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Post by hoskotafe3 on Apr 17, 2019 22:26:06 GMT
None bigger than the Grand Final rematch in the NRL: Melbourne vs the Roosters. 1 vs 2 on the ladder and you'd be a brave man tipping any matchup bar this fortgis year's Granny. Hope it's a good game.
Also up in the NRL we have Souths vs the Bulldogs: these two played off for the premiership in 2014, but this should be a good win for Souths as the Dogs are rubbish. And Manly play the Dragons in another big rivalry game.
In AFL we have the greatest modern rivalry: Geelong vs Hawthorn. These two have won 7 of the last 12 premierships and nearly always play thrillers when squared off.
We also have the biggest rivalry of the early 00s renewed with Brisbane hosting Collingwood (also produced the best game of 2018) and the biggest rivalry of the late 90s: Essendon vs North Melbourne. Bombers are flying so I can't see a close game there.
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Post by weststigersbob on Apr 18, 2019 2:21:06 GMT
You forgot Wests Tigers vs Eels at the new BankWest Stadium in Parramatta! Sold out months ago - a guaranteed 30,000 on Easter Monday.
Even better, is that Thursday week is ANZAC Day, which is a bonanza of outstanding footy across both major codes. Collingwood v Essendon at the G, Saints v Roosters at the SCG this year. Hosko might have a coronary......
For those not in know, ANZAC Day is Australia’s and New Zealand’s Veterans Day, or Remembrance Day.
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Post by hoskotafe3 on Apr 18, 2019 2:33:38 GMT
2012 was the closest I came to a coronary. Pies by a point after scoring the final goal in the ladt minute and the Dragons scored twice in the last 3 minutes to win in the NRL.
I think the Dragons will struggle mightily against the Roosters, but Pies/ Bombers should be a cracker.
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Post by hoskotafe3 on Apr 18, 2019 12:31:30 GMT
First halves can be deceiving. AFL had a really tight first half while in the NRL Panthers were all over Cronulla. So I thought to myself "I'll watch the AFL in the second half. Better game." And lo and behold Collingwood kicked Brisbane's arse, winning by 62 wland I then find out that Cronulla came from 14 behind to win 24-20.
I think Brisbane will be ok, they're just young and inexperienced and don't know how to take the heat out of a game when their opponents are on a roll. Penrith have been a pretty inconsistent team for a while now.
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Post by hoskotafe3 on Apr 19, 2019 23:05:16 GMT
Melbourne v Roosters turned out to be a heck of a game. Shame the Roosters won, but Melbourne had their chances. Knocking the ball on 5 metres from the Roosters line when the game situation was crying out for an early-in-the-set field goal attempt being the most obvious.
Like the previous night, I decided to watch the AFL at 20-nil. Port beat West Coast in Perth in a huge boilover. When I switched back it was 20-all with about 25 to go, so I think I caught the best part.
Essendon and the Kangas showed that the late 90s was a long time ago by having a dreadful game that the Bombers won by 58.
One more try from the Bulldogs and their game with Souths would have been a cracker. But with Souths more than a converted try ahead and lacking in attacking enterprise and Bulkdogs lacking in attacking everything, it fizzled out long before the finish.
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Post by weststigersbob on Apr 20, 2019 0:31:01 GMT
Melbourne v Roosters was a cracker. Great finish. Saw bits of the other games as I was at work. Dogs v Souths was ordinary. Saw a bit of Essendon v North - funerary atmosphere and not much excitement on the field either.
I’m afraid my live football intake is done for the weekend - I will be carting people to and from the Easter Show the next few afternoons. Hopefully get to listen on the wireless.....
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Post by hoskotafe3 on Apr 20, 2019 1:46:33 GMT
Bummer. I'm covering a local Easter Festival today and then dinner with the wife for her birthday, so no footy till tomorrow.
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Post by hoskotafe3 on Apr 22, 2019 8:29:17 GMT
Yeouch for the Tigers today, Eels looked very impressive in the bits I saw. Not a huge fan of the new stadium. Looks another soulless bowl. As a positive, the game was safely hidden away on pay tv where few would have seen it. What is it with teams putting 50 on the Tigers and then kicking a random field goal?
Awesome performance from Garry Ablett today. Really wound back the clock, not to 2009 but 1989. Played like his old man. Gary Rohan was good in the first half too, playing better now than he ever did in Sydney. Cats ended up winning by 22.
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Post by weststigersbob on Apr 22, 2019 15:20:16 GMT
Saw most of the Tigers game. Too many forwards not pulling their weight, and a few players a bit carried away with their own publicity I think. Our kicking game was diabolically bad. Parra’s was exceptional. The worst part about it though was how far the middle third defence fell away once Farah went off HIA. Too many times Parramatta waltzed through the middle.
Oh well, back to the drawing board, Titans next week in Tamworth which will be interesting, because they’ve found some form.
ANZAC Day is looking like a beast of a game Roosters 5 wins on the spin, Dragons 4.
Saw that mark by GAJ - amazing. The goal he kicked on the run was special as well. Looking back, why he spent so long of his career wasting his talents up at the Suns is a question many would want answered. Money is one thing, but at the expense of personal attainment ? Imagine what he and Geelong could have won if he stayed ?
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Post by hoskotafe3 on Apr 22, 2019 17:48:02 GMT
Ablett staying may well have changed history. In 2013 Geelong lost the prelim to Hawthorn by 5 points while Ablett won the Brownlow medal, Coaches award and MVP at GC17. They also finished top 4 in 2014 and 16. There's every chance that the Cats would have played in 8 GFs in 10 years between 2007 and 2016 and the Hawks dynasty never happens. It's a fun what if. In Ablett's defence, if he hadn't been injured with 6 weeks to go in 2014, they play finals that year, don't stupidly sack their coach, and things may well have turned out very differently.
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