Eagles win thriller by solitary point 
THE West Coast Eagles held off Sydney by one point to win today's AFL Grand Final at the MCG.

West Coast 12.13 (85) defeated Sydney 12.12 (84)

[listening to: All You Have To Do - Jet ]
5:25:01 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

Interesting. Bluey gets a second interview

McKenna earns a second interview with Saints
The Age, Australia - 26 Sep 2006
COLLINGWOOD assistant coach Guy McKenna has been invited back for a second interview for the vacant St Kilda coaching position. McKenna has already been interviewed once by Ian Foote of Stride Management, the ...
Last rites finally for the coach having to be Jock of all trades The Australian
all 3 news articles »

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So, the Brownlow medal went to Sydney's Adam Goodes

Goodonya Goodie

Here's the final leaderboard

• Adam Goodes - 26
• Scott West - 23
• Daniel Kerr - 22*
• Chris Judd - 21
• Brad Johnson - 19
• Matthew Pavlich - 15
• Shaun Burgoyne - 15
• Brendon Lade - 15
• Paul Chapman - 14

Well the rumour mill wasn't too far from the truth, as it predicted Adam Goodes too.

The Saints had a crap showing. No player made it in the top 10.

ST KILDA
12: Robert Harvey
10: Nick Dal Santo
8: * Lenny Hayes, Nick Riewoldt
6: Fraser Gehrig, Brendon Goddard
5: Jason Gram
3: Luke Ball, Leigh Montagna
2: Samuel Fisher
1: Matt Maguire, * Max Hudghton, Brett Voss

What I found amusing has been the coverage of the "fashions".

The Saint's players did well on this score

[listening to: Human Jukebox - Sandi Thom ]
8:05:58 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

From my friends over at Saintsatinal

TOP 15 in the 2006 Brownlow Medal

• S Goodwin 28
• A Goodes 28
• B Johnson 27
• N Riewoldt 26
• C Judd 18
• N Buckley 18
• C Bruce 18
• S West 17
• S Mitchell 16
• N Dal Santo 15
• N Thompson 14
• B Hall 14
• J Brown 13
• D Kerr 13
• T Edwards 13
• C Cornes 13

Looks believable

[listening to: Somebody Told Me - The Killers ]
7:13:46 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

Some good news for the Saints, as some key players re-sign with the club for the long term.

St Kilda re-signs Brendon Goddard The Age, Australia - 14 hours ago Brendon Goddard has become the latest St Kilda player to confirm his AFL future after signing for two more seasons. Goddard, the No.1 pick in the 2002 draft, committed to the Saints until the end of the 2008 season. Harvey to play a 20th season The Australian Goddard commits to Saints The Australian all 6 news articles » sportal.com.au Goddard re-signs for two years sportal.com.au, Australia - 16 hours ago St Kilda has followed up a tumultuous week with the positive news young midfielder Brendon Goddard has committed to the club for another two years. Goddard a Saint to '08 AFL all 2 news articles »

[listening to: It's Not Unusual - Tom Jones ]
8:47:19 AM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

The Saints continue to feature in the news, including a scatching report card.

sportal.com.au

2006 report card: St Kilda AFL, Australia - 42 minutes ago What went right: St Kilda made its third consecutive finals series this season, which was only the second time in the club's history that it had achieved this feat. Saints first considered sacking Thomas two years ago The Age Thomas' position shaky for years The Age Roos offers Thomas support Townsville Bulletin The Australian - sportal.com.au all 10 news articles »

Harvey to play on for St Kilda Sydney Morning Herald, Australia - 14 Sep 2006 The 35-year-old club games record-holder, who has played 340 games for the Saints since 1988, told club officials on Thursday he would continue playing.

Footballing heaven Courier Mail, Australia - 16 Sep 2006 THE St Kilda coaching job, vacant after the shock sacking of Grant Thomas on Tuesday, is the best to come on to the AFL market in eight years. Rendell considering Saints job RealFooty Our man at headquarters RealFooty all 3 news articles »

Sacked Thomas urges commitment to Saints The Age, Australia - 14 Sep 2006 Grant Thomas has urged his loyal players to commit their futures to the AFL club to prevent it from imploding. Contract extensions with several Saints players have been jeopardised by the St Kilda board's ...

[listening to: Change Your Mind - The Killers ]
1:32:44 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

The stories continue to grow. Is there no other news in the AFL this week???

Pyke enters St Kilda arena as a contender The Age, Australia - 7 hours ago DUAL West Coast premiership player Don Pyke has firmed for the St Kilda coaching job, a position that looms as one of the most sought after in the AFL.

The Age

Solo approach sank Thomas The Australian, Australia - 6 hours ago LESS than a day after St Kilda sacked its coach Grant Thomas, president Rod Butterss said his board had become frustrated with Thomas' "Alex Ferguson model" of running the club. Same old story but the young players wanted different end The Australian St Kilda restores law and order The Australian What the papers say AFL The Age - The Age all 90 news articles »

Powell retires from Saints The Australian, Australia - 7 hours ago ST KILDA midfield player Stephen Powell has become the first member of St Kilda's old-timers brigade to retire in the wake of the Saints' elimination final exit to St Kilda. Harvey decision looms The Age Powell done and dusted AFL Powell not only Saint to make exit Border Mail all 6 news articles »

Sydney Morning Herald

Saints may beat Swans to Everitt Sydney Morning Herald, Australia - 8 hours ago Fun and games … Sydney full-forward Michael O'Loughlin takes it easy at training yesterday. He is expected to be fit for the Swans' preliminary final on Friday week. Saints shoot for coaching stars NEWS.com.au Ex-Roo starts in red Melbourne Herald Sun Saints shooting for star Townsville Bulletin all 5 news articles »

Take the tip: things can change in an instant this time of year The Australian, Australia - 6 hours ago CONSIDERED opinions are not worth much in football. That's because what is considered good sense on Sunday morning, is considered flaky thinking by 5pm that afternoon.

Alves says St Kilda has lost its way Border Mail, Australia - 12 Sep 2006 FORMER St Kilda coach Stan Alves believes the Grant Thomas sacking is a “classic case of the St Kilda football club losing it’s way again”.

Sunday Times.au

Assistants win endorsement AFL, Australia - 13 hours ago Fremantle assistant coach Mark Harvey and his West Coast counterpart Peter Sumich have been anointed as senior coaches in waiting by their respective bosses here as St Kilda begins its search for a new coach to replace the dumped Grant Thomas. Freo coach angry Courier Mail Freo assistant in running Sunday Times.au Hamill not done yet: Thomas RealFooty all 4 news articles »

Thomas fallout is bad sign for club Border Mail, Australia - 1 hour ago ST Kilda’s next coach will find one of the best lists in the AFL comes with potentially-destructive baggage. While Saints president Rod Butterss downplayed the fallout from the shock axing of Grant Thomas ...

[listening to: Under the Gun [#] [#] - The Killers ]
8:01:45 AM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

Here I was thinking the footy season was now over, and then boom the bombshell hit on Tuesday.

This news story is dominating all others.

The Age St Kilda top job vacant as Thomas exits The Age, Australia - 11 hours ago St Kilda's extraordinary decision to sack Grant Thomas on the back of three straight AFL finals appearances has opened up a remarkably attractive coaching vacancy. St Kilda restores law and order The Australian Unconventional coach the victim of his own spin The Age Signed, sealed sacked Sainter The Age The Australian - The Age all 60 news articles » Sunday Times.au Alves says St Kilda has lost its way Border Mail, Australia - 2 hours ago FORMER St Kilda coach Stan Alves believes the Grant Thomas sacking is a “classic case of the St Kilda football club losing it’s way again”. Freo assistant in running Sunday Times.au all 2 news articles » Backward step will fire up St Kilda RealFooty, Australia - 9 Sep 2006 LUKE Ball believes St Kilda's best times are yet to come, defying the suggestion that his club should have enjoyed a better return from its talented list in the past three Septembers. Thomas did it his way The Australian, Australia - 7 hours ago AS OTHER coaches stressed about kids and numbers, Grant Thomas was kicking back in thongs in a shack halfway across the world. It was draft day 2004, but Thomas didn't have a problem being on a training camp in the backblocks of South Africa.

[listening to: When Horsepower Meant What It Said - Sandi Thom ]
8:16:09 AM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

The Saints have a new coach.

Saints coach Thomas sacked

St Kilda coach Grant Thomas will not coach the Saints next year after reaching a "mutaul agreement" with board members earlier today.

Thomas said he was disappointed in the decision and said that before the board meeting, he had expected to hold onto his postition for next season.

''The guys (board) think firmly that the club needs to move in a different direction,'' Thomas told the press conference.

''It's not necessarily a mutual agreement.''

''It came from left-field, I certainly wasn't expecting it.''

Club president Rod Butterss said Thomas' departure would allow the club the time it needed to find a new coach. 

He highlighted strategy as one of the things the club had disagreed with Thomas on.

''We had our differences in terms of strategy and that helped our desision,'' he said.

 
Thomas, Saints part company
Tuesday 12 September 2006
Ben Wise
Sportal for afl.com.au

Grant Thomas has coached his last game with the St Kilda Football Club. Thomas and the Saints have parted company by mutual agreement.

The second-longest serving coach in St Kilda history has been at the helm of the Saints since 2001 when he was a shock replacement for mid-season sacking Malcolm Blight, but club president Rod Butterss and Thomas broke the news at a media conference at Moorabbin on Tuesday that he was leaving the club.

Thomas said that when he went to attend a board meeting at the club on Tuesday afternoon it had never occurred to him that he would not be in charge by day's end.

"I had a fair inkling that I would be coach, but things change … we have to move on pretty quickly.

Thomas also expressed that he was disappointed at having to leave a post that he has "put his heart and soul into" but said: "The board firmly believes the club is heading in a different direction and I will have to live with it. I still think I am the right bloke for the club but the club has made the decision to head in another direction."

"It is not necessarily a resignation it is a mutual agreement, we are after the same things, to achieve the ultimate success. I don't think we are totally congruent with the direction the club is heading.

Butterss said the club wished to thank Thomas for his achievements at the helm of the Saints.

"The board discussed that it was in the best interests of the football club that Grant should stand aside. He has always preached the need to be selfless," Butterss said.

St Kilda was knocked out of the AFL finals race by Melbourne at the MCG last Friday night.

Injuries to key players throughout the year including a season-ending knee injury to star midfielder Lenny Hayes in round nine, a fractured skull to Justin Koschitzke in round six, knee problems for rugged forward Aaron Hamill and Matt Maguire's broken leg made Thomas' task of getting his side into the finals all the more difficult.

After struggling to lift the club from lowly ladder positions in 2002 (15th) and 2003 (15th), Thomas led the club to third in 2004, fourth position in 2005 and eighth this season.

The Saints succumbed in preliminary finals in 2003-04 and won a pre-season competition under Thomas in '04.

Thomas leaves the club with 62 wins from 118 matches (one draw) at the helm, and punctuates what has been a tumultuous year for the club. Thomas played 72 games with the Saints from 1978-83.

4:42:18 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

Another Lost Year

[listening to: Mr. Brightside - The Killers ]
4:40:15 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

Season over for the Saints.

The win was Melbourne's ninth victory from 11 against the Saints and it was the third time the Demons had knocked off St Kilda in three finals.

For the Saints, it was another Friday night loss, following another 6 day break.

Roll on 2007

MELBOURNE 2.2 3.4 8.5 13.12 (90)
ST KILDA 5.4 6.6 9.8 10.12 (72)
Goals: Melbourne: D Neitz 4 B McLean 2 M Bate B Miller A Yze J McDonald R Robertson C Bruce B Pickett. St Kilda: F Gehrig 3 N Riewoldt 2 S Milne 2 J Peckett S Baker J Koschitzke.
Best: C Bruce J White B Green B Pickett B McLean N Carroll J McDonald. St Kilda: L Ball S Baker B Goddard N Riewoldt S Milne R Harvey.
Umpires: B Rosebury J Schmitt D Goldspink.
Crowd: 67,528 at the MCG.

10:20:41 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

I spotted this news items

FOXTEL will telecast tomorrow night's St Kilda v Melbourne elimination final live to NSW, the ACT and Queensland. Fans will be able to watch Ten's live feed of the game on Foxtel's Main Event channel (Channel 955) from 7pm.

I will stop being grumpy now.

[listening to: [Untitled Track] - The Wiggles ]
9:28:14 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies • TV

The Saints are up first on Friday night against the Demons. Sudden death. Loser gets eliminated, Winner heads interstate for the next final.

Since the game is on Friday, it was next to impossible for me to get down to Melbourne, so I am stuck in Sydney watching on the telly, and it's a delayed telecast as per usual. Grrrrr. Any other time over the weekend and I could have been down to see it.

The Saints record againts the Demons has been patchy at best. Our last final's meeting was in 1998 when the Demons eliminated the Saints. Painful memories

Since 1980	All Games	Last 5 Games	Highest Score	Lowest Score	Biggest Win
St Kilda	17	2	176	32	88
Melbourne	27	3	165	35	90

This week there will be plenty of chances to relive the victory.

Thursday 07/09/2006

• 2.00a  Round 22 Brisbane Lions v St Kilda
• 3.30p  Last Time They Met 2006 Rnd 10 Melbourne v St Kilda

Friday 08/09/2006

• 8.00a  Last Time They Met 2006 Rnd 10 Melbourne v St Kilda
• 11.30p  2006 Finals 2nd EF St Kilda v Melbourne

Saturday 09/09/2006

• 6.30a  2006 Finals 2nd EF St Kilda v Melbourne
• 9.30a  2006 Finals 2nd EF St Kilda v Melbourne
• 3.30p  2006 Finals 2nd EF St Kilda v Melbourne
• 8.30p  2006 Finals 2nd EF St Kilda v Melbourne

Sunday 10/09/2006

• 12.00p  2006 Finals 2nd EF St Kilda v Melbourne

Monday 11/09/2006

• 11.00a  2006 Finals 2nd EF St Kilda v Melbourne

Tuesday 12/09/2006

• 3.00a  2006 Finals 2nd EF St Kilda v Melbourne
• 1.30p  2006 Finals 2nd EF St Kilda v Melbourne

BTW I will be cheering for the Swans to win againsts the Eagles, so that the Saints meet them in Sydney in two weeks time.

[listening to: Bittersweet Symphony - The Verve ]
11:32:35 AM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies • TV

2nd Elimination Final - Fri 8th Sept 7.30pm AEST

• ST.KILDA v. MELBOURNE The MCG (N)

2nd Qualifying Final - Sat 9th Sept 2.30pm AEST

• ADELAIDE v. FREMANTLE AAMI Stadium

1st Qualifying Final - Sat 9th Sept 7.30pm AEST

• WEST COAST v. SYDNEY Subiaco

1st Elimination Final - Sun 10th Sept 2.30pm AEST

• COLLINGWOOD v. W. BULLDOGS The MCG

[listening to: I'm Just A Girl - Melissa Etheridge ]
10:03:09 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

The end of the season.

I got 4 right. Again, I let my tipping be based on how I wanted things to end, rather than reflecting reality. I was hopeful things could fall the Saints way. I was wrong

Week 22
Home		Draw		Away
Bulldogs (22.15 147)				Bombers (18.17 125)
Tigers (12.13 85)				Eagles (26.17 173)
Crows (23.14 152)				Demons (14.10 94)
Lions (7.15 57)				Saints (16.12 108)
Dockers (23.13 151)				Power (9.18 72)
Swans (21.10 136)				Blues (6.8 44)
Hawks (21.7 133)				Cats (10.12 72)
Magpies (20.19 139)				Kangaroos (10.11 71)

My tipping  has me with 108 correct tips for the season. I don't know how I've done in the tipping comp, but I am sure I didn't win.

The Saints have ended up 6th on the ladder and play an elimination final next week against Melbourne at the MCG.

P W D L F A % Total 1 West Coast Eagles 22 17 0 5 2257 1874 120.44 68 2 Adelaide 22 16 0 6 2331 1640 142.13 64 3 Fremantle 22 15 0 7 2079 1893 109.83 60 4 Sydney Swans 22 14 0 8 2098 1630 128.71 56 5 Collingwood 22 14 0 8 2345 1965 119.34 56 6 St Kilda 22 14 0 8 2074 1752 118.38 56 7 Melbourne 22 13 1 8 2146 1957 109.66 54 8 Western Bulldogs 22 13 0 9 2311 2173 106.35 52   9 Richmond 22 11 0 11 1934 2245 86.15 44 10 Geelong 22 10 1 11 1982 2002 99 42 11 Hawthorn 22 9 0 13 1834 2140 85.7 36 12 Port Adelaide 22 8 0 14 1911 2151 88.84 32 13 Brisbane Lions 22 7 0 15 1844 2239 82.36 28 14 Kangaroos 22 7 0 15 1754 2167 80.94 28 15 Essendon 22 3 1 18 2021 2469 81.86 14 16 Carlton 22 3 1 18 1791 2415 74.16 14

Now I need to work out how I get down to Melbourne for the game next week.

Bring on the finals.

[listening to: Rockin' The Suburbs - Various Artists ]
7:40:00 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies • My Interests

So, the Saints beat the Lions. Yippee.

The game is on delayed broadcast here in Canberra. It's about to start. Cant wait to see the game.

And we wont know until Sunday which team plays who, in the finals. We could end up anywhere from 4th, 5th and 6th place, depending on Sunday's results.

	Qtr Time	Half Time	3 Qtr Time	Final
St Kilda	4. 1 (25)	10. 5 (65)	13._6 (84)	16.12.   108
Brisbane Lions	3. 4 (22)	4. 7 (31)	7.14 (56)	7.15.   _57
St Kilda: Goals: - R.Harvey 3, B.Brooks 3, F.Gehrig 3, S.Milne 2, N.Riewoldt, B.Goddard, J.Koschitzke, J.Gram, L.Fisher. Best: - R.Harvey, N.Dal Santo, L.Fisher, B.Voss, L.Ball, L.Montagna, J.Gram, N.Riewoldt. Brisbane Lions: Goals: - J.Sherman 4, D.Bradshaw, C.Johnson, J.Adcock. Best: - M.Voss, J.Sherman, J.Adcock, C.Stiller. Injuries - St Kilda: nil. Brisbane Lions: nil. Reports - St Kilda: nil. Brisbane Lions: nil. Umpires - S.McLaren, S.Grun, J.Quigley. @ the Gabba Ground, Brisbane. Crowd: 27,101.

Saints too strong for Lions ABC Online, Australia - 4 minutes ago St Kilda remained in contention for a top-four finish after defeating Brisbane by 51 points in the final round of the AFL minor premiership at the Gabba on Saturday night. Saints break Gabba hoodoo to beat Lions Sydney Morning Herald, Australia - 13 minutes ago An emotional lap of the Gabba was completed by inspirational Brisbane Lions skipper Michael Voss - but even the player himself still had no idea whether it marked his AFL farewell. Saints break Gabba hoodoo to beat Lions The Age, Australia - 15 minutes ago An emotional lap of the Gabba was completed by inspirational Brisbane Lions skipper Michael Voss - but even the player himself still had no idea whether it marked his AFL farewell. Saints romp over Brisbane at the Gabba Sydney Morning Herald, Australia - 21 minutes ago An emotional lap of the Gabba was completed by inspirational Brisbane Lions skipper Michael Voss tonight - but even the player himself still had no idea whether it marked his AFL farewell. Saints step up to defeat Lions SportsAustralia.com, Australia - 45 minutes ago With September calling, St Kilda stepped up a gear in defeating the Brisbane Lions by 51 points at the Gabba Ground on Saturday night. Saints outclass Lions sportal.com.au, Australia - 55 minutes ago In a polished display of football, St Kilda completely outclassed Brisbane to come out on top at the Gabba on Saturday night and win by 51 points, boosting its chances of a top

[listening to: Ophidiophobia - Cee-Lo Green ]
10:31:48 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies • My Interests