I know losses like that don't REALLY matter at this time of year, but some of the efforts in the second half were pretty hard to swallow. Having said that, this is what really sucks about supporting a bottom team at this time of year, losses help if you're interested in the draft and I find myself not caring that much.
A bright spot from yesterday was Kiwi Campbell. Not only was his long and accurate kicking a pleasure to watch, his attacks on the ball were also a real delight, as long as you were wearing a Dockers jumper anyway. He adds something that our other forwards don't, a hard hitting physical presence. He's on my list of keepers for 2009. Credit too to Paul Duffield who is having a pretty good time of it at present.
As much I as dislike Richmond and anything Terry Wallace, it was nice to see them win on the weekend for Richo. For so long he has been a goose of the highest order. Always fun to watch as an opposition supporter because he would invariably give you plenty to laugh at in amongst his occasional brilliance. This year however he has been special for good reasons. There is no way he can keep this up for more than another 1 or 2 seasons, but if he does go longer than that, he will have drastically remade himself in the latter stages of a good career.
On another note, I think we need to get an agreed definition for tanking. In my mind, letting a soft little seagull go unmarked for 4 quarters in a game where you win if you lose, and pushing players out with non-existent injuries is tanking. See Carlton. However, being utterly useless and sending players who are only slightly useless away for required operations to have them ready for next year is just plain smart. See Eagles.
As both of you reading this know, I have no love for the gutless swill that live down the road in the gutter. However, on this occasion, I offer some support, in that don't believe they're cheating. They really are that bad. This is even better news than if they were cheating. As it is, they really do suck.
So, on with the rankings...
1(1) Geelong - Just too good. Let's hope there is a miracle but it appears that this year is NOT the year to up and about the top of the ladder. No one's beating these guys. Not when it matters anyway.
2(2) Hawks - Not a good loss, but in the famous "big picture" it matters naught. They're headed for the loser's medal on GF day if their top guys stay injury free.
3(3) North - Laidley smiled during the game on the weekend. Nothing more to add.
4(4) Bulldogs - Eade surprisingly said last week that they'd start experimenting now that they were cemented in the top 3. Weird to do that, weirder to broadcast it. By some people's definitions it seems the top team's tank too.
5(5) Adelaide - Hammered the again insipid Essendon. I'm still not convinced about them but they have befuddled me all year. I hate getting Bees' in my fuddle.
6(8) Collingwood - Making another late season charge out of mediocrity in to whatever exists just above that. Annoyingly, they may well make some noise in the finals.
7(6) Sydney - A demoralising loss considering they had pretty good patches from their better guys and still came up short. Join the club boys.
8(11) Richmond - A good win and some more false hope. Ripe for the pickings this weekend in what could be a painful loss.
9(12) Saints - looked really good in the second half on the weekend. A cynic would say that you should then bet the house on them being really horrible this weekend. I am 1 such cynic, however, would it surprise anyone if this bunch of flakes put together a month of really good stuff before failing in the finals?
10(13) Brisbane - Nice win. I had to check myself when I heard their coach pretty much admit they didn't deserve to win when he said that "we weren't the better team out there tonight". Isn't that a strange call to make on a team that is trying to build some momentum and confidence as they push for a finals spot?
11(7) Carlton - ..."the biggest game for this club in 7 years" according to their coach. Have they really been that crap for that long? Judd is the best player in traffic that exists at the current time. Sorry to Sam Mitchell & Co but he is just light years ahead of anyone else in effective delivery in a contested situation.
12(9) Essendon - A nice little run in the latter part of the year but they seem to have gone to sleep again.
13(10) Freo - Just a horrible second half against the Aints. Worse than the result was the pressure efforts for people who should do better. Hayden's chase of some Saints spitter after Mayne fell down in his attempted tackle was appalling. It was shown up badly by the fact that Mayne got up and ran past the jogging Hayden to try to catch the same guy in the same passage of play. Hayden wasn't alone though.
14(16) Melbourne - struggled to shake off a hopeless opponent. Although they did so in the end, they did it with no real emphasis which disappointed 33% of West Australians polled after the result.
15(15) Ungrateful Dead - woeful. Please spare us the righteous indignation when questioned about the efforts of your team Johnny. You should be happy about those assertions. The contrary view is that your team is a joke and that you were a fraud and continue to be so. Fire all the assistants you like pal, the facts are that you're not tanking, you have lost only 2 people who could play from your "premiership" side and still you wallow in depths familiar only to heavily fleshed squid and albino shellfish. Asking the boys to "look each other in the eye" is about the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. What do they do then, fall in to a deep embrace & make passionate love to each other or just promise they won't take drugs? Some tactics might help at some stage you bloated goon.
16(15) Port - in beating out the feathered filth for bottom spot they have achieved a surprising level of sucktitude. With Melbourne and North to come the game against the Dee's at home provides them with their last chance to hop ahead of FFC on the ladder. Like it or not I can't see it happening. The mob above them have the Hawks & Geelong, so they won't be here for long one would think.