So I've been kinda lost.

Been watching clips from Thank God You're Here episodes - hilarious stuff. Highly recommended for a great laugh, I want the DVD!

Yes, I've been procrastinating. Youtube is Good and Evil combined.

One thing I'll never, ever tire of watching is that final quarter in the 2005 Semifinal against Geelong, that 4-goal-Nick-Davis quarter. I still get shivers down my spine, goosebumps, chills etc. I've lost count of how many times I've rewatched it.

That quarter is synonymous with Davis - so many times I've heard it described as Nick Davis single-handedly sending us into the Prelims. But the more I watch it, the more I realise how much credit all those other guys should receive for the win as well.

Take the last goal, for instance. It started with a boundary throw in on the wing. Jason Ball was involved in the ruck contest (might have been held?) - but Leo Barry came in from the side and punched the ball forward (Key Play 1). On half forward flank, Geelong's Steve Johnson was willing the ball to go out of play - but Luke Ablett kept it in (Key Play 2). Then Barry Hall did the same in the forward pocket (Key Play 3).

Then a tangle of players going after the ball before a bounce was called. And Jason Ball won the hitout (the value of good ruckmen) and tapped it perfectly (Key Play 4) to Davis who kicked the goal.

And that was just the fourth goal. The second one was even more impressive, a counterattack move rebounding all the way from the back pocket. A chain of perfectly executed handballs topped off with the perfect long kick inside 50 by Ryan O'Keefe, that allowed Davis to take the mark and kick the goal, calm as you like.

I love that fast counterattack (handball + handball + handball + beaut kick inside 50) strategy. It was the same one employed against West Coast in the 2006 QF, in that last goal kicked by O'Loughlin. All the way from the back pocket to inside 50 in no more than a few seconds. Awesome.

Bring on 2007, I can't wait.

I am getting old.

Brett Deledio, No.1 draft pick in 2004 - DOB 15/04/87
Marc Murphy, No.1 draft pick in 2005 - 19/07/87
Clint Bartram, the only 2005 draftee to have played all 22 games -16/02/88
Bryce Gibbs, soon to be No. 1 draft pick in 2006 - 15/03/89

Omg. Shit. I feel ancient.

I had to share this.

 - Jason Mraz, 9th Oct 2006. From his official website.

Two brothers, one skinny and lean, one big and well-built.

The skinny one gives the big one a push and a shove, but the big guy barely flinches. The big guy gives him a shove in retaliation, and of course, he goes down as if he was shot. They wrestle, and surprise surprise, the skinny one comes out worse for wear.

Or maybe the big guy provoked it by saying something. Some trash talk. 'He started it!' The cry of all childhood fights. Does it matter how it began?

To an uninformed observer, the Australian IR team would have to seem like the biggest bunch of thugs going around. Beating up skinny Irish Gaelic football amateurs. Sending two to hospital.

There was a lot of wrestling in the first quarter. It was ugly, for sure. But to fault it all on the Australians is unfair to say the least. They were bigger and stronger, but they weren't the only aggressors. It takes one to provoke and one to react, and in my opinion both are always equally to blame.

To be honest, the Irish players were far from angels.

• Kneeing someone in the back (that incident on Campbell Brown) was LOW. It was a DISGRACEFUL, CHEAP SHOT. Incidentally, that was the incident that sparked the major all-out brawl in the first quarter.
  
• Headbutting O'Keefe with as much force to cause a bleeding nose - need I say more?

I'd be embarassed if any Swans player was guilty of either of the above, either in an AFL or IR game. They'd go straight to my least-liked player in the list.

I'm not sure about IR, but in Australian Rules terms,

• The tackle by Danyle Pearce on Geraghty was FAIR. Too bad he got injured. END OF THAT STORY.
  
• The hip-and-shoulder by Selwood didn't have much in it either. From what I saw the elbow wasn't raised. If it was high, it warranted a free kick at the most.

There is nothing I love more than a good tackle and a legit bump. They are elements of the game that I appreciate the most. I even grudgingly appreciate it when opposition players execute an effective and fair tackle / bump against us.

The thing was, it was not done against big, strong professional AFL footballers, but against the local Irish postmen / accountants / bricklayers / teachers who happened to play Gaelic football on weekends. Who do not expect such physicality.

That's the flaw in the whole concept.

And it has since been established that Kennelly copped a knee in the ribs none other than our own Barry Hall, but judging from what Kennelly said there was nothing much in it.

Erm.. Bazzzza? Please explain...

Bloody hell.

Apparently Kennelly's injured his groin playing for Ireland.

Look, I don't care about the game or who wins or the outcome. It's ultimately a meaningless, contrived match between two different codes (not to mention amateurs vs professionals). I watch it because Hall, O'Keefe, Davis, Schneider and Kennelly are in it and I'm half interested in how they go (also because I'll take any opportunity to watch them during the off-season).

But the game was a disgrace, especially the first quarter. Fights, punches, shoves, the lot.  And although the Australians appeared the villiains, contrary to what the Irish coach said the Irish were to blame for their involvement as well. It takes two to start a fight. What, did O'Keefe headbutt himself? How did he get blood streaming down his nose?

Well all that, yada yada. Whatever.

But Kennelly. Kennelly. Groin. I don't care about anything or anyone else. I want him fit and uninjured and to have an uneventful off-season and be back perfect for pre-season training. To have him injured in a meaningless match like this, bloody hell, you'd think, as an AFL player for the Swans, he'd get some respect from the Australian team. He has four teammates playing for Australia, for God's sake.

Geez. I'm concerned and I'm pissed.

Screams:

NOOOOOO........

The ABC are axing The Glass House!!!

But, but, but - how could they?

Bloody politically correct Government-ass-kissing broadcasters.

Picture this.

A group of guys turn up at a pub. They are rowdy, piss drunk, and wanting more beer. The barman refuses to serve them. Maybe there was an exchange of words, maybe not. One guy gets aggressive and threatening, enters the staff-only area of the bar, and puts the barman in a headlock. He does not hit the barman. His friend restrains him, pulls him off the barman, and they leave the pub.

Nothing really significant, is there? Happens every week in pubs across the world.

But when he happens to be Brendan Fevola, 2006 AFL top goal-kicker and potential captain of the Carlton Football Club, and the pub happens to be in Ireland where Fev is representing Australia in the International Rules series, this story is front page headlines.

Not that I'm condoning, in any sense, aggresive or violent behaviour under the influence of alcohol. Yes, Fev was plain STUPID. Yes, he'd had a history of being a bad drunk. Yes, he'd sworn off alcohol during the 2006 AFL season (reportedly turning over a new leaf) and had a pretty decent year as a result. So he'd done something dumb and he was sent home.

But the way the media goes on about it, the way they're lynching him and crucifying him these past couple of days - I mean, come on! GET OVER IT! So Fev disgraced himself (and his club and country). But still, there are people out there who kill other people. There are rapists, paedophiles, child-abusers, muggers and people who send other people's sons to war halfway across the world.

Fevola got himself into trouble, copped his punishment and lost any chance he had of the 2007 captaincy. That's it. He's a dumb bogan who should know better, and who happens to be both a highly-paid, decent footballer and a bad drunk. But he's no Saddam Hussein. The same goes for Ben Cousins (abandoned his car and did a runner when he saw a booze bus), Chris Tarrant (brawl outside pub) etc.

Yes, it is off-season and the media will wring the juice out of any remotely 'sensational' story they can get. But still, geez, get off him and GET OVER IT!

And a last note: apparently the guy who pulled Fev off the barman was Big Barry Hall. All I can say is, thank God he had enough sense in him to do did what he did instead of jumping in and joining the party. For I sure as hell don't want the headline to read 'Big Bad Barry Busts Irish Barman'...

One month since the end of the season.
Five months till Round 1 next year.

31.03.2007 - West Coast Eagles, at home @ Telstra Stadium. I love it that Round One falls on (or around) my birthday, it's awesome looking forward to seeing all the players again after sooo long. Already planning to be there, partly also because I want to see Chris Judd play, live.

Feel lost without the footy.

It still hurts. I've tried to rewatch the GF, mainly because apparently it was a really good game from a neutral perspective and during the game itself I was too anxious to notice. So I've tried, the first time I couldn't get pass the previews; the second time I watched a minute of it and stopped, then watched another minute before deciding that it would be impossible to go on. So I've taped over it since.

The International Rules Series was on this weekend, it wasn't the best game ever, but I'm sure as hell proud of the Sydney players in the team (O'Keefe Hall Schneider Davis for Australia, Kennelly for Ireland). Had a giggle seeing Davis' banana yellow boots, Kennelly's lime green gloves, Hall actually bouncing the ball (omg, because he never runs and bounces) and Kennelly tackling Hall! Davis and O'Keefe combined for an awesome goal - the Sydney forwards contributed to most of the score, so I'm damn well proud. (Oh Ireland won, by the way. Not that it mattered.)

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Recent movies (I've watched quite a few in the past month)

The Devil Wears Prada - Love it. I feel shabby. Lust for Clothes n'Shoes.
Step Up - Decent eye candy, otherwise pretty similar to Save the Last Dance.
Little Miss Sunshine - GO WATCH IT!! It makes you happy...
The Departed - More eye candy! Leonardo DiCaprio looks really good in this, he's becoming hotter as he gets older. And I like Matt Damon. Besides that this movie was one hell of a rollercoaster ride, didn't really like the ending but kept me on the edge of my seat the whole way through (>2hrs).

Damien Rice's new album 9 Crimes out November 3rd (I think). Can't wait!

Got my weekend fix of sport last night during the Kangaroos vs Kiwis Rugby League Tri-nations match - the first of the Tri-nations series. The Kangaroos won 30-18, but it was a cracker of a match (to my little league-green mind), for the first half at least.

Like the Anzac Day Test earlier this year, I wanted NZ to win. I love the Haka. And their colours. Was rapt when they scored the first try - but the Aussies were clearly the better team, better defence, more creative attacking, seemed to score tries at will - whereas the Kiwis had to bump and grunt for each of their tries. And they made mistakes, way too many (and too costly) mistakes.

Anyway. I don't know much, if anything about League. Barely know the rules of the game, the positions and/or the terminology. What's a 'line drop-out'? A 'decoy runner'? A 'dummy half'? A 'lock' and a 'hooker'?

But the best thing in this game - Willie Mason staring down at the Kiwis and mouthing them off during the Haka. You could just tell he was going to pay for it. And sure enough, just moments after the Matt King brawl - that hit on Mason - my highlight of the night. Bloody hell. Mason's this big, huge lump of a guy - and for him to stay down, dazed, after being hit by David Kidwell - the OMG factor was huge. He ended up with a swollen eye - and the patsontheback which Kidwell received after he hit Mason - you'd think he scored the match winning try.

Next Saturday night, the second leg, Telstra Dome in Melbourne. Why is it in Melbourne? I was all ready to drag someone to go to this match if it were in Sydney. Damn.