AFL Drug Policy

For those who did not watch last nights NRL Footy Show, Jason Akermanis was one of the guests and he discussed the three strike AFL drug policy. I personally think this policy is excellent. The theory behind it is that the first strike is designed for the younger players who go back home and get blotto and make bad out of character decisions like taking cocaine. They get their warning and thats it. If that same person does it for a second time and is caught then there is a problem and they go into counselling and rehab. If they do it a third time then see you later, your a drugo try and get a run for the Roosters in the NRL.

"The AFL says it will expand its illicit drug testing regime even further in 2009, after 10 players failed tests last year.
Of the 10, two players failed two tests each, putting them among a list of seven players with two strikes. Under the AFL's three strike drug policy, players who fail three tests within four years will be named and face an 18 game ban and a $5,000 fine".

It is obvious that recreational drugs are used by players of all sports in Australia and its funny that the NRL has been tainted by having a couple of players get done in the last few years and receive long bans where there have been 10 players in the AFL in the AFL tests positive in the last 12 months and it appears as though they haven't even missed a game.

As long as the drug isn't performance enhancing then I think the AFL is on the money. People make mistakes and shouldn't have the book thrown at them. If they do it again then take action. Opinions on the policy ? Should the NRL take the same steps ?

Andrew Symonds

"All-rounder Andrew Symonds is being sent home from the World Twenty20 cricket tournament in England for breaking a number of team rules related to alcohol and other issues".

Can we just let the guy have a beer or what ?? Opinions ?

Origin 1 wrap up

I thought it was a fairly boring origin compared to its usually high standards. NSW and Queensland both played below par and there were very few big hits or any biff. NSW didn't deserve to even be in the match. The scoreline was flattering. Inglis was excellent and Thurston played well as usual but no one else from QLD really stood out from my point of view. 

For NSW Hayne, Wing and Lewis gave everything they had and are the probably the only blues that can hold their heads high. The impact of Wing off the bench was excellent, he turned the match straight away. Lewis tested the maroons line a few times and made some good defensive decisions. Hayne was excellent and needs to be involved more. I think he needs to be the fullback for game 2.

Changes ???

I don't think NSW will make many changes but I really hope they make a couple. Hayne to fullback and Gidley to either 5/8 or hooker. If we move Gidley to hooker then we can bring in Mullen at 6 and drop Campese. Campese really struggled to make any impact and looked out of sorts. Mullen is in form and has been there before. Laffranchi also played very average and you would expect that Stewart will come in for him. Mcmanus struggled too and we need Monaghan's size and strength in there to slow down Inglis on the right hand side.

One positive the on field refs actually went ok. Shame about the video ref call. In the end it probably didn't matter anyway. 

 What are your thoughts and suggestions ?

NSW Raped?

I like to think of myself as a fair, open minded person who isn't overly bias and can cop it when the better man/team wins. I can't cop everyone saying that QLD were the dominant force in last nights game and NSW were lucky to get close, NSW were raped. AS I was watching the game with a few mates we commented at full time that Shayne "I want to be Bill Harrigan" Hayne and Tony "Little bitch" Archer should have went down to the NSW change rooms and requested each player to drop their shorts and bend over. They had been fucking them over all night so whats another few minutes guys! The level of inconsistency and SOFT penalties favouring QLD was ridiculous. Some main points that come to mind are
1. The Jarrod Hayne NO TRY. I believe it probably wasn't a try but can't be certain. How does Bill Harrigan look at the footage almost 10 times and then say definitely that it is no try. He has to have doubt in his mind and should have referred it back for a refs call. Bill is too arrogant to say he doesn't know anything so had to say NO TRY, what a joke.
2. Late in the 1st half Ben Creagh hits the ball up, gets tackled, gets to his feet to play the ball. Mick Croker comes in late and elbows/tackles Creagh to the ground and he loses the ball. PENALTY to QLD for not getting up to play the ball. I know what standing on you feet and playing the ball looks like and that was a fair example by Ben Creagh and he was penalised for it. NSW had momentum which was killed off by a blatantly poor call.
3. QLD attacking the NSW line, bomb goes up for Folau who collides with a NSW player also looking at the ball. Folau takes a dive and gets the penalty. Replay clearly showed both players only looking at the ball, another poor decsion. QLD score off the next set.

That was all in the 1st half and effectively ruined any chance of NSW winning the game. They did try hard in the 2nd half but couldn't bridge the gap enough. You again have to wonder how the 2 referees, linesman and video ref can all have calls that go against the same team on the night?
NSW can definitely be positive about their chances in game 2 as they showed with no luck and minimal ball they can compete with QLD.

Another Crazeeee British Pastime!

Do yourself a favour and have a look at the link below. It is to the Cotswold Olympicks 2009 "Shin Kicking" tour. Very simple violent game played by out of their mind Britsih Isle geezers. All you have for protection is as much straw as you can pack into you pants. I think the rednecks out here would love it. Check out the You Tube video at the bottom, fast forward to about the 1 minute mark and enjoy. Have your sound on as the sound of boot on shin is great.
http://www.pillow.co.uk/shin-kicking.html

Stupidity

I wanted to put this in the Mad Moments in Sport but its just not good enough...

Harbhajan Singh and Sree Sreesanth - The slap and the tears

"Harbhajan, who is leading the Mumbai Indians in the absence of injured Sachin Tendulkar, allegedly slapped Sreesanth when the paceman said "hard luck'' following his team's 66-run win".

I hate Harbhajan more then any other "athlete", and I use the term athlete very losely. This guy is a racist wanker that is very typical of alot of Indians. The Symonds "Monkey" taunts show what sort of person he is !! It was not a surprise to see him slap Sreesanth in the IPL. It was a dog act but at the same time a part of me was happy to see Sreesanth get slapped because he is almost equally as annoying. His reaction to the slap was a joke...seriously crying over that ??? Both their antics on the field is poor and they both of them should go into the cricket wilderness, never to be heard of again!!

Mad Moments in Sport - Part 2 (i)

Mike Tyson bitting Evander Holyfield's ear off !!