North Melbourne15.15 (105) d Richmond14.4 (88)
I realised today, a week after the fact, that I had not even vaguely considered writing up the Elimination Final loss to North Melbourne. I thought of this today while I was reading The Holy Boot’s sorrowful Tigers Don’t Win Finals.
As a means of self-preservation I often sarcastically yearn for the days where Richmond were hapless. I understand how to deal with that sort of failure. But this new failure is prickly, it pierces and it leaves you blind with pulsating disappointment. They’re laughing at us again.
Unlike Boot, I put it behind me straight away. I am a less emotional Richmond fan, optimistic by nature and burdened helped by my family makeup; a wife and younger son who barely speak the football language, and an older son who needs a heavy dose of positivity any time Richmond concede a clearance from a stoppage, let alone a goal or a match.The Holy Boot has spent a week in mourning, unable to speak the names of the recently gone missing (Cotch), while I have spent the week pretty much normally with just occasional moments of staring into space, or banging the desk and shouting WHY CHAPPY WHYYYYY to the alarm of pets.
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As footy gets to the end of the season I feel simultaneously the joys of spring and a mild panic at the dwindling number of games. I love the Tigers, I do, but I just love footy as well, so while it continues (counting down now 3 games left) I can distract myself from the misery that I know awaits. After the fella from Synergy Leveraged Events Solutions (probably) depresses the trigger to fire the coloured paper shrapnel at the 2016 premiers, it will be time to face this abyss.
I did go to the local Grand Final yesterday which was a belter, and the emotion at the final siren was as real as anything you’ll see in the AFL; of course I identified with the losers, strewn about the field like bodies at Culloden or Waterloo.
I cannot do what other fans do and throw themselves into trade speculation. There is no joy for me in tipping players to be delisted. The world of nods and winks and late mail about blokes walking out on their clubs – I am happy to read about it all in the past tense in March. No matter what someone has done or not done, if they’re a Tiger I want them to stay. How could Bennell or Yarran be an improvement, they’re not TIGERS.
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I read another great piece today by 14-year-old Paddy Grindlay, Reflections On Another Wasted Year. And I am grateful to Paddy for giving me something I can safely turn my mind to.
Newy is not for booing. Newy is for cheering with emotion, for talking of loyalty and service. Newy is a legacy, he displays the Richmond spirit in every action. But he’s gone now. We are hollow without him.
Who is going to replace Newy? Not just on the list, I mean who is going to replace his heart, his wisdom, his courage and his leadership? I nominate Bachar Houli. Bachar never goes missing. The difference between his best and his worst games is negligible. His courage at the contest and in taking responsibility are unquestioned. As a quality person you would not find better on any list in the league. We did not realise what we were getting when he came across; so much more than we expected.
I am talking to you now Bachar. We need you brother. There are blokes at the club who have been there longer than you, blokes who are younger, there are better players than you, more athletic, blokes with 3rd or 4th generation footy brains in their hands, in their feet. You can teach these guys something. There’ll be new guys coming in, teenagers from the footy factories, journeymen and discards from other clubs, Stevie Morris types who might have won a few premierships in the WAFL or SANFL and think they know what’s what. If you can teach them your calm, your patience and your constancy, we’ll be a better team.
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Let them laugh I say. There is a streak of wilful ignorance running through footy; it expresses itself nastily in booing Adam Goodes but also in the easy stereotypes of clubs. We all love to have a go at the party boys of St Kilda, silvertails of Melbourne etc, but of course St Kilda had Lenny Hayes and Robert Harvey; Melbourne had Rod Grinter. The tropes are easy to overturn. I think the worst thing a club’s followers can do is identify themselves with a defeatist stereotype. I am all for Footscray doing whatever it can to escape the image of doughty battlers. And I refuse to bow to people who want to paint Richmond as chokers.
I believe we can make finals again in 2016. I believe the team owe themselves and the fans a vastly better performance in their next final, and we owe it to the team to expect that. The laughter is nervous laughter. Look at this mighty club, its got its shit together at last, its got 70,000 members and an administration the fans are actually proud of. Imagine if they could just put it all together on the big stage in September. They should laugh while they can. Go Tiges.
yeah its been a long week alright reesy. ive been through several stages of grief. The first was anger. I had an out of the office autoreply to emails and texts that said “(*&^ off and leave me alone” until wednesday. After the anger came a pervasive negativity that became self-fulfilling. Three mornings in a row, the last of five eggs I cracked into the skillet of water to poach to nourish my family, was rotten. Fridays fifth egg was much more embryo than zygote. I got flat tyres, flat batteries, locked my keys in the car, came second in photo finishes; The bloke off pulp fiction cracked the code on my safe and nearly cleaned me out.
But then something happened; I realised something I already I knew. In Byron Fridge Magnet speak – be the change you want to see in the world; In footy colloquial, you make your own luck.
Like my wise big brother said. When we win, its a victory for the true believer. when we lose, its only a %$#^&@# game.
I dunno, I still feel pretty %$^#^%$ far from OK.
I read you loud and clear except one bit; the bloke off pulp fiction? Which bloke? Is there a safecracker in it I don’t remember?
Samual L Jackson, who is the face of BET365 who tries to pretend that giving all your hard earned money to a bookie means you are really smart and belong to a cool club of tech savvy money harvesters.
Every punter understands acutely that they are losers. They just dont want samual L jackson to pretend its as quirky as the french name for a cheeseburger.
I’ll be OK in another week or so. Signing Harley Bennell will expedite the healing process. So will Preferment winning the Caufield Cup.
Of course. I see the ads on mute, no idea what he’s saying, the parade of blokes they have lined up eyeballing me with their phone in one hand like its a magic symbol of their wisdom and prowess, pathetic. I can see the ad agency pitch “they’ll be rugged, outdoorsy, independent thinkers, beardy, dreads, artsy hipsters just taking a break from making artisanal kale jewellery to pop a bet on a good thing at Morphetville”. Oh well you know my thoughts on this. Wishing all good things for you.
Chris,
I am a follower of trade news as at this time of year it’s all we have. I’d like to see Bennell at Punt Road, especially if Choco can throw a protective arm around him and get him produding the footy he has all the skill to deliver. Yarran I’ve never been a fan of – when he’s on he’s very good – but that is only once every few weeks.
As far as the elimination final goes I think I’m on the fence with one splinter telling me we have mental issues and are doomed to be perennial finals failures while the other splinter tells me that all successful teams suffer finals loses before winning the Big One. I truly hope splinter #2 is on the money.
Speaking of ‘on the money’ Samuel L Jacksonis a sad sell-out and all the cool factor he accumulated doing films lke Pulp Fiction has been erased by his association with the gambling company he represents. He is basically a pathetic, washed out, snake oil salesman. Dismal, really.
Roll on 2016.
forgot to mention. I LOL’d at synergy leveraged event solution ticker tape – type company. The whole world’s crazy.
me and my middle bro have a one word euphemism for the state of mind when you are post-loss depressed (its real), and lacking purpose, procrastinating everything, angry and restless – GEE.
as in ‘Gee, this is fun’ sarcasm.
gee.
and im with you Joe. Bring the BOLD back. get Harley Bennell. Not that its that bold. Its a no-brainer.
Football team one mercurial, fast, powerful freakishly talented player away from glory seeks mercurial, fast, powerful, freakishly talented player. social-smoker, social-drinker, GSOH. goal sense and Norm Smith aspirations an advantage.
I should say with Bachar there can be a gulf betwen his best and worst moments in a game. But he doesn’t drop his head and put in a stinker. He made a terrible mistake rolling the dice up the guts against Fremantle, but he put his hand up straight away for that job the next week. That’s huge in my book. And he was in our best six against the Roos.