American Championships

Two weekends ago, the United States Australian Rules Football league held their national championships in Sarasota and Bradenton, Florida on October 15 and 16. Streamed live on YouTube, it was different watching games being played in what looked like rec fields on a university campus. Watching cars go by and everything, instead of crowds of 40,000+ at a major metropolitan oval where people are trying to sell me watches and insurance.

But it was still fun to watch. Obviously the skill level is different, since these are men and women with day jobs who are committing a lot of time to footy. 36 teams were separated by divisions and then again into pools. The side nearest me, the Atlanta Kookaburras, went 2-1 in pool play, beating teams from Denver and Tulsa, but losing to a squad from Des Moines. They ran six ovals (one for the women) for most of Saturday the 15th and part of Sunday the 16th, with the finals played in the afternoon on Sunday.

The Portland Sockeyes defeated Montreal to win the women's premiership, and congrats to the Division 4 men's champions Ohio Valley and to D3 champs Portland who beat North Carolina. The Division 2 premiers are from Calgary (also home of my favorite hockey team).

The Division 1 winners are the Austin Crows, for whom Nolan Cox plays. Nolan is the brother of Mason Cox, the Collingwood big man of whom we have spoken here. Austin is tied to the Adelaide Crows, and the big club even gave them a shout out on their web site.

What really weirded me out about that is that Mason the Magpie made it onto an opponent's web site:

Collingwood player Mason Cox, left, with his brother Nolan who plays
for the USAFL team in Austin, Texas. Picture taken from the Adelaide Crows site.

Play on!

A Grand Final

I found a work around that allowed me to check out the match between the Swans and the Bulldogs. I knew how the match ended, and I paid attention to the first half of the match in real time via gametracker. I even checked out radio broadcasts (professional courtesy) there for a little while.

This was an entertaining game to watch. The 22-point margin for Western Bulldogs does not tell the story of how hard-fought the game was, how neither side scored for the first 7:30 of the opening term, or how this was a one-point lead for WB with eight minutes to go.

But I've watched the same victory celebrations on YouTube for the last two days, and I can't get past how deep this seems to run for Bulldog fans. This is their first premiership since 1954 when they beat Melbourne and they overcame the loss of captain Bob Murphy (more on him in a moment). They were also the seven seed and won three road games in the finals, beating West Coast soundly, getting a win over three-time reigning champs Hawthorn (technically a road game), and winning at GWS before beating Sydney.

I realize that when you win a league title (in any sport) there is much rejoicing and celebrating, but the sheer joyousness of the Bulldog players, coaches, and staff amazed me. I wondered if they would ever run out of hugs. This made me think of how a team plays for its people and citizenry and how it adopts the characteristics of the surrounding community. In this case the people of Footscray, where the Dogs call home and where the team was founded back in 1877. Kind of how the Pittsburgh Steelers are a blue collar-type squad in the NFL.

This was the first time I ever watched the trophy and medal presentation, and it was fascinating how the AFL handles their business. The defeated Swans, losing their second Grand Final in three years, sat on the field at the Melbourne Cricket Ground and watched the Bulldogs celebrate. Captain Kieren Jack stepped to the mic and gave a few words before he joined his mates. That never happens stateside, where we see a few congratulatory handshakes before the vanquished side retreats to their locker room. Not so in the AFL, where the losing team gets salt rubbed in the wound. Seems harsh and a tad unfair, but...

Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge called Bob Murphy up on stage and gave him his Jock McHale medal (given to the winning coach), saying he (Murphy) deserved it more than anybody. Extremely classy move, and one that seems to have been very well received. This is another cultural difference, since to my knowledge, pro athletes in the states play very little part in team activities once they've been lost for the season due to injury. Murphy (lost to a knee injury in round 3) was right in there during the celebrations, and the hugs and cheers he got were as big and strong as any I saw.

So season 2016 folds its tents and steals off into the night. This blog? Nope. There's more to say and more to look at.

Don't go anywhere.

Sons of the West

It's Preliminary Finals week in the AFL, or the end of my (televised) season since my cable carrier has puts the Grand Final on the premium tier of channels and it's not worth the $12 per month to me.

Sydney/Geelong was the first match chronologically, but the AFL calls it the second prelim final. Probably has something to do with where the teams are on the playoff bracket.

Anyhow the Swans punched hard and fast in the opening quarter, much like they did against Adelaide in the previous match. It was effective both times, as Sydney routed the Crows by 38 and Geelong by 37. Neither game was that close.

Sydney is through to the Grand Final.

In sharp contrast the other prelim final, Western Bulldogs against GWS Giants was a fantastic and riveting game that swung back and forth. So captivating, in fact, that the TV types were seemingly out of breath for the last seven or eight minutes. GWS scored a goal to tie with less than four minutes remaining, giving the commentators reason to mention a five-minute extra time session in case of a tie at the end of regulation. It made no difference as the Bulldogs got it done at the end and won by six points.

It was about a 50/50 split in terms of crowd support at Spotless Stadium, home of the Giants. The crowd roared as the final siren sounded-- so much so you'd have thought the Dogs were at home. It's the first time they've been to the Grand Final since 1961, and this could be their first premiership since 1954, so this has been a big, big win for the Western Bulldogs organization.

Someone I kind of feel badly for is Bulldogs captain Robert Murphy, whose season was lost to a torn ACL at the very end of a close loss to Hawthorn. He debuted with the club back in 2000 and has played 295 games waiting for a chance to play in a game like this.

So it's Swans/Bulldogs for the 2016 premiership.

Preliminary Finals

And then there were four.

Western Bulldogs beat Hawthorn and did so comfortably. In the early stages, the Hawks played like the three-time defending premiers they are, but the Bulldogs came back strongly and wound up winning by 23 points. The Hawks lost to Geelong last week and to WB this week, sending them out of the postseason despite having the double chance to move on.

This was a rematch of the round 3 matchup I watched earlier in the season, that Hawthorn won by three points. It was also the game where Bulldog captain Robert Murphy blew his knee out in the latter stages of the game. I remember talk back then that the Dogs were premiership favorites, and thinking they would have trouble without Murphy. But now they're into the preliminary final against GWS, a side in only their fifth year of existence. Interesting factoid-- I talked about St. Kilda champion Lenny Hayes a month or so ago, and found out he's an assistant with GWS.

Interesting that this match is being played at 24,000-seat Spotless Stadium, home of the GWS Giants. League semifinals should probably be played in buildings that hold more than that number. It just seems like a larger number of fans would be interested in seeing this game, especially since Western is looking for a chance to play in their first Grand Final since 1961. That kind of makes me want to root for them-- their fans have paid the price to be supporters of the team, whereas the Giants are the new kids on the block. I won't actually back one side or the other since it's a kiss of death for the team I choose.

In the other semifinal, Sydney scored 45 first-quarter points and withstood serious pressure from Adelaide in the middle two quarters to win by 36 points. The Swans move on to play Geelong in the other matchup in the round of four at the MCG.

So of the top four teams, top-seed Sydney, second-place side Geelong and number four GWS are still alive, as is the #7 seed Western Bulldogs.

Play on!

The Finals

Last week I watched all four of the opening round playoff matches-- two elimination finals and two qualifying finals. The top four seeds play in qualifying finals, in a 1-4 and 2-3 matchup. Win and you qualify for a bye into the final four, or a preliminary final match. Lose and you have to play your way through, but your season is not over.

I think the elimination final concept is pretty self-explanatory... the 5th place team meets the eighth place side, and 6 meets 7. Lose and you're eliminated. Win and you play the losers of the 1-4 and 2-3 games. 

So. 

Geelong and Hawthorn played in the 2-3 game, and it was a match worthy of being a playoff game. The Hawks missed a kick after the final siren and the Cats won by three points. Hawthorn would then have to play two more matches to make the Grand Final, whereas Geelong only needs to win one more time. 

Hawthorn would go on to face the Western Bulldogs, a side that beat the West Coast Eagles. Western went to Perth and won big against the Eagles. West Coast defeated playoff team Adelaide in the last week of the home-and-away season, giving us a reason to think the blue and yellow could win without their big ruckman Nic Natanui. It's especially weird since WCE has a reputaiton for playing poorly on the road. This time they played a bad game and did it in the safety of their home grounds.

Elsewhere regular-season premiers Sydney took a beating from the GWS Giants, in an intra-Sydney squabble. So the Swans move on to face Adelaide, who drummed North Melbourne out of the postseason. The biggest thing about the Kangaroos is that Brent Harvey played his final game in the blue and white after he and three others were not offered contracts for 2017, so this became a sort of swan song for some North greats. 

The next round will see Hawthorn vs. Western Bulldogs and Adelaide vs. Sydney. Winners advance to face Geelong or GWS, losers pack their stuff.

Off week

So the regular season wrapped nearly two weeks ago and there was no AFL footy played last week. There was a legends game, and there was also a women's match as the AFL seems interested in putting together a women's league.

The AFL playoff sides took a week off, so your humble correspondent also chose to take a Labor Day vacation.

That's something I don't understand. Eight teams bust their tails in order to make the playoffs, and there is a premium places on finishing in the top four because in the 1-4 and 2-3 opening round matchup has the payout of a rest week to the winner. But now everyone gets a week off. Even North Melbourne, which lost their last four matches but made the eight anyhow.

Elsewhere, briefly, Fremantle star Matthew Pavlich retired at the end of the home-and-away season after 353 games. It was a pretty gloomy year for the Dockers, who had enjoyed a lot of success recently. But their win over the Western Bulldogs (who made the eight) was a nice way to end the season and to honor a great player. Matty Pavs seems like a decent sort and it sounds like he's ready to face some new life challenges now that his footy career has wrapped.

Now on to the eight. These all seem like really good matches, and I have the DVR set to record all four.

(7) Western Bulldogs is at (6) West Coast Eagles. WCE was thought to not be a contender, then they played so well vs. Adelaide.

(2) Geelong plays (3) Hawthorn. Great. your reward for playing strong footy at the end of the season is getting to play the three-time reigning premiers. And at the MCG instead of at your home grounds.

(1) Sydney is at home vs. (4) GWS. This game is being played at ANZ (pronounced A-N-ZED) Stadium, instead of Sydney's home, the Sydney Cricket Ground, or at Spotless Stadium, home of the Giants. A nice intra-city squabble here. ANZ Stadium was where Hawaii played (American) college football against California a few weeks ago. I've got another blog post on college football Down Under.

The final game of the weekend is (5) Adelaide at home vs. (8) North Melbourne. The Crows laid an egg against West Coast to close the season, when they had a top four seed to play for. The Kangaroos played well to start the season and closed the season poorly.

In the 1-4/2-3 games, the winner gets a bye and an extra week of rest but also the risk of rust, since they'll have played one meaningful game in 3+ weeks. The losers of those games play the winners of 5-8/6-7. The losers of the lower-seeded games are done for the season. So it starts with 8 and will be down to 6 by the end of the weekend, then four, then two then, well, I think you get the idea.

Looking forward to it. Play on!

Golf Clubs

So it looks as though the eight playoff sides have been determined. As you can see by a look at the ladder after week 22, St. Kilda is the only side that can catch North Melbourne. They're one game back of North with one game to play. The Saints play Brisbane and the Kangaroos face GWS. The odds favor North Melbourne ending the season tied with St. Kilda. 

However, StK would have to win by something like 25 goals and the Roos would also have to lose by that amount in order for North Melbourne to miss the playoffs, because of percentages. So it's not very likely.

AFL ladder after round 22

Also, Hawthorn has lost two of their last three to fall to fourth from the top spot. If they don't fall further, they'll play in the first round of the finals still with the opportunity for a bye should they win. The disadvantage is that it'd be a road game.

The Hawks lost last week to West Coast, who lost their big ruckman Nic Natanui to an ACL tear during the game. Nic Nat will be out till the middle of next year. Bummer. It's fun watching him play. The Eagles will make the eight, but making a deep run in the postseason is less likely without the big man.

Last week I watched North fall to Sydney. I saw today that Kangaroos player Brent Harvey at age 38 will not be offered a contract for 2017. There seems to be a greater emphasis on the team and the collective in the AFL, because the reason given was that they want to get young players game experience. I don't know-- Harvey just set the league record for games played and still looks to be in fine form. I get that his days are numbered, but his loyalty and commitment to the club and to the game should give him the opportunity to exit on his own terms.

Adelaide overcame beat Port Adelaide to move into a tie for the top spot. Eddie Betts of the Crows had a great game in helping his side to their 16th win of the season. It's amazing what they've done, since their head coach Phil Walsh was killed during the 2015 season. Walsh's son stands accused of killing his father.

Anyhow, what they've overcome is awesome stuff.

Up for this week: West Coast (without a key piece of the puzzle) meets Adelaide, and Melbourne faces Geelong. When the week is over, everyone else gets to head out to the golf course and play 18 and get ready for 2017.