Just got my [AFL-Review] newsletter. The author is a tiger's man. He doesn't seem too happy.

At the MCG:

St. Kilda  5.5   14.6   23.6   27.12.174
Richmond   2.2    6.7    8.9    10.11.71 

And the stinkers kept on comin’. The Tiges have been Sinkilda’s ‘biatches’ for several years now. The Stain’s poor recent form and a feeling Richmun were about to rebound from a couple of bad performances proved very misleading as the Saints thumped the Tiggers from pillar to post. Fraser ‘Bourbon Train’ Gehrig booted 10 goals to cap a dominant performance, which delivered a healthy chunk of percentage too. The Tiges, weakened by injury, lacked confidence, intensity and decent disposal skills. Pat Bowden and Greg Tivendale may as well have worn Sinkilda guernseys.  Sinkilda made one tactical change in selection, ruckman Michael Rix dropped for midfielder Andrew Thompson. The Tiges’ cause wasn’t helped by a host of late withdrawals, key defenders Darren Gaspar (knee), Andrew Kellaway (injured hamstring while surfing - jeez) and forward Andrew Krakouer (er, finger) joined Kel Moore (groin strain) on the sidelines. Joel Bowden returned from suspension, Mark Chaffey was called up for his first game of the season along with Greg Stafford and Ray Hall.

The ball spent the opening 5 minutes in the Stains’ attacking half. Running half-back Jason Gram enjoyed the first term (and the rest of the game too), he booted the opening goal by starting and completing a move involving Rob Harvey and Nick Riewoldt. The Tiges’ belated first thrust saw Tivendale run a long way without a bounce before his shot hit the post. Tiger Mark Chaffey was busy early, his smart kick found Jay Schulz alone for the Tiges’ first goal. Despite dominating possession the Saints struggled to kick goals for a while, Gram was their most effective attacker. In sequence Gram missed a shot, blasted a 50m goal following a slow build-up, then sliced another running shot on-the-full. Riewoldt missed awfully after marking right in front. The Tiges clung on until Shane Tuck’s good kick found Schulz again, he booted his and the Toigs’ second goal and they trailed by 3 points. The Saints won the ball away from the restart and Gram booted his third, long goal. Tige Richard Tambling came on to tag Gram. The Stainers got a move-on now, Andrew Thompson floated a kick for Gehrig to run onto, mark and boot his first. Soon G-Train had his second, a free-kick against grappling opponent Hall. Stafford missed woefully for the Tiges late in the stanza and the Saints went to the first break 21 points ahead. Goals rained through in the second term. The Tiges scored one straight from the opening bounce, Nathan Brown passing for leading Matty Richardson to mark and kick his first major for a few weeks. Only 15 points ahead, the Saints. They cleared the next centre-bounce and Riewoldt snapped a goal, then Brendon Goddard kicked a very easy one under no pressure. Harvey and Riewoldt combined to create a comfortable goal-square mark for Gehrig, he converted and the Saints jumped 33 points ahead. Tivendale broke the run with a goal following some very good roving, but the Saints were doing it in third gear. A sharp Stinkilda move from a kick-in saw Sam Fisher run afield under no pressure and pass to Riewoldt, on to leading Gehrig for his fourth goal. The Tiges suffered a further blow as Brown damaged a hamstring, his day ended. Tigger Tambling booted a goal after marking Richo’s wobbly punt, the Tiges were still clinging on 25 points behind. Gehrig added two goals to the tally in rapid succession, one an off-ball free-kick against battling Ray Hall, the other a mark of Gram’s pass. Tiger Richo benefited from the umps’ vigilance in punishing off-ball holding, Saints 30 points ahead. Saint man Goddard was flattened by Stafford with a decent shirt-front, the game was held up for a while as Goddard was stretchered off. But he wasn’t hurt badly and returned later. The Saints bagged three late goals, a pair of mysterious 50m penalties allowed Brett Voss to kick the first. Busy Leigh Montagna cleared the restart and Gehrig out-marked Joel Bowden to boot another, a poor turnover by Tigger David Rodan led Montagna to punt a major of his own. After Richo missed a late shot the Saints led by 47 points at half-time, G-Train with 7 goals already.

Sinkilda ruckman Cain Ackland kicked a goal straight from the opening bounce of the third term, a soft free-kick and 50m penalty the causes. Richmun ruckman Troy Simmonds won just about every hit-out on the day but the Saints took the ball away almost every time. As Ackland and his sidekick Jason Blake are largely useless as tap-ruckmen, the Saints bank on that happening. Nick Dal Santo free-kicked a goal after being ploughed into the ground by Patrick Bowden and the Saints were 59 points ahead. Richardson’s third goal, a good lead to Brett Deledio’s pass, affected a dead cat bounce before the margin expanded rapidly. Great length-of-the-ground running by Stephen Milne set up Gehrig’s eighth goal, Gram roosted another long sausage and soon Riewoldt’s pass set up Gehrig’s ninth. Goddard returned to cheers from Stainer fans, prior to Milne taking a good mark in traffic and playing-on to snap it through. Pat Bowden’s appalling turnover allowed Montagna to kick a goal and a second later Montagna had another, snapping truly from a throw-in. The Stainers 87 points ahead before Tige skipper Kane Johnson marked and converted. Once again Johnson had been good, winning his battle with Dal Santo. The Saints had won everywhere else, though. Ex-Tiger Aaron Fiora restored the 87-point lead before the final change. Mercifully, the Saints missed a few shots in the last korter. The Saint players must’ve wagered on Gehrig winning the Coleman medal as they looked for him at every opportunity, but G-Train ignored the plan by passing off for Harvey to kick the first goal of the ultimate Mario. But a minute later Gehrig marked Milne’s lobbed kick and booted no. 10, they led by 99 points. Gehrig’s first miss of the day brought up the triple-digit margin. Majors alternated to the end, Richardson and Tivendale goaled for the Toigs, Goddard and Riewoldt majored for the Stains. Frustrated Tige ruckman Simmonds biffed Riewoldt, which might cost him a game or two.

Plenty of good players for the Stains, headed by Fraser Gehrig with 10.1 from 12 marks and 15 kicks (2 handballs). Jason Gram (29 disposals, 4 goals) helped build the early momentum and Leigh Montagna (34 touches, 3 goals) cashed in after half-time. Nick Riewoldt (11 marks, 14 kicks, 2 goals) was happy to play the traditional CHF and set up others to kick goals - G-Train particularly - while Luke Ball (28 possies, 10 tackles), Stephen Powell (24 disposals), Robert Harvey (23 handlings, a goal) and Brendon Goddard (22 touches, 2 goals) all saw plenty of it. Sam Fisher (25 touches, 8 marks) ran downfield to get a kick. Brett Voss was alright too. Only two Tigers really worth mentioning, Kane Johnson (15 disposals, a goal) did his job again on Dal Santo and Andrew Raines (22 disposals) played well. Matty Richardson (9 marks, 13 touches, 4 goals) did alright when the Tiges could get the ball to him. Brett Deledio (24 possies) was best of a beaten midfield. Jay Schulz and Greg Tivendale kicked 2 goals each. Plough sighed though the press conference. "I could tell after about five minutes the game was heading that way . . . It was disappointing to lose Gaspar and Kellaway late in the week but they (the rest of the team) should still be going in with the right attitude and the right psychological approach. It's in those circumstances that mental strength arises and they have just got to handle those situations better." Grant Thomas said "I think the consistency of the four-quarter effort where we continued to attack and probably the most pleasing thing from a coaching perspective, we all agreed, was the fact that we stuck to our plans and worked together as a team. We stuck to our structures and we didn't collapse those sorts of things when the game was no longer in the balance which I think we've been guilty of in the past. You get a bit greedy and a bit selfish which teams can do, but we were really pleased with our selflessness and our team effort."      

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[listening to: Gimme the Car [UK Single] [*] - Violent Femmes ]
8:41:50 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

Big win to the Saints v Richmond has given the team a sniff of 2nd place on the ladder. To get there we need to win on Friday against the West Coast Eagles. This is another crunch game!

Our record hasn't been good againts the Eagles, but the last time we played at the Telstra Dome, we slammed them by 101 points

Since 1987	All Games	Last 5 Games	Highest Score	Lowest Score	Biggest Win
St Kilda	12	2	169	29	101
West Coast	18	3	175	29	92

Since the game is on Friday night, it's a bit delayed (again). Can I resist until 9.30pm to watch the game 'live'?

Friday 04/08/2006

• 3.00a  Round 17 St Kilda v Richmond
• 3.30p  Last Time They Met 2006 Rnd 1 West Coast Eagles v St Kilda
• 9.30p  Round 18 St Kilda v West Coast Eagles

Saturday 05/08/2006

• 12.30a  Round 18 St Kilda v West Coast Eagles
• 9.30a  Round 18 St Kilda v West Coast Eagles

Monday 07/08/2006

• 8.30a  Round 18 St Kilda v West Coast Eagles
  

[listening to: Gimme the Car [UK Single] [*] - Violent Femmes ]
5:22:42 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

I've been playing with the ladder predictor.

I really like this particular scenario (Note the # reflects the team's current position on the ladder)

Predicted Ladder

#	Team	Pl	W	L	D	PF	PA	Pt	Perc
1	Adelaide	22	17	5	0	2347	1712	68	137.0
4	St Kilda	22	16	6	0	2192	1725	64	127.0
3	Melbourne	22	16	6	0	2205	1939	64	113.7
2	West Coast	22	16	6	0	2191	1992	64	109.9
6	Sydney	22	13	9	0	2094	1817	52	115.2
5	Collingwood	22	13	9	0	2343	2066	52	113.4
7	W Bulldogs	22	12	10	0	2261	2140	48	105.6
8	Fremantle	22	11	11	0	1982	2088	44	94.9
9	Geelong	22	10	12	0	2039	2025	40	100.6
12	Port Adel	22	10	12	0	2008	2134	40	94.0
11	Bris Lions	22	10	12	0	2014	2208	40	91.2
14	Hawthorn	22	9	13	0	1864	2223	36	83.8
10	Richmond	22	8	14	0	1845	2219	32	83.1
13	Kangaroos	22	6	16	0	1885	2181	24	86.4
15	Essendon	22	5	16	1	2033	2389	22	85.0
16	Carlton	22	3	18	1	1861	2306	14	80.7

[listening to: Always - Bon Jovi ]
9:54:51 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Geek • My Hobbies

Average result with my tips this week. Only got 4 right. A few unexpected results

Week 17
Home		Draw		Away
Magpies (16.17 113)				Hawks (11.2 68)
Saints (27.12 174)				Tigers (10.11 71)
Eagles (26.9 165)				Crows (12.11 83)
Bombers (25.10 160)				Lions (18.15 123)
Power (7.8 50)				Swans (10.17 77)
Kangaroos (13.12 90)				Cats (8.12 60)
Blues (13.11 89)				Dockers (15.17 107)
Demons (18.11 119)				Bulldogs (9.14 68)

I've now had 89 correct tips and I've lost even more ground in my tipping comp.

6:32:51 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

The Age St Kilda's planning starts a late-season surge RealFooty, Australia - 16 hours ago WHEN St Kilda coach Grant Thomas spoke at length to The Age this week about his team's prospects for the rest of this season, he made much of the Saints' bigger scope for improvement than its top-eight rivals. St Kilda in 103-point win over Richmond The Age St Kilda ends Tigers' finals hopes SportsAustralia.com Gehrig kicks bagful as Saints run riot The Age ABC Online - FOX SPORTS - all 19 related »

sportal.com.au

Kosi's season may be over RealFooty, Australia - 16 hours ago ST KILDA coach Grant Thomas has conceded Justin Koschitzke may not play again this season, despite speculation earlier this week that the valuable big man might have returned to the Saints' line-up for yesterday's game against Richmond at the MCG. Kosi indefinite again sportal.com.au Koschitzke conjecture set to continue The Age Saints pin faith in defence The Australian Sydney Morning Herald - Courier Mail - all 23 related »

4:54:31 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

Great result in the footy today.

The Saints thumped the Tigers by 17+ goals. (Not bad for Round 17). Fraser Gehrig kicked 10 goals for the game. The Saints kick 9 goals in the second and third quarters. Jason Gram played his best game. I could go on

AND I missed the game on the telly, because of Chris' exhibition. So, I relied on the coverage from ABC radio and a little known Scoreboard page from Sportsdata

ST KILDA: 5.5, 14.6, 23.6, 27.12 (174)
RICHMOND: 2.2, 6.7, 8.9, 10.11 (71)
GOALS - St Kilda: Gehrig 10, Gram 4, Montagna 3, Goddard 2, Riewoldt 2, Dal Santo, Ackland, Milne, Voss, Fiora, Harvey
Richmond: Richardson 4, Schulz 2, Tivendale 2, Johnson, Tambling
BEST - St Kilda: Gehrig, Gram, Montagna, Ball, Powell, Goddard, S Fisher, Harvey, Voss
Richmond: Raines, Johnson, Chaffey, Richardson, Deledio,
INJURIES - St Kilda: Hudghton (knee strain)
Richmond: Brown (hamstring)
CHANGES - Richmond: Gaspar (knee) replaced in selected side by Hall, Kellaway (hamstring) replaced in selected side by Stafford, Krakouer (finger) replaced in selected side by Chaffey
REPORTS - Nil
UMPIRES - Vozzo, Rosebury, Allen
CROWD - 43,250 at the MCG

RealFooty

St Kilda in 103-point win over Richmond The Age, Australia - 1 hour ago ... haul to Fraser Gehrig has helped St Kilda thump Richmond ... The Saints cruised to a 27.12 (174) to 10.11 (71) victory, effectively ending Richmond's hopes of ... Tigers' finals hopes take a dive ABC Online Gehrig kicks bag as Saints run riot The Age Gehrig stars, Saints run riot FOX SPORTS all 10 related »

7:00:36 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

I am a big fan AFL Preview mailing list . It continues to be an entertaining read, as it's written by fans for fans.

I had to share this weeks preview, since the author is a tiger fan. I love his last sentence.

St Kilda V Richmond  – MCG Saturday

Yes you can say the Tigers were woeful against the Swans last week but then so were the Saints against the Power in Tassie. Richmond have done it all year, that is, follow up a poor performance with an unexpected win due to a change in form. I believe they can do it this week in a game where you expect them to hold sway in the ruck with Symonds on a roll but it will be how the teams play the game above their shoulders in this match. Richmond would need to win nearly every game to make the finals while the Saints have notched 4 wins in a row to put themselves 5th on the ladder and with a bit of momentum. I’ll kick myself if Richmond gets up but the sensible selection will be St Kilda.

St Kilda by 21

8:30:05 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

My favorite AFL site FinalSiren has had a makeover.

Looks slick!

10:54:49 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

Koschitzke to take on Tigers
FOX SPORTS, Australia - 22 hours ago
KEEP your fingers crossed, but St Kilda's walking headline, Justin Koschitzke, seems likely to make his long-waited AFL return on Saturday.
Thomas wants intensity to return Melbourne Herald Sun
Thomas keen to play star Melbourne Herald Sun
Thomas wants intensity to return FOX SPORTS
sportal.com.au - all 8 related »

[listening to: Church Of The Poisoned Mind - Culture Club ]
10:51:48 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

The Saints got out of jail last round. The game this week is against the Tigers, who are fighting for a place in the final 8 and who will be keen to atone for their loss on the weekend. A real danger game.

The Saints have had a good run against the Tigers recently, which makes it such a danger game.

Since it's on Saturday afternoon, this will be live on the telly on Channel 10.

Tuesday 25/07/2006

• 11.00a  Round 16 St Kilda v Port Adelaide

Wednesday 26/07/2006

• 2.00a  Round 16 St Kilda v Port Adelaide

Thursday 27/07/2006

• 8.00a  Last Time They Met 2006 Rnd 2 Richmond v St Kilda

Sunday 30/07/2006

• 1.00a  Round 17 St Kilda v Richmond
• 11.30a  Round 17 St Kilda v Richmond

Monday 31/07/2006

• 11.00a  Round 17 St Kilda v Richmond
  

[listening to: Ugly - Violent Femmes ]
5:28:51 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies • TV

Average results this week, just 5 winners. The draw would have stuffed most tipping comps.

Week 16
Home		Draw		Away
Crows (19.10 124)				Kangaroos (7.10 52)
Bombers (16.9 105)				Blues (15.15 105)
Magpies (19.13 127)				Eagles (13.12 90)
Swans (14.17 101)				Tigers (7.11 53)
Lions (11.18 84)				Hawks (11.8 74)
Saints (8.16 64)				Power (8.12 60)
Cats (13.12 90)				Bulldogs (13.11 89)
Dockers (15.6 96)				Demons (9.13 67)

So, I've got 85 correct tips and am sitting 4th in the tipping comp. I lost some ground overall - grrrrr

[listening to: The Longest Time - Billy Joel ]
8:10:09 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

What a terrible game. The Saints had it in the bag by half time, and somehowalmost lost the game.

Poor kicking at goal.  Poor Disposal.   Poor decision making.

But they won. The team has now won 10 games, including the last 4.

News.....

Motlop miss gives St Kilda a narrow win The Age, Australia - 15 minutes ago Port Adelaide's Daniel Motlop missed a simple set shot after the siren to allow St Kilda to escape ... The Saints won 8.16 (64) to 8.12 (60) and while it was ...

Saints get out of jail FOX SPORTS, Australia - 20 minutes ago PORT Adelaide's Daniel Motlop missed a simple set shot after the siren to allow St Kilda to escape ... it was an important victory for the Saints, the style ...

Saints sneak home sportal.com.au, Australia - 22 minutes ago St Kilda has broken its nine-game losing streak against Port ... had a chance to snatch victory for Port after the ... right for a behind to give the Saints an 8.16 (64 ...

Motlop chokes, Saints hold on SportsAustralia.com, Australia - 24 minutes ago ... a four point victory after Port Adelaide's Daniel Motlop ... away Essendon last week, the Saints looked sluggish ... players for the clash - perhaps St Kilda's last in ...

[listening to: Sister Christian - Night Ranger ]
4:23:12 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

I sent an email to the FinalSiren webmaster, asking if he could add an RSS feed of the latest AFL results.

A few days later I got an email back with good news for me

The feed  includes the last 16 games results

Chris - love your work!

Subscribed!

[listening to: One of Those Days - Weird Al Yankovic ]
8:16:41 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

There is an article in The Age following Round 15, predicting the final standings of the teams at the end of the season.

Rohan's ladder looks like this:

1. Adelaide
2. West Coast
3. Melbourne
4. St Kilda
5. Western Bulldogs
6. Collingwood
7. Sydney Swans
8. Fremantle
9. Richmond
10. Geelong
11. Brisbane Lions
12. Hawthorn
13. Port Adelaide
14. Kangaroos
15. Carlton
16. Essendon

Looks like a good call.

Let's see what it looks like in another 7 weeks.

[listening to: XTC Vs. Adam Ant - They Might Be Giants ]
4:36:00 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

The Saints meet Port Adelaide in Tassie this weekend. It's live on Channel 9 on Sunday at 1pm.  I believe they have fixed the siren there too.

Will the Saints beat Port for the first time since 2000??. These guys have become our Hoodoo team recently.

Since 1997		All Games		Last 5 Games		Highest Score		Lowest Score		Biggest Win
St Kilda		5		0		126		47		65
Port Adelaide		9		5		139		45		83

Friday 21/07/2006

• 3.00a  Round 15 Essendon v St Kilda
• 8.00a  Last Time They Met 2006 Rnd 4 Port Adelaide v St Kilda

Sunday 23/07/2006

• 11.00p  Round 16 St Kilda v Port Adelaide

Monday 24/07/2006

• 5.00a  Round 16 St Kilda v Port Adelaide
  

[listening to: About Me - They Might Be Giants ]
2:54:53 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies • TV

Two major pieces of news about the Saints this weekend - one was the result against the Bombers, and the other the continuing saga of Justin Koschitzke

The Age

Bombers lead, and lead, and lead, and then... The Age, Australia - 20 hours ago Goals: St Kilda: F Gehrig 3 S Milne 3 N Riewoldt 2 B Voss J Gram C Ackland. Essendon: A Lovett 3 S Lucas 2 J Reynolds 2 J Watson D Peverill J Johnson. Close win has major significance for Saints coach The Age St Kilda scrapes a win over Essendon FOX SPORTS Saints shine on Dons' dirty day FOX SPORTS RealFooty - SportsAustralia.com - all 20 related »

RealFooty

Thomas concedes Kosi delay sportal.com.au, Australia - 6 hours ago St Kilda coach Grant Thomas has conceded that Justin Koschitzke's latest injury setback could delay his much-anticipated AFL return. Koschitzke to return when 'fit and ready' ABC Online Koschitzke collision a cruel blow Melbourne Herald Sun Kosi runs into trouble again RealFooty Daily Telegraph - RealFooty - all 37 related »

8:33:08 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

A really interesting round this week. A few close games. The Saints stole the game from the Bombers. Sorry Sheeds.

I scored 7 correct tips - aaarrggg

Week 15
Home		Draw		Away
Tigers (7.10 52)				Demons (9.16 70)
Bombers (10.11 71)				Saints (11.8 74)
Crows (16.13 109)				Hawks (11.7 73)
Kangaroos (11.18 84)				Lions (12.13 85)
Eagles (9.13 67)				Swans (9.11 65)
Cats (9.14 68)				Power (8.10 58)
Magpies (15.14 104)				Dockers (18.11 119)
Blues (11.14 80)				Bulldogs (16.14 110)

80 correct tips for the season now. I am now equal 2nd in the tipping comp!

8:27:24 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

I got my tips in before I went away. 

When we were down in Melbourne, we went along to the Telstra Dome to see the Saints meet the Magpies. It was wonderful to see the Saints beat the Magpies by almost 10 goals!.

I got 6 right again.

Week 14
Home		Draw		Away
Dockers (19.11 125)				Bombers (12.16 88)
Hawks (16.8 104)				Eagles (17.12 114)
Blues (11.11 77)				Cats (23.4 142)
Demons (14.14 98)				Lions (13.12 90)
Power (6.15 51)				Tigers (13.7 85)
Swans (8.14 62)				Crows (15.11 101)
Bulldogs (12.10 82)				Kangaroos (13.16 94)
Saints (19.8 122)				Magpies (9.9 63)

73 Correct tips for season now. I am coming equal 3rd in the tipping comp!.