Eight two be a fan? Hardly, it's as good as Six!

Six months ago was the time when the idea was first hatched; go to Europe during their Winter, and have one last crack at a holiday overseas before life and all its commitments contrive to keep me well occupied and well happy at home. It was something I always wanted, and was even encouraged by the management, to do. I had a grin from ear to ear. Sure it would cost a bit, but I'd never been in the financial position to make this kind of pilgrimage before. It is going to be fun.

Yet the main attraction, the big ticket on the bill has lost some of its lustre, and I'm not sure that it had to be that way.

Of course, I'm talking about football. But then, I have a healthy dichotomy of readers when it comes to football and both sets of fans may take exception to me calling either game just that. So to make it plain for those who love only one or the other I'll refer to them as "AFL", or Aussie Rules Football, and "EPL", English Premier League Football.

I'm not here this evening to generate an opinion piece, you will find plenty of those surrounding the troubles that are circling the Arsenal Football Club elsewhere at the moment. What I wish to do is to further explain to my AFL audience what a true free agency could mean to them, and to my EPL audience, show that I don't got much time for money, 'cause money can't buy me love.

Last week I suggested what may happen in the Free Agency world of the AFL. I tried my best to suggest that our loyalties as fans will be tested to the utmost as players we grow to love will jump ship at the first opportunity of greater earning power or potential for success. It will upset many, but it won't be a blip on the madness that is the multi-billion dollar world of the EPL. To demonstrate such madness, I'll use the AFL's most recent powerhouse side, Geelong FC, as my model for how the world at an EPL club can change in just six months (Disclaimer: This hypothetical is the stuff of pure AFL fantasy and in no way reflects what I believe could possibly happen to the Geelong Football Club. They've been the model club on and off the field for almost six years now and I don't see that, nor their playing list, changing. We cool Cats fans? Yeah, we cool).

You see, the Cats (Geelong) have just failed at the final hurdle again. They've lost to the biggest, most popular, and now best club in the league, Collingwood FC, in the battle for the Premiership. As Geelong are an ageing side with many players choosing to retire at season's end, Geelong's opportunity for future success is limited, and although the retirements have given them much money to spend under the salary cap, the club is not an attractive place to come to as of now. They will have to rely on youth to rebuild them to the lofty heights they once reached (sound familiar EPL fans?).

Their star midfielder is Joel Selwood, a hard tackling, fiercely competitive, outstanding user of the ball by foot and is one who contributes the odd goal. He is slated for Free Agency. He is offered an enormous salary by Geelong, but decides he wants to play for the most rejuvinated club in the competition, the West Coast Eagles. His older and younger brother whom he loves dearly both play there. Western Australia has the most beautiful winter weather in the country. The club has won a premiership as recently as 2006 and are on the precipice again. He signs for less money to play with them. Geelong are weakened further.

Another player of the age and experience level that Geelong would like to keep is Travis Varcoe. He was taken at the not unsubstantial cost of a first round draft pick, and so highly thought of was he that he was given the guernsey number 5 worn by club legends such as Polly Farmer and most famously, Gary Ablett Senior. He has precocious talents, terrorising opposition defenders when he has the ball, and capable of creating a goal for himself or his teammates out of nothing. He has yet to reach a level of consistency from game to game that will set him apart as a champion. Geelong are confident this will happen given time but offer him a contract reflective of where they see his talents and development  now. Instead, he is courted by champions Collingwood with contract negotiations only scuppered when the new challengers in town, Hawthorn FC, throw a contract at him that is simply too good to refuse. Hawthorn now have an attack with a talent level that is the envy of every club in the competition; the goals will be flying in from everywhere with opposing defences being able to do scant little to stop it. Geelong must seek adequate replacements and fast.

But as they are beaten to the signings of new players one by one, and are snubbed by other players who see them as a faded force, Geelong enter the new season to one of the most embarrassing defeats in their long and proud history; how was this allowed to happen? Especially after the AFL extended the "Trade Week" and Free Agency periods right until the beginning of the season. No sporting club in their right mind the world over would allow this to happen. Would they?

Welcome to The Arsenal Football Club, the EPL team I love and am practically making the pilgrimage to Mecca for. The team that have lost two of their best, and were before that time, two of my favourite players. Although in the EPL world "lost" can be a misnomer; these players were sold for a net profit of nearly 60 million British pounds. That's not a misprint, it is what it is. Sixty. Million. Pounds. Nearly One hundred million Australian dollars.

For the AFL's Joel Selwood, the appropriate EPL analogy is Francesco "Cesc" Fabregas; Arsenal's captain and one of the greatest players in the world. For Travis Varcoe read Samir Nasri, a precocious French attacking talent who, whilst wearing the number 8 of club legends Frederik Ljungberg and the great Ian Wright, was just beginning to come into his own. Both gone due to the ineptitude of the men responsible for the management of contracts at the Arsenal Football Club, both vitally important to the success of the club, both using their not inconsiderable talents elsewhere in the prime of their careers. Six months ago I thought I was coming to watch these little magicians play and I was as excited as a little kid. Now I don't know who I'll be watching play other than that they'll wear red with white sleeves.

The real crime of the Arsenal Football Club is not for debate however. It is not the sale of these players; both wanted to leave for differing reasons and once that happens there is scant little you can do to stop it. There is a modality, however, to rectify such problems. Unlike the world of the AFL where players are traded, drafted, or as I have predicted, will soon be able to sign free agent contracts, Arsenal are allowed to buy players from other clubs to replace the ones who have departed, much like how they sold Fabregas and Nasri. And yet they have chosen not to.

I could likely accept this if the remaining players in the squad were of similar standard and quality. But nearly every Arsenal supporter, even if they disagreed exactly whether it was the manager (in AFL parlance, coach), board or owner who was to blame for not re-investing that money, nearly every supporter agreed on one thing; the remaining players were not good enough to compete for the championship. We didn't have to wait long to find out either. The only time in Arsenal's history that they have conceded eight goals in a game was in 1896. Well it was, until Sunday, against a club that used to be our nearest rivals, the Champions Manchester United. The scoreboard said it all, United 8, Arsenal 2. It didn't take long for the pun; wouldn't you eight two be an Arsenal supporter right now?

I don't hate to be an Arsenal supporter. I love my Arsenal, yes I do. An irrational love? Perhaps. I have explained my reasons as to why I do love them the first time I ever had an article posted on the web, an Arsenal FC Blog's guest post titled "How Arsenal have ensured Arsenal will host the World Cup in our Lifetime'" (Although with hindsight I may want that title back; isn't hindsight a wonderful thing?). And I'm still very, very excited about the prospect of attending a couple of home matches in North London at the magnificent Emirates stadium. There's just a tremendous amount of regret at the moment that I, like nearly every "Gooner" (Arsenal supporter) the world over, has seen their club decline; our one time stars shining elsewhere, their replacements playing for other clubs with the club unwilling or unable to pay the price to lure equally talented players to our club. Six months ago I was excited about Cesc and Nasri. Today I'm more excited about the prospect of seeing the Czech Republic and Germany.

All is not lost. As is my eccentric want, as is my taste for the romantic, Arsenal did go out and buy a player I've become a big fan of in a short period of time. This time last year, a young lad not yet out of his teenage years named Carl Jenkinson, sat in the stands of Arsenal's home ground to watch the club he loved play in a pre-season tournament called the Emirates Cup. He was a professional footballer plying his trade for Charlton Athletic, a team well below the quality of a Premier League club. Yet someone saw something special in young Carl and offered Charlton a million pounds for his services and a professional contract to play for Arsenal, the club he supported since childhood. His interview upon joining the club is quite remarkable, he is literally blinking back tears of disbelief that he has signed up to play not only for one of the biggest and best clubs in Europe, but one he has loved all his life. He's merely a wide defender and not a star striker, he's technically limited and he has a lot to learn about top level EPL football. This was evidenced in the 8-2 demolition in which his inexperience led to two poorly timed challenges that saw him receive two yellow cards and a sending off.

But he's one of us, a proper Gooner, and will never long for pastures greener nor take defeats as anything over than a heavy weight in his heart. It's for this reason, when I find myself at the Arsenal "Armoury" store I'll be buying myself a "Jenkinson" shirt even though there are far more star turns at the club. I'll get behind one of our own with nothing but my full support and will sing his name with gusto. After all, I'll let you AFL and EPL fans alike argue whether the song I've penned is a pun on a song written about Tony Lockett or Dennis Bergkamp...

"One Carl Jenkinson, There's only one Carl Jenkinson!"

And all is not yet lost, Arsenal still have but two days to spend on players before the so-called "transfer window" closes and have already signed a Brazilian international defender and are being heavily linked to Germany's champion central defender Per Mertesacker. Should he sign for Arsenal I may, just may, become a little more optimistic about this season. Maybe the club does care about the supporters. Maybe they do want to right the wrongs. Maybe they will spend again on an established attacking star. But you best get on with it lads, the time is ticking!

Of course, I can't help but leave you without an awful pun. You see, I'm glad there is only one Carl Jenkinson. After all, it's better than six!

Until next time guys,

Whitey

Dream Team Spirit (Trade Out Again...)

It's prelim finals time in Dream Team and Supercoach. That means that half the teams remain (four in the major finals, four in the minors) and that those fantasy fanatics are frantically working the waiver wire to organise the perfect trade to get them over the hump and into that one day in the first week of September.

It's a precarious course. Lost are the Carlton stars to the bye; those with Judd, Murphy and Gibbs would be most concerned indeed. They would be further troubled by the ever reliable Pav finally being any less than reliable, even if it is no fault of his own. As for Col Sylvia? You've further muddied the waters mate, tuck it all in, no elbows! What's that? You did? Oh.

Quite the dilemna for a great few and yet, I can't help but think there's an opportunity for me to prosper from this. Step aside Greg, there's a new Coodabeen in town and I plan on being the champion.

Disclaimer: I sing pretty average. And I'm not suggesting you should trade Jack Riewoldt for Mzungu; that horse has bolted. But hopefully you'll enjoy this little song about the dramas that face a "supercoach" every week as much as I enjoyed making it. I give you Radiohead's "Dream Team Spirit". May your ears not bleed too badly. :)

Cat's in the Cradle - Review

That was ugly. So I'm going to get this over with as painlessly as possible so you can all dance on the grave of our predictions.


**  Hawthorn, as predicted by many I've spoken to, defeated Carlton. But Carlton had a spirited fight-back in the second half and showed they'll mix it come September.


Pigshit they did. If people want to over-analyse this game as anything but Hawthorn putting them to the sword before deciding at half-time "we'll just do enough to win the game from here" then they may. The truth is if that were a final, Hawthorn don't let up and win by ten goals or more. They manhandled Carlton's midfielders and were too tall in the key positions. There's a reason Hawthorn haven't lost to these blokes since '07; it was obvious Friday night. Don't over-analyse it.


**  Which is exactly what I did with Melbourne. Passion can take you only so far in footy if you don't have the quality. This Demons team brushed Richmond aside with ease barely six weeks ago. It's a Richmond side that recently lost to the Gold Coast. Things are very wrong at Melbourne and the supporter discontent is palpable. They were supposed to kick on from a terrific improvement last season. The truth is their list has been exposed as soft and not nearly good enough. Would you stay if you were Tom Scully? I got this one wrong badly; I over-analysed it. Disclaimer: this prediction was my doing and Pete wanted no part of it. Always listen to your father!


**  Well, perhaps I was right that Sydney aren't in a good way but they passed that mantle onto St. Kilda on Sunday. Passion did take Sydney far on Sunday because they played exactly the way they have for the last 10 seasons of success; every player gave everything and played their part. Kirky (Brett) once told dad after Sydney won the 2005 flag that they were a team of "21 cloggers and a superstar (he was alluding to Barry Hall which may have been unfair on that Adam Goodes fella)". That strikes me as how they performed Sunday. St. Kilda now have a do or die against North Melbourne this week. They aren't in a good way and yet, this is where they've been before and often they have succeeded.


**  St. George continued on their losing ways, albeit this time with a good performance against a premiership contender but not good enough to stop the rot. As it stands they may need to win four finals in a row to repeat as premiers. Not impossible with the side they have, but highly unlikely. I will choose to take the NRL line in situations like this should we not be successful; "Thanks to Wayne for everything you've done for our club and we wish you and Darius all the best at Newcastle. We won't forget your contributions in a hurry. Well done St. Benny".


So in reality, the only two AFL games played on the weekend that could be considered swing games we contrived to tip incorrectly. I had a 3 tip lead in the competition at the Henty Bowling club, I've an anxious wait until Friday night to see how much damage has been inflicted. I have a sneaking suspicion the lead will only be 1. Then again, that certainly makes for an exciting couple of rounds. North or St. Kilda? North or St. Kilda? That's the one I'll agonise over all week.


And I'll be sure to let you know on Friday so you may tip the opposite way and get it right. Happy Monday!
Whitey

And the Cat's in the Cradle - 19/08/11

As I suggested on twitter today, I had a business partner opine that opening an pharmacy in a rural town of only 860 people may have been one of the worst business decisions one (me) could ever make.

Perhaps on that first, tragic day of 18 customers, he had a point. Today, when I barely had time to scratch myself for giving advice on diseases ranging from the cough of a common cold to how best to handle the four medications prescribed to deal with the nausea that will come with the chemotherapy, I'd done enough to prove that youth and inexperience don't necessarily mean you err. Hindsight is a wonderful thing however. Which is why we need to turn its judgemental eyes to the White men's decisions of last week

• St. Kilda pushed Collingwood. The footy world predicted it. Einsteins we are not. One from one, we move on
• It was Freo's Grand Final. FFS! How many Grand Finals have they competed in? Precisely. Please direct all abuse and witticisms at @Freo_Dockers (Fake Fremantle Dockers). You won't regret it. One from two.
• Henty's new medical centre. It won't be new, it will be the refurbishment I feared. It comes with the promise form the Greater Southern Area Health Service that there will always be a doctor in Henty (*Cough* Bullshit *Cough*) and that the the renovations will allow him to take on an intern to lessesn the load (lord please be truth). It also comes with a potential $300,000 State Government grant. I did know that, but that the person agitating for the new medical centre lied to the community about this fact did not help our cause. We may get the grant, we may not. So as of today, it's a wash. One and a half out of Three.
• This was just a statement about how proud dad was of his softball girls (Awwwwww...)

So a 50% record. We'd get a job for channel 7 as it stands.

Sadly, I hope you didn't come here for anything other than footy tonight. Because that's all the discussion circled around. So here we go...

**  There's Collingwood who will likely win the flag (60% chance). There's the biggest threat Geelong who are still outstanding and as hard as nails to boot (25%). There's Hawthorn who are playing exciting footy and could '08 it. (at 10pm of their premiership window they stole one and are at the 15% chance they were in '08). There's Carlton at 0% chance of winning the flag and a 20% chance of beating Hawthorn tonight (been and done, but we said this at 6:30pm). You heard it it here first and worst.

**  Sydney aren't in a good way right now. St. Kilda are. And it isn't at the SCG, it's at ANZ stadium. Sydney's loss to Richmond last weekend said nothing about the Tigers and everything about Sydney. They're not in a goo... Oh. I said that. We'll see.

**  Melbourne and Richmond is ridiculously tough to tip. But going out on the Fremantle limb (geez, didn't that work well), neither team is remotely good and Melbourne with all their turmoil will have set themselves for this. If they can't get up this week I would be massively concerned as a supporter. You lost your coach you didn't want to play for, your president that is your club icon and you love to death probably has several new stress related brain tumours (so you literally have loved him to death), and if you look at your draw, it's improbable but not impossible to make the final 8. To paraphrase Warrick Capper; "Richmond are as weak as piss, let's murder the bastards!".

**  No rethink at Collingwood? I've heard that Mick should only take so much credit and it's the assistants and the set up that deserve the praise. Bucks will fit in like, um,  a well fitting glove after back to back flags.

Bollocks. He's on a hiding to nothing. What's left after Mick leaves that sort of legacy? A club not willing to run through the brick wall for a flag, that's what. And don't give me this assistants and VFL staff bullshit. Who did the players run to embrace after they won last year? Mick Malthouse is the Wayne Bennett of the AFL, loved and respected by all the players. Good luck with that Bucks. Especially if Mick decides he has a point to prove to the Collingwood FC. And I don't doubt he will have. When he arrived, his claim was that he wanted to turn them into the Manchester United of the AFL. I laughed then. I don't now. He has done it, and the club is going to cast him aside as a "mentor". No they aren't, not if he doesn't want it. So many clubs in the AFL would take him on as coach in a heartbeat right now and that's where my money is. He'll stick it up Collingwood. Dad and I aren't betting against him. Too clever by half with your succession plan Magpies. But that's Eddie everywhere to a tee. Love your mates when you've got 'em, burn 'em when it's past time.

**  Speaking of St. George and Wayne Bennett, did he lose his team when he announced the Newcastle signing? If you're a Dragon through and through, do you want to run through the brick wall for him anymore? Pete says no and it's hard to argue. We were going to win another flag hands down. It's a shame it may end like this. You wouldn't put a red (and white) cent on the Dragons to win the flag anymore. And they should have.

So that's the week that was. Not a single Keno number. Three middies at the club. Hawthorn much better than the scoreline suggested, but likely not good enough to trouble the Magpies. But the beauty is in waiting and seeing. Which is what I get to do when Arsenal play Liverpool this week.

And for those that might get the joke that there's only one Denis Bergkamp well I say to you; there's only one Carl Jenkinson.

I failed the fitness test. I could only kick the footy 20 metres, not my normal range of 30. I don't get to play tomorrow, so I need another scotch. Down, down, down; down into my belly.

Stay cluey sports fans, you need to pick apart what the White's have got wrong. Cheers 'til then,

White Ox.

That'd make you Philthy, wouldn't it?

It's only ever happened once and it was reasonably distasteful. I was offered what I saw as a job offer I couldn't refuse, one that would allow me to go into business for myself and be closer to my girlfriend who had moved away. I wanted to take the job so, for the one and only time in my life, I had to tender a resignation. Only thing was, I wasn't sure how you did it.


So I tried to do the right thing. I called the Pharmacy Guild of Australia, asked what the proper protocol was and how much notice I was expected to give, and quietly prepared my letter for an amicable parting of the ways.


More fool me, or so I was to discover.


You see, the Pharmacy Guild is effectively a union for pharmacy owners to protect the interest of pharmacy owners. My $100 per year associate membership as an employee gave me access to advice on how to give proper notice. My employer's $2000 a year membership gave him access to a myriad of Guild staff only too happy to call him and tell him that Mark White intends to give notice of his resignation in the next couple of days.


The phone call I received from said employer that evening suggesting he'd have to cancel his family's skiing holiday to Canada as a result of the resignation I'd yet to give (which was absolute BULLSHIT in any case) left a very sour taste in my mouth. Fortunately this was during a time when pharmacists were in such ridiculously short supply there was no way he'd sack me; he needed those final two weeks and although I'd never take my job as a health professional as anything but serious, I may have let his staff know to watch for a dagger to be slipped into their back at any moment. It needn't have been handled this way, it could have been done amicably and maturely (and yes, I admit by the both of us although we have patched up our differences and get along much better now), but it wasn't.


Which is a lovely segue (gee I love that word) to the Phil Davis situation. I'll let @AdamCurley_Fox tell it to you as it is;


"Not sure why all the hysteria about Davis, anyone who thinks Suns didn't lock away blokes mid-season kidding themselves, deal with it #afl"


Too true, far too true. Philthy? You and me are guilty of one terrible, horrible thing. We were honest, up front and truthful with our employers. Much better we'd have remained silent, devious and waited the appropriate time to announce a contract we signed halfway through the season like the Gold Coast crew. Besides, it seems to have gotten you in the same position it got me; thanks for nothing.


It also got you something akin to a "I guess we'll have to cancel our end of season trip because we were waiting for your raffle money". Well, it did actually. It got you this from Adelaide FC's head of football operations' Stephen Harper courtesy of CEO Steven Trigg (who helped establish the rules under which the Suns and GWS operate by the way...);


"We were one of the clubs that agreed to the AFL concessions. Did we think we'd be the hardest hit of all the AFL clubs? Probably not, but as it turns out we are," 


"Our club is bloody disappointed Phil has made this decision. We understand it, but we don't like it". 


And then, in reward for his honesty and for fulfilling the obligations of his professional contract he signed with Adelaide when he was drafted, young Philthy was told to empty his locker, find his own physio to rehab his busted shoulder, and I would imagine to "piss off and never come back".


Boo hoo hoo Adelaide, you're breaking my heart. That Phil Ablett really made you the hardest hit of all AFL clubs, didn't they Stevie boy?


Where to from here? Somewhere I like to play a little game of compare, and contrast.


`Bryce (Gibbs) has been a great servant of (our club) for many years and we wish him and his family the very best for the future,’’


Do you hear that ladies and gents? It's the sound of every Carlton member frantically googling "Bryce Gibbs" to ensure he has not signed with Greater Western Sydney.


And he hasn't. Exhale Blue Baggers. That is a statement released by the NRL club Wests Tigers when one of their favourite sons, a premiership player in their sensational and  improbable run to the flag in 2005, signed a contract with the North Queensland Cowboys for the 2012 season and beyond. Despite the fact he will still be playing for the Tigers this year as they prepare for the finals. No ill will, no teammates turning their back on him or firing snide tweets at him, just a situation handled with great maturity and respect which largely is the norm for NRL clubs well used to these signings.


Adelaide Football Club has been held up for two decades as a model AFL club. Suddenly, they are being shown up as petty, immature and plain nasty in their handling of a similar signing to that which occurs in the NRL on a weekly basis from season to season. The NRL. The league that spawns Todd Carney. I tell you what, when the NRL can take the moral high ground over you, perhaps you need a little rethink about how you are handling your football club. The Crows would do well to listen and learn.


That said, there are issues within the system that allow the Suns and GWS to sign players that I am not comfortable with. And as per usual, there is a media personality who can articulate my thoughts far better than I. I give you the brilliant Emma Quayle (@emmsq);


"The Phil Davis GWS news is disgusting. Sickening that clubs weren't protected against losing players coming out of their first contract."


And that is where the collective rage of the footy world is, or should be, directed. Adelaide had just invested 3 years in Davis; is a first round pick in a tainted draft fair compensation? And my goodness, let us please not go anywhere near the Tom Scully situation at Melbourne. Whatever you think of the Demon's tanking tactics they do not deserve to lose that player before he has given them fair service. It is galling and from that point of view you can understand the club's and fans' anger.


There is a solution of course. The AFL could have chosen to look at other leagues with salary caps and how they handle their "first contract" players if you will. I'm a huge fan of NHL ice hockey and in that league such newly drafted players sign "entry level contracts", the completion of which occurs after 3 seasons of 10 games or more, and after that time they are considered "Restricted Free Agents". Restricted in that until halfway through the off-season, only their clubs may negotiate a new contract with them and even after that time limit has passed, other clubs may only tender an "offer sheet" of a contract to the player which the club who holds the Restricted player's rights may still choose to match. They hold the final decision as to whether they wish to keep the player or not. Adelaide should have been afforded this choice.


You would think the obvious flaw in this system is the opportunity for a club to throw a ridiculously overpriced contract at a restricted free agent. Not so, because the NHL has the foresight to deal with this problem as well. The NHL has drafted a policy whereby the higher the salary is offered to the free agent, the more draft picks must be given up by that club in compensation. Offer sheets are rare in the NHL world. Quality young players will give their club several good seasons.


If we were to use this analogy for the purposes of our AFL situation, should the Greater Western Sydney Franchise choose to offer Tom Scully a contract to the value of a million dollars per season, they would be forced by the league to give up three first round draft picks; their highest first round picks in drafts 2011, 2012, and 2013. There is no guarantee GWS will be successful in their first three seasons, all of these draft picks could be top 3 picks. Ask yourself two things; would the GWS still go after Scully so hard if this was the case? And should they do so, would Melbourne supporters be truly upset when they would be getting so much in return? I think we all know the answers to those questions.


Of course, anybody who follows the NHL knows there is a kicker; the spectre of Unrestricted Free Agency. The notion that after 7 years of continuous service with your club, or reaching the age of 26, you may sign with ANY other club in the league if you are out of contract with NO compensation to your previous club.


This is what makes Adelaide's reaction even more childish and disrespectful. The AFLPA and Matt Finnis want this kind of free agency. Do you think they won't get what they want? I doubt it. They may not get the percentage of league revenues as wages like they want in the current labour war, but they'll get a massive increase in pay. They may not get free agency exactly matching that of the NHL, but they will get a form of it. It is coming.


And when that happens, your Joel Selwoods, your Cyril Riolis, your Dustin Martins, and your Scott Pendleburys may see out their period of restricted free agency before signing for the highest bidder. Or, if their club has started to struggle and stagnate outside of the final 8, sign for the club that gives them a high chance of a premiership.


Fast forward five years. With their rebuilding of youth in full swing, could that club be Adelaide? Could they benefit from the system that is "bloody disappointing"? You bet they could.


I'm sorry to say it but the fabric of AFL football as we know it is going to change. The kind of loyalty we built our league upon is slowly being torn down, soon to be unrecognisable to us fans. One club players will become less the norm, more the rarity. It will take some getting used to by fans. Obviously it will, because the clubs can't get their head around it either. Adelaide don't seem to have the first idea as to why they have no right to be filthy with Phil.


But hold your head up Philthy, you've done nothing wrong. Nothing that others won't be doing now and beyond. Tip of the iceberg stuff. And no matter what happens, be proud that you are "Philthy" Phil Davis, honest as the day is long.


Of course, being filthy rich will likely soften the blow too. Greater We$tern $ydney? You bet. Stay classy everyone!
Whitey