SEMI FINAL. 4th v 5th Panthers v Roosters

[Pistol]

Penrith Panthers v Ozzie Roosters

-v-

Game Thread:
* Please note - This is a game thread only, therefore only game posts can be made here (Teams, Articles).
* Any other posts may result in loss of points and is at the discretion of the referee.
* Only original articles, not used in previous games, will be marked by referees.
* This is an Elimination Final. The loser is eliminated and the winner takes on the loser of the Titans v Warriors game.

Naming Teams:
* 5v5 (+ 2 reserves for both teams. SEMI FINAL CONDITIONS)
* No 'TBA' or changing players named
* Captains must stick with original teams named

ALL THE RULES & REGULATIONS: http://f7s.leagueunlimited.com/rules.php

FULL TIME: Wednesday 9th September 2009 at 9pm (Syd time)
REFEREE: The Colonel
Venue: FRONT ROW STADIUM

**The Referee Blows Game On!**

CLICK HERE FOR OFFICIAL WORD COUNTER

 

[Big Mick]

Team for semi Final:

1. Big Mick
2. Madunit
3. Azkatro
4. The Piper
5. Leaguenut

RES:
6. Broncoman
7. BroncosWarriorsStorm

 

[LeagueNut]

LeagueNut - Panthers

..............................................

Based on a true story?

It started off innocently enough.

I didn’t know what I was doing at first – it was a spur of the moment thing, partly done out of curiosity. I had a spare $20 in my wallet, the TAB was right there, and the odds for a Warriors victory over the Storm in last years finals series looked good to my uneducated eye.

And holy crap, did I enjoy that win!

The payout was pretty handy, although most of it went on booze. Strangely I didn’t even think about having another bet during the finals series – to me it was just a one-time thing.

The 2009 season began to roll into view and suddenly I began paying attention to the odds. Some of the numbers looked interesting but I’d always preface any thoughts with “If I was a gambler I’d do this or that …” – I wasn’t keen on making it a new habit.

It wasn’t a big deal when I placed a wager on a 2009 finals berth. I thought I’d forget about it before too long anyway, making it a sweeter surprise in September. And since I was already in the TAB, I thought a lazy $20 on a Round 1 victory wasn’t much of a stretch either.

Round 1 came and went, and what do you know – another win! This is starting to feel pretty good …

Who else thinks that “won money” isn’t really money? It’s a freebie, or a bonus – you would have survived just as well without it. So it makes sense to gamble with your winnings, then you don’t really lose anything. Adding in an extra $20 here and there isn’t going to break the bank.

When Stacey Jones set up that try in the final minutes to beat Manly in Round 2 I thought I was going to explode. More free money coming through the door, thanks very much! I guess I’m just one of these lucky mug punters that you read about.

I’m not sure where it changed, but I was now starting to pay more attention to other options as well. First try-scorers … points starts … winning spreads … pick the score …

We lost in Round 3. OK, maybe I shouldn’t have whacked $200 on the win, or those extra couple of first tryscorer bets (I thought Denan Kemp was due), but everyone has their ups and downs. Still, there’s no way in the world that we could lose to the Rabbitohs next week.

It was looking good too, until Fetuli f*****g Talanoa spoiled the party.

Right, it’s time to start paying attention. We’re playing the Knights next up and we’ve got a pretty good record against them in Newcastle over recent years. This one will pay off, I’ll be close enough to even and then I can call it quits.

Nope.

Now it’s the Roosters. They’re going terribly, we should walk all over them. I’ll borrow a bit from work and settle things up on Monday, I’ll be out of pocket myself but that’s my own fault.

I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed a win more than that one.

It wasn’t enough though – sure I’d squared things up with the borrowed money, but I wanted to get myself back onto an even keel now. I’d covered my tracks well enough at work so they won’t notice it for another weekend.

Whoops, another loss. I’ll need another plan now. I’ll just move a few hundred across into this account, the boss won’t notice that for a month or so, and I’ll have it back by then. Remember that good run earlier in the year? I just need another one of those, a couple of weeks will do it.

Sh*t, this is getting a bit scary. Even after a win I don’t have enough to cover what I’ve taken – what’s going on? Calm down boy – sit down and work it out, you can get yourself out of this. I’ll ask the bank to increase my limit, this weekends bets will get enough into the accounts before the monthly invoices roll in.

Holy crap, the boss paid the accounts and didn’t notice the money I’d borrowed! Excellent, that’ll give me a couple of months to get things right. I’ll use the Christmas money too, no-one checks that until they need to use it, I’ll be sweet.

It’s just one big win that I need … just one…

..............................................

748 words in between the dots according to the OWC.

 

[Non Terminator]

The Roosters head to the big stadium being handed a bag full of spoons...don't know what that was about...

STARTERS
2. ADAMKUNGL
4. MELON....
7. HENRIETE
14. NON TERMINATOR (c)
20. FEIN
BENCH
3. MONK
11. ARCHDUKE_FRANZ

 

[henrieté]

Rugby League Arias

The Dally M Awards are in honour of our Rugby League stars. They are held annually and recognise best coach, best captain, player of the year, premier player in each position, representative player of the year and the rookie of the season. Named in honour of Dally Messenger.

Herbert Henry "Dally" Messenger was an Eastern Suburbs boy, a teetotaller and non-smoker during his career by all accounts, who took a shining to the Phillip Street Leagues Club later in life. His nickname Dally originated because he had a pot belly. A prominent political figure by the name of Dally also had a pot belly... and the name is now etched in Rugby League folklore and history.

Dally married the owner of the Albion Hotel, later buying the Royal Hotel, Manilla. In between running a banana plantation. Dally was a down to earth Aussie who loved a beer and played Rugby League like a champion.

Now, you would think that News Limited who introduced the awards in 1980 would have enough experience in beating up excitement to put some oomph into the Dally’s.

What a shame that the ceremony and presentation are an insomniac’s nirvana. The most entertaining year was in 2003 when no-one rocked up, so we were spared the boredom.

While I retch at the thought of the players and officials doing a Rocky Horror Picture Show theme, I would like to see some variance in the format. The shuffling about, uncomfortable acceptance speeches, players giggling amongst themselves back at their table’s year in year out, like Jean Brodie, is past its prime.


My suggestion is the Rugby League Arias. We can still recognise our code with this prestigious award but why not include some of our codes overall performance in song.

Clubs, Players and Officials could all do a 'Triple J Like a Version' cover of popular songs. At the same time honouring their contributions. The Queensland State of Origin Squad could do a convincing rendition to “You will always find me in the kitchen at parties”...

New awards could also be added. The Jekyll and Hyde Award could go to the Bulldogs for an amazing turn around both on and off the field. I can see Brett Kimmorley and the boys belting our Pat Benatar’s “Hit me with your best shot.” A serious contender would also be Wendell Sailor who has gone from villain to victor. An entertaining football player with the skills of a first class player.

Various duets could also be performed. Nick Politis and Brad Fittler in a sing off Eamon and Frankie style F.U.R.B hip hop extravaganza would bring the house down.

Prior to 1998 the Referees chose the winners of the various awards and I feel that we should be afforded the same opportunity of including our current crop into the festivities. Line every single one of them up on stage to The Buggles "Video Killed the Rugby League Star". With a solo performance by Christina "Hollywood" Aguilera wooing his admirers with "I am beautiful no matter what they say".

Clubs would also get to shine. Gordon Nuttall and the Bronco Thoroughbred Boys could do "Jail House Rock" Elvis style. A club worthy of mention is The Titans who provide there home town supporters with spirited games and a culture that encourages grass roots values.

And surely the thought of David Gallop, eyes furrowed, stating “2009 is not a year on which I shall look back with undiluted pleasure. In the words of one of my more sympathetic correspondents, it has turned out to be an Annus Horribilis" is too horrendous to consider. I would prefer to see a Three Tenor type scenario, Gallop, The NRL and News Limited, crooning Torn Between Two Lovers by Mary McGregor.

There has to be one stand out each year and I believe this vote should go to the public. Nominations should run similar to the Logies. Voted in by the fans. A Player who is a Tribute to Stupidity. With all the possible contestants for this prestigious award the nominee I propose is Karmichael Hunt for his repeated and wholehearted approach to the true meaning of the award. Sex, Drugs and AFL.

His solo performance with audience participation belting out the Angels rock and roll classic "Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again" has to be the closing act.

So let's just end the year on a good note with a good old fashioned sing a long.


__________________________________________________ _____________________


746 Words

Source: [web links]
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574...00-421,00.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dally_Messenger

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/spo...-1225757608032
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...8-2722,00.html

 

[madunit]

madunit for the Panthers

Cinderella Story

Why, in Rugby League parlance, is Cinderella the only fictional story metaphor likened to the unexpected succession of victories?

Moreso, when you consider that the similarities between the two are very few.

Let’s look at this whole Cinderella euphemism.

It’s a story about an orphaned girl living with her step-mother and three ugly step-sisters, all of whom want to attend a party hosted by the token village Prince.

Cinderella desperately wants to join everyone else at the ball, but her step-mother has given her a long list of chores to do, which would prevent her from participating at the dance.

In some weird circumstance which defies realism, but not recreational party-drug use, a fairy-godmother appears and assists Cinderella in a hasty preparation for the ball. Why this fairy didn’t appear earlier and help Cinderella sooner in her miserable life is somewhat dubious, but I digress.

Cinderella ends up riding in a carriage which was previously a pumpkin, obviously the drugs hadn’t lost their effect yet, to the party, dances with the Prince, he is taken aback by her beauty, but before he gets to make his move on her, Cinderella remembers she has to disappear before midnight, as all the work the fairy godmother did will come undone, so she speedily exits the party. However, in her haste, she loses one of her glass slippers, which it must be said, is not very practical footwear for dancing.

The Prince, madly in love after a night’s dancing, sets about finding the owner of the aforementioned glass shoe. He travels to every house in the Kingdom and tries it on every woman’s foot until finally he finds Cinderella and it fits her foot. Another odd practice considering the probability of only one person in an entire kingdom to have a different sized foot to everyone else is practically impossible.

They eventually get married and live happily ever after.

How that is similar to rugby league is baffling. There’s no tries, no nail-biting victories, no extra-time, no heroic performances or men playing through injury and adversity.

There’s no step mother or ugly step sisters.
There’s no fairy godmother.
There’s no pumpkin coach.
There’s no dance.
There’s no glass shoes.
There’s no wedding.
There’s no smitten Prince.
There’s no kingdom-wide shoe-fitting exhibition.

Even a link between the premise of both is excessively flimsy. A love story compared to a series of unexpected successes in Rugby League against seemingly better opposition.

However, the search for a more relevant fable to link to rugby league proved to be quite irksome.

Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs – Seven men sharing a house with an attractive young female, Rugby League could do without this.

The Lion King – African animals. Don’t think so.

Aladdin – A thief who falls in love with a Princess. There’s also a genie and a flying carpet. Sounds more like something from Fast Forward than a rugby league metaphor.

Pinocchio – A wooden puppet that comes to life. When Wayne Bennett starts making jokes we can use this one.

Fantasia – If this isn’t the direct result of drug use, it will certainly lead to it. Same goes for Peter Pan and Alice in Wonderland.

Dumbo – An elephant with massive ears.

Lady and the Tramp – Two dogs on heat. Not a topic to be considered for rugby league. Besides, the Bulldogs have been through enough.

Hercules – Son of a Greek God, fighting another God to take his place amongst Gods. God damn!

Upon searching other forms of fiction, it becomes clear that fictional stories shouldn’t be used as rugby league metaphors. For example:

Pride and Prejudice – Middle class pommie chicks pining over an upper class pommie bloke. Dancing, romance and a distinct lack of Christian name use.

Frankenstein – A doctor creates a being from bits of dead bodies. Too many themes involving the industrial revolution and playing God.

The Great Gatsby – American.

Death Of A Salesman – A salesman starts talking to himself, then dies.

The DaVinci Code – Anti-catholicism, cryptic crossword puzzle.

The Female Eunuch – Feminism.

The Old Testament – Heaps of really old blokes having massive families and defying their creator.

No matter which way you turn, movies and books all appear to be hopeless metaphors for rugby league. This categorically proves that rugby league transcends all fiction, whether in the form of a TV program, a movie or a book.

And most importantly, exposes commentators as idiots. The fact they manage to have jobs at all is a Cinderella story in itself.

747 words including title.

 

[melon....]

Melon takes one last hit up before hanging em up...
_________________________________________

I’ve Got Wood.
There are many flavours of Wood. From the gorgeous Hollywood star Natalie, to the despicable former Easts halfback Nat. There’s a wood in my Golf Bag. Some say, there’s even wood in this old man’s shorts. But only when I forget to remove my Tobacco Pipe.

“In Honours Mathematical
This is the very last of all
The Wooden Spoons which you see here
O you who see it, shed a tear”

According to Wikipedia, the ancient Greek passage that translated as the above verse by the academics at Cambridge University, was scribed on a wooden spoon and presented to the student who placed dead last in the Mathematics final exam.
Cuthbert Lempriere Holthouse, an oarsman of the Lady Margaret Boat Club, was the last entity to receive it. Until yesterday that is. Well that is not entirely true – Rugby League bestowed the Spoon for decades.

In 2002, there were 500 Wooden Spoons in my bag. Painted Red and Green, Round 1, and all gone before kickoff, handed out to the Souths fans with a smile. Most accepted it graciously. They didn’t care – they had just been re-instated to the NRL after a 2-year coma. The spoon was welcome, as was last place...because “We’re Back”. And from the 6th minute when Paul “Gang” Green went to ground with a busted knee, I knew 2 things. Souths would win the spoon (a given) and Easts would win the comp.
Yesterday was the darkest day in my 40 years of supporting the Tricolours. After a 16-0 lead against underachieving Cowboys, the Roosters fell on their spoons in the second half and deservedly won the wooden spoon for 2009. In the wings, the Cronulla Sharks players watched on from the comfort of their amber ales and rejoiced as they lost their grip on the dreaded cutlery. Most fans know that Cronulla have not won a premiership in the 40 odd years theyve represented the Insular Peninsular in the NRL. They also have not won the spoon.

The last time the Roosters won it was in 1966. Bert Holcroft was the hapless coach. Easts did not win a single game that year. At training when old Bert asked the players to assume their usual positions on the field, they would gather behind the posts. They copped some hammerings that year. However, they tried. They actually played to the best of their ability. They just were not good enough. However, the 2009 Roosters – their feat was unbelievable. A roster with big name, representative players who chose to finish dead last. The biggest disappointment was the way they won the spoon. They were heartless. They lacked passion. A trail of disgraceful off field incidents took centre stage whilst their results and form slid down a slippery slope. Discipline was non-existent. They were aggressive off the field. On it, they lay down.

The biggest disappointment came as the sun set on another season. A first half full of fire had caught the travelling Cowboys off guard and Easts were 16 points up in even time. This was going to be the day, in a lousy season; the Roosters would win it for a legend. Craig Fitzgibbon deserved to go out with a victory. He bled Red White and Blue. The nail was in the form of the reversal of fortunes straight after half time. The despicable second half reduced the Churchill Medallist to just another wooden spooner. In addition, just when you thought it couldn’t get worse – the grapevine was alight with rumour and innuendo surrounding an alleged Betting Sting – had the Roosters committed the ultimate sin and bet against themselves? Did they throw the match for cheap personal gain at the expense of a once proud club and its long term Heroic Warhorse? After the seemingly endless troubles throughout the season, nothing would surprise this scribe.

“O you who see it shed a tear”

The tears flowed. From grown men, that gathered at battlefields such as the Sydney Sports Ground, The SCG and The SFS; who jested at the prospect of wooden cutlery all year, realised it is no laughing matter once the reality sets in.
They take their wooden spoon. They leave me with a wooden heart. Today we mourn, for tomorrow a new season brings new meaning to the eternal words. Never again will “Easts to Win” have more meaning than tomorrow.

________________________________________________________________
730 words between the lines, including Title.
Reference from Wikipedia.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wooden_spoon_%28award%29

 

[Fein]

Fein, driving a taxi picks up a fare outside a Sydney hotel.

750 words quoted.

The "Clocking" of Jason Taylor.

It was with a hearty chortle I greeted news of the allegation that Souths coach, Jason Taylor received a "clocking", last night.

Before there was any mention of who the other party was, speculation was rife.

Was it even a player?

I came up with a number of possibilities.

1'o clock -Isaac Luke.

Taylor's inept use of Luke during the season gave rise to much argument over whether this young Kiwi international is an 80 minute player or not.

Luke has a massive work rate but his coach used the clock against him all year, needlessly replacing him on most occasions.

There would be much irony in Luke "clocking" Taylor.

2 o'clock - Jaiman Lowe.

A firebrand at the best of times and being told to either move on or take a pay cut, allegedly as low as $100,000 per season, would have been enough to set the big man off, I thought.

3 o'clock - Craig Wing.

While the thought of Wingy raising his fists in anger seems as remote as Darryl Brohman winning "Dancing With The Stars", he never seemed happy in his return to Souths and a lot of that speculation came down to how his coach under utilised his skills.

4 o'clock - Roy Asotasi.

Nowadays just a very expensive battering ram.

Hailed as the best forward in the world when he came to Souths, his form tapered this year and injuries played a significant factor in that.

Battering rams do get injured eventually and as a result, they can also get rather angry.

5 o'clock - David Kidwell.

Another player rumoured to be moving on and would no doubt have incurred the wrath of Jason Taylor over the past few years.

Mind you, a hell of a lot of that wrath was well earned for giving away ridiculous penalties on the field, brain snaps if you will.

Who knows what he may be capable of off the field?.

6 o'clock - Colin Best.

The try scoring ability Best came to Souths with from Canberra has dissipated under Taylor who sees him as a defensive centre, protecting his younger, outside men.

A tragic waste of talent and sure to peeve Best.

7 o'clock - Kane Cleal.

Lured back to Souths after a good stint at The Bulldogs, injured in a trial, out for the season.

Thanks very much, J.T.

8 o'clock - Mark Ellison.

The assistant coach who was told to look elsewhere during a mid season slump, many felt he was the scapegoat for Taylor's shortcomings.

Let's face it, the only thing Taylor changed to get Souths out of the slump was to swap his Armani suit for a tracksuit.

9 o'clock - Shane "Richo" Richardson.

Richo hasn't had too many fires to extinguish in recent times thankfully however, there has certainly been an under current of dissatisfaction from some players and many members regarding the coach over the past two seasons.

Probably too professional to lose it in public though.

10 o'clock - Peter Holmes a` Court.

Peter has had a tough year at Souths, losing a couple of high profile court cases, the latest one handed down last week.

Ever since he has taken up a role in the club he has had to fight enormous battles behind the scenes against the forces of evil who previously ruled.

I certainly couldn't blame him for taking a swing at a coach who has failed to deliver, as unlikely a scenario it would be.

11 o'clock - Russell "Rusty" Crowe.

It's well known that "Rusty" has a short fuse.

From wrestling with big Mark Carroll, to a toilet punch up with Eric Watson and throwing a phone at a New York hotel concierge, nothing would shock me when it comes to Rusty.

Given that days earlier he'd publically thrown his full support behind Jason Taylor for 2010, it seemed unlikely however, that's Rusty for you.

12 o'clock - Captain Midnight - David "Frog" Fa'alogo.

He was always a chief suspect given two well publicised events, one on the field where he gave Braith Anasta his comeuppance and another with a member of the public in Jacksonville, Florida which resulted in him being sent home from a pre season jaunt.

Having been let go by Souths after many years of sterling service, he managed to secure a four year deal with English Super League club, Huddersfield.

No doubt there would have been some raw emotion being together with the core playing group for the last "official" occasion.

For whom does the bell toll?

 

[Non Terminator]

In his first finals appearance, NT freezes. Damn nerves.
749 words under the Rooster.

A Forgotten Soldier In The Greatest Army

When you combine "Eastern Suburbs" and "1935", what originally comes to mind?

That impressive 87-7 thumping of Canterbury-Bankstown comes to mind. The premiership records of Dave Brown is another.

There is one man that is often forgotten when remembering one of the greatest periods in the club.

The 240th Rooster; Rod O'Loan.

In the yearbooks he is noted as the man who scored seven tries in a single first grade match, but his rate remained constantly good during his career.

Pre-Rugby League Career
Just like premiership winning team-mate Andy Norval, Rod O'Loan was born in the state of South Australia. After spending his junior years playing Aussie Rules football, he moved to the township of Newcastle. Following his time there, he decided to move down to Sydney to join the University Rugby League club.

University 1933-1934
28 games, 12 tries
Rod made his debut at the University club in 1933. With him in the side, the Students managed to avoid what could've been a fifth consecutive wooden spoon, finishing sixth. He scored ten tries in his debut season, just one behind the competition leader (University team-mate Jack Gray-Spence).

One of the tries he scored was during a 13-10 upset win over the 4th placed Eastern Suburbs side, his future club. He also scored two tries in a 42-8 win over the St George Dragons. This would end up being the Students biggest ever win.

His tryscoring record hit a brick wall in 1934. The Students scored a first round win over North Sydney. This would be their last victory in more than two years. After the club won another wooden spoon, Rod made the decision to join the Eastern Suburbs club. He would be joined by representative team-mate Ross McKinnon (the great grandfather of current Warriors fullback Wade).

Eastern Suburbs 1935-1941
82 games, 76 tries
Rod's first season as a Tricolour was his most successful. His 1935 campaign saw him score 27 tries. In a memorable performance, he scored seven tries against former club University in a 61-5 belting. He is still second place (behind Frank Burge's eight) in the list of most tries scored in a single first grade game.

Easts easily made the final against rivals South Sydney. Rod scored two tries in the 19-3 triumph. The following season saw another premiership and another twenty tries. His record against the University club kept strong however. He scored four tries in the first game against them and two more in the second.

Easts made the final once again and lifted the trophy following a 32-12 victory over Balmain in the final. Rod scored a try.

The 1937 season was shortened due to the Kangaroo Tour. Rod scored seven tries in the eight round competition. Easts again won the premiership. With their representative players missing the post-season City Cup, the Easts side were sitting ducks in the final losing 57-5 to a Newtown side featuring the in-form Frank Hyde.

1938 was the first season that Rod missed game time. He still scored seven tries during the season. Most importantly, he missed the final against Canterbury. Easts were defeated 19-6.

Rod scored two tries in the unsuccessful 1939 campaign, Easts worst in ten years. The drought however would only be mandatory. 1940 gave Easts another premiership and Rod another six tries. He scored another try in the final.

1941 would be Rod's last season before moving to the Eastern Command.

He scored a try in his final match, a 15-11 win over Canterbury.

Post-Career
It was reported in the February 4, 1942 edition of the Sydney Morning Herald that Rod made the suggestion that camp Rugby League competitions should be implemented during winter months if players are not engaged. This would eventually assist in relaxing thousands of men who would be unavailable to secure much leave.

Rod had met many players in his camp and was sure the capabilities of the players would be able to create a competition with high standards. It was eventually implemented from his suggestions.

Summary
Amazingly, despite his amazing try scoring record, Rod never finished as the top try scorer in his team for a season. It is a shame that someone with such an amazing record isn't noted as often as it should be. Without a test cap, he might be placed in history amongst someone like Nathan Blacklock.

This may just be a summary of the period of time, regardless, it's a tryscoring effort worth admiring.

 

[Azkatro]

Azkatro posting for the Panthers.

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My unexpected discovery

Last weekend, I was faced with the task of driving from Queensland back down to Sydney, having spent some time visiting family. The plan was to drive down the New England highway to Tamworth on Sunday, spend the night there, and then do the home stretch to Sydney the following day.

Everything went according to plan, and on Monday we set off bright and early. From a driving perspective, the first target is Muswellbrook, then a bit further to Singleton, before getting to Maitland. It’s just past Maitland that you cross over to the F3 freeway and commence the multi-lane run home to Sydney.

On Monday, we had just left Singleton and came across something quite unexpected, while passing through a little town on the highway. As the speed limit dropped and we entered the city limits, we noticed a great display of blue and white streamers, coupled with a sign that chanted the slogan “GO COLTS” in big letters, adorning the local butchers. My first thought was that it might have been one of those small businesses with a vested interest in a local team. But not far down, the next shop had the same thing out the front – blue and white all over, again with the words “GO COLTS” in big, bold handwriting.

The further we went, the more it went on. Not only were the buildings decorated with the blue and white of the Colts, but it was on peoples homes, benches, light poles, fences, you name it. Even some trees along a bit of parkland had the blue and white tissue paper dutifully tied around the trunk. The whole time I was thinking, “wow… I wonder who the Colts are?” Clearly they had been, or were about to be, involved in a local grand final of some sort.

Then as we were getting to the other end of the town, we were presented with the pièce de résistance: a road sign which, in its inimitable, electronic way, had “GO COLTS GRAND FINAL WINNERS” proudly displayed to all who drove past and otherwise expected it to say “Roadwork ahead”.

We drove on down the highway feeling somewhat invigorated and excited by what we’d just witnessed. I did feel a little silly though, sitting there thinking to myself “what a wonderful, rousing display of passion and support for the local team. If I only knew who the Colts were…”

When I eventually got home I had forgotten the name of the town in which I saw all the fanfare, but remembered it was not far out of Maitland. So after a quick bit of research, I soon discovered what it was all about.

On Sunday, September 6 2009, the Greta Branxton Colts defeated the Singleton Greyhounds to the tune of 22-16 in the NSW CRL Group 21 grand final. For the record, they won the reserve grade grand final too. The game had been played at Greta Central Oval, in Greta – the town we had passed through – in front of a very healthy attendance of over 3500. It was the Colts’ second consecutive grand final appearance.

I also got in touch with Tony Goldman, the official contact person for the Group 21 competition.

“The current football club has only been active for 4 years in the seniors,” he said. “Previous clubs have been Greta or Branxton.”

Clearly the locals are happy with the merger, based on the attendance at their local ground for the big game and the display of passion in the town.

Now here I sit, feeling a sense of pride for the Colts winning their first grand final. And I feel touched by the degree of support for local rugby league in the Maitland area that I experienced just a few days ago. It’s easy to lose touch with that side of the game when you’ve got your head in the upcoming NRL finals, worrying about your tipping competition and fantasy teams. Furthermore, it’s just the tip of the iceberg of country and regional rugby league, not only in NSW and Queensland, but right around the country.

One can just imagine the carnival atmosphere that would have been in the small town on Sunday. I’ve no doubt that the locals would have celebrated long and hard into the night following the win.

In fact, I’m sure of it. It would explain why I didn’t see a single soul on the streets of Greta on Monday morning…

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Bibliography
Rigney, Sam, “Colts ride high”, http://www.maitlandmercury.com.au/news/local/sport/rugby-league/colts-ride-high/1616233.aspx, 07 Sep, 2009, accessed 09 Sep, 2009
Hughes, M, “GRETA-BRANXTON CREATE GROUP 21 RUGBY LEAGUE HISTORY”, http://www.nbntv.com.au/index.php/2009/09/07/greta-branxton-create-group-21-rugby-league-history/, 07 Sep, 2009, accessed 09 Sep, 2009
“SportingPulse Homepage for Hunter Valley Group 21 Rugby League”, http://www.sportingpulse.com/assoc_page.cgi?assoc=2179&pID=7, accessed 09 Sep, 2009

747 words. Liftoff!

 

[Big Mick]

SUB:

Out: Big Mick
In: BWS

 

[broncos_warriors_storm]

BWS runs out in front of a packed front row stadium! GAME ON!

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The complete ‘how to be an NRL star’ guide

Talent: To play in the National Rugby League you must have raw talent to succeed. This is the only way you will reach the goal of playing in a successful NRL campaign. The requirements are you should be able to pass left or right, tackle, kick and most importantly, you MUST look sexy in short shorts.

Agility: To play in the NRL, each player needs agility. This is a key factor to very many tries scored by teams and is one of the hardest things to learn in Rugby league. You have to get around players every match and some fail, others succeed. The requirements for this section of the guide is as follows: each player must be able to dance around the Mexican hat, must be able to step around agility poles, must be able to dodge the media whilst on drugs, otherwise known as a Joey Johns, and avoiding blonde chicks in public as Seymour proved that they can be the hardest thing to deal with agility wise! Once you have fed a dog, it never goes away, just like NRL groupies! So agility is very important for this type of work!

Managers: Each player must get themselves a manager to manage the things that they just can’t manage to do. They even manage to make you say manage five times in one paragraph, because that’s how good they are. These guys are the key to success. They will stress you out with phone calls in the middle of the night asking when it is best for a meeting with another club, getting you dud deals, and even say that you need to go to England to further your opportunities! Expect to pay them the maximum wage, with $300,000 + expected from you! But don’t worry; the broncos will have that $200,000 waiting for you when you’re ready.


Choosing Clubs: When selecting a club to go to you must speak to your manger, please refer back to the previous page for more information on the leeches, while making sure that you are informed with the club. You must look at the talent they have, the talent they don’t, and the talent they could have. Obviously, that means do you think you can play for them? Once you have decided where you will be going, you must make sure England or France Union teams aren’t making massive deals for their code! If you choose a Union club we will no longer consider you a hero....except Wendell Sailor!


Training: It is required that all players must attend daily training sessions without fail. This is the worst part of the job and hurts the most. This is where the coaches can get back at you for losing 56-0, cough the broncos cough, and at the same time whip you back into title contenders! Every team can do it; it’s just whether or not the players can hack the off season! Anthony Mundine couldn’t and now he is in boxing fighting twice in a year, and this proves no sport is out of the question when you can’t handle rugby league....Karmichael Hunt.


Deep under lying rules: Now this is a very secret section for the average league star, the under lying rules are as follows:
1. to at least take one falcon during your career
2. A drinking problem
3. A girlfriend to stick by you when you assault them
4. Another woman
5. Assault your coach before leaving the club


Grand finals and representative matches: To be a star, you must be involved with both events. First off, you must grow a beard and howl like a wolf, then you must play footy week in week out as you get a following and then you must be prepared to lose the grand final by 40 points and then be able to take on the kiwis in the world cup final! You also must be able to throw the ball into the field of play where a kiwi will get it to win the game. However you can save face by going 4 in a row the next year in origin.


Extra rules: Must not spend time with family, instead stumble home with a blonde stranger, crash a party or trash a hotel room, you rock star!

These are the guidelines and rules to being a star, could you hack it?
______________________________________________________________

746 words according to OWC, including title

Seymoure picture:
http://resources2.news.com.au/images/2009/03/19/1225690/006266-brett-seymour-sharks-nrl.jpg

 

[adamkungl]

adamkungl, coming on late in the game as usual...
745 words

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​

A Season in 80 Minutes

As I watched the Roosters fall to their first wooden spoon since 1966 through the cracks between my fingers (my face had been buried in my hands since about the 42nd minute) I noticed how this one game was representative of our entire dismal season. The off-field issues and the on-field failures - each of them was mirrored by the game on Sunday afternoon. It is a sad reflection of our season that this mostly occured in the second half, when Cowboys put on 26 unanswered points.

We started the year full of hope. A top 4 finish the previous year and a lot of young players gaining more experience left me with high expectations coming into 2009, despite some disappointing results in the trial matches. In the lead up to Sunday's game there was a similar feeling. Even though we were in terrible form, it was Fitzy's last game, and the Cowboys hadn't beaten Easts at the SFS for 10 years.

We started the game on fire, from the kick-off making 60 metres, then scoring three fairly quick tries. These were the only flashes of brilliance in an ultimately terrible game. Early in the season (admittedly after a flogging from arch-rivals South Sydney) we piled on the points against Parramatta and Canberra, only to watch our hopes disappear in the following weeks and months. The second half collapse has been a prominent feature of Roosters games for the last two years, and it was again there for all to see on Sunday.

Thurston took advantage as the countless mistakes started to take hold. Mistakes which had been taking place all season - on and off the field. I'm sure given the chance to do the last year over again, a lot of people at the Roosters would do a lot of things differently. Just a few of the off-field mistakes and their equivalents in Sunday's loss:
Simple missed tackles shortly after half time leading to two tries...Non-existent recruitment left us with no improvement in the playing ranks. Mason trying the impossible offload on the first tackle...The offseason wasted trying Braith Anasta at lock, among other positional changes, only to revert back to last year's positions come Round 1. Mason trying the impossible offload...again...another Anasta positional change, this time to fullback! Sean Kenny Dowall grabbing an intercept, but fumbling...Freddy picking a winning combination against Newcastle, then changing it immediately - Ben Jones was moved from Five-Eighth for Minichiello, of all people. Of course, he was embarrassingly bad.

As we all know, discipline (or lack thereof) played a huge part in the Roosters abysmal season. For every Jake Friend drink driving charge, Brad Fittler drunken wander, and Nate Myles hotel incident, there were countless offsides, lying in the ruck penalties, and a sin-bin or two. The Roosters discipline was on show for all to see again on Sunday, losing yet another penalty count at home. Amazingly enough, Mad Monday passed by without incident!

Luck played its part in Easts' downfall, too. In a season where any tiny bit of good luck would have seen us escape the spoon, not a shred of it could be found out Bondi way. Of course, good sides make their own luck, which would explain why everything that could go wrong did go wrong - we were useless. That said, it still hurts to see a Mitchell Pearce 40/20 attempt bounce over the sideline (debatably actually touching the line), then get knocked forward by Ty Williams back into the field of play, at a pivotal moment in the game. Again, this reflected the entire season. Earlier in the year, in extra time against the Warriors, another 40/20 attempt came teasingly close to the sideline only to turn away. The 50/50 calls just never went our way. Injuries struck at the worst possible times - Anasta broke his ankle with minutes left on the clock and Roosters one try behind in the previous game against North Queensland.

The Roosters last game was a reflection of a terrible 2009 season. If this year is anything to go by, our first game in 2010 will give us an indication of what to expect - hopefully it is a massive improvement. If we cut out the mistakes on and off the field and show some discipline, then maybe Lady Luck will pay a visit to the SFS next year...good luck Brian Smith.

Finally, farewell and good luck to Sia Soliola, Mark O'Meley, and especially Craig Fitzgibbon!

​

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[Big Mick]

Big Mick subbing for Piper.
​

The World has gone mad!​

What a season it has been for Rugby League. We have had the NRL veto Sponsorship dollar’s for the Canterbury club, we’ve had the NRL reject a proposal for the cash-strapped Sharks to play out of Bluetongue stadium and we’ve had probably the biggest over-reaction to an off-field scandal in recent memory with regards to Matthew Johns and the Sharks sex scandal resurfacing from seven years ago. All of this leads me to one conclusion, that the world has officially gone mad!

In the first part of this series, the world has gone mad will be assessing the impact recent calls to ban alcohol sponsorship in the NRL and Australian sport and the immediate and damaging effect it would have on our great game.

In what may seem like a harsh and unlikeable truth, alcohol and sport are two symbols of Australian culture. Many as such believe the two are best consumed simultaneously. The argument for most advocates is that while sponsorship agreements may be deemed effective to shape consumer attitudes, one cannot ignore potential ethical issues regarding sponsorship relationships and that alcohol sponsorship is directly to blame for negative consequences of alcohol abuse in the Australian community.

Voiced have been raised similar to those who pushed the then lifeblood of tobacco sponsorship out of Australian sport in the 1990’s. The other voices claim that if alcohol sponsorship would be withdrawn, that sport would still survive. However, alcohol sponsorship underpins the survival of most modern sports in Australia, and Rugby League is not immune.

One only needs to look at how much money is poured into NRL coffer’s every year from the likes of VB and Bundaberg rum. If these dollars were to suddenly disappear, this would create a ripple effect like no other seen in the Australian domestic economy.

When Cigarette sponsorship was banned, the NRL (or ARL as then known) were no longer able to support the “Winfield Cup”. As such, they had to seek new sponsorship agreements, which they then found with Optus. This however, was at Optus’ benefit, paying 50% of the sponsorship fee that the Winfield brand was paying for sponsoring the great game of Rugby League.

One only needs to look at how that figure alone affects our game. Should alcohol sponsorship be banned from the Australian sporting culture, this would mean that the competition for attracting sponsors to a certain sport would be so fierce that it would push the value of sponsorships down. This is the premise of the Supply/Demand curve.

When Tobacco sponsorship was banned in the 1990’s, a number of smaller sports, whom were solely sponsored by Alcohol companies, were abandoned and left to perish as these sponsors sought an avenue into the larger domestic market. Should alcohol sponsorship be banned, this would result in large scale chaos in the entire Australian market, and one of the key sports at risk would be the NRL.

One only has to inspect the impact of alcohol sponsorship within the Australian sporting scene with the VB Series in the Cricket, Bundaberg Rum Wallabies, Fosters Grand Prix, Jim Beam racing in the V8’s and various other alcohol sponsorships to acknowledge the impact it would make on the supply of a limited sponsorship dollar should it depart.
Unfortunately for the NRL, the game is not in a good enough financial position, due to lack of foresight by the games administrators to survive should such a policy be enacted due to a poor media rights deal. Other codes are far better off than the NRL to financially survive and attract cheaper sponsors due to their success in attracting more lucrative TV contracts.

So while banning alcohol sponsorships appears the en vogue thing to be in at the moment, sit back and reflect what it would do to our great sport. Reducing the level of sponsorship in the Australian market would place at risk our great sport and if this ban was to proceed, there is no doubt due to inefficiencies in the management of the NRL, that our sport will be in the darkness in the years to come.

688 words

 

[Big Mick]

Sorry that it appeared to go in at 9:01.

I had the reply button open for 30 minutes..and attempted to copy paste my article in. then it asked me to log in again which then shut down my computer.

So I hope you allow me to have the article counted.

 

[Non Terminator]

Just to reply to Mick. Either way you allowed us to interchange in Melon with good nature to this game. It would be scum of me, I'm extremely happy for this to be a 5v5.

 

[broncos_warriors_storm]

just thought i would help out our time keepers, and so i can congradulate both teams and what will be an awesome game. its 5 v 5, and the best team will advance to week two of the 2009 finals series, and unforutantly, one team says farewell to their preimership hope. its 4 v 5 on the ladder and it shall be a cracker

i loved your article fien and madunit, you guys did an awesome job! go the panthers

 

[Jesbass]

A power cut turns off the stadium lights. This match is over!

 

[Jesbass]

Haha, looks like there's two time keepers!

Well done to both sides, and good luck! Great sportsmanship shown by both sides! :thumn

 

[broncos_warriors_storm]

Haha, looks like there's two time keepers!

Well done to both sides, and good luck! Great sportsmanship shown by both sides! :thumn

lol sorry jessbass, i just wanted to say what i said to everyone lol and that was the only way i could do it legally haha