AFL 2023

[Zzzptm]

Well all righty, Cats in 5th, like I called it... now to beat Brisbie at home and show the rest of the top 4 that they're next.

[Zzzptm]

Carlton only bloody went and BEAT COLLINGWOOD!!!

 

[Jack the Stripper]

Yeah even though Carlton have temporarily knocked the Cats out of the eight, it was still very satisfying to see Collingwood lose. I’m off to the Cattery today.

[Zzzptm]

Oh such a disappointment... *to Freo!*

[Jack the Stripper]

Was very disappointing. Season looks cooked. Too many injuries, inconsistent form and a lack of hunger from a playing group that has been up for the last 10 or so years smashing themselves to achieve the ultimate glory which they finally did last year. Now we lose Hawkins and Blicavs to hamstrings.

What a round of upsets though. Every team beat the team above them on the ladder except Hawthorn. Crazy!

[Zzzptm]

I was 3/9 on my tips for the week and moved *up* in the overall rankings. Wet Toast finally getting its second win was likely unforeseen by millions.

It's quite possible that the 1-8 we seen now are what goes into finals, with Geelong, Sydney, and Richmond making up 9-11 on the ladder.

[Zzzptm]

Did all right in my tipping last 2 weeks, but I am still left hoping for Geelong. Win this game and the next and they have a good chance to place in the top 8. I don't have any realistic expectation of a flag this year, but getting into the top 8 would be good enough after the season of injury the Cats have had.

Rough as the Cats have had it, it's nothing compared to the crater where Wet Toast has impacted in their fall from being top 8 contenders.

[Zzzptm]

Well, that was a tough weekend. Geelong is out of the finals. I don't think they need to rip and replace across the board - this isn't Norf or Wet Toast - but they need to figure out how to get all the pieces back together in a way that gets them back into finals contention. Midfield's where they suffered most this year, hoping they can get the solution for that area and come crashing back in 2024.

[Zzzptm]

Brisbane to face Collingwood in the GF. I will be cheering for Brisbie to win this one.

[Jack the Stripper]

Really hoping for a Lions win tomorrow. I could not deal with a Collingwood win.

Also really hoping Kiss goes down well tomorrow as they are the main act in the GF entertainment. The media and public can be brutal on the GF entertainment as what happened to Meat Loaf in 2011 which sadly forever destroyed his reputation and legacy in Australia.

[Vyn]

I think Kiss will deport themselves well. I'm assuming Thayer is still playing lead with them? In any event, they've always been a tightly run ship and I cannot imagine that they, especially Gene, would half-ass it either performance-wise or gear-wise knowing this will pretty much define their legacy in Australia. I actually remember the fallout from that Meat Loaf performance at the GF back then.

[Jack the Stripper]

No doubt they’re professional enough to deal with it but they are playing during the day which does limit the Kiss impact somewhat and the sound can be notoriously bad for rock bands playing in the round at the GF.

A certain demographic is already ridiculing the decision to choose Kiss to play but the reality of the situation is that they weren’t actively sought out by the AFL. They couldn’t get a couple of the big name international acts they wanted and Aussie band Crowded House pulled out a month ago. Kiss’s Australian promoter then offered Kiss up as they are playing a one off show in Sydney next week and said Kiss were prepared to come here a week earlier to play the GF ahead of their Sydney show so the AFL took them up on their offer.

[Vyn]

Didn't watch the match, but a four point game on a 90 score seems like it was well matched. I did read where a lot of folks thought Kiss was impressive, while others felt they were lip-synching and too old to be playing.

[Jack the Stripper]

Yeah the GF was a tightly contested affair for the whole game and unfortunately Collingwood was on the right side of the score when the final siren sounded. There was a highly controversial advantage payed to Brisbane which wasn’t an advantage to them at all and should’ve been called back for the Brisbane player to take his free kick within 60m from goal with just over a minute remaining.

As for Kiss, as a spectacle they were great and put on an awesome show that has been met with overwhelming positivity but there was some obvious playback going on to those in the know but I’m not all surprised as it seems to be the norm with these big sporting events these days like the Super Bowl etc.

Full performance

[Vyn]

Thanks for posting that video - I think Kiss did a fine job. The crowd sure seemed to be into it!