Thursday, June 26

The way back
Cousins expected to nominate by Monday

Former West Coast player Ben Cousins is facing the hurdle of being out of the game for a considerable time as moves are soon expected to bring his nomination to play at VFL or WAFL level.

The deadline for nominations close next Monday, June 30th, when paperwork must be completed for the state leagues' 2008 seasons.

Playing at the lower level is seen as a first step to a possible return to the AFL in 2009 after he completes a 12-month suspension for bringing the game into disrepute.

To make that step, he will need to satisfy the AFL Commission that he has overcome the drug-related issues that led to his ban, then convince an AFL club that he is worth taking in the national draft.

Manager Ricky Nixon said while Cousins was "pretty close to making a decision to go forward and try to make a comeback", that did not mean he would succeed.

While Nixon said Cousins' health was in as good a state as he had seen it, he said that returning to football even at a lower level would be a "massive step".

Carlton coach Brett Ratten was among those to rule out chasing Cousins, saying he would not be tempted by the "romance" of reuniting former Eagles captains Chris Judd and Cousins in the one midfield.

Similar views were aired by Melbourne, Hawthorn, Essendon, North Melbourne and Port Adelaide, while Sydney, Adelaide and Fremantle also declared a lack of interest.

But Collingwood, the Western Bulldogs, Richmond, St Kilda and Geelong would not rule out the possibility of recruiting the 2006 premiership player and four-time Eagles best and fairest – The Age

l Almost half of Tassie show support for AFL team
A government-commissioned poll shows 48 per cent of 1,000 Tasmanians surveyed support the state having an AFL team. 23 per cent of those surveyed said they would consider becoming financial members of a locally-based AFL side.

ABC Online noted from the survey that 41 per cent said they would not support a team and 11 per cent were undecided.

Yahoo! Sport noted: Australian football has a majority following and the government is spending large amounts of money in a bid to establish a Tassie AFL team.

Stab Kicks ...
n There's always another story ...

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l Footy Works updates – available
Round 13 updates are the most recent – posted on June 25th
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Worth noting ...
n Martin Windsor-Black's *Full Picture* – more
n Tribunal 2008 – more
n NAB Cup 2008 Match Review and details – more
n Traded, Retired, Delisted, Acquired – more
n 2007 financial forecasts and results – more
n Footystats Classifieds – more

Wednesday, June 25

Round 13 – MRP; Tribunal
Adam Goodes; stumped at 204
Nathan Bassett cleared by tribunal

The 204-game streak of Sydney star Adam Goodes is over after the dual AFL Brownlow Medallist accepted his one-match ban for rough conduct.

Yahoo! Sport reports Goodes will stay third on the all-time consecutive games list behind new Melbourne president Jim Stynes (244) and current Demon Adem Yze (226) after taking the early plea offered by the MRP for the incident involving Melbourne midfielder Clint Bartram last Sunday at Canberra's Manuka Oval.

It was the third time this season Goodes had been booked.

The tribunal deliberated for less than five minutes before finding Adelaide defender Nathan Bassett not guilty of striking.

Bassett was the only player to front the tribunal after Goodes and Port Adelaide's Matt Thomas (rough conduct) accepted their one-match penalties.

Fremantle tall utility Robert Warnock took a reprimand for charging and St Kilda defender Brendon Goddard is $900 out of pocket for wrestling.

Charges and verdicts from Round 13 –

ST KILDA v FREMANTLE
l Robert Warnock (Fre) was cited with a Level One charging offence against Luke Ball (StK) in Q1. The MRP offered Warnock a reprimand and 93.75 toward his future record with an early plea. The player admitted guilt and accepted the MRP reprimand and demerit points added to his record.
l Brendon Goddard (StK) was cited with a first offence for wrestling Robert Warnock (Fre) in Q1. The MRP offered Goddard a $900 fine with an early plea. Goddard admitted guilt and accepted the MRP fine of $900.

PORT ADELAIDE v RICHMOND
Matt Thomas (PA) was cited with a Level One engaging in rough conduct offence against Joel Bowden (Rch) in Q1. A previous poor record cannot be reduced from a one-game penalty even with an early plea. The player admitted guilty and accepted the MRP suspension of one match and 103.13 points to his future record.

BRISBANE v ADELAIDE
Nathan Bassett (Ade) was cited with a Level One striking offence against Jed Adcock (Bri) in Q1. Existing carry-over points called for a one-match suspension, even with an early plea. Adelaide sought the adjudication of the Tribunal. On Tuesday night Bassett successfully pleaded his case before the jury. The Tribunal cleared Bassett of the striking charge.

MELBOURNE v SYDNEY
Adam Goodes (Syd) was cited with a Level One engaging in rough conduct offence against Clint Bartram (Mel) in Q2. Existing carry-over points called for a one-match suspension, even with an early plea. The player admitted guilt and accepted the MRP suspension of one match. Goodes has 164.04 added to his future record.

Other incidents assessed by the MRP:
Contact between Stephen Gilham (Haw) and Corey Jones (NM) from Q4. It was the view of the panel that Gilham had his eyes on the ball while running back to the contest. At the very last moment, he saw Jones and braced himself for contact. The MRP believed Gilham was committed to the contest and the contact was unavoidable. No further action was taken.

Contact between Chad Cornes (PA) and Dean Polo (Rch) from Q4. Polo was standing the mark and the umpire had called play on. Cornes came in from a short distance to block for the ball carrier. No high contact was made and the contact was not deemed unreasonable in the circumstances. No further action was taken.

Contact between Steve Johnson (Gee) and Adam Selwood (WCE) from Q1 was investigated, after video evidence from the match proved inconclusive. Based on the evidence provided by both players, player Johnson made contact with player Selwood to the throat region with a pushing motion with an open hand, as he attempted to break clear and lead into space to receive the ball. On the available evidence, no further action will be taken.

Contact between Ryan O'Keefe (Syd) and the field umpire from Q1 was assessed. O'Keefe did not make negligent contact with the umpire. The contact occurred when the umpire moved into the line the players were taking, without seeing the Sydney player. No further action required.

l North re-sign five key players
Hot on the heels of returning to the top eight with a win over Hawthorn, North Melbourne has shored up its list for the medium term, announcing yesterday it has secured contract deals with five key players.

Len Johnson reports in The Age: The Kangaroos have re-signed ruckman Hamish McIntosh, key defender Michael Firrito, productive forward Corey Jones and mid-fielders Brady Rawlings and Daniel Pratt.

Rawlings and Jones, who are 27, have agreed to two-year deals; 23-year-old McIntosh, 24-year-old Firrito and 25-year-old Pratt have signed on for three.

l Scott West should return early August
Injured Western Bulldogs champion Scott West is battling against time to be fit for his AFL club's tilt at breaking its 54-year premiership drought.

The midfielder has suffered a setback in his rehabilitation from a bone stress complaint in his right knee and is now targeting a return in early August, just a month before the finals.

After missing just eight matches in his first 15 seasons through injury, West, a veteran of 324 games, has been sidelined for nine of 13 this season, after sustaining the bone problem in his knee against West Coast in round 6.

While the club had hoped West would return after the mid-season break, a bad re-diagnosis on his knee has prompted the club to order West to rest for the next two weeks and pushed his comeback to Round 18 – Fox Sports

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l McLeod could miss a month
Andrew McLeod's recovery from minor knee surgery will take longer than first expected; the Adelaide defender now set to miss up to four weeks of football.

McLeod had an arthroscopy to clean out his troublesome right knee on Monday and could miss the Crows' next two games, according to club doctor Andrew Potter.

The Crows are not involved in the first weekend of the split round 14 which allows McLeod to rest over the coming days. The club expects he'll start some bike work next week before easing into a running regime over the following fortnight.

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Stab Kicks ...
n There's always another story ...

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Tuesday, June 24

Match Review Panel – Round 13
Suspensions face Goodes, Bassett, Thomas
Luck appears to have run out on Sydney's Adam Goodes who was booked for the third time in 11 games, for making head-high contact with Melbourne's Clint Bartram in the second quarter of Sunday's match at Manuka Oval in Canberra.

Goodes is currently on the run of 204 consecutive matches dating back to 1999, the third-longest in the history of our game. However, his run is over unless the Swans can successfully argue his case before the Tribunal where the risk is collecting double the one-match suspension offered with an early plea by the MRP.

Yahoo! Sport reports: Goodes is among three players facing one-match bans after the weekend's games. Like the Swans star, prior offences mean Port's Matt Thomas and Adelaide defender Nathan Bassett cannot reduce their penalties to reprimands.

The MRP handed Thomas a level-one rough conduct charge for an incident involving Richmond defender Joel Bowden. He has a one-game suspension within the last three years, increasing the original 125-point penalty by 10 per cent to 137.5. If Thomas accepts the penalty, which means a 25 per cent reduction, his 103.13 total remains just above the 100-point threshold for suspension.

Bassett was booked for striking Brisbane utility Jed Adcock and his starting penalty is only 80 points. But 60 points in the last 12 months increases it to 140 and even if he takes the early plea, the total is 105.

St Kilda defender Brendon Goddard also faces a $900 wrestling fine, while Fremantle ruckman Robert Warnock can accept a reprimand and 93.75 points for charging Saints midfielder Luke Ball.

The panel took no action against Geelong star Steve Johnson for an incident that hospitalised West Coast's Adam Selwood with swelling in his throat.

The league investigated the incident and spoke to the two players after finding television vision was inconclusive. Johnson pushed Selwood in the throat as the Cat tried to break clear and lead for the ball.

l Rocca and Reid to miss two months
Collingwood deny they took an unnecessary risk in playing Anthony Rocca despite the star forward breaking down just three quarters into his AFL comeback and facing possible season-ending surgery.

The Magpies say Rocca will be sidelined for the next two months, but insist the latest injury to his troublesome right ankle is not career-threatening.

Magpies football manager Geoff Walsh said Rocca would have surgery on Tuesday to have a pin inserted in his troublesome right ankle.

Young Magpies key forward Ben Reid is also expected to be sidelined for the next two months with a broken bone in his foot, also sustained in Sunday night's match.
__________

u Speculation surfaced over Anthony Rocca's intention to follow in the footsteps of his brother Saverio to seek a career as a punter in the American NFL.
   Rocca is out of contract with Collingwood at the end of this season.
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l Slattery has minor cheekbone crack
Essendon have reported Henry Slattery's cheekbone injury is not as bad as first thought following the heavy collision on Sunday with Carlton's Brendan Fevola.

The injury is a minor crack to a cheekbone rather than the severe fracture that had been initially feared.

Slattery was concussed in the incident and will not play against Fremantle at Subiaco on Sunday.

Stab Kicks ...
n AFL Tasmania released its business plan on Monday for next year's proposed State League.

Ten teams have been invited to join the league – Burnie, Clarence, Devonport, Glenorchy, Hobart-Sandy Bay, Lauderdale, Launceston, North Hobart, North Launceston, South Launceston.

None will be paid to play. Instead, they will each be given a $50,000 annual grant to promote, develop and market the game in their own zones. On the inter-change bench for later admission are Central Coast and Kingsborough.

A meeting on July 15 will negotiate salary caps and other details.

Unless there is a written commitment by eight of the 10 teams by August 15, the issue will be laid to rest.

n There's always another story ...

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Monday, June 23

*The Stats that Matter* – *Match Review* ... more u The season in scores and results – Stats Update 2008

Ankle injury may be the end of Rocca
The playing future of Collingwood forward Anthony Rocca is in doubt after he seriously injured an ankle yesterday.

Michael Gleeson reports in The Age: The injury occurred during the third quarter as he kicked the ball, which caused pain where he had had a screw inserted in his ankle in his most recent operation. Rocca snapped his Achilles tendon in 2005.

Rocca's injury compounded the earlier loss of key forward Ben Reid in the first quarter to a broken foot, leaving the Pies with just two on the bench for most of the second half.

The serious injuries prompted Collingwood coach Michael Malthouse to call for an enlarged bench exclusively for players unable to return to the field due to serious injury – more ...

l Neogtiations bog down on new Fevola deal
Fox Sports on Sunday reported Brendan Fevola has rejected Carlton's latest offer to extend his contract. The superstar forward has knocked back a three-year deal believed to be worth $2 million.

It is understood another AFL club has been in contact with Fevola's management to discuss a potential trade should talks break down with the Blues.

It is also believed the Carlton offer included a $200,000 bonus if Fevola met certain behaviour criteria, but that clause was immediately rejected by his manager, Mark Kleiman, during negotiations.

l Throat scare for Adam Selwood
West Coast's Adam Selwood was released on Sunday after being under observation in hospital. He was struck in the throat during the Saturday night match against Geelong at Subiaco Oval.

Selwood was grappling with Geelong forward Steve Johnson when he appeared to be accidentally struck in the throat. Selwood at half-time was suffering breathing problems and swelling in his throat. He is not expected to play against Hawthorn on Friday night – Fox Sports

Stab Kicks ...
n The ABC Radio boundary rider Tim Hodges reported early Sunday night that the expletives Collingwood player Anthony Rocca used to describe his thoughts on suffering a serious ankle injury in the third quarter was in language "Gordon Ramsay would have been proud of" ...

n 269,748 were reported through the turnstiles for Round 13 – progressive for the first 104 matches, 3,967,884 – weekend figures subject to AFL audit ..

n There's always another story ...

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Sunday, June 22

Round 13

Kangas upset Hawks to climb back into eight
Tigers beat Port in rare Footy Park victory
Brisbane gain crucial break over Crows
Geelong in record setting success at Subiaco
Demons press hard but Swans make it 6th-straight
Dons jump early and defy late Carlton comeback
Bulldogs overcome Pies and move to second

*The Stats that Matter* – *Match Review* ... more u The season in scores and results – Stats Update 2008

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Saturday, June 21

Round 13
Saints stay alive with narrow win over Fremantle

St Kilda 10.5-65
Fremantle 8.9-57

Fremantle skipper Matthew Pavlich starred with five goals but it wasn't enough as St Kilda held on to beat the Dockers by eight points on Friday night at Docklands Stadium.

St Kilda captain Nick Riewoldt took 18 marks and kicked three goals as the Saints grimly held on to keep their chances alive.

The Saints and Dockers only kicked one goal apiece in the desperate final term, which was over in just 24 minutes.

It was a massive game for the Saints, who had lost four of their previous five and made a stunning selection call with the axing of star midfielder Nick Dal Santo.

Their leading goalkicker this year, Stephen Milne, was also dropped as Ben McEvoy, Robert Eddy and Jarryd Allen all made their senior debuts.

Eddy was the pick of the newcomers with 17 disposals.

The Dockers drew to within four points after Ryan Crowley goaled early in the final term, but Riewoldt replied with a brilliant snap at 12 minutes and from there the Saints held off a series of Fremantle attacks.

l Dick Pratt steps aside; Kernahan takes helm
Carlton president Dick Pratt has stepped aside after being charged by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission for allegedly providing false or misleading evidence in the course of an investigation.

In a summons lodged with the Federal Court on Thursday, Pratt was charged with four counts of knowingly giving false or misleading evidence.

Yahoo! Sports carried an AAP report which noted: It alleges Pratt said he could not recall a conversation he had on May 21, 2001 about a price fixing arrangement between Visy and its rival cardboard manufacturer Amcor.

The matter is listed to come to court for a directions hearing on July 7.

Former player Stephen Kernahan has stepped in as Carlton's interim president.

ABC Sport reported: Kernahan expects to remain in the role until at least the end of the year.

Stab Kicks ...
n Freo's Matthew Pavlich and former Carlton Andrew McKay have joined the AFL's Laws of the Game Committee following the retirement of 1961 Magarey Medallist John Halbert.
   Other members of the Laws Committee are: Adrian Anderson (chairman), Kevin Bartlett, Luke Darcy, Brendon Gale, Rowan Sawers and Michael Sexton.

n Following the guilty plea by Hawthorn's Lance Franklin earlier this week, the top 10 in Tabcorp's Brownlow betting –
$2.75 – Gary ABLETT (Geelong)
  4.00 – Adam COONEY (West.B'dogs)
  6.00 – Simon BLACK (Brisbane)
  7.00 – Matthew RICHARDSON (Richmond)
10.00 – Jason AKERMANIS (West.B'dogs)
15.00 – Chris JUDD (Carlton)
15.00 – Brett KIRK (Sydney)
15.00 – Scott THOMPSON (Adelaide)
23.00 – Jonathan BROWN (Brisbane)
26.00 – Brent HARVEY (North Melb)   

n There's always another story ...

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Friday, June 20

Round 13 selections
North axe four; Dockers unchanged
Saints drop Dal Santo to VFL
Pies lose Fraser and Davis to knee injuries

North Melbourne have reacted to last week's defeat to Fremantle by dropping four players for their match against Hawthorn at the MCG on Saturday.

The selectors at Arden Street cut Scott Thompson, Leigh Brown, Ben Davies and Josh Smith.

Roger Vaughan reports for Fox Sports: However, the Kangaroos, who were already without ruckman Hamish McIntosh and Sam Power, with respective knee and groin injuries, will regain plenty of goal-kicking firepower with the recall of Nathan Thompson, Corey Jones and Shannon Grant.

And key position prospect Lachlan Hansen will finally play his first senior game for the season, after overcoming persistent injury problems. Defenders Shannon Watt and Alan Obst were also among the inclusions.

Hawthorn meanwhile gained Brent Guerra, who has been out since round eight with a hamstring injury, but the same problem has sidelined midfielder Chance Bateman.

In other games, Collingwood have made three changes for their late Sunday match against the Western Bulldogs at Docklands. Key forward Travis Cloke is out for one game on a striking charge, while ruckman Josh Fraser and Leon Davis are sidelined with knee injuries.

The Magpies have named Anthony Rocca on the extended interchange bench, but he remains an uncertain starter after several weeks of injury problems. Ryan Cook, Tyson Goldsack, Danny Stanley, Alan Toovey and Cameron Wood are their other potential inclusions.

Port Adelaide regained Brett Ebert after three weeks out with an ankle injury, and recalled Matt Thomas, for the home match against Richmond on Saturday. They dropped out-of-sorts forward Justin Westhoff and Jacob Surjan.

Richmond meanwhile recalled Cleve Hughes after he kicked 11 goals in his past two games for VFL affiliate Coburg. Danny Jackson is out with a leg injury, while Jay Schulz was dropped. Dean Polo was the other inclusion.

Brisbane named Tom Collier to make his senior debut in the home match against Adelaide on Saturday. The utility captained Tasmania in last year's under-18 national championships and made the All-Australian team. Michael Rischitelli and Robert Copeland will return to the side. Jason Roe is out with a hamstring injury, while Cheynee Stiller and Matthew Leuenberger were dropped.

Adelaide also made three changes, regaining Brett Burton from suspension and recalling Brent Reilly and Nick Gill. Ruckman Jonathon Griffin has a hip injury and David Mackay and Andy Otten were left out.

Daniel Kerr meanwhile leads five West Coast inclusions for their home game against Geelong on Saturday. Kerr, Chad Fletcher and Michael Braun missed last Friday night's loss to Essendon. Key position player Ashley Hansen has overcome persistent injury woes to make the senior team for the first time since round four, and Ben McKinley also returns.

The Eagles dropped Ryan Davis, Mark Seaby, Jamie McNamara and Brent Staker while Chris Masten has a hip injury.

The Cats are unchanged.

Nick Dal Santo is the latest casualty as St Kilda struggles. The club's leading goalkicker Stephen Milne has also been dropped for Friday night's must-win game against Fremantle at Docklands. Dal Santo was named as an emergency and looms as the first time in 114 games he has not made the senior side.

Ruckman Michael Gardiner and forward Adam Schneider are also out with hamstring problems, while three of the four inclusions are first-gamers. The Saints promoted rookie-listed player Robert Eddy, Jarryd Allen and ruckman Ben McEvoy for their AFL debuts. The other inclusion was second-year player David Armitage.

Fremantle, by contrast, named an unchanged team.

In the other two Sunday games, Melbourne v Sydney (Manuka Oval) and Carlton v Essendon (MCG) sides have still to be confirmed.

l St Kilda's move to Frankston on hold
St Kilda's $10 million redevelopment plan for Frankston Oval may have hit a snag, with the club investigating other potential development sites around the bayside suburb due to substantial blow-outs in cost estimates for the new base.

Michael Sharkie reports in The Age: St Kilda announced this year that it would relocate its training and administration base from Moorabbin to Frankston Oval by 2010, in a bid to further strengthen the club's existing ties with the bayside community.

The state-of-the-art development was to include a range of facilities available for use to the local community as well as the St Kilda and Frankston football clubs – more ...

l Demetriou remains opposed to night grand final
The AFL has downplayed the possibility of a shift to a twilight grand final in 2009, with chief executive Andrew Demetriou saying he is opposed to the move.

The Seven and Ten networks – the holders of the television rights – are expected to again lobby the League to move away from the traditional Saturday afternoon timeslot.

But Demetriou said on Thursday the AFL grand final was one of the "great sporting events in the world" and he remained opposed to playing the game under lights.

The current broadcasting deal is worth $780 million to the competition between 2007 and 2011. The AFL is under no obligation to schedule the season decider in an evening or twilight timeslot – more ...

Yahoo! Sport notes: AFL Players' Association operations manager Matt Finnis said the majority of players were steadfastly against a switch from the traditional timeslot.

More than 90 per cent of players opposed a move in a survey last year.

He said the AFLPA believed that with the current Saturday afternoon timing of the grand final, the AFL "owns that day", which could be diluted with an evening game.

l AFL clears Xavier Ellis of betting code breach
The AFL has cleared Xavier Ellis of any wrongdoing after the Hawthorn midfielder revealed one of his relatives had used his account to place bets on matches.

Ellis brought the matter to the attention of Hawthorn and the league earlier this week.

Players and club officials are forbidden from betting on AFL games.

A League investigation confirmed Ellis' explanation that the bets were not placed by him – Fox Sports

l Tassie calls for tenders on AFL bid
Tasmania's bid for an AFL team is proceeding with a state government call for tenders to prepare a submission to the League.

Economic Development and Tourism Minister Paula Wriedt on Thursday said seven or eight organisations had submitted tenders to prepare the bid for an AFL team based in Tasmania.

Ms Wriedt said an announcement on the successful tenderer was just days away and while AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou had been dismissive of Tasmania's claim for a team, the decision would be made by the League's commissioners, not just him.

The AFL has said it will accept the submission but has already committed its resources to establishing teams on the Gold Coast and western Sydney – Yahoo! Sport

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