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Messages - LP

1
The Sports Desk / Re: God help me - the Test Cricket thread
I think it's time the ICC (Read BCCI by Proxy) started ploughing money into venue management rather than using it to line the pockets of independent Mumbai billionaires.

If they don't cricket could be dead as a global sport by 2050.

I went the watching the Kayo Mini this morning and there was barely enough content for a Micro!
3
Robert Heatley Stand / Re: AFL Rd 18 2025 Post Game Prognostications Carlton vs Brisbane
In fairness to our club, Stocker later said he was about to pull up stumps due to the impact of the pandemic on the AFL season. I believe our club advised him he needed to get away from football for the sake of his own sanity.

After deciding he did not want to give it away yet, he stayed in football through the pre-season supplemental pick.

If EH pulls the pin, it's his right to do so and we should respect it, if he wants to continue we'd be hypocrites to pull the rug.
5
Robert Heatley Stand / Re: AFL Rd 18 2025 Post Game Prognostications Carlton vs Brisbane
Quote from: pew2 – on
e hollands no way make him earn his spot  not like last time
EH is a walk up start I suspect, a class above most on our list.

Not overly blessed with pace, but knows how to get where the footy is, compete for it then use it reliably.

In my version of the world, footballers are footballers, if they are convicted of something they do the time, if they aren't they are free to continue, just like the rest of us! I'm not having this role model bullsh1t or special rules for special people.
6
The Sports Desk / Re: God help me - the Test Cricket thread
Well, it looks like Boland's selection might have been forced upon the team / captain, in conditions ideal for Boland, a ball swinging about under lights on a seaming pitch, the Victorian wasn't given an opportunity by the captain until the last over of the day, with the embedded trio of NSW compatriots Starc, Hazelwood and Cummins the primary bowlers.
8
The Sports Desk / Re: Formula 1
Quote from: Gointocarlton – on
As much as I dont like the prick, Horner is exactly the man Ferrari need.
Possibly true, but Ferrari might be too big of a change, geographically and culturally. Ignoring what they list as their "home track", the UK based teams basically live and work within a 10km radius of each other, Ferrari is a huge change of venue and an even bigger change in culture.
9
Blah-Blah Bar / Re: The Climate, Environment and Energy Thread
Earlier we had some discussion about not trusting the advice or reports of billionaires, when they portray themselves as the cure to bureaucracy's ills.

When big big money is involved do not trust politics, opinion or the people who profit from either, just trust the numbers but not necessarily how the numbers are presented, be skeptical. Sometimes the most basic cursory investigation exposes the folly or deception.

Right on queue, although not specific to energy but analogous to the concept above, we have a billionaire telling us he can do the SRL better, cheaper, faster and with more certainty. I doubt it, I gravely doubt it, and unless great liability and risk is built into the contracts with certain penalties for failure, it would be a grave mistake to change the management.

Privatisation of too many major infrastructures just creates a tenancy that delivers great profit to the landlord, we all pay. Infrastructure and essential services should not be "for profit"!

The same critical risk structure should be applied to energy debate, make providers liable for not delivering on promises, do not let them profit at your risk!
10
The Sports Desk / Re: Formula 1
Such is F1 politics, it looks like Horner called out Verstappen's old man for brokering a move to Mercedes, backdooring RB Racing. Max was asking too much to remain at RB. and Horner told Jos Verstappen as much. But Jos is a friend of the RB Executive had his revenge, and now it looks like Max will get his way, the ultimate spoilt child, despite also being a very good driver in a car exclusively configured to his preference.

In F1, money talks, always has and always will.

I think it's a mistake, RB have now kyboshed the two people who could actually technically deliver on Max's requests, Newey and Horner.

I won't be surprised to hear that Max will get a big deal, and yet still be gone from RB within a season or two, they won't be able to deliver, it will break the team, and he'll blame everyone else for the lack of success. This is why Zac Brown said he'd rather see Max stay at RB than head to Mercedes, he doesn't want Max at a team that can deliver a car to his liking, he'd rather Max stays at RB and destroys the joint.

btw., None of this is new to F1, you've seen it all before with "Seb the Breaker"
11
Robert Heatley Stand / Re: AFL Rd 18 2025 Pre Game Prognostications Carlton vs Brisbane
I'm not surprised Cowan is an in, but I'm a bit surprised Durdin gets a gig.

In my opinion Durdin and Evans both have the same fundamental problem, at AFL level they aren't more agile or pacey than opposition who are 10kg heavier and 10cm taller, this leaves them without a trick. To make use of them we can't have such a predictable game plan, they will never get the same opportunities at the AFL level fall of the ball that they get in VFL, if the opposition know where the ball is going.

In my opinion in the future we should avoid recruiting small forwards who haven't an elite trick. Either they must be bilateral and effectively indistinguishable left or right, have elite pace, elite agility or be elite overhead. If they haven't got one of those four traits they'll never get enough footy at AFL level to have an impact, no matter how hard they try or how good they look at VFL level.
13
Robert Heatley Stand / Re: AFL Rd 18 2025 Pre Game Prognostications Carlton vs Brisbane
Quote from: PaulP – on
There is IMO, a difference between a couple of dissenting voices (inevitable when you have 40+ players, assistant coaches and other support staff) and the seemingly en masse switching off,
I think in Pagan's case, he had Carey and he had Archer, and that made a huge difference because it greatly diminished the opinions of the rest. But that might be normal for any club.

In all my years in and around football clubs, I've never found a club with undisputed and unequivocal unity, such claims usually come retrospectively after a flag or other similar success, but they are a mirage.

So perhaps losing some players is normal, and it is who you lose that makes all the difference.

But I'd still assert, if the top leadership and by top I mean above the coach, is stable, consistent and gives the coach unconditional support. Usually issues never grow beyond a seed. Whiteants live in rot.
14
Robert Heatley Stand / Re: AFL Rd 18 2025 Pre Game Prognostications Carlton vs Brisbane
Quote from: Baggers – on
And governance of the playing group lies with the football manager and senior coach. Again we land at inadequate leadership.
I think that's an oversimplification.

We've had an issue spanning too many coaching regimes for this just to be the coaches, it's most likely having too many of the wrong type of people with close access to the playing group. Too many cooks.

Personally, I see it in the outbursts of Mathieson Snr. When Dick Pratt was up and about, and to some degree Sayers, the faceless types were schtum. In between we get noise and we see chaos result, in my opinion that is a huge tell!

Whiteants are always about, some caretakers are good at keeping watch and staying the threat, others not so much! Whiteants are the biggest threat to success because they are opportunistic and driven by reward, they are more insidious, more devious, when the prize is large.
15
Robert Heatley Stand / Re: AFL Rd 18 2025 Pre Game Prognostications Carlton vs Brisbane
Quote from: PaulP – on
I remain highly skeptical that the typical discourse(s) conducted by supporters bears much resemblance at all to the discourse conducted by football people within the four walls. If one measures this "losing the players" by on field performance, then I guess our fluctuations under Voss are like a case of lost and found ? First half 23, lost. Second half 23, found. First half 24, found, etc.

Sorry but I don't buy it. I should make it clear that my ire is not directed at you.
I suspect it's more likely there are factions between players than a specific issue with the coach.

If there are factions in our group they are enabled and driven by the culture at the club, these things do not form bottom up without some failure of governance.