one hundred and thirty eight or seventy five, seventy three to one hundred and fifty two.
We're going to get into the rest of the game spreading.
But there's interesting one from the week.
Look, if I'm Stephen may Like as a player, right, you're trying to save as much money. The AFL kind of screws you over on these things pretty quickly, and that's just part of the process.
You're taking that challenge.
This is the thing, like Stephen, just be like, oh, you know, like I twinged a nerve in my back by my neck. You know, there's like there's a million excuses you could go with. I feel like that the AFL can't really provide any real reason as to them being like Oh, well, if that's the case, then we're still going to find you like that doesn't exist.
Not in his body, and I would just go, oh, I did a ten eighty. I was dizzy, so I was holding my head trying to get focused.
I feel like, if I'm Stephen, may I take that to this drubunal. That's all I mean. You can think of a million excuses to get through that easy. Are we going to myke cleaner of the week now? WS is a famous goal kicker, you could say, name Jesse Hogan who does a lot of the goal kicking. Yes, yes, yes, yes, Now it gets a bit of a free kick and he's having to take the shot from essentially the boundary right, And that's what everyone practices whenever you go out there.
You want to get the nice, silky, smooth, you know, skillful around the corner, rather than practicing the ninety percent chances of you getting a set shot in front right. Who cares about that? You know, practice how you play,
You practice the one percenters. And this is one of those times that that one percenter does come in handy because he's on the bound and the umpire is looking at him and he's, you know, as you do, you kind of try to gain a meter or two, get a bit of you know, a bit of the angle, and the umpire keeps telling him to essentially move to the parking lot, trying to figure out how to banda this one from outside the stadium back around somehow gets some win three sixty kick the ball and then come
back on it. And he literally at one point tells him behind the post, so he's essentially telling him to kick it from outside of the field to play.
Which doesn't understand what's happening.
That's physically possible that he tells him to essentially move into the stands to try to kick the ball. But it was a classic just comedy of airs. And then the next thing you know is he gets nowhere near the goals, he actually just hits the belly of the ball. It goes across the face of the goals and they end up marking it too, so it actually kind of maybe worked out for a better angle at goal after
this whole debucle and spiel. But the clamm gonna go with is well one the kick and he was probably so frustrated with how the umpire made him kick from behind the goals that he just was like stuffed this whatever, and then that two's going to be the clanger for the umpire, just trying to tell him to essentially kick it from the stance at this point because it was not even a feasible kick that you could actually make.
Yeah, because Jesse almost tries to take the piss by like taking two meters over the boundary, going like you want me to kick it from here, and he's like, yeah, yeah, that's the spot.
Actually, yeah, just there, stay there. That's it.
When he said behind the post, how's that the line? Because he's like, oh, you've got to be on the line. The line's behind the post. I don't get it.
I don't understand now the mic or the umpire just shouldn't be there.
Yeah, you know, I don't know.
Yeah, just there's sometimes you just go, yeah, we're just going to hit the big red dump button.
Where I reckon this weekend that just came and gone, it's a Mulligan weekend. We have that one off. I don't know what the hell that was. Let's have a look at some of the results, because we go Carlton bashed Geelong in the last quarter port. I don't know, at home, they're just not quite there. Got flogged by Brisbane GWS Sydney the Battle of the Bridge. It's pretty one sided at the moment, with Sydney getting the dub Melbourne just knocked off, went home three quarter a time.
Essenon getting the chocolates over West Coast and they're sticking in that top four, which is interesting because a lot of us thought they would kind of fall away as they go, but they beat West Coast. West Coast did try it. They're a competitive team at the moment and Freo got the chocolates over Gold Coast in Perth. So let's have a look at some of the big questions from the week, and I want to ask you some of these because we're coming out of a buy. The
buyers are done. Yeah, we're finished with those buyers, and I tell you, for one, I am stoked that they're gone because they were just so spread out. Yeah, how many you had two buys, didn't you?
Well, we had the round zero, so then we had a buy for that, and then we had our buy during the midseason, so we had two buys yet. But then I think because we had like Anzac Day fell in the middle of the week and stuff. Yeah, then you make that buy in there, so you don't have like a three or four day or five day break, right. Yea, that makes sense.
So I want to ask you how the buys rolled out, but the buyers in general, should we scrap this whatever this was this year? Scrap that? Scrap Probably let's start with opening around. Are we scrapping that or are we keeping that? Oh?
Man, I wasn't a massive fan of it. Yeah, I think like after we went all the way to a Grand Final playing that and then like having less kind of recovery time into it. And I think also the people who are playing around zero are usually the teams that make finals, yeah, right, because they're trying to pump it up to be a big ordeal or like a kind of rematch or like some kind of rivalry or
whatever it is. And usually the people who are kind of bringing those kind of I guess viewers to TV that they're trying to put in that slot are the ones that haven't had as much time off since their last game, So.
You get even less prep time as a as someone that goes deep into finals, you're already starting late and then you start early the next year.
Yeah, And I think that's it's not ideal, you know, like everyone's got their benefits I guess of being a Melbourne team or travel or all these kind of things that people say there's an unfair advantage of. But that's one that's kind of the way I looked at it in the way I kind of saw around zero and it did allow for I guess, a break, you know, four or five weeks into the season for us, a little bit longer break. I mean, no one gets enough
time to go travel anywhere. Really, it's just like an extended, like three day break, right, so it's not like a massive kind of break like the mid season break. But I don't really love the way the buy system is set up. It just seems like, I mean, for a long time, I feel like everyone was like, oh, Sydney's top of the table and they've got a buy still still waiting to use, Like they've still got another buy this guy. And I'm like, how long is this buy going to be put in this pocket? Like is this
actually going to be used at somewhat? And I just have no idea because then you look at the ladder and you're like, oh wow, these teams are in the top eight. Then you're like, oh, but there are two games behind someone else he hasn't played, and you're like, well, the ladder makes no sense, and then why are we even looking at this thing? And so if we all have the same buy, or like maybe the two week you know, decision between the two buys, then you maybe
make some sense of what you're looking at. But until everyone's back on the same amount of games they've played, the ladder makes no sense. And it doesn't matter people like, oh, dude, all of a sudden, we won this game. We're top four, we're top eight. It's like yeah, but then there's another team who is, you know, one game behind playing you. If they essentially tire with a game, then they're kicking out of the top eight.
Yeah. This week, I think we're what fifteen rounds in. It's the first week where the ladder is fully up to date. Yeah, that's a long time to be waiting to see how it's all panning out. And I don't know. If I had my ideal by system set up, I'd just go the half and half over a two week period, half teams off, half teams on, flip it, and then we're back into it.
Well, that what it comes down to is broadcast rights. They want a game every single week, right, They want to be able to show something on Channel seven and like have that as a primetime game. And I get that side of it, But also I think even people in the industry and stuff would love to have a full shot down period of everything, because you think people
are an AFL house. People are working at Fox Footy or Channel seven wherever it is, like even for the week that technically is a bye week, like that goes over two weeks, so then they don't actually ever have a bye week. They're still traveling, you know, Announcers still going there, commentators still having to go across the country.
They don't actually get a break. So I think for everyone to sit there and go cool, everyone's having their break at this specific week, just that just makes a bit more sense to me.
Yeah, I don't like it's a long year. I don't like the pre finals by from a fan perspective, where you just don't get anything to watch or do and you have to just wait an extra week for the finals to roll around when you're like amped up and ready to go. I don't like that. I can see the benefits from a player's point of view.
I think it allows for a better viewing.
It makes the finals better overall. But I feel like something should be in that week. So if that's where they slot a wild card round, that would make sense.
Or you know, put some kind of charity game where all the teams that didn't make finals you can recruit from all those teams and have that game played in the finals by or do a basketball game or something of like all the teams that didn't make finals and like put together a five y five game or something like. The AFL could fill that somehow.
Yeah, but it's already footy by then, is already weak because you've got teams that aren't making it. They've like started booking players in for surgeries and stuff like. We don't need another warded down, weak ass game. Bring AFL X back for a round or something. No, I'm good. I don't need to see that. I don't need to see are you not a I don't need to see AFL players out there living out there dream of being basketballers.
I'm more of a deadly gay. YEA.
Let's jump into the father son rule because people have been talking about this in the past. Couple of weeks. How many numbers and points do you get trading in picks and whatever to get your father's son. It's they're trying to dilute it a bit that you know, it's pretty obvious. The teams that have issues with it are the teams that haven't really been sufficiently rewarded by the father son rule. Where I see it is I think it's, you know, luck falls your way, like it's pretty even
for most teams, the teams that I see that. It wouldn't be even for other teams that haven't been around as long as others. But saying that, I think as we take like we strip out things that are very unique to our game, like year on year we're stripping
it back, stripping it back. I feel like father son is one of those awesome things that have been in footy forever that it's you know, oh, my dad played for the club, his dad played for the club, and now the fans get right around a father's son coming to the club. They're looking forward to it for years. They finally get to do the whole thing where it runs out. Yeah, every other year you might get a Nick Dakos that, you know, if your team's up the top of the ladder, So that's another and of luck.
Your team's at the top of the ladder when a father son seems to line up with your club, Like, that's all like luck that goes into it. So I don't see it as favoring one team over another. And then the teams that aren't really benefiting from it at the moment are like Sydney like based like GWS or Gold Coast. But they've got plenty of things that you know they are taking advantage of, like academy wise and getting all these jets in they've had all the top
ten draft picks for the past two decades. Just chill out. I feel like the father son is just one of those super innocent, awesome, wholesome things that you like, love to see the father son stay connected to that club, and you still it's so much luck, but so much you know, the dad has to play a hundred games for that club. There's there's emotional tie to it. And our game isn't this robotics stiff as thing. It's there's a lot of gray area melded in there. And something
that's cool is the father son rule. What do you think, master, I will say this.
If you like the father son rule, make the most of it while it's around. In ten years time, I can almost guarantee you that will not be a thing because of competitive advantage. Teams will bitch and one because they don't have anyone that's coming up through the system that's a father son or whatever, and I'll say it's unfair and a disadvantage and all this kind of crap, which I always found it interesting, like a father son rule, because it is just so unique, right, I've never heard
of it until I came here. And it's not necessarily an advantage it is. It is purely somewhat luck right of whether or not you've an offspring that essentially are good at football one and then two you know your dad or mother plays x amount of games, and then you can kind of, I guess, get priority picks. But it does add for a great feel good experience of AFL, right, like seeing someone whose parents have played, seeing them at games and seeing them given the jumper or whatever it
may be. You know, I think that's such a it is such a feel good moment as a player is played a hundred games. I find it really weird because people are like, hey, get to one hundred, you know, and then you know what that means. And I'm like what They're like, well, you can have sex with someone, have a kid, and then the kid will play for the play for the Mighty Bagpipes. And I'm like, well, let's start step one. Let's let's find partner here six
oh man. But it's it's a it's a weird dynamic when people kind of like start telling you whenever you hit a hundred or like put pressure on to have kids, and You're like, look, I don't have kids for them to play a fl I have kids for the you know, the enjoyment of like wanting to raise a child, like, not forcing them into a sport. Yeah, but I I literally think the father son will be gone in a decade.
For starters, I don't. I can't imagine many people are coming up to you saying, quick, Mace, we need your father son selection.
Yeah no, that's not happening out. I'm going look, I appreciate the cinnamon, but my kid's going into the NBA. Is he is my retirement or she is going to be my retirement plan? And you best believe he ain't doing he ain't touching a football. He's only touching the basketball.
And then I would say we hear a lot less about it when a father's son goes to a team that's lower on the ladder. So I reckon that tells me more that it's it's a real non issue. It's people that are complaining, complaining because if you're looking at unfair competitive advantages, it's just showed you freeman 's travel schedule. Yeah, and if you're not fixing that before you're fixing the father son rule, you've got rocks in your head because
they travel every second week from Perth. They went, where'd they go? They were Alice Springs, then they're in Melbourne, back in Perth, then to Sydney, then to Tazzy, then to Perth. Like people bitching and moaning about one player coming across because his dad has a long standing history with the club. The Silvannis are like the Decos boys that they've been attached to their clubs forever and it's something that's very amazing and I'm sick of people bitching
about it. Let's talk about the six six six warning because it gets brought up every other week on the broadcast and I just wanted to get yours as the as the big fellow that they ask.
In the middle of that they give the free kick to. If it is, it goes straight to the rockman. What does the ruckman do? Hamp hold Nick the.
Six six six rule. You've got to start six in each stone. We all know the rule. We all know what it's about. Are we still needing the warning? If you're not lined up in your six six to sixth formations?
We're in the third year, fourth year, fifth year or something. I've doing this. It's been a while, so I think the warning system. I think we're pretty well aware of what's going on. If you're not, then I don't know what to tell you. But I think the warning is just not a necessity anymore.
Do you think anyone uses it on purpose? Do you reckon people stand out a zone to slow the game down, to get.
I think, yeah, I'm not saying that we have. I don't think we have. I would say other teams are probably looked at it as a strategy to maybe figure out someone that needs to move from the front line to the back line, maybe late in the game or something like that, or whoever it is. They now stay out, just put five in the four lines and then we can kind of fix our formation if we haven't had a warning yet. Like that's that's an easy way of saying, oh, we're going to get a few extra seconds to be
able to figure this out. But the thing is, right, is like you have the time that you need to centially set up. I think it's thirty seconds whoever it is after you kick a goal. Now that thirty seconds is kind of there's like where do you have that displayed for the players? Right? I think that you have it on the big screen. But it's just like such
a such a weird dynamic. There needs to be a yeah, there needs to be you know, like soccer has like a person that says like nine extra minutes on the side that's run by not either team, it's run by
the umpires essentially, right, yea. I think what should happen is there should be someone on the sideline that is AFL neither team, because the teams do have their own specific signs, that should be holding up something that shows the time like that, you know, because I think like you sit there and you look at the screen and the screen's looking at highlights or something else is going on.
Whatever it is like, there needs to be a designated thing that's free of distractions that shows the time that you have to be able to set up or the time for you know, a set shot.
Yeah, I actually didn't even think about that, Like, how do you know how long you have?
You screen's working and you look up there. That's how you know how much times is left? Whenever you're like you're doing a set shot, and then whenever you know, six seconds is there the umpire says, moving on. Yeah, it's a really weird dynamic because that's why people look up to the screen because the umpire doesn't have a time or a watch that you're sitting there going you've got ten seconds, you got five more seconds, you got
two seconds? Like that doesn't happen. You just kind of get this vague understanding by a clock that's ticking in the background that's not really attached to the umpire whatsoever. So let's say you get like a ball kicked into you and you bubbled around, you get injured on the way down whatever it is, and you get back up
and the clock's already started. You're going, okay, well I've got five seconds essentially now to figure out how I'm many to kick the and it's like and then the umpire is maybe going now you've got more time, But then the clock's telling you and I have more time, So then you're kind of like, what is it? You know? So I think there needs to be a better way or system of doing that. Whether it's an umpire whistle to say you know it's starting now, finishing now, or
whatever it is. I'm not sure how it would be handled, but I think there is a room for improvement.
Speaking of room for improvement, we've tried to improve the umpiring by adding an extra one this year. Just run in and run around. I reckon we should start fielding eighteen four on the bench umpires that run out there as their own mini team and you put your assigned one umpire to each player. Yep, because I reckon more umpires.
I might get a free kick.
If that's the case, they all just start fighting, punching on scrap and jump a punch it. No, we've got the extra umpire this year, and I want to get your view on it without you getting fined, because.
I feel like it's just an issue we have on this podcast.
Yeah, I feel like from the it's been denied that there's like an issue with the extra umpire, but it seems to be the clearest outlier from last year to this year where the umpires are really slow and delayed on the whistle. They're looking around, they're waiting for out of area confirmation, they're getting spoken to in there. Is that there's too many chefs in the kitchen, they would say, But I don't know. The AFL seems to come out
and tick off on everything. But have you noticed a difference in the game with the extra umpire and do you think it's necessary.
I think it is necessary at the moment, because I mean, I don't know the details behind this, but I have an opinion as of there is not enough umpires coming through the system at a consistent pace compared to previous years. And I think what the AFL is doing is they're trying to fast track people's experience by putting more umpires on the field and surrounding them with people are more experienced to help them get fast tracked into being what
you could say is an experienced umpire. I think that's what's happening.
But wouldn't that then rely on numbers being stripped out Eventually? Otherwise you're using all your umpires on all the games. They can't umpire other games because they're tired, because they just unpired games. So it's like you are getting their experience in them, but then you almost need to strip it back the previous amount of umpires otherwise. Yeah, I mean it doesn't work.
I get where you're coming from, but I think they're just trying at this moment. Like I look at some of the umpires and stuff out there, and I don't know what how many games, you know, the experience they have and like, you know, how many games of VFL and AFL and all that kind of stuff. But I see a lot of new faces. Yeah, I see a lot of new faces, and I think that's a sign
that they're trying to get experience in the people. It's probably signed me, you know, being in the league for a decent amount of time also, But you look at the Brett Roseby, who's you know, finished up, who's done far up? How many games you do, like four hundred games something ridiculous like, And then you've got Rais or Ray.
You know, you've got all these guys who you know, I guess public figures for umpiring right their faces of the umpiring world, and people look to them for direction on even just you know, things that happen in other games, not even technically their games that they umpire. People want their opinion as to what they think is the greatest or it's like what the actual right decision is. But I think for umpires is needed at the moment. From AFL side, it is something they're trying to still get
used to. I think, you know, this is the first time they're ever doing it, really, so I think it's going to take a few years for them to go, Okay, this is now normal. This is not something that's changing. We're committing to this for the next however long it's going to be. So whenever you teach people, you need to teach them zones or you need to teach them areas, and you need to teach them how to communicate as the game goes on, and that's a learning curve that's
going to take years. And I think that's what we're in right now, which causes frustration.
I can get that, Yeah, yeah, because I look at it and I think the more umpires that you're trying to slot in there, you're just diluting the quality. That's how I see it.
But I still see sometimes as like an experienced umpire will overrule someone who's closer to the contest. And let's say the experience some pars one hundred meters away, and there's another umpire it's fifty meters away that makes a call or something. The experience umpires sometimes will go from one hundred meters away and overrule the person that's right next to them. Yeah. I have seen that multiple times this year.
Yeah. No, I've seen that a lot this year.
So I do you know there is a hierarchy within the umpires on the field, Yeah, you can see it. So you got to think that there is essentially a learning curve between the two that's trying to be taught and passed down to another umpire.
Yeah, which I see making those other umpires gun shy, which is why I feel like there's a lag in the communication, which then we see incidents like Stephen Mayer getting dumped or whoever getting dumped because there's a delay on the whistle. They've been told to call it faster. They've been like, there's so much communication there from the AFL house through to the umpires, through to the multiple umpires on field.
I feel for umpires because it is one of the hardest things to be someone who has to make decisions on an opinionated sport. Yeah, every decision you make, whether it be a holding ball, not, free kick not, there's no clear cut rule. It is almost purely opinionated on each umpire. So you might have one umpire that goes, okay, I want to I want to umpire this as a Grand Final, so essentially no free kicks. Liam. I have another umpire goes, well, hold on, every time you get touched,
I'm gonna call that a free kick. And it's just purely based on how you adjudicate things. Yeah, and it's one of the hardest things to do. And then the AFL goes and changes rules throughout the season of how things are supposed to be adjudicated, and then you have to be updated on that, and it's it's a wild process that is unlike any other sport in the world. I don't know any other sport that just decides to change rules in the mellow season. Yeah.
Well, interpretations, You've got to make that clear. They don't change the rules, they change how they're interpreted. Mason.
You could almost say that's the changing of the rule.
Let's jump into this one because this isn't my opinion. I actually like the big brisk But BT has come under fire.
Now.
A lot of people say someone comes under fire when fourteen and a half people on Twitter tweet out about them and they make an article off the back of it. But there's been a bit of a petition put out there that BT be removed as the head commentator from Channel seven's footy coverage just because people don't like his vibe. Now, I don't know if that's a if you can take that to HR and put that in there, someone.
Say they're not like his vibe. I think that's probably the demographic of under twenty five.
Minute yeah check. But I want to ask you, out of all the things that we should scrap, should we be scrapping BT from Channel seven's commentary to you?
Hell? Now, BT is one of the things you can you can have your opinions on, like commentators on. That's whatever. That's your own decision, whatever it may be. But I think Brian Taylor is good for the game because he provides something that's totally different to any other commentator. He provides entertainment. He provides energy and it's it's unique, and I think that is something that people don't play give enough credit to. He cops a lot of shit from
people for no reason. I think it's just because I don't know if he's calling with supporter and people just say calling with herfore they hate him or whatever it may be. But I I find it wild how much criticism he has. And he's done that job for a long time, so like it's just part of the experience. Is like, if you've done anything for a long time, you're just gonna get haters, and that's just that's just part of media, right. But I think Brian's just someone
who I mean, like, put yourself in his position. Imagine Channel seven just rocking up to you and going, hey, here's a mic, just go interview people in the in the rooms. How many how many other commentators would thrive in that scenario.
Well, that was his eye. He brought that concept to the table. So he's bringing new stuff. I think the multiple arguments that I hear against BT one, I like him better on Triple M, and I feel like that needs to be explained a little bit to people that Triple M have their key demographic, which is men aged between you know, eighteen through sixty five or whatever it is, so they speak to that audience and to do that,
he can be completely and utterly himself. And he's got a team that they've built chemistry with, including James Brayshaw, and they've been doing it for decades. They know how like each other works. They know their sense of humor, and they know that key demographic and that brand, which is Triple M. Channel seven's very different. You've got to speak to families. You've got to speak to men, women, children,
You've got to be on brand with Channel seven. You've got to be able to tick off everything because it needs to be able to appeal to all advertisers of all brand categories from washing Detergent through to you know, macas through to everything. So like there's two different things that he has to be able to completely cater to,
and that's a hard thing in itself. You've got to be able to on one game on a Friday night rock up and cater to the Channel seven audience which is everyone, and then on a Saturday night game you've got to be able to roll into Triple M and talk shit with the boys, because you're speaking to a male audience. I think that's one argument that I hear.
And then the other argument is coming off the back of he's first up, essentially off the back of the legacy that's Bruce mcaveaney and Dennis Committee, which are two of the all time greats of commentary across all sport. They do multiple different sports, especially Bruce, and you know, I feel like people are comparing him to them and saying he should be more like them, and that's not his style. He said. There's a varying different styles amongst commentators.
Some show up with every stat Some show up with background knowledge of every player and have stories about their families and their upbringings that they bring to the commentary and bring flavor to it. That's not BT. BT tries to entertain. He tries to color it in. He commentates from the moment and from his heart, and that's something
different to what the others do. And he is also an ex player lead commentator, so he can speak through experience where someone like a Bruce mcavany wouldn't dare speak ill of anyone because he's never done it. He never played it, so he was great at pumping up players for their ability and their showmanship, and he'd bring life to a moment, whereas BT has experience so he can.
Talk people through it it.
Yeah, he can talk people through it from his perspective. Oh when you hear on this pocket from the MCG you got to kick it at this post and stuff like that, where Bruce and Dennis aren't really doing that. That's not what they bring. So I feel like, yeah, it's comparison that's getting him a fair bit, and then the demographic and then who else are you going to replace him with? Is the final part, because they don't grow on trees.
Now, I think people believe that commentary is way easier than it actually is. I think people just think they just rock up. They just sit there, you know, they just talk about the football, and yeah, they don't do any kind of research like you would be amazed like
some of the people on there in the industry. Like we've had Abby Homes on this podcast, and I've talked to her about like what she has to prep and she's a sideline reporter and then now she's getting into a bit of the commentary stuff now and it is phenomenal the amount of work she does behind the scenes, and she's very good and she's very and there's a reason because she works her ass off to be very good.
She knows all the statistics, and like they have a person that can go to to be able to ask questions of him, to say, like you know, what's the percentage shots here or there or whatever it is, and like get some background knowledge for someone to go and research come back to him. So then they have a nugget and whenever it comes to the game to give to the audience. Right. And I think people just with BT, like whenever you have a commentary career, everyone brings their
different things, right, BT's entertainment. You know, you might have Luke Hodge, who's more you know, straight down the line, this is experience that I've had. You know, this is the way I see it. You know, you have every different, diverse kind of person on a panel. But I just I think he just brings something that's totally unique. I think he's very well educated and what he actually does talk about. I think people just want to talk shit
about someone because they're different. I know that's a very Australian thing. And for some reason, like he's a target because he's you know, entertaining is loud, he's everyone knows who he is. He's different. He goes and you know it does weird things, and you know, everyone knows Roaming Brian.
Everyone knows he interacts with all the players, and I think all the players have a massive amount of respect for what he has to do and what he gets pushed into, you know, doing with different people, like I think sometimes you know, he goes down there and he can tell people don't want to talk to him. But Channel seven is probably in his ear going Chad wan Or played amazing today, Go talk to him and his family.
I don't care. And that's a hard position to be in to sit there and try to force yourself into a conversation. Ever people don't want to have it, and he does it so well. It's not easy. I think. I think more people need to give credit to him and stop being so berated whenever it comes to his feedback, because it's not an easy thing to do.
Yeah, And if you say to yourself, I do like it when he takes the piss, I think, are you in that key demogram?
Are you a triple M person? You're a Channel seven person, all right?
And I want to bring up one more thing before we move on to the big winners for the week. But Dangerfields tackle. I don't know if you saw this.
Dangerfield's dangerous tackle you That's what I want to ask you about, because Danger tackled Semi.
Walsh in an instant where Walsh is running away, Danger's coming up trailing behind him. Walsh tries to get his arms free to handball over the top. Danger in a vice like grip, grabs him, pinsy arms and takes him in a tackle where it's almost like he's stealing second base. He's got the slide going. He doesn't hit his head on the ground. He hits it almost on Danger's lap, but it gets done for the dangerous tackle, and they've
given him a week for it. I looked at that one and I feel like each week we're going to discover a new way to dangerously tackle someone. And this
was the first time I've seen emotion like this. And now normally they always like to bring up old stuff when they go to tribune or it's like this, it's like this, this guy got off, But yeah, I haven't seen anything kind of like this before, and I was just wondering how else would he go about this tackle in the circumstance that he was in, it's either let him get the handball out and not tackle, or tackle him and let him get the handball out and don't
get done for dangerous tackle or tackle the way that he did.
Yeah, I've come to the realization. I think the IFL has made this very clear as if there's any kind of like motion of someone's head slinging or kind of like whiplashing into the ground, it's going to be a week no matter how you tackle them or how it happens like, it's going to be a week. That's kind of what they've come to adjudicate it as. Yeah, dangers
one like this. It's it's so hard like tackling someone like that and then trying to at the same time like let an arm free, but you don't want them to dispose of it the same. It's just so hard. And if Sam somehow, you know, like kind of falls on the side, then probably not an issue. Like there's kind of that. There's so many things that could happen,
the what ifs, the what ifs or what ifs. Yeah, I get it from the AFL standpoint, any whiplash is going to be a weak They've made that very clear danger. How he could have done that better? Like, I don't know if you just can only grab one arm and the other one's got to go across the body, you can't grab both arms kind of thing like that's maybe, I guess the way the AFL is going to say,
how you could have done that better? But in the moment and everything else, good Lord to be able to process that in that short timeframe of trying to tackle someone be pretty phenomenal within itself. I just think it's one of those that danger unfortunately, is just on the shit into the stick whenever it comes to this, and he's just gonna have to deal with the one game or you know, maybe he can go to the tribunal and try to get it, you know, taken away. But yeah,
it's a tough one. I think it's almost impossible to sit there and say, now are we gonna go. Look, you can't grab both arms and take them to ground. You can grab both arms and stand up, but if
you take them to ground then it's technically a free kick. Yeah, but you can't if someone sit there, Let's say hypothetically someone has the ball at their hips, and they're just holding it at the bottom right, Like, well, you can't tackle below their legs, can't tackle above their shoulders, so if you tackle them, you're gonna have to be getting both arms. So if the person just falls forward, is
it a free kick? You know what I mean? So I just be walking around acting like I'm about to kick the ball all the time, so they can get a free kick no matter what. And someone touches me, I just fall to the grounds.
We found a look around like, yeah, it's always the primary school movement where it's like we got them, We bloody got them. That's a good point, though I hadn't actually thought about that, But we'll wait and see that'll happen.
Now, odd way after his injury of getting around the game.
Let's jump into the big winners for the week because we've plucked out a couple and I want to just say this Brisbane Football Club is back, and they've been back since the bye. Now. Dunk's brought up on his podcast that at the mid season break when they did have their buy they looked at their stats and based on this year's stats and last year's stats, they were equal, if not better, in most stats except for one, and
that was kicking accuracy. Goal kicking accuracy. Now on the week nd, they didn't have that many issues with that because I think they kicked twenty three goals thirteen or fourteen or so much, so they've got the accuracy part right and now they're blowing teams away. Do you you reckon the Brisbane lines are back?
I will say yes for now, Yeah, I think yeah, that was one of the big issues. I think was the goalkicking stuff. I think Hipwood had five over the weekend, kicked twelve straight them at one stage, so they've fixed it for the time being. But yeah, I think it was kind of interesting because at the beginning it was all like, oh, there's a culture issue and this kind of stuff, you know, and then now it's like, oh, what's the excuse we're going to talk about now in
the media, like oh this or that, you know. It's it's interesting. I think because they made a Grand Final last year, there's always going to be a bit of a microscope on them for this year.
Yeah.
Fair, but I think the Brisbane team has so much time now where they can take the momentum and go through the end of the season. You know, no one's going to be talking about the beginning. Yeah, if you sit there and win the next few games, everyone's gonna be like, oh cool, Like they're in finals. Like I was sick, They're a chance to win this whole thing again, you know, and no one's going to be even remembering the conversations that were held at the beginning of the year. Yeah.
So I think they have a big chance now and they've turned it on at the right time, because if they weren't being successful three or four games ago, then it was going to be real tough for them to be able to get over the line to get to finals. But now having these three wins in a row their in form again. Now it's an important time for them to be in formed to be able to make finals and be able to make a run. And I think that's it's a good sign for Brisbane fans.
Ickon a lot of those people, you know, the statisticians at the start of the year that say, oh, if you lose the first two games of the year, statistically you're not going to make finals and all that crap. How long is this season? I feel like if there's ever a team to if there's ever a year to start shit and come good. It's this year because so
many teams keep falling down. It's very tight. It's tight in terms of the competition, but I feel not many teams outside of Sydney are really like, you know, stepping up. Colin would have the slow start. You guys have come good. Essenon have been remarkably consistent. Uh, Carlton have had a couple of patches.
How hyped would the AFL be right now with the top four. You've got Sydney the team they want to be successful and try to get into New South Wales market. Yeah. Then you've got the three biggest teams in Victoria. You've got Carlton, Esston, Collingwood sitting at two three four. Yeah. AFL would have the biggest hot on right now. Look straight up, it would be going someone someone makes sure we're making a fuck ton of money out of.
This and in the Gold Coast Suns to have a late run at finals and then there that's the finisher. Big. Oh also kick three snakes having a few snaggles.
Let's to the next game.
We got Carlton demolished the Cats, but it was a bit late. Cats were in it most of the way. We don't know where they're sitting at the moment because they're a bit up and down. But Carlton did kind of change up their style a bit. There was a lot of free flowing run which really kind of helped
out their forwards and was reflected on the scoreboard. Charlie five, Harry kicked three, little Owi's popped up and kicked three himself, did the hole, got his Carlton jumper out and he was showing the cheer squad like he loves to do. So they're all up and about, but it was the last quarter where all the damage was done. Carlton kicked nine goals to three and kind of just knocked it
on their head. But there was a couple of incidents out of this one, but we will say Carlton big winners for the weekend and they're right up in the top four. A couple of interesting ones. Jazz had a shot a goal after the siren and acd off his line, which is very obvious because he kicked it next to the man on the mark. Kicked the goals.
Definition of yeah, everyone kind.
Of looked a bit confused, but there was it was almost like it was too long to make a negative decision, so they just said, ah, let's call it a girl. Gov was the man on the mark and he made a very like, you know, smart point to the umpire who just gave him nothing. It's like, I don't know, you're probably right, but it happened.
So I'm not going to admit it.
Let's move on and the da Konings. The Coning brothers played against each other. Now it started strong with a rock contest. So Sam plays for Geelong and who's the other one, Tom? Tom plays for Carton TDK because that's Robbie Williams's favorite player, right, all right, we got that undercover, we got that on the train.
For fact, we had who do we have? We had the we had Harry McKay and Ben mc and then now we've got the bros on each other.
And they've all got real stock stand in three letter names. We like it. But yeah, So we started off with Tom in the rock contest against Sam.
And threw them.
But Sam was going for that, like I'm just going to run through him here, and he did a bit of the old toro and let it stepped out of the way, got it kicked the goal from the rock contest. That was a beautiful one.
That's that's the most embarrassing thing you can do to a rockman. That's rough. It's a real, real tough feeling there. So he would have loved that, being the brother just going hey, that's one zero. Sorry.
I tell you who loved it was the deaconing mum because she was up in the stage.
She had one of those scarfs that's like half and half.
Yeah, the cliches, but she was loving it. Later on in the game, Sam got a free kick for an unrealistic attempt, so we'll give him one, but he got one back, so Mum was happy up in the stands. Each boy kicks a goal. You know, there's no fights in the car on the way home. But that was a good one. A bit of a sour note what change rooms she go to the winners.
Mothers might need to console the person not lost. I don't know. It's a real decision to who's the favorite.
That's a good. Yeah, that's a good that's.
What we should have suld my mum. Watch mum, watch see where she goes, then we can judge her. She loves sports, jump across.
Unfortunately, Big Tommy Hawkins in his foot kind of just collapsed on him. Yeah, a big fellow does have to cut around that big frame every week. So hopefully he gets back out there. I don't want that to be the last time we see him. But if we don't see you out in the field, we'll see it in another Taylor Swift concert, double parked like you were in the preseason. We'll go across to the big losers. And there's no bigger loser this week than Port Adelaide Football Club.
Unfortunate to say it because we do love our boy Ken love copying at the moment is absolutely low torch at the moment.
The yearly thing though, this is a yearly thing with Kitny. He loses, he loses the game at home and the port out of this supporters all turn on him. They're like, oh, my guinea, can you give anyway he does? He wants two or three games, you know what they say. Kittie's my boy behind him the whole time. They should be signed for a ten.
Year contracts the same.
Ship every year Port Adelaide fans.
He's out there doing the jig, but they are sitting eighth, so it's not all over yet. But they've lost three of their last three, and two of those are being home games, so not what you want, and they absolutely got.
I feel like as a port Adelaide supporter, they're sometimes okay with losses away. Losing at home, there's a real like no note for them, like they do not handle that well.
Yeah, well they do the whole crap with holding the scarf up and then now.
Then you've got to walk through the crowd to get down to the like to the to the to the ground.
Yeah they should do.
They do not have the elevator. It's purely out in the.
It's pretty much every coaches had a punch on someone in the crowd and let over.
You think the AFL was safety and secure? Do you? Being number one? Hopefully number one, they would change that on apt but here we are.
I reckon. Do you ever watch wrestling growing up?
Not a lot. I could see you definitely.
The heartbreak kids. Sean Michaels, he would he would get the cable into WrestleMania from the from the stands. He'd cable down to the ring, maybe one of them with Kenny Hinckley on it. He just cables down.
Would pay so much money for that to see that visual. Oh my gosh, can we make this happen? First got the cable, I opt just has the ability to do it.
I'm putting it out there to the AFL and we'll give the second biggest loser slot to Melbourne. They got the win, so it kind of seems contradictory, but they really did park the bus at the end of the third. They didn't kick a score in the last quarter, not a point, not a crumb. But that was North Melbourne coming home strong, which is the opposite they did to the week before, where obviously Collingwood home strung. We'll talk a little bit about that later. But there was some interesting.
Points, a bit of fighting this one. You could say there was a bit of a scrap in this game, and I'd love to see. I have no idea how much money is gonna get thrown from the players for the fines, but it was good to see.
Yeah, I don't mind a bit of a punch on in the back of my head now, in the back of in the back of my head. Now, every time I see one of those scraps, I'm like, no one's going to do anything, you know, So it's kind of a bit lost on me. Now, back in the day, I was.
Like just supporting your team mate someone's getting tagged or something to that.
Yeah, shake them a bit. I'm just gonna come over and shake you a bit.
I mean like whenever I was first came here, it was like, no one really shook you. People grabbed your jumper so that they could punch you in the face.
Jump a punch. It was you could jump a punch then and then they outlawed the jumper punch.
Well you could, you could hit them high, it didn't matter. Yeah, you just it was a way of just, I guess, disguising the fact that you can punch someone in the face. Yes, and then you started wearing tighter jersey and you're like, I can't do any more.
Yeah, I just think back to like the line in the Sand game and like Richie Vandenburg kneeing blokes on the ground and stuff. Anyway, we don't need to bring it back. We're a family game. But we will talk about the tagger because if he wanted to scrag one bloke, it's the tagger. But Will Phillips, you know, he learned what he learned in the Nick game. Nick Deakos against North he got subbed out at the third Nick ran
away with it. But he had Clayton Oliver this week and he held him to five touches to halftime and Clayton gave away four free kicks, so it's fair to say that he was in his head a bit. So I reckon that you give him the chocolates for that one. Trent Rivers. They moved him into the midfield without track and he, you know, he was up on disposals, kicked a cracking goal on the run, danced around a few
bursts through the pack. That was great to see. But we're all here for North Melbourne who kicked five straight in the fourth quarter and I think that's impressive and then managing to keep Melbourne square. This is big ticks for the North Melbourne football.
Yeah. I mean it wasn't a high scoring game either, so to kick five straight in a fourth quarter like that was. There was almost half their points just in the fourth quarter right there. To come home strong and not let them kick any it's credit to him. North is one of those just you know, people don't look
at them as an easy win anymore. You got to be prepped for North to give you a fair crack like they are willing to take teams still lining like where I think a lot of probably fans and stuff in previous years start out in North Melbourne easy w right, Like you look at last week Collingwood going down by a significant margin by them, and then now them taking Melbourne, who's another top team to the line, Like you look at North and you say, look, it's not gonna be
an easy game. You gotta rock out and give your best.
Yeah, And it comes off the back of if you have a win, then you go, that's what we need to do. You got a blueprint. Yeah, Okay, if we do that every week, we're gonna win or at least be competitive. And since they got the win, they've definitely been competitive, probably should have got a win or two.
So it's great to see. Now. We all wanted to just see a sign from North and we probably didn't think that it would come mid season, because if you're in one of those teams that's struggling, normally the lowest depths come in the middle of the season when you're like you're far away from the excitement of the start and you're a hell of a long way from postseason celebrations and holidays and you're right in the thick of it. But they've come good in the middle, so it's big
credit to North Melbourne. On the other hand, they have to go up to Brisbane and versus Brisbane at the Gabba next week, which is which could be rough, So.
Big Brisbane on that one, I think on that game. But it's gonna be an interesting game. They'll be almost a game of around next week. I'm pretty excited to watch that one.
I'm trying to find my mouse here, Mace. As we move over to Collingwood. We missed last week, so we will touch on a couple of things that happened in the Collingwood North game. It was a pretty uneventful game really.
I think it was one of the most event that's ever been braided.
Let's jump in it because Collingwood. I was saying it sitting on the couch watching as someone that wanted Collingwood to win the game. That the first half IMO, in my opinion, pretty weak because they said outwardly into the media in the week leading up we think Collingwood are gettable, and I was thinking, you know, in the lead up as a coach going against the team down the bottom of the ladder. You're looking for inspiration and it's kind of hard to find it when you're coming up against
these bottom teams. There's your inspiration print out that stick it up on the wall, beauty. They reckon, we're really gettable this week. Let's go out and show them what we can do. Brandon Maynard's two hundredth game.
I expected TJ's first game.
Yeah, I expected a like a big game, and then North just hit the ground running. They came out, put goals on the board, and they didn't stop. They just kept kicking goals and Collingwood were chasing. They were trying to chase, but for the first three quarters North just kept putting margin on them and it was wild. It didn't look like there was going to be a turning point. But in classic Collingwood fashion, let's leave it very late
in the piece. But Fly did come out after the game and say at three quarter time he put the rockets up the lads to say, look, Braden Maynard is the heart and soul of the club. He does plenty for everyone else, and at the moment he's the only
one trying out there. So get out there and put on a performance for your teammate, and it seemed to turn around from that moment because they came home strong and chase down a fifty two point fifty four point deficit and wine and got the points by one, and there was a couple of moments there is a chance.
To North had to actually take the game too.
So let's talk about that you reckon. That was a fifty meter penalty in that game.
I didn't see anything. That was what happened.
No, let's talk about why you didn't see anything because you started via Instagram. You started the game at the ground, so here we go. Let's go lads, photo of the ground. A bit of criticism for this too, and then we see you sitting and watching the rest of the game at home on the couch. Now, you're not a fair weather supporter. You may stuck it out.
I'm not. You know what the wild thing is is Bruzzy plus TJ having their big milestone games. I had a friend in town from the US who came all the way out here to watch me play. I got injured, couldn't go to the game. I couldn't get a ticket for him. So I felt so guilty for them who had come all the way from the US to come watch me play. We're sitting in my house watching the game on television without me there, just by themselves. I
was like, shit, I'm gonna stay. I'm gonna be there for the boys whenever they run out and all that kind of stuff, you know, and at quarter time I'll all head back and get home. Because I've had some interesting interactions Brandon since I've been injured. Whenever it comes to sitting in the crowd, I've had a few people are very inebriated come up to me and make some comments.
I've had some people ask me about my political opinion of the US at the moment, which is a wild scenari and thing to ask me in the middle of a football game. But I've been you could say, hassle at games, Yeah, yeah, and that's I understand. It's kind of a weird thing. I've found amazing that the AFL hasn't put players who are not playing in a box for kind of safety reasons. I think, like you think about like a you sit in the stance, like you sit in a bay with other people running, and it's
usually friends and family in there. But like anyone there's not a security guard there making sure that people don't walk down so like anyone just comes up if they see you and just will try to sit next to you or take the seat next to you whenever you know it's not their seat because they're not friends and family. Ye. So, I mean at one point I had a guy come and sit next to me. It was double parked, and he was very ineborated and was sitting there trying to
talk to me about the game. I'm sitting there, going, you can't even put a sentence together to be fair, and I'm like, yeah, the guy wasn't you. I wouldn't put it past you by any means bread in But it is a thing where I think of, you know, I think of like the safety of players and stuff. At times. I think whenever you include alcohol, you know, very emotional people, if it's a rivalry or something like that, like there needs to be a bit of safety for
the players that if one needs to look after. And I haven't really experienced it as much because i've been you know, I haven't really been in the stands fortunately very often over the last few years. But I did realize that and whenever we're at the North game, I'll
come to. I had the decision to go home and watch it with my friend who couldn't get a ticket, or try to stay at the game, and you know, deal with people that were coming up or people that were just in the stands and you walk down to the rooms and you walk back up and you have to go through the crowd to get there too, so you get people grabbing you and stuff like that, and it's an interesting like you want to support the fans and be there for the fans and stuff like that,
but you got to realize that there are also is opposition supporters that are at that game that you know, are emotionally charged and things like that too, So it's it's an interesting dynamic. I didn't really I haven't really put much thought too, but that's kind of one of the reasons, to be honest, I went home and I just sometimes don't feel comfortable sitting in the stands with opposition supporters and people having the ability to walk up
to you. Yeah, and yeah, I don't know if that's a controversial thing to say, but like, I'm there to support the fans. It's great to have the fans are and it's awesome to sit with them and stuff like that.
But I think whenever you mix them in with people who are not those fans or people that might hate you because you play for an opposition team and you allow them to be mixed in with alcohol and things like that, it's leading to what I would say is going to be an inevitable bad situation that's going to happen in the stands between a player and a fan. Yeah, and the AFL is not doing their due diligence to protect the players.
Yeah, And I feel like we can't really be surprised if or when that does happen. Once you add alcohol to the mix, it gives people that confidence. It's the same type of confidence that when people are in the comfort of their own home and they slide into their into your DMS and sled you for a number of reasons. Yeah, I've definitely I can see that happening for sure. I've been with you in the streets when you can't escape people when you're at the games. I get noticed at
the games. Is freaky as hilarious. But yeah, so it's scarce.
It worries me a bit because whenever you have about four or five tenes braiden, there's no telling what's coming out of your mouth.
So that's the thing. I'm going to realize that I am extremely famous now and I need to settle things.
To hold the standard now Braiden.
But we will talk about Braidon Maynard because you did manage to get the win for the big fella two hundred games. Massive accomplishment and massive achievement.
He's first one of the draft class gets two hundred really, yeah, So I think it's like myself, Darcy, Jordi, Bruzzi. There's there's a few in there that you have been around for a while, and he's the first one to gets to two hundred.
Yeah, just thinking back to when he was younger, the big.
Well, baby faces baby everyone's like that though, Like I had a baby face, Geordie, Darcy, we have all grown up quite a bit now.
What a talented draft class that.
It's pretty wild how many of us are still around. Yeah. I think about it and I'm like, man, it's a it's a very unique. You don't see a group that stays around that's all drafted and it seem draft class like we've seen.
No, that's a that's a good one. Derek can tick.
That'd be happy themselves.
You can live off that forever.
Of course, Madson Cocks top yeah, top of outlast.
And Nick Dacos in that game as well, got off the you know, he shook the tag in the last quarter and it did some damn. I think he had twenty nine kick to dragged them.
Dragged the boys every movement in the fourth quarter was.
Yeah, it's pretty wild what he's still managing to achieve as a father son that we're going to keep forever. But let's move on to another former champion of Collingwood and now in the Hall of Fame, Dane Swan Sweatye pretty amazing when you look at it and think of people that still aren't in Hall of Fame and Dane Swan gets inducted. I love it stands out there. You knew a good speech was coming. He was still he's still the same person that he's always been, Dane Swan.
So he would have been twenty fourteen, he would have been kind of wrapping it up as you got.
There with one year a crossover yet, Yeah, do you have.
Any memories from your first year with Swani?
For Yeah, Well, like Dane Swan was, I didn't know who he was or anything about Remember I came here, right and I was very young, just came out of college.
He was one of those I don't know, like iconic players of the club, but like people just loved him and loathed them and you saw people would just kind of like lose their mind around him, and like I just never understood it because I was just like, oh, it's just like a teammate, you know, like oh good, And like Pindles was the same, Traff Cloak was the same. Like he was just like, oh, okay, cool. You didn't grasp how big of a deal they were. But yes, Swanny,
he was always really nice. I think people don't realize. I mean, he's he's a bit of a quiet operator at times, but he's funny whenever he speaks. He's one of those people it doesn't speak a lot, but when he speaks, you know, it's it's pretty like everyone gets
a crack out of it. And I remember, like when I first came here, he took me out for a night out, like he was part of the crew that went out and stuff, and you know, he's got a lovely wife and kids now, and his wife's from America and they were just really nice like you think of these things whenever you first come to a country, like you don't need to go out of your way to invite people that you don't really know, and you know, to try and make them feel comfortable in the scenario
of a team environment and things like that. And I do remember like he was like, no, I come out with us, like it was all cool. It's like him, Marley Williams and a few others, and yeah, it was just kind of it was a wild night. Like I'm not going to say any details as to what happened in the night, but I do remember like that him having me there. I was really appreciate it above and
it's something you don't need to do. But for him to just had me with his group and hanging out and like didn't have an issue with it or anything like that, and for someone he didn't really know at all, Like I look back on that and I'm like, oh, that would have made me feel as though I'm part of the team and I'm just, you know, another one of the boys, and you feel like you're you're confident to be friendly with everyone you know, because it is
so isolating whenever you don't know any connections you're from a different country, you have no idea what you're doing, and for someone to do a little act like that means a lot to someone like me.
Yeah, I can imagine Dane Swan's sense of humor is a combo of kind of unassuming, dry, you know, Australian laughs. I can't imagine that you would have got much of what he was joking about.
No, not at all. There's so much. I'll tell the story about one of the first things whenever I came into the club, right, this is this is the early days, and this is like whenever the drug issue with a few of the players and stuff, and I was just kind of like all this was happening. I was just kind of like, this is a wild scenario. What the
fuck is going on? But I remember if I was like introduced to the club, right to the teams, there's big team meeting and stuff, you know, and I like, I zero understanding of Australian culture and like what they did. And they'll go up and go hey, everyone, like we've got a new recruit. His name's Mason, and you know we're going to introduce him. Say, you know, he's from from Dallas, Texas. You know, he went talky, played basketball. We're going to now teach him, so you know, just
get around him. And I remember like one of the players was like, and I think it was Swanny, it was just like speech speech speech, you know, like the typical Australian thing that you do is a bit of a joke. Well I didn't know that was a joke in Australian culture. So I kind of like stood up like, oh okay, like I'll give a little intro, a little bio, you know, and I like stood up and I was like,
I just want to say hi, I'm Mason Cox. And everyone's just like sit the fuck down, sit out, and I was like, it's just good, good to meet y'all. Just great to be here, great to be involved. Just just sit in the corner, just shut up. That was That was one of my original I guess, coming to understanding Australian culture of taking the piss out of someone.
That was almost like when we learned that Australians are the only ones that do hip hip.
Hi, it is a very Australian thing.
Yeah. Now, I know, let's talk about you because we need to wrap things up. But going into the buy week, you headed over to Bali. How is your trip?
It was beautiful, beautiful weather, massage pretty much every single day, nice lunch, breakfast, dinner, coffees every morning, sitting in the sun.
Just to relax, refresh. It is.
I think it's very important to switch off. It's a long year, as we mentioned before, and it's so good just to get away from football and like the Melbourne bubble of it, like it is every day you get someone that comes up and wants to ask you about it everywhere you go, right and it's so nice to just meet people from different backgrounds and different countries doing different things from online sales and e commerce and just it's kind of the Bali is kind of there like
weird place of just everyone, just this multicultural melting pot of people that come in there and you know, come from all over the world. So it was interesting and awesome to like just meet new people do different things. You know. There was like a gym to us I got to do rehab there and then ice bass and
saunas we got to do every single day. So it's one of those just really mentally and physically refreshing experiences over there and just to kind of get away from I guess the the micro or sorry, the micro causm that is AFL in Melbourne. It was nice to get away from it and I do feel a lot more refreshed. I'm excited to kind of get through this rehab and get back out to playing and helpfully. Yeah that's that's sooner rather than later.
You get noticed by all the Aussies over there.
Oh you can tell someone's Australian right away. I was in this like there's a few times you go into the sauna and someone just walks up and goes, hey Mason. You're like, I didn't introduce myself and you just sit there and the other people around are like, who who, how do you know him? I kind of like they just find it weird. Yeah, I instantly you can tell
that someone's Australian. I did. There was someone I was sitting there and I was talking to someone about Perth and they were from Perth and said, oh, you know, what do you think of Perth? Like, oh, it's quite isolated, and you kind of you go back and forth and you talked about Perth where you're like, oh, it's kind of like one big small country town. You have a
little ball and had that conversation. Little did I know that the two people sitting next to me, we're like diehard Perth loving people, were just like so pissed at me. They're kind of backing Perth a little bit. I was like, I'm so sorry, I had no idea. You gotta warm me tell me these things.
So many people from Berth there because yeah, it's easy, like three hour fly yes, like catching the bus, cruise up there and give us an update on your injury, your injuries.
Yeah, so everything's pretty much held up by the MCL now, so can cut yourself all pasted past now ribs, feeling good, faces, feeling good from the cheekbone surgery or zygoma surgery. Saw the specialist with the MCL, and we start running tomorrow. So that's exciting.
Yeah, they all kind of lined up. Well.
Yeah, so it's it's four weeks and a little bit now this week, so we're going into four weeks plus now, and yeah, I don't want to put a time frame on it. I think a lot of that will depend on how we go tomorrow and over the next kind of week with running and how we pull up. But it's exciting to take one of those big steps forward now to be able to go, okay, cool, Now we can get into things that emulate a football game, right, Like sitting on a bike for an hour doesn't really
emulate a football game, you know. Being able to go run on the track with everyone and be able to kind of do straight line running and stuff. I think it's a good positivity thing mentally to be like, all right, cool, we are heading the direction. We were taking the steps to be able to see the other end of this thing. And yeah, I'm excited for it. Man, It's going to be good. And you know, like I said, we're progressing, which is the important thing.
Let's jump into the previews. We'll go Brisbane and Melbourne at the Gabba. I'm saying, rip to Melbourne on this one, all right, pee, I can't see him winning.
Geez, that's rough. I would love to Melbourne went, but I think Brisbane's going to definitely take it at home. Brisbe's gonna go four straight. Are they back?
I think they're back. I think they're very much back.
We can officially say that they're back. Brisbane's back. Baby North.
Melbourne versus the Western Bulldogs. The North keep going, keep competitive, have Western Bulldogs turned the corner. How do you see it?
I want to go upset alone here. I want to go North against Western Bulldogs at.
Marble checking North fans, won't you want? What want? You want? Your support talk that much about them.
A little bit. But the thing is I've got friends there are Norse supporters, and they were talking shit to me so much at halftime. I had that many text messages, real quiet by the end of night. You wouldn't believe it. Didn't text me back, didn't get back to me after the game. Weird how that happens. Yeah, now I'm on the North train. Man. Like the last two weeks, they've been very good. If they can just kind of get another quarter of good football in, well, they're going to win.
I'm going to win their games.
So I have to back in the Western Bulldogs on this one because it is like it's their home game as well. Yeah, so both you know, Marvel House sitters whatever you call them, what do they home ground? Home ground?
Marble?
So I'll give it to the Bulldogs. I'd like to think that they have to and a bit of a corner and they can get a bit of a run on. I wouldn't mind seeing their talent, just carry them through to the finals. See how they go. I'm going to go back. I'm going to give Brisbane my cock clock. Huge.
Yeah wow, Okay.
Well you wait till you see what's coming up fifty to fifty games in here. Sydney versus Frio at the SCG Freo on the road again. As I said, Alice by Melbourne Perth, Sydney Perth Tazzy is a lineup on.
Little road trip.
Yeah, that's a bit of a run that they've had and they're going to have.
I mean, I'd love to put this as the cock clock, but I feel like that's too obvious. I'm going to get a bit more of a different one.
Too obvious. Freemantle good team Sydney.
I don't think that's going to happen. I just don't think Sydney with the dub for sure.
I think the only team in the run home that will beat Sydney is Brisbane at the Gather.
I reckon if they're honors Brisbane at the gather, If they're.
As honors I think they are, I don't think they can get that game done. But for this one, I'm gonna say Sydney so you're Sydney as well, gold Verse Collingwood in the Mason Cox Cup at People's First Stadium. Who are you tipping? You're tipping your boys or your.
Lads the.
Boys.
I don't know which one's Callingwood, but now I'm gonna tip tip Collingwood. Obviously it is up there at Gold Coast we get a little bit of warm weather after everyone's been on holiday. Probably in the Gold Coast we go back.
You wouldn't go.
I'm going to try to might do the same thing as last week. Now I'm going to try to go up. I highly doubt they'll allow me to go up there though, I've got to do a bit of rehab back here. But I did go up last year, but I had to pay my own way to go up.
Yeah.
Right, so that's that's how it works. Yeah, that's yeah.
I'll just go up for holiday.
You know, I'm there to support people, even if it's out of my own pocket book. Back on tex yes, I did claim it. But I'm tipping Callingwood on this one. That's a good question. Mark. I actually hear about Gold Coast. We haven't covered this. They're a new jumper idea. I haven't seen no they haven't well, haven't come out with it, but they're I think they're committing to citly saying they're going to revamp it, ye, which I'm excited for. We still,
I think, yeah, but maybe less mcdonald'sy there. Now.
Yeah, well the colors are still going to be their colors.
Yeah, you can. You can change it a little bit to make it nicer.
I think I reckon we'll draw one out, we'll draw one each and they.
Should do they should do a little competition and then they should just have people vote on it. Yeah. Yeah, but then Australia they'll put something, someone to put a dick on it all of a sudden that will win the go Okay, do we commit to this or not? It's guaranteed to happen.
Two big sons for the balls we'll get there. Yeah, I'm gonna I'm gonna stick with Collingwood. But it's a very interesting game. Gold Coast at home, tough, tough team Adelaide versus GWS. GWS are alternating wins and losses, so this one is coming off the loss, so they should get a win here. Now. I don't know what the hell Adelaide's doing because I keep going, Oh, Adelaide will win at home, and it turns out they lose a fair bit at home, so I'm trying to figure out
what the hell they're doing. I'm going to just say I'll go with my boys the GWS Giants for now, yeah, and hope that they get the job done.
I'm going to go Adelaide Adelaide Oval. This is a very fifty to fifty game. I feel like it could go either way, but I'll go home team and just to be different from me, because I don't like whenever we decide to do the same shit, unless it's Sydney, I feel like we should have our own opinion. So I'll go Adelaide Adelaide Oval. Who we got next?
We've got Geelong versus.
Love Geelong right now, I feel like every time you say Geelong it just comes with it.
No, it's because I actually hate what they're doing, so I can't. My brain says that I've historically just locked Geelong in most weeks because they've been so good forever. But Geelong versus Essenon at the MCG, I don't know what the hell to expect. I kind of think Essendon can, you know, take a big step for Essendon and get the win here. I don't I don't know that Geelong is that good and they just lost Tom Hawkins. Yeah, well they haven't been that good. So yeah, and Essendon
have like what do I go off? I probably have to go a form and the fact that it is technically at neutral territory for both teams, neutral neutral territory all the way over there at Cash they go to the MCG.
We've been through this before. That's just the They can be upset about it, but either they choose financials or they choose their home ground. Yeah, well think one of the other.
What you have to do, if you guys have to change it up, you have to go to Marvel. They get to get panelized by going to one of the best stadiums on the planet Earth. It's not that biggest.
I don't think they want to be going to Marble. Yeah.
No, you can't agree to that. So I'm going to say Essendon in this one.
Yeah, I'm going to go as well.
It's different.
Look, we've got something brewing here. I'm gonna go with here in a second that you're going to go.
Game Saint Kilda v. Port at Marvel. I hope it's this game because they both kind of suck uh Port in the eighth and they really need to get the w. Saint Kilda have just let the season go. It's done. There are twenty points for the year after. You know, we kind of expected a bit early season. I was backing them in. They kind of burnt.
Met a lot of hype going then finals last year.
They burnt me plenty of times because I thought the one thing that they could bring was you know, pressure and consistency off the back of that. But it just hasn't materialized for the Saint Kilda Saints and they're just stuck down the bottom of the ladder. So I think they're going to stay there. Who you got this one though, They're going to stay there, but I Saints probably win this game.
Wow, I stuff you. We're going tock lock of the week. What your boys? The port Adelood power Ken Henckley, get off his back. Adelaide Supporters, Port Island supporter get stopped. Ken Hinckley. We're going back for ten years, signing for ten years. He's gonna dominate this Port Adelaide. I got him win about sixty Oh screw it, Port Adelaide, baby, they're my team. Desides to those songs. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Now, Port Adelaide they're gonna get the dub at Marvel.
So they lose by six seventy at home and win by care.
They got a rally around their superstar that is Ken Hinckley. Oh gosh, I don't even know if Butters is playing this week, but put him down for five goals.
Oh my goodness. Yeah, he did hurt his shoulders. So we'll wait and see on that one. But okay, well we'll have fun with that one. We'll click that up when Port wins. Richmond v. Carlton, I think this one's probably a pretty easy one. Lynch out with another suspected hamsterem usually, so I'm going Carlton, who on an absolute tear at the moment.
Yeah, we're gonna go Carlton on this one. The mcg it's tough to look past him. I will say props to Richmond, though Dusty's three hundred. They did show up for a little bit of that and then it went real south, real quick. Yeah.
You know what wasn't great was his postgame interview Dusties.
Yeah, give us the rockdown for the rundown.
Well, he just says he got asked like five different questions from Jack Rereewell and he just said the same answer five times. Dusty really overwhelmed at the moment. I like to thank everyone coming out, and it's like every single answer, Come on.
What do you expect? Do you expect him all of a sudden to give a deep dive on his life on a three hundredth game. Yeah, No, he's not going to do it.
He's on out a stadium of like ninety something.
You know what he's doing. You know he's doing. He's protecting all that. And then whenever he retires, he's going to actually probably open up and sell Oh my gosh, that many copies a book that he writes.
He'd get that ghost written, wouldn't he.
Yeah, of course, but he's going to at least have all the information that people don't know about him. He never opens up.
Yeah, no, that's yeah, that's good.
That's smart marketing. Briton, Yeah, that's a smart marketing.
Yeah. People loved it. Anyway, He's got to know that they frosted. So many commentators are like, oh my god, that was we'll talk about that forever, will we?
Dusty's weak Dusty. He's the greatest big time player that's ever.
Played, Undeniable, Undeniable, I'm not saying saying he's not the greatest big interviewer of all, don I'll tell you that much.
Man.
Let's wrap it up, places to be.
That's it, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you so much for listening through this one, and I appreciate you understanding. It's been a bit of an on off month with injuries and trouble and everything else, but we're back on regular programming, so I just want to say massive thank you for continuing to be part of this community. Follow us on
all the socials we got, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, everything. Make sure you subscribe on Spotify wherever you listen on this to this spot this podcast on whether it be Spotify, Apple, whatever it is, make sure you hit the bell to make sure that you know whenever a new episode is out. But a massive, massive thank you for being part of this community and showing love and support. It is all
very very important to us and we appreciate it. So without further though, that is it for today, and have an incredible week ahead.
Yeah. H