A Pessimist Darkly

OCD Films Part 1 & 2: As Good As It Gets/Rain Man

2011-12-05T12:02:00.000+10:00

Over at the Soap - Short film blog they are looking at movies that have strong characters that have OCD tendencies.

Part 1 is a look at the Jack Nicholson vehicle: As Good As It Gets.

Part 2 is a look at the Dustin Hoffman vehicle: Rain Man.

Interestingly enough both actors won the Best Actor in a Leading Role Academy Award.

Check them out and don't forget to leave your opinion, or is there another film with an interesting character you can think of?

Until then hail to the Matches!

OCD Films Part 1: As Good As It Gets (SOAP)

2011-11-30T11:13:00.000+10:00

Over at the Soap - Short Film Blog they are talking about films with characters who have OCD.

Part 1 is "As Good As It Gets"

check it out!!!!

Until then hail to the Clean Joker!

Funding - Soap the Short Film

2011-11-27T18:44:00.000+10:00

Over at the Soap - Short Film blog we are discussing what types of perks would entice you to drop some coin.

Some of the things on offer are:

Special Thanks in the Credits
Special Thanks in the Credits and on IMDB
A copy of the DVD
A copy of the Special Edition DVD with extra features
A professional photograph from the set
Executive Producer Credit.

Would any of these lure you? If so or not why? What else would you look for when donating to a short film?

Answer these or just have a chat over at Soap - Short Film or follow us @soapshortfilm on twitter.

Until then hail to the Gracias!

New 52 - My Pull List

2011-11-26T15:24:00.000+10:00

I'm a massive Batman fan and was excited by the news of FLASHPOINT and that DC were going to start a relaunch with 52 title starting at #1.

There are plenty of Batman issues so I've hooked into most of those and a few others have also caught my eye. I wish I had the time to read more but this is list I have chosen to read and what I think of them.

Batman

This is my highlight of the New 52 so far. Scott Snyder (American Vampire) is spinning an intriguing tale involving the Court of Owl's and the 2nd half of #3 is comic gold. The ending was so awesome that had me turn back 3 pages to reread and try to experience the awesomeness. I'm hooked. Although this list in not necessarily in order (it's close though) this is the tops.

Detective Comics

This title lives up to its name. It has Batman and the loyal reader looking for clues. Add to this the interesting character The Dollmaker and I'm looking forward to #4 almost as much as Batman.

Animal Man

I had no preconceptions of Animal Man and only tried it because it was highly recommended. I chewed up issues 1 through 3 in one night and was held captive. Many people rate this as their top of the drops an I can see why. This reminds me of a Clive Barker type tale and I'm looking forward to seeing where it takes me!

Batman and Robin

I'm enjoying B&R much more than I thought I would and a lot of it is because of the impetuous Damian Wayne and the way his character is cleverly used. Looking forward to seeing DW develop.

Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E

This is another title recommended and I now know why. Frankie 2.0 is a reboot of kinds but still feels and tastes like an old E.C comic. Really enjoying it so far.

Swamp Thing

The only thing I knew about Swampie was the camp Wes Craven movie from back in the day. This is much better. I was also recommended this but didn't need much pushing when I saw that Scott Snyder was writing. The 1st issue took a little time to warm up for me but it has well and truly found its feet by #3.

Dark Knight

Dark Knight has been interesting and a few twists have been satisfactory but nowhere near the levels of the other Batman titles.

Night Wing

I like the look of Night Wing (comic as well as the costume) and Dick Grayson is a character that I'm happy to follow. Not top of the drops but definitely will keep on with this one.

Batwing

Batwing is a member of Batman Incorporated and he is currently keeping the good people of the Congo safe. This is a title I like but needs to improve if it wants me to forge on.

I've also had a go at Miniseries:

Penguin: Pain and Prejudice

I've had the pleasure of reading parts 1 and 2 and absolutely love it. Gregg Hurwitz as brought to life a great story and pushed the Penguin up the slippery ladder of foes by adding depth and empathy to what in my mind was a one-dimensional character. A shame there is only 3 instalments left!!

Batman: Odyssey

Issue #1 was a little disappointing for me but I've give it another go.

Until then hail to the Deck!

Notre Dame crawls up the Rankings

2011-11-23T13:51:00.000+10:00

After losing the first 2 games of the season, ND were always pushing the season uphill.

They then went to win 4 in a row followed by a tough loss to USC and they are now on a another 4 game winning streak. The Fighting Irish find themselves with an 8 -3 with 1 game to go and are now climbing the rankings.

They are 22 on both the BSC rankings and AP Top 25.

This weekend they face their toughest opponent yet in the 6th ranked Stanford Cardinals. The Cards are led by media sensation Andrew Luck. He has been embroiled in the "Suck for Luck" campaign where the bottom NFL teams are seemingly vying to get the #1 pick in the draft and land QB Luck.

The Irish boast 8 wins so far on the back of smart QB play by Tommy Rees and the tandem rushing machine of Jonas Gray and Cierre Wood. Wood has eclipsed the 100 yard mark with 9 TD's and Gray has an impressive 6.9 average for 741 yards and 12 touchdowns. Oh and WR Michael Floyd has 87 receptions for 1014 yards and 7 scores.

Until then hail to Fortuna!

Top 10 - Father & Son Movies List

2011-11-22T12:28:00.000+10:00

Last week I was having a lazy Sunday watching movies when I realised that the 2 movies that I had watched had very strong theme about the precarious father/son relationship. This wasn't a conscious choice it just so happened that they are both very good but wildly different movies. The first for the day was Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade followed by The Road.

So this got me thinking what are MY favourite father/son movies. So I had a good think about it, then asked my wife because she will always think of an obvious one that I have overlooked. Then I set to picking a top 5. If this wasn't hard enough I then ranked said 5.

Have a look then leave your opinion.

#10 - Over the Top
Tagline - Some Fight for Money... Some Fight for Glory... He's Fighting for His Son's Love

This is my nostalgic only entry. I would have watched this a hundred time as a kid. This movie was also responsible for kids in the playground twisting their caps backwards they they really meant business. Haven't seen it? Give it a go. If you have, watch it again it's actually not as bad as you remember. Or as good...

#9 - Road to Perdition
Tagline - Every father is a hero to his son.
Tagline #2 - Every son holds the future for his father.
Tagline #3 - The innocence of a son is surpassed only by the father's will to save it.

This is a bit of a slow burn movie for me. It's not in your face good but the acting is great, directing great and the source material is from a fantastic graphic novel.

As for father son relationships there are quite a few. The main one is between Michael Sullivan (Tom Hanks) and his son. Michael Jr. witnesses his father doing what he does which is a mob enforcer. Michael was an orphan who was raised by John Rooney (Paul Newman). Rooney loves Michael more than his own son, Connor (Daniel Craig) so they are all sorts of daddy issues between these 4 characters.

Michael Jr, witness Connor killing a man in a fit of rage and his father swears him to secrecy. Connor has other ideas and tries to kill the Sullivan family. He succeeds in killing Michael's wife and their youngest son. Michael and Jr flee to Chicago.

Lots of different father, son issues are looked at here but the most poignant being between Michael and his son. At the end of the movie Michael saves his son from a hit man and dies in his sons arms. Michael Jr.'s states in the closing voice over that he now realizes that his father's only fear was that his son would grow up to be like him, and that, when asked if his father was a good man, he simply says, "He was my father."

#8 - The Pursuit of Happyness

Chris Garner (Will Smith) tries to crawl out of the depths of homelessness for a whole year all the while raising a son and trying to appear 'normal'. Chirs' wife Linda is sick of the money issue and grand plans and leaves Chris sending him into a tailspin. Through the determination to be a good dad and hard work Chris eventually lands a great job and the first thing he does is rush to his son's daycare and hugs him fighting back tears.

#7 - The Godfather
Tagline - A Offer You Can't Refuse

The Godfather is all about the 'Family' and this is so true about the main theme. The Don 'Don Corleone is shot and his son Michael avenges him and flees to Sicily leaving behind his lady and family. Michael previously wanted nothing to do with the 'family' but after thwarting the second assassination attempt at the hospital and having his jaw broken by corrupt cop Captain McCluskey he finds himself in the middle of it.

Although most families wouldn't resemble the Corleone's the themes are all the same. Jealousy and revenge being the main ones here.

#6 - Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Tagline - The man with the hat is back. And this time, he's bringing his Dad.

There's a lot of father son humour in this instalment but again the relationship is the crux of this movie. Indiana wants his fathers approval and feels like he is under appreciated and not taken seriously. Indy goes on to treat his own son Mutt the same way in the next instalment, The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

The worship of God is equated to the searching for fathers.And this is strongly linked here.

#5 - Finding NemoTagline - There are 3.7 trillion fish in the ocean. They're looking for one., Grab shell dude!

This is one of Pixars gems and it's all about Nemo's father Marlin doing whatever it takes to find his son. This is a classic example of what a father would go through and the challenges he would face in the pursuit of his son.

It's also a case of the problem being in a direct response to the relationship. Nemo was taken by scuba divers because he was purposely disobeying an overly protective father.

#4 - Big Fish
Tagline - An adventure as big as life itself.

I'm a big Tim Burton fan and this isn't his typical film but it is cleverly laid out with strong performances by some great actors. It follows the stories theme of reconciliation between father and son. And as usual by the end of the movie the son will come to understand and empathise with his fathers actions. This is a great fantastical look at our fathers and the mysticism they have over us.

#3 - The Road
Tagline - In a moment the world changed forever.

I must admit, I had never heard of Cormac McCarthy (the author) and the Coen Brothers making the fantastic adaptation of No Country For Old Men is the only reason he blipped on my radar. Then I caught wind of Aussie director John Hillcoat making this and my ears pricked up. I read a brief synopsis and my brother and a good mate had read it with good reviews so I set out to read it before the movie came out. (I always try to do this!!) I also wanted to read because I was having a son and much like Pet Semetary wanted to get through them before he grew up. I loved the book and subsequently the movie.

It's the story of a man and a boy trolling through a future Earth where the sky is gray, the trees have fallen, most of civilisation is dead and survival is the only past time. The man is dying and he's aware he's going to die and leave his ten year old son. This would be such a painful realisation for a father.

#2 - The Empire Strikes Back
Tagline - The Adventure Continues...

Yes we're talking Star Wars here! One of the most famous trilogies in the history of man is in affect about a father who has turned bad and he's hunting his son. He'll attempt to turn him to the dark side and if that doesn't work kill him. Kill him he doesn't but he does manage to lop off his hand in one of a few physical encounters. However (spoiler alert!) at the end of the 3rd instalment Vader's love for his son prevails and he dies as a consequence.
#1 - Life is Beautiful

Tagline - An unforgettable fable that proves love, family and imagination conquer all.
This is a heart wrenching tale of a father doing he best to keep his son happy and oblivious to the war going on around them. He tries to convince his son that it is all just a fun game. The guards are being mean because they want the tank to themselves and all the other children are hiding as part of the game. This charade also helps the father focus on his son and not the horrible events going on around him.

At the end of the film the father tells his son to hide in a sweatbox until everybody has left, this being the final test before the tank is his. The son manages to survive and thinks he has won the game when an American tank arrives to liberate the camp. In the film, he is four and a half years old; however, both the beginning and ending of the film are narrated by an older man recalling his father's story of sacrifice for his family.

To me this is the ultimate act of love by a father for a son. This is a beautifully realised movie.

Honourable mentions:
Lion King
Kramer Vs Kramer
Shenandoah

Until then hail to Wayne Enterprises!

New Poster for Soap - Short Film

2011-11-20T16:59:00.000+10:00

That's right the short film script that I wrote I am now co-producing.

Eddie @ Madphat Productions has designed a new poster. Drop in have a look and drop some critique!!!

http://soapshortfilm.blogspot.com/2011/11/new-poster-for-soap-short-film.html

Yep that's right you'll have to click on the link to see said poster - so do it!!

Let's say it's better than this one!!

Until then hail to the Link Farm!

Soap - Short Film has a Website

2011-11-15T10:50:00.000+10:00

I had previously announced that a short film script SOAP I have co-written with my brother had been picked up by a production company in London - Madphat Productions.

I can now announce that Soap has a home. http://www.soapshortfilm.blogspot.com/

We will also be using the Fundraising platform, Indie GoGo to raise money for the production. http://www.indiegogo.com/

So follow us at blogspot or on Facebook or email us at soapshortfilm@gmail.com

Until then hail to the campaign!

Notre Dame puts Wake Forest to Sleep!

2011-11-10T09:44:00.000+10:00

Saturday's win for the Irish moved their record to 6-3 and they have won 6 out of the last 7.

With Bowl aspirations drowned for the year it's all about pride. And the 24-17 win over the previously 5-3 Demon Deacons give ND a fantastic chance at a winning season.

Wake took and early lead but a perfect pass from QB Tommy Rees to Tyler Eifert tied the scores at 10-10. Again Wake took a 7 point lead on a 2 yard touchdown run but again ND answered!! This time a 1 yard touchdown punch from Jonas Gray again levelling the scores. A poised Tommy Rees hit Michael Floyd in the corner of the end zone for the lead and eventual win 24-17.

Twice in the 2nd half the Demons had the ball inside the ND 10 yard line but came away with no points. Wake was able to pile up yards but the NDefense held garmy strong when it counted stopping WF from scoring at all in the 2nd half.

The passing game had its moments but it was the running back tandem of Jonas Gray (92 yards, 1td) and Cierre Wood (87 yards) that kept the chain gang moving. Although ND were the favourites and only managed to eek out a 7 point win they would also be buoyed by the determination and strength under adversity and will be looking to continue their winning ways this Saturday against the 2-7 Maryland Terrapins.

Until then hail to the Excito!

Too Much Sex & Violence #1 from Rol Hirst

2011-11-07T19:03:00.000+10:00

I just purchased this comic online and was reminded that not all good writers are doing Batman or Wolverine. Some are doing their own thing and doing it well.

This is a series of short tales set on the northern seaside town of Fathomsby; home to retired super-heroes, monster DJs, mutant prostitutes, pier-owning gangsters, disgruntled policemen and a woman who knows exactly what you're thinking about, whenever you're thinking about...S-E-X.

Follow this link and before you know it you'll be peeking behind the maginations of one clever dude!!

Too Much Sex & Violence #1

Until then hail to Fathomsby!

Notre Dame sinks the Navy!!!!

2011-11-01T14:44:00.000+10:00

Yeah the Irish loss to USC last week quashed any hopes of a BSC Bowl again but that didn't stop ND from coming out and giving those Sneaky Sailors a good old-fashioned rogering!!!

The Navy who have been averaging 300+ yards on the ground were kept in the kiddie pool amassing a piddly 196 and a touchdown. In contrast the Irish rumbled for 182 and 7 scores. 3 for Jonas Gray and 2 to Cierre Wood.

Michael Floyd was untouchable with 121 from 6 receptions including a busted secondary for a 56 yard stroll into the endzone. Very impressive considering the wet Navy air strike managed a soggy 33 yards in total.

Bring on Wake Forest!!!!

Until then hail to Royal George!

New York Giants - Rd8 Miami Dolphins - REVIEW

2011-11-01T10:18:00.000+10:00

Well a win is a win (haven't I said that already this year???????????????)

The Giants managed a 4th quarter come from behind victory at home to the win less Dolphins. While it should have been an easy tune up win in the lead up to the Patriots next week, I could have also been a shock Ala Seahawks.

Eli Manning continued his form with another 300+ yards 2 touchdowns ZERO interceptions and 100+ rating. If he's not Aaron Rodgers' backup come Pro Bowl time he never will be.

Another Corner back went down with a season injury and we struggled with the run.

But... We're 5-2 and continue to churn out the wins.

We're at the halfway mark of the season so I'm going to extrapolate at look at where some of our statistical leaders are looking at finishing the season.

Eli Manning 312 from 482 at 64.7% 4254 yards 26 touchdowns & 10 interceptions & a 102.1 Rating

This has him 3rd in the NFL and 2nd in the NFC with his career best rating. He's also 2nd in the NFL with an 8.8 per pass average.

Hakeem Nicks 76 Receptions 1150 yards and 6 touchdowns
Victor Cruz 56 receptions 994 yards and 8 touchdowns

Ahmad Bradshaw 880 yards for 10 touchdowns

Corey Webster and Aaron Ross with 6 interceptions a piece.

Jason Pierre-Paul 17 sacks
Osi Umenyoira 12 sacks (considering he missed the first 3 games I'd go with 15 sacks)

So with a 2 game buffer and a hell of a 2nd half schedule let's hope the Giants can hold on and make the play-offs. Once there anything can happen.

Until then hail to the Tuna!

New York Giants - Rd6 Buffalo Bills - REVIEW

2011-10-18T12:38:00.000+10:00

Getting a win before a bye is always important. It's like you're girlfriend is going away for 2 weeks. You want to send her on your way satisfied or you'll spend the fortnight with visions of a latino stud servicing the needs you were unable to.

The good news is we got the win. It was as sloppy as a high school prom night but we can rest easy that the week off can be used to regroup and hopefully bring the Miami Dolphins into our house on the 30th of October and slap a pair of fingercuffs on her. No latinos for her!

So how was it won?

Eli's O Face

Eli Manning is currently sitting 5th for yards, 3rd with a rating of 101.1, 9th on comp%, 3rd for avg and 6th with 11 touchdowns. Apart from the touchdowns the rest are Career highs.

In the last 3 weeks Eli has thrown for 321, 420 and 292 yards and is averaging 296 per game over the season.

Usual suspect Hakeem Nicks caught 4 for 96 yards including an impressive 60 yard catch and run. TE Jake Ballard continued on from last weeks impressive 3 receptions for 72 yards and a score to pull in 5 for 81 yards. He is averaging 18.2 yards per catch this year and looks to be a handy option for Eli Manning.

Not so Carrie Bradshaw

In the absence of RB Brandon Jacobs Ahmad Bradshaw has had a lean trot struggling to establish the run early leaving the team to rely on the Arm of Manning. Well finally Bradshaw Bradshaw CARRIEd the running game and recorded his 1st 100 yard game of the season. Is average of 4.0 yards per carry was average but he was able to punch the ball into the end zone 3 times from the 1 yard line for scores.

Fast Freddie

Again the Giants defence was run over by a running back for 100+ yards including the typical big run this time of 80 yards. Fred Jackson is a fast back but he was allowed to waltz through too many open wholes in the line for a 1st down. Hopefully Justin Tuck's return will help sure this up in 2 weeks. CB Corey Webster did come up with 2 interceptions and Jason Pierre-Paul added another sack to his tally leaving him at 2nd in the NFL.

Flamin Fitzy

On the whole the secondary did a good job of stopping the air attack considering Ryan Fitzpatrick has been playing well and full of confidence. However another breakdown saw a inside slant route go for 60 yards and a score.

Special Teams

The only 2 notable ST plays were a 17 yard punt return by Aaron Ross and the Bill blocking a field goal that could have seen the game go into Over Time.

I'm selfishly not a fan of byes but I will be avidly watching the Notre Dame vs USC game. An Irish win could see them slip into the rankings with a 5-2 record.

Until then hail to the Gamma!

New York Giants - Rd5 Seattle Seahawks - REVIEW

2011-10-11T11:59:00.000+10:00

Well I let it stew for a day but losses like these have a lingering burn much like a dodgy curry.

Online there is much finger pointing including injured players who some think should be out there. (Brandon Jacobs and Justin Tuck most notably) I think it will be easier to just stick to facts and stats.

Seattle Won 36 - 25

New York turned the ball over 5 times!!!!!!

Up up and give it away!

Okay so Eli Manning threw for a career best 420 yards including 3 touchdowns but has also ended up 3 crucial interceptions and a lost fumble. So did he lose the game or do his best to win it? Well let's look at his picks, the most notorious one in the dying stages tipped by Victor Cruz and returned for a 95 yard touchdown and in essence ending the game.

For the Giants offense to work it needs a balance of run and pass and in the absence of Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw having a quiet game Manning was forces to try to win the game off his own game. Ironically Eli Manning's largest passing days (420 last week, 391 in 2009 and 386 in 2010) were all home losses. Eli is best as a 200-300 yard passer complimented by a strong running game.

Despite a fumble and a tipped pass for a pick Victor Cruz continued his strong recent form with careers bests 8 catches for 161 yards and a score. Back to back 100+ yard games have seen the exposure of Cruz as a legitimate threat heightened. He'll be looking to have another strong game next week against the Bills.

TE Jack Ballard again proved we still have a threat in that position hauling in 3 passes for 72 yards and a score.

Hakeem Nicks had a quiet day by his standard but caught 4 for 65 and a lay out score. Mario Manningham improves weekly recording 5 for 56 yards and will add a triple threat for Eli to aim at.

Go the runs?

Brandon Jacobs didn't play and Ahmad Bradshaw may as well not have. He had 2 nine yarders towards the end that fluffed his numbers up to 58 yards off 17 attempts. To compound matters DJ Ware took a hand off and was tackled in his own end zone resulting in a very important 2 point safety.

Thrown to the wolves

Sure the Giants recorded 6 sacks, knocked out a quarterback and even came up with an interception to Aaron Ross but they also gave up 300+ yards, a touchdown and way too many 3rd down conversions. They also let back up QB Whitehurst waltz down the field to score a crushing TD in the last quarter. Jason Pierre-Paul recorded 2 sacks taking his total to 7 in 5 games and 2nd in the NFL and Osi Umenyoira had a sack giving him 3 in the two games since his return from injury. A return to the field by Justin Tuck will see a very formidable pass rushing attack take on the Bills next week.

Run All Over Me

Again the G-Men gave up 100+ yards including RB Lynch ripping off 98 yards and a score from only 12 attempts.

Special Teams

Seattle kicker Hauschka hit 2 field goals including a 51 yarder and 4 from 4 PAT's. Seattle punter J. Ryan landed 4 of his 7 punts inside 20. Not much to be said about the Giants special teams.

Yet another disappointing loss for the Giants in a game they were favourites. Let's hope for a smarter ball game from the Big Blue Wrecking Crew next week against the Bills.

Until then hail to the CD!

Notre Dame attacks Air Force for 4th straight win!

2011-10-09T11:18:00.000+10:00

So stats that matter. Yes I'm a big stats man but now is bigger than a W and the Fighting Irish had this in the bag before half time. The final score was 59 - 33.

Yeah Air Force had more Time of Possession and total yards but that is deceiving as the Falcons turned the ball over twice and had many long drives that resulted in no points or a field goal. The Falcons offense was always going to be tricky to stop with Tim Jefferson and his multi faceted attack. Although they piled on the yards on the ground (363 yards) they were unable to open up the defense in the air passing for 202 yards. The Falcons tried a lots of different things with a fake punt, onside kick, and an effective no-huddle offense. They also converted 4-4 on 4th down. The Falcons scored a respectacle 33 points but 17 (more than half) were in the last quarter after the game was wrapped up in a gold guiled bow.

The Fighting Irish knew they would need to get the pigskin in the End zone early and often to be a chance and they came out all guns blazing. 3 touchdowns in the 1st quarter was matched by another 3 in the 2nd giving ND a 42 to 16 lead. Notre Dame scored a touchdown on the first 6 offensive possessions. The running game held up their end of the bargain and ran well but Quarterback Tommy Rees had a stellar first half throwing for 208 yards and 4 touchdowns. And most importantly ZERO turnovers. The offence ran the ball a little more in the second half but Rees still finished with strong numbers: 23 off 32 and 261 yards and 4 touchdowns. Most impressive for Rees was his ability to spread the ball around hitting 3 different receivers for 6+ 70 yard+ games. Theo Riddick caught 8 for 83 yards and a score. Tyler Eifert also caught 8 for 81 yards and a score and school record setter Michael Floyd continued a strong season with 6 for 78 yards and also a score. The runners had 3 strong contributors, Cierre Wood backed up from a 195 yard game last week to total 66 yards and a score. Jonas Gray was strong early running for 69 yards off 7 attempts at a 9.9 yard average and a score. Andrew Hendrix came in for the last quarter for Rees to chew up the clock and instead had bird stew on a 78 yard run to the 2 yard line and had the only 100 yard game for the Irish amassing 111 at an 18.5 average. He also completed 4 for 4 passing.

Notre Dame go into next weeks game on a 4 game tear and will look to advance to 5-2 with a win over major rival USC.

NOTES: This marked the most combined points scored in a game at Notre Dame Stadium. 92 points

Until then hail to the Pieces!

New York Giants - v Arizona Cardinals - RD4- REVIEW

2011-10-04T22:13:00.000+10:00

With the NFC race being so tight with the exception of the Green Bay Packers this was a gettable and important win against the Arizona Cardinals.

And got it they did.

So where does that leave us at the quarter pole of the season? Well we currently sit 3-1 and equal top of our division with the Washington Redskins who are in my opinion still the weakest team in the division. Dallas are only a game behind at 2-2 and the unpredictable dream team (for the Giants anyway!) Eagles are languishing at the bottom with a 1-2 record.

I love me some stats so I going to look at where are leaders are at and even extrapolate (x4) to see where they may be heading to finish the season.

Although the Giants gave the Cards plenty of chances to put the game away they never seemed able to hammer that last nail. With the way QB Eli Manning is finishing games of late that turned out to be a big mistake. Well lets look at how the qu(w)est was won.

Air Supply

Coming into the season the focus was the defections of TE Kevin Boss to the Raiders and WR Steve Smith to the Eagles among a smattering of injuries. Eli Manning then made a call about being in the same class as Tom Brady (Elite) which didn't help not to mention a slow start to the season and a slow start in every game so far. Lucky he's throwing the lights out in the second half.
Said Mannings 2nd half was 16 for 20 for 208 yards and 2 touchdowns this week and over the last 3 weeks his 2nd half stats read like this 32 for 40 for 415 yards 4 TDs and zero interceptions. If that doesn't burn your peepers then how about he is 3rd in the NFL with a rating of 105.6. He's behind red hot Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady. He also boasts a healthy 64% completion percentage and a 8-2 TD to INT ratio. If he were to keep up his per game averages he would finish the year with these gaudy numbers.
320 Comp - 500 Att - 4264 Yards - 32 TD - 8 INT Career records in yards and touchdowns and a low in interceptions. If he were to keep up these numbers he'd have to be a lock for the Pro-Bowl and more importantly give the Giants the best possible chance to go deep into the Play-Offs. )On a side note Manning has been sacked 11 times already this season and 44 for the season would definitely be a career high he doesn't need)

Hakeem Nicks was back to his beastly best with 10 receptions for 162 yards and the winning score. Considering he totaled 7 receptions for 63 total for the last 2 games combined showed what he could do to a defence if other receivers are holding their end of the bargain. I'm not going to get into the Victor Cruz 'fumble', but he did total 98 yards in a game where he was over looked several times despite being wide open.and could have turned up field after a reception for more yards however opted to step out of bounds. If Nicks and Cruz were to keep up their per game averages they would finish the season like this.
Nicks 92 Receptions - 1388 Yards - 8 TD's
Cruz 44 Receptions - 900 Yards - 8 TD's 205 AVG (All the more impressive as he has only really been a regular option for the last 2 games.

Run Forrest Run

This aspect of the offence was probably the one let down for me and would have been a even bigger issue had the passing game not clicked so well. Ahmad Bradshaw again was given the bulk of the attempts but failed to have an impact with an insipid 39 yards from 12 carries and a long 13 on his sole touchdown run. Brandon Jacobs had an even rougher day with 18 yards from 9 attempts and a touchdown. He would be forgiven for his 2 yard average as he was called on to run several 3rd and short runs when the defence knew he was getting the ball. The running game won't be able to rely on the passing game and expect a win too many times in the NFL so hopefully they use the week to take stock and come out Sunday against the Seahawks and pound 'em like they are initiating a new cell mate.

Nickleback

It has been well documented the injuries to corners and benching of Aaron Ross so I won't rehash. I will mention however that after round 2 the secondary have given up 300+ yards to 4 straight quarterbacks. In the last 2 weeks they gave up 237 yards to the Eagles and 237 to the Cardinals and more impressively zero touchdowns and 3 interceptions. This is against offenses with weapons like Michael Vick and Larry Fitzgerald. Safeties Kenny Phillips and Antrel Rolle have stepped up in particular 13 tackles each over the last 2 games and a pick each. The secondary was also helped by the pass rush where Dave Tollefson backed up a good game with another recording 2 sacks. Osi Umenyiora played his first game and although he made a couple of rusty mistakes he was often in the QB Kolb's face recording a sack and a forced fumble.

Stuff it!

The run stop has been the polar opposite to the pass. It was particularly stingy in the first 2 games but has given up some serious yardage and points in the last 2. Against the Eagles, RB McCoy opened up the their offence with 128 yards from 24 attempts and a score. And this week Beanie Wells tore threw the defensive line for 138 yards from 27 attempts and a massive 3 touchdowns. For the Giants to gain immediate ascendancy against the Seahawks on Sunday, the D-Line and Co need to crunch Marshawn Lynch and the other backs in submission.

Kicks, Returns and Tackles

I personally prefer a game when the Special Teams isn't needed and this was one of them. Although Aaron Ross' 18 punt return was a fantastic start to a drive in the last quarter.

This week will be the 3rd game in a row we play a bird related team (Eagles, Cardinals & Seahawks) so let's hope that is a sign for how the result will be.

Until then hail to the Sin!

New York Giants - v Philadelphia Eagles - RD3- REVIEW

2011-09-26T15:36:00.000+10:00

The Giants entered this game on a 6 game losing streak to the Eagles including a playoff game. Two long range touchdowns to Eli Manning in the 1st quarter set up a healthy 14 point lead but the Eagles bounced back scoring the next 16 giving them a 2 point lead heading into the 4th quarter. Manning threw another pair of touchdowns and including a 2 point conversion gave the Giants a 29 - 16 win. Let's look at how they did it:

Air Attack

Eli Manning threw for 4 touchdowns for the 6th time in his career and completed 16 of 23 passes for 254 yards and thank goodness no interceptions. Not even a fumble!! Manning's passer rating of 145.7 is his highest ever in a game where he took most of the offensive snaps. Manning connected for 2 TD's to Victor Cruz for 78 and 28 yards. The 78 yarder being his 4th longest. A 92 and 85 yarder to Mario Manningham (Inactive for this game) and a 78 yarder to Plaxico Buress. Manning also threw TD catches to running backs Brandon Jacobs (40 yards) and Ahmad Bradshaw (18 yards). On a side note Brandon Stokley caught his first pass as a Giant receiver (8 yarder) making him one of only 2 people to catch a Peyton and Eli Manning pass, Jim Finn being the other.
Rating 9 / 10

Ground Force

Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw combined for 105 yards on 22 carries. Apart from Ahmad's 37 yarder and a couple of 3rd and shorts converted the running game was best described as serviceable.
Rating: 7.5 / 10

Rushing D

The combined yards conceded by the G-Force rush stoppers was 194 so 177 today seems a lot. However I would assume that the defence was going to focus on stopping the potent air attack with Vick et al being dangerous on any given play. Take that into account and the impressive play of RB LeSean McCoy and QB Michael Vick is just as dangerous as a runner as he is passing.

The Eagles rushed for 13 first downs but only scored 1 touchdown on 5 trips into the red zone and were denied both times Goal To Go. The defense as a whole also kept the Eagles offence out of the end zone for the whole 2nd half when the game was there to be won.

Rating: 8 / 10

Secondary Support

Crucified by injuries and giving up way too many big plays in the first 2 games you be ok in assuming that Vick was going to tear them a new one? Well a knew one was torn and it's bleeding/broken and whinging on the TV about the Ref's not protecting him. Silly me thought it was Vick's O'Line that was meant to do that. Vick eventually left the game with a broken hand but not before he was sacked twice by Jason Pierre-Paul and picked off by maligned Aaron Ross. Ross was actually benched last week but has redeemed himself with 2 interceptions (He also picked off Vick's replacement Mike Kafka (Not the famous writer!)). Safety Kenny Phillips also joined the fun intercepting Kafka on their drive as well as forcing a Vick fumble. The Giants secondary had conceded 300+ yards in 4 straight games. However they seem to be more stout and the largest play they gave up in the air was a 24 yarder. They also kept the Eagles to 199 nett yards.

Rating: 8 / 10

Special Teams

ST wasn't really an issue today. No Field Goals, no punt returns and a sole 33 yard kick off return.

Rating: N/A

A Redskins win over the Cowboys tomorrow will mean the Giants are equal leaders of the NFC East with Redskins and Eagles on 2 -1 going into the clash against the Arizona Cardinals next week.
Until then hail to the awesome foursome!

Notre Dame beats Pittsburgh Panthers - 2nd Straight Win!

2011-09-25T12:27:00.000+10:00

Although Pitt aren't a Top 25 ranked team (Either are ND ATM) they came into the game win a 2-1 record and the sole loss last week came after after a 21 point 4th quarter capitulation against Iowa.

The Pitt defence pushed Notre Dame around for 3 quarters and would have them scoreless if not for RB Jonas Gray scoring his career touchdown ripping off a 79 yard run down the sideline in the 2nd quarter.

The last quarter started with a 12-7 lead for the Panthers but QB Tommy Rees had other ideas. Relatively ineffectual for 3 quarters he started to find his rhythm culminating with an extremely impressive 8 for 8 record on the game winning drive including 4 to WR Tyler Eifert including the score. Rees finished with average numbers of 24 for 41 for 216 yard and a touchdown and interception. ND offence continued it's turnover conundrum with another 2 for the game. Record holder WR Michael Floyd was held to 4 receptions but the running game more than picked up the slack.

RB Cierre Wood kept the offence rumbling with 96 yards from 23 carries and Jonas Gray had 84 yards from 3 carries including his long touchdown run.

Pitt QB Tino Suneri was very accurate but occasionally held onto the ball to long going down for 5 sacks including 2 on the final drive ending any hopes of a Pitt come from behind win. Suneri went 22 from 30 but couldn't find any targets down throwing for only 165 yards and the longest being only 18 yards.

In the end ND did enough to resurrect their season taking their record to 2-2 with an important game against Purdue next week. The 2-2 record is all the more impressive when you look at the 2 losses. The 1st loss was an upset to Florida State by 3 points and the 2nd was to #22 ranked Michigan Wolverines in a shock last minute score in a game the Fighting Irish should have won!

Until then hail to the Grayman!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Drew Petrie - All-Australian

2011-09-23T15:04:00.000+10:00

Congratulations Dish!

During the week Drew Petrie was named on the interchange bench for the All-Australian team for the first time in his career.

I'm going to look at how the 2nd round draft pick from Ballarat recovered from 3 separate broken foot injuries in 2010 to reach career best form.

During the early 00's under Coach Dean Laidley, Petrie was literally Mr Fix It and roamed from forward to defence to the ruck and back again as the team needed him. This was great for plugging up holes but it gave Petrie no continuity in 1 position and also disguised how well he was doing. He would get 10+ hit outs, 2 goals and several telling marks in defence. If he had played the same position for the game his dominance would have been easier to see however it was diluted around the ground like a weak coffee.

So under 2nd year coach Brad Scott, Petrie has been given the focal forward position as his for the midfield to target on their inside 50's. Petrie was always going to take time finding his feet (pun intended) and missing the 1st game of the season against the Eagles to a dubious suspension didn't help.

The Roos were smashed the following week by Collingwood so it's no surprise the supply to the forward line was limited and so was Petrie's influence. It was 2 weeks later against Richmond that Petrie gave us a glimpse of what he was capable of being the main forward target. He kicked 6 goals from 17 kicks, 8 marks, 4 hit outs and an impressive 4 inside 50's. Although the Roos lost it wasn't due to lack of effort and output for Petrie. Petrie showed that when the supply was quality he is a hard man to match up on and this made most of the teams double up or even triple up making Petries 48 goals for the year all the more impressive.

Petries season just simmered along nicely with him kicking 3 or more goals in 9 out of 24 games (Over a 3rd) including 5 agianst the Bulldogs in arguably the Roos best win of the year and 4 in the last game of the year again against the Tigers. Petrie kicked 5 goals 5 in the Bulldogs game and probably should have kicked 7-8 goals but there's no denying he able to get his hands on the ball. In 5 separate games he registered 20 or more possessions and in 9 games he pulled down 8 or more marks in a game.

Speaking of getting his hands on the ball Petrie was able to use his 197cm/103kg frame to pull down several hangers and if he wasn't in a position to take the mark he invariably busted the pack open bringing the ball to ground allowing the other North forwards the chance to score. I'm not sure if it's a record but Petrie was nominated for the Hungry Jack's Mark of the Year on 6 separate occasions. Yep that's over a quarter of the games Petrie played for the season. This also includes 3 of the last 5 games he played.

One interesting fact I stumbled upon was that in the 5 games Petrie kicked 4 or more goals they won 4 only losing the game to the Tigers in round 5 in the last minute. And in the 9 games Petrie kicked 3+ goals they won 6 losing 3. The losses include a 1 point shock loss to the Swans, the Tigers loss and a Geelong pumping where Petrie was almost a lone force for the whole game.

Massive bucket of win for Petrie, well done!

Ruckman Todd Goldstein and Roo midfielders Andrew Swallow and Daniel Wells were named on the 40 man All-Australian squad and although it was no surprise that Swallow and Wells didn't make the team I was a little disappointed Goldstein didn't make the team. In past years it has been hit and miss whether they select 2 pure ruckmen to the team and Dean Cox who was selected to the 22 man team had an arguably better season than Goldstein but I firmly believe he was one of the top 20 influential players in the AFL this year. Goldstein registered the 2nd most hit outs in a season for 2011so if his form continues he is a lock to make the team before his time is done.

The preliminary finals are this weekend. Collingwood vs Hawthorn and Geelong vs West Coast So good luck to the winners who will play off in the Grand Final next weekend.

The Brownlow medal for the best player in the league as voted for by the umpires is Monday and although it's all but Chris Judd's I'll be keeping an eye on Daniel Wells for a possible top 5 finish in this his most consistent year to date.

Until then hail to the hanger!

New York Giants - v St Louis Rams - RD2- REVIEW

2011-09-21T14:48:00.001+10:00

U G L Y we ain't got no alibi it was ugly.

However a win is a win and a 1-1 record is much better than a 0 - 2 start.

A shock loss to the Redskins in the opening round and this being a National Monday Night Football game the Giants needed to set the tone and show the league what they are capable of. Although Eli Manning came off to the very slow start the offence was opportunistic and got enough points on the board to never really give the Rams a sniff. The defensive line did their part and special teams came up with several key plays. I'm going to break the game into 5 sections for clarity from now on so we can focus on each group. So let's start with the pass attack.

Air Attack

Eli Manning was woefully slow to get momentum and again threw a crucial interception on along drive. He went 3 for 11 with an interception to start the game but ended it 15 for 18 and 2 touchdown for redemption. So while 200 yards and 2 TD 1 INT is an average game it was enough pull out the win and looking at the start he had quite a game to end it. For the Giants to beat the Eagles next week Eli will need to start the game like he ended this one, crisp and precise.

Rating 7 / 10

Ground Force

While some people look at 50-60 yards a game as average, for the Giants they need to take into account that 2 running backs share the load and although either will be unlikely to be named to the Pro-Bowl while they are doing this it is their shared contribution that the Giants will be looking at. Overall they combined for 109 yards and touchdown. While their 3.51 average is suspect they do include a lot of 3 and short ad 4 and 1's. Steady would be an apt description to the output for Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw but they did keep several drives alive and all behind a new o-line that is still finding its feet. Bradshaw also caught a 23 yard screen pass on 3rd and 18 to keep a drive alive for Jacobs to score a touchdown on the next play. This wasn't a super game on the ground but again was enough to get the W.

Rating: 7.5 / 10

Rushing D

It's fair to say the Giants ability to stop the run kept them in the game against the Redskins (74 yards) and they did it again against the Rams. The secondary was porous however the against the run stout would be a better adjective. They kept them to 59yards. They also kept them out of the end zone 3 of 4 entries into the Red Zone, the only touchdown being in the air. They places them 3rd in the league for run defence. LB Michael Boley also used nous in picking up a seemingly dead ball for a fumble and rumbled 68 yards for a score. This is also his 2nd fumble recovery in 2 games. Notre Dame alum Justin Tuck returned to his bruising best with 1.5 sacks and 5 tackles. Antrel Rolle led the team with 9 tackles.

Rating: 9 / 10

Secondary Support

It has been widely acknowledged that the corner backs for the Giants have fared about as well as swimmers at Amity Beach. Take into account #1 Corner Terrell Thomas has a season ending knee injury, #3 corner Bruce Johnson is out and 1st round draft pick Prince Amukamara is currently out with an injury. So it's no surprise secondary again gave up 300+ yards in the air making it 4 in a row (1st two games this year and last 2 games 2010). Even if the concussed Michael Vick doesn't play next week the secondary will need to tighten up given the aerial weapons the Philadelphia Eagles have it could get ugly.

Rating: 2 / 10

Special Teams

The special teams was a mix of good and bad. Bad being a 29 yard punt return. Good being a Dave Tollefson muffed punt recovery at the Rams 38.

Rating: 6 / 10

Bring on the Eagles next week, I'll be getting at 3am to watch the game.

Until then hail to the air attack!

Notre Dame beats Michigan State Spartans

2011-09-18T13:31:00.000+10:00

Notre Dame have taken until the 3rd round to notch up their first victory and it was an upset 31 - 13 win over the #15 Michigan State Spartans.

After the shock loss to the Michigan Wolverines in the last seconds last weeks loss, not many pundits would have given the Fighting Irish a chance against heavily favoured Michigan State in South Bend.

Notre Dame took ascendancy in the first quarter scoring 2 touchdowns to a field goal and never looked back after that.

The Notre Dame defence gave up 329 yards in the air but the Spartans could only get in the endzone once with 2 more field goals. And although the offence wasn't potent in raw yardage they were efficient and uncharacteristically held onto the ball with the sole turnover being an interception.

QB Tommy Rees was methodical in leading the offence for 3 touchdowns, 2 on the ground to Cierre Wood and 1 in the air to TJ Jones. Wood and RB Jonas ray wore down the defence running for a combined 138 yards off 26 carries for a healthy 5.3 average. Michael Floyd caught 6 passes for 84 yards and was always a threat. Tommy Rees only threw for 161 yards but that was all that was needed in the 31 to 13 win. His completion 61.5% ensured that there were more than enough long drives to keep the Spartans offence off the field.

The special team also held up their share of the bargain including a 89 yard kick off return by George Atkinson III. And possibly the most impressive stat was the 29 yards net rushing from 23 attempts.

Notre Dame play Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh next week with hopes of squaring the ledger with a 2-2 record.

Until then hail to the Bend!

Boston Red Sox Slump Officially Over

2011-09-17T14:39:00.000+10:00

Well sure it's only 1 win but coupled with the resulting Rays loss and the Yankees losing. The Sox are now 3.5 games behind division leader Yankees and a whole 4 games ahead of the Rays for the Wildcard spot. All this with only 11 games to go and an all important 3 games series against the Yankees.

I'm not going to call the Sox definites for the finals but after today's win I sure am optimistic!

Until then hail to the resulting loss!

Boston Red Sox Slump

2011-09-17T09:27:00.000+10:00

Ever since I blogged about the Red Sox making the finals and their rivalry with the Yankees they have been in a massive slump.

That was on the 31st of August an September hasn't been kind.

The Sox have been pushed around by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Texas Rangers and Toronto BlueJays and are 3 - 11 this month.

They are currently battling off again with the Rays and with only 13 games left (including todays) and a meagre 3 game lead over the Rays for the Wild Card spot, every win is important.

With games against the Rays, Yankees and Orioles, all division rivals remaining it will be an interesting race to the finals.

EDIT: Damn the Rays lead off the 1st with 2!

Until then hail to the closer!

New York Giants sign WR Brandon Stokley

2011-09-15T11:06:00.002+10:00

WTF???

The Giants passed on a proven match winner in Plaxico Burress but after the fall out with slot receiver Steve Smith and the average performances by Domenik Hixon and Victor Cruz the Giants have signed journeyman Stokley.

I understand with the looming injury to #1 receiver Hakeem Nicks and the defections of both WR Steve Smith and TE Kevin Boss that the Giants needed to sure up the position, I'm just not sure if signing a guy who caught 31 receptions for ZERO touchdowns is the man for the job.

Stokley played his first 4 seasons with the Baltimore Ravens including the 2000 Superbowl win over said Giants. In those 4 seasons he never recorded more than 24 receptions or 2 touchdowns in a season. He then spent the next 4 years with the Indianapolis Colts. Here Brandon had more success particularly with Giants QB Eli Manning's brother Peyton tossing him the pigskin. His one breakout year was in 2004 where he had 1077 yards from 68 receptions for 10 touchdowns. He production then tailed off and he spent 3 seasons with the Denver Broncos and last year with the Seattle Seahawks.

I believe Coach Coughlin will/should give Cruz and Hixon another chance. Cruz may have hurt his chances with a deplorable dropped catch that would have been a 1st down halting the Giants opening drive.

No matter how the slot receiver goes for the Giants to succeed Eli Manning will need to share the ball around but focus on Hakeem Nicks and Mario Manningham.

Until then hail to GMEN!

New York Giants - Rd1 Redskins - Review

2011-09-13T12:56:00.001+10:00

Welcome to season 2011.

Let's hope it improves.

I do it to myself every team, every sport. I went into this game almost expecting a win. What I got was a bucket load of disappointment.

Don't get me wrong Rex Grossman played a good game and the Redskins played a smart game but the Giants didn't help themselves either.

Yeah Yeah I'm aware that the defence was decimated (or worse) but there were also some stupid errors and lacklustre efforts.

Ok where do I start? Injuries or stats?

Defensive injuries: We went into the season opener without our #1 and #3 cornerback and #1 defensive player/lineman Justin Tuck.

So I guess it's no wonder they gave up 305 yards and 2 touchdowns in the air. And 3 offensive touchdowns in total. On a good note Jason Pierre-Paul continued his good form with 6 tackles, 2 sacks and a forced fumble. The Giants D accounted for 4 sacks and 74 nett yards rushing. However too many 3rd downs were converted and things need to tighten up quickly!

The is news about that the only bright light for the New York Offence Hakeem Nicks has some knee issues and is being tested as we speak. He pulled in 7 receptions for 122 yards including a 68 yarder in the first quarter to the 1 leading to Eli Manning's 1 yard rushing touchdown to give the Giants the first score on the board. Let's hope he's ok!

Eli continued on from last year with a silly interception that resulted in a Touchdown for the Redskin defence. The Giants also lost the penalty count 8 for 63 yards against 3 for 25.

The Giants will be trying to kick start a winning streak this Monday Night verses the St Louis Rams.

The most intriguing battle would be the running back one. Last year Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs worked well together with Bradshaw piling up 1200+ yards and Jacobs keeping an impressive 5.6 average. Bradshaw looked like he was hitting the line at half pace at times but still had 13 carries to Jacobs' 6. I'd personally like to see Jacobs carrying at least 10-15 times a game.

Until then hail to the Capital!

Red Hot Chili Peppers - I'm With You - Review

2011-09-09T14:15:00.000+10:00

I purchased this on iTunes the day it was available in Australia but needed time to get to know the songs better before I judged them. It's like meeting someone for the first time. To judge them on the first opinion they make or the colour of their hair would be remiss. I like to get to know somebody a little before I judge them, whisper behind their back and ridicule them from the safety of my laptop.

So the vibe of this album is a lot cruisier than previous Chili albums but is peppered with little gems and even a few tracks that are slow burners. (They didn't jump at me on first or second listens but have forced their way into my subconscious like that tasty jingle - Costanza!)

Monarchy of Roses

A very worthy 1st track. This is the Chili Peppers at their rock best. The lyrics are pretty tight, Chad holds his on the drums and Josh is given the freedom to stamp his name on the albums. I like it! 8/10

Factory of Faith

I don't mind this but it doesn't ring RHCP's to me. It seems like an early 80's homage. Certain parts of the song are actually quite good but the way Kiedis barks 'Factory' out and it's 40+ times just it's my kind of .... 7/10

Brendan's Death Song

This is my favourite song on the album and given time will probably settle into the top ten all-time RHCP songs. At my funeral this, Venice Queen and Gravedigger by Dave Matthews will be the 3 songs I want played! Sure it's about a real person, Brendan Mullins who had been known to the Peppers for an age but it's just a beautiful song born out of a jam after hearing the news of his passing and it permeates into every lyric and beat. I love this song, although mot in love with the title. 10/10

Ethiopia

I do like this song but there's something holding me back from really liking it. This could be a slow-burner that will take a little longer till I get it. 7.5/10

Annie Wants a Baby

I pre-judged this on title and was wrong. I really like this also. It's smooth and melodic with tidy little beats to it. 8/10

Look Around

I can't put my finger on it but I really dig the feel of this track. Chorus is too simple and a little annoying but still a strong effort! 7.5/10

The Adventures of Raindance Maggie

This was the first single for a reason. It's a bloody good song. The lyrics are good to sing along to but the hero of this is the bass playing by Flea. I'm not a musician by any stretch but I can appreciate what is being done here. My head starts bopping at the start of the song and doesn't stop till it's over. 9/10

Did I Let You Know

This song has surprised in that I didn't really notice it first time around but it's slowly becoming one of my favourites. Couple of cool little solos including Flea on the trumpet too. This I know!!! 8/10

Goodbye Hooray

It has a catchy chorus if repetitive but otherwise not my favourite track on the album. 7/10

Happiness Loves Company

It sure does! Chad Smith sets the tone for this bopper and Kiedis just manages to hold on. Not a special track but I wouldn't skip it either! 7.5/10

Police Station

Subtle and tight would be the two words I'd use to describe this. This is the sort of great song the Peppers make when they're not trying to sound like the Peppers. Everyone brings something to this. 8.5/10

Even You Brutus?

I like this because of the clever Julius Caeser inspired lyrics and it's also music to my ears. Well layered and tempered. Another case of the song being better than the moniker.8/10

Meet Me At The Corner

This is an unassuming track that has a catchy hook and haunting lyrics from evergreen Anthony Kiedis. 7.5/10

Dance, Dance, Dance

This is the last track on the album and sends it off with bop and optimism. There's no standout winning element but it works and it's fun. 7.5/10

After almost 2 weeks to be acquainted with this album I'm happy to recommend it to people but more than 1 hearing is required to get a handle on it! I'd give the album 8.5/10

Until then hail to the Masque!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Round 24 Review - Season Finale

2011-09-09T12:03:00.000+10:00

Unfortunately this was going to be the season finale before the game had started. The Roos blew any chance of playing into September with yet another disappointing loss the week before against the Saints.

Round 24 v Richmond Tigers @Etihad Stadium

Richmond Tigers 3.2 9.7 10.10 13.13 91
North Melbourne Kangaroos 5.3 7.7 12.11 15.14 104

The Kangaroos blew a good chance at getting their first win in Round 5 against the Tigers but capitulated in the last quarter and fell to a 0-4 record. Losses like this were the story of the Roos year and I'm sure plenty of the boys in Royal Blue saw this as a chance for redemption regardless of the ladder positions.

The Tigers, Kangaroos and Demons were seen as similar team at the start of the season in the sense they were coming out of a rebuilding phase with a core group of quality young players. A win for the Tigers would also have seen bragging rights go to the Yellow and Black on the ladder and a 9th placed finish.

A strong start to the Roos saw a 2 goal lead however they again gave the opposition a sniff with a patented burst of goals in a short period in the 2nd quarter. Instead it was the Tigers who were in the lead by 2 goals at half-time.

Whatever it was that Brad Scott said in the dressing rooms it needs to be said again next year. The spirit and hunger for the ball was evident fro the first hitout and it showed on the scoreboard with a 5 goal to 1 quarter. There were also several chances for the Ross for exted the lead including 4 points for the quarter.

The Roos did enough in the last quarter to finish of this season horribilis with a win by 13 points.

Drew Petrie continued his fine form in front of goal with 4 and yet another contender for mark of the year in the goal square with 2 minutes to go. For a guy who had 3 separate broken foot injuries the previous year, to kick 48 goals is a fantastic achievement. However I would say his conversion wasn't as tight as it could have been kicking 41 behinds meaning Petrie really should have kicked 50+ even close to 60 wouldn't have been out of the question.

Boomer Harvey seemed to run around the paddock without the burden of the captaincy or result on his way to an evergreen 31 possies, 8 marks, 2 goals with 4 goal contributed and 7 inside 50's. With Andrew Swallo steppin up his output this season, a changeover for him into the top leader role seems perfect. Boomer hasn't lost any pace or hunger so barring a debilitating soft tissue injury could easily play on for 2-3 more seasons and just enjoy his footy.

Brady Rawlings honourably retired earlier and finished his career on a high note both for the season and his last game. He was again pivotal throughout the year and collected plenty of possessions including 27 in his last year.

Todd Goldstein registered 29 hitouts finishing the season in 2nd overall for the all-time hit outs in a season list. It's no surprise he has been selected in the All-Australian squad of 40 along with teammates, Daniel Wells, Andrew Swallow and Drew Petrie. Considering top 8 Essendon didn't have a single player selected this is quite a tale of how well the Roos played despite their win-loss record.

Lindsay Thomas also played arguably his best all-round game for the season with 20 possies, 5 marks, 2 goals 2, 8 tackles and an impressive 11 inside 50's.

Although he Roos failed to make a real impact when playing top 8 teams despite several close losses, they will take some pride in the finish to year win.

As they say int he biz, there is always next year!

Until then hail to the 4 squad!

Matthew Gordon Lindsay

2011-09-08T20:38:00.002+10:00

I've been a little slack lately it's all because of new little bundle of joy.

On Thursday 1st September my amazing wife gave me the greatest gift of all, for a second time. A healthy beautiful boy.

The birth of my first son was an emergency caesaerian due to the size of the little (sic) lad and it didn't go smoothly from there. He came out not breathing and needed a tube to be put into his throat to finally breath and this affected his feeding and in turn took time to get him to settle into the world. As it stands he's an extremely healthy little man weighing at about 14+kgs and 92cm and he's not even 2 yet.

So for son #2 we (sic) booked in for a regular Caesarean and I finally had the pleasure of meeting my child at the time of entry into the world and I even cut cut the cord.

Matthew was booked in 2 weeks early at 38 weeks and was an average 8lb or 3.63kgs and 49.5cm in length. He seems to be feeding better and sleeps a whole lot more than older brother Ben.

Today marks the milestone of 1 week and I'm thankful for every second so far and the many more to come.

Thank you all for your well wishes!

Until then hail to the Gift from God!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Todd Goldstein - #2 Hit Out All-Time Record

2011-09-04T21:13:00.000+10:00

The North Melbourne Kangaroos and Todd Goldstein have both finished the season with bitter sweet records. The Kangas beat middle of the road rival Richmond Tigers in the last game of the season to finish top of the bottom 8. And Todd Goldstein recorded 29 hitouts to finish outright 2nd on the All-Time hit out charts with 741 for the year. I had my doubts on Goldstein making the allocated 27 when former All-Australian Hamish McIntosh was named for his 1st game of the year, giving the Roos 2 legitimate ruckmen. This proved unfounded as Goldstein further pushes his case for all-australian contention and will be bitterly unlucky not to make the team (He's a lock to make the squad of 40 but may miss out of the 22 on the basis they may only pick 1 specialist ruckman).

Hopefully Goldstein can use an uninterrupted pre-season to further build his fitness base and prove 2011 was not a figment of my imagination. The kangaroos were one of the youngest teams in the league in this year and will be collectively looking at a vast improvement over the summer and will need an on the ball (sic) Goldstein to be feeding his hungry young joeys the ball at any given opportunity for them to make the transition into the top echelon of teams.

But as it stands the 2011 season is over for the Roos and Goldstein has recorded the most hit outs in a single season second only to the phenomenal performance by another Rooboy Gary Dempsey in 1982 with the seemingly insurmountable 878.

Home and away hit-out tallies

878 - Gary Dempsey - 1982 (North Melbourne)
741 - Todd Goldstein - 2011 (North Melbourne)*
738 - Gary Dempsey - 1983 (North Melbourne)
711 - Mark Lee - 1984 (Richmond)
703 - Simon Madden - 1983 (Essendon)
688 - Gary Dempsey - 1981 (North Melbourne)
686 - Aaron Sandilands - 2010 (Fremantle)
682 - Darren Jolly - 2009 (Sydney)
659 - Aaron Sandilands - 2009 (Fremantle)
649 - Mark Lee - 1983 (Richmond)
646 - Aaron Sandilands - 2008 (Fremantle)
643 - Mark Jamar - 2010 (Melbourne)
628 - Peter Everitt - 2004 (Hawthorn)
623 - Rod Blake - 1980 (Geelong)
619 - Justin Madden - 1982 (Essendon)
611 - Mark Lee - 1981 (Richmond)
611 - Simon Madden - 1984 (Essendon)
607 - Matthew Allan - 1999 (Carlton)

Until then hail to the trifecta!

Short Film - SOAP

2011-09-03T21:17:00.000+10:00

I'm very happy to announce that a short film Soap, written by my esteemed brother Ryan and myself has been picked up by a hip label in London - Madphat Productions.

Madphat is already well entrenched in the photography and music video scene (check out their website, link above) and have decided to branch out into the short film business. We are honoured that they are going to pop their cherry using the script we wrote so hopefully we can see it at a film festival near us.

Madphat Productions already have a cache of high quality equipment and creatives at their disposal so I'm looking forward to seeing what they can achieve with the characters we have penned.

Check back soon for further updates re: pre-production, casting etc.

Until then hail to the Lagos!

Boston Red Sox - Run to finals

2011-08-31T14:48:00.000+10:00

There are only 28 games out of the 162 left and it seems my favourite Fenway fighters are headed for the play-offs.

The Boston Red Sox lost to arch rival New York Yankees today (although they had more hits??) but still sit atop the American League table with a half game lead over the aforementioned Yankees, with the 2nd best record in the whole Major League behind the Philadelphia Phillies. Although the BoSox only have a tenuous half game lead over the Yankees they would be a record capitulation as they have a 10 game lead for the wildcard spot.

The Red Sox will get a real fell for how they are travelling over the next 2 games against the Yankees. If the Yankees win all 3 the Sox will need to win at least 2 of the 3game series against the Yankees in late September for fear of giving them a mental edge. Those 5 decisions could also be the difference on who wins the AL and who slides into the wildcard spot.

The Yankees are perennial play-off attenders and have won an astounding 27 World Series' (next closest is St Louis Cardinals - 10) and a just as impressive 40 League Pennants. The Red Sox sit in 4th spot with 7 World Series wins at a fantastic conversion rate from 12 AL Pennants.

It a great shame the Yankees and Sox aren't able to play-off for the World Series but I guess there wouldn't be such a rivalry if they weren't in the same League/Division.

Should be an interesting month to see who rounds out the teams destined to play in October!

Until then hail to the Stockings!

New York Giants - PRESEASON - New York Jets

2011-08-30T12:54:00.000+10:00

It's just a preseason game so I won't go too far but just look at the overall picture.

Jets won 17 -3

So the Giants didn't get in the endzone. 3 measly points.

Even though they had more net yards - 327 - 233
more first downs 21 - 15
more passing yards 222 - 121
more time of possession 30:04 - 29:56 (You knew I'd hit you with some stats!)

It was the 2 turnovers (interceptions) that cost the offense their chances as well as poor 3rd down conversion 3/13 23%. I know it's pre-season but I really hope Eli Manning can shake the interception shackles that have hampered him of late.

Brandon Jacobs was running downhill for his 10 rushes with 51 yards at a healthy 5.1avg.
Hakeem Nicks impressed with limited rep pulling in 5 catches for 71 yards.
The punting job is up for grabs and both Matt Dodge and Sean Weatherford failed to impress with 2 punts each.

Eli Manning threw for 200 yards and showed he is likely to hit the 4000 mark again. Unfortunately he will probably also hit the 20+ interception mark.

What most impressed me was the goal line stand by the defence. The Jets were 1st and 1 at the 1 but had to settle for a field goal after successive runs netted negative yardage.

Next week it the final tune up against the Patriots then we hit prime time.

Until then hail to the goal line stand!

Dad again - Countdown begins!

2011-08-30T10:30:00.000+10:00

There is less than 48 hours to go until my gorgeous wife gives me the greatest gift in life, for a second time. A baby *****.

I have been blessed with an amazing son - Benjamin. Who has brought me so much happiness it's hard to imagine I'm about to meet another human being in less than 2 days who will do the same.

I have marvelled at the development of Ben and as we move into the vocal, taking control of his life (or so he thinks!) part we are going to reembark on the sleepless nights (sic) and 3 hourly feeds and 2 hourly poops.

As long as bub and wife are healthy come Thursday afternoon I'll be the happiest man alive.

Another point of interest will be how Ben handles having another person around taking up all our time.

Until then hail to stinkbrown!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Round 23 Review

2011-08-30T10:17:00.000+10:00

Disappointing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here was the lay of the land pre kick off. If the boys from Arden Street could beat the Saints and then beat the Tigers in a probable win they would be playing finals.

Round 23 - Vs St Kilda Saints @Etihad

St Kilda Saints 4.4 9.9 15.16 19.21 135
North Melbourne Kangaroos 2.5 7.7 9.7 10.10 70

The 1st quarter started with North getting all the inside 50's for little return and the Saints scoring on a couple of horrendous turnovers and using the wide open spaces for easy goals. 2 goals 5 for the quarter was always going to hurt the Royal Blue who need to punish the Saints early and keep it up. Well a semi-inspired spurt to start the second quarter was premature as the team went flaccid and let the Saints score the bulk of the goals for the remainder of the match. Nick Reiwoldt and Stephen 'tiprat' Milne combined for 9 goals as the forward entry for the Roos reminded me of my fumbling advances in my high school days that inevitably ended in rejection. This time the rejections were by the defence not cute girls not interested in a pimply faced dork. Todd Goldstein finished with 33 hitouts to finish #3 on the all-time hit out list with 1 week to go. He needs a gettable 27 to finish the year 2nd overall.

Andrew Swallow has his 2nd consecutive 30+ possie game finishing with 34, 9 marks and 9 tackles to be the best in Blue. Jack Ziebell continued his impressive end to the season with 28 possies, 19 kicks, 7 marks, 4 tackles and 4 inside 50's. Scott Thompson also continued his rich vein of form with 26 possies out of defence. There is little more to say about yet another blown opportunity on the big stage. Here's hoping the Roos finish of the season next week against the Tiger with a promising performance that can lead into a strong pre-season.

Roo Rating: 2 / 10

Daniel Wells

Wells was in and out of the game and when it was there to be won he was amongst the rest with an insipid performance. He racked up an average 18 possessions, 4 tackles, 5 inside 50's and a nice long range goal. Any chance of All-Australian selection has gone in the same direction as his teams prospects. Out of contention. Let's hope another uninterrupted pre-season can see Wells play his best year to date in 2012.

Wells Rating: 5 / 10

Until then hail to David's brother!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Todd Goldstein #3 All-Time Ruck list

2011-08-30T08:48:00.000+10:00

Although North crashed to their most disappointing loss this year to St Kilda Todd Goldstein remained remained on track to finish the year 2nd overall in the all-time hit out hit list. He won his position in my opinion getting 33 hit outs to Ben McEvoy's 20 and 4 possessions less. Todd needs 27 hit outs next week against Richmond to finish the year trailing only Gary Dempsey's mammoth effort of 878 and sit in 2nd spot.

In round 5 this year against Richmond Goldstein accrued 31 hit outs and 9 tackles opposed to Angus Graham so a replication or thereabouts will see achieve 2nd.

Home and away hit-out tallies

878 - Gary Dempsey - 1982 (North Melbourne)
738 - Gary Dempsey - 1983 (North Melbourne)
712 - Todd Goldstein - 2011 (North Melbourne)* (20 games)
711 - Mark Lee - 1984 (Richmond)
703 - Simon Madden - 1983 (Essendon)
688 - Gary Dempsey - 1981 (North Melbourne)
686 - Aaron Sandilands - 2010 (Fremantle)
682 - Darren Jolly - 2009 (Sydney)
659 - Aaron Sandilands - 2009 (Fremantle)
649 - Mark Lee - 1983 (Richmond)
646 - Aaron Sandilands - 2008 (Fremantle)
643 - Mark Jamar - 2010 (Melbourne)
628 - Peter Everitt - 2004 (Hawthorn)
623 - Rod Blake - 1980 (Geelong)
619 - Justin Madden - 1982 (Essendon)
611 - Mark Lee - 1981 (Richmond)
611 - Simon Madden - 1984 (Essendon)
607 - Matthew Allan - 1999 (Carlton)

Until then hail to the Canonis!

Tight Spot Productions - Short Film

2011-08-26T17:27:00.000+10:00

My fledgling production company is certainly in its infancy but I have news to announce.

Tight Spot Productions (TSP) owns the rights to several scripts and co-owns one that had been previously sold to Thunderstorm Productions, a production company based in South Australia. It fell through in pre-production and the producer has since been busy on real film sets such as Clive Owens' 'The Boys are Back' and the newly released Aussie hit 'Red Dog'.

Several of these scripts have been used to approach other companies but only gets the feedback, "It's really good, we like it, however our slate is full for the next 12 months, approach us then if it's still available."

While it's great to get positive feedback the scripts are hitting a wall as most production companies have a stable of creatives including scriptwriters already. So where does this leave me? Well I guess I better get off my ass and do something. So I've been writing more and even have an idea to fund a novel written by a writer for Paper Street Publishing can help self distribute it. And now I can announce that we have developed a short script and begin pre-production in about a months time. Based on the feedback I get through informal test screenings I'll see how we go in the film festival circuit.

The short is tentatively titled 'Crouching thief, Hidden Ninja' and will showcase what TSP is capable of on a shoestring budget.

I'll leave more feedback as we near principle photography.

Until then hail to the Tight Spot!

Ben Affleck's Top 5 Acting Performances

2011-08-25T13:11:00.000+10:00

I've been a pretty big fan of Affleck since the Chasing Amy, Good Will Hunting days and have been delighted in his phoenix like rising from the ashes to direct such gems as Gone Baby Gone and The Town.

An underrated talent that has proven his chops with an Acadamy award winning script and award winning directing efforts. Ben hits the high of highs with his self penned (with buddy Matt Damon) script Good Will Hunting and his performance in said movie as eponymous Will's buddy Chuck. With it can a slew of quality movies such as Armageddon, Dogma, Pearl Harbour, Shakespeare in Love and The Sum of All Fears. It was in the early 00's that Ben's career appeared to hit the skids. He was more known for being spotted playing poker, drinking and making crappy movies like the legendary Gili with former girlfriend Jennifer Lopez. It was during the 'Bennifer' year that his status as leading man started to slide.

In 2003 he hooked up with Jennifer Garner and eventually married her. This sensible influence in his life must have had a positive role to play in Ben making sounder role choices starting with Hollywoodland in 2006 and his directorial debut of Gone Baby Gone in 2007 and follow up The Town in 2010. He is currently in pre-production for Argo due for release in 2012.

So I figured Affleck's career as an actor would be a good one to have a look at, and it's been an intriguing one. There are some quality action flick far and hidden little unknown gems like Dean Koontz's Phantoms. I'm going to pick the top 5 performance that I rate and go some way to explaining why.

#5

Jersey Girl

This is a much maligned Kevin Smith and didn't find it's audience. Kevin Smith has a cult following and they will see (not necessarily like!) everything he does. They love him for the witty swear riddled dialogue and this movie is not really for that sort of audience. Non- Smith fans like my wife will abstain from seeing his movies at all cost and will judge it before it made. It's a movie that could have performed really well and an interesting study would have been to have Smith direct under a pseudonym find it's audience then go ta-da suckers it me Smith and you liked it!

Anyway it's Affleck we're here for and it's Affleck we'll get. His character Ollie Trinke is left with a baby girl after his wife (ironically J-Lo) dies during childbirth. During the stress of raising a kid alone he loses his job in the music industry and even ostracises himself from it. He goes back to live with his father, the underrated George Carlin and eventually finds his feet as well as the gorgeous Liv Tyler. Ben carries this film and although is surrounded by a strong cast hits his marks and is the reason I like this film. Haven't seen it already because you don't like K. Smith - See it!

#4

The Town

Affleck's directing is top notch here and his acting isn't too far behind. This is a solid job performed by a pro.

#3

Hollywoodland

Here Ben plays George Reeves who played Superman and was mysteriously murdered. Affleck more than holds him own in a beautifully made movie.

#2

Good Will Hunting

Ben acts in the role he and buddy Matt Damon won an academy award for writing. Matt took the eponymous role of Will and Ben was given the less flashy but just as important role of best bud Chuck. Chuck understands Will has a gift and is one of the positive forces encouraging him to use it. Ben is obviously very comfortable with the material and plays it pitch perfect. He even a couple of monologues he knocks out of the park.

#1

Chasing Amy

This is one of my all-time favourite movies and Ben is half of the reason. Jason Lee is the other half. Ok the script also has a huge role to play but Ben has Holden McNeil ticks all of the boxes. Cocky comic book guy, seducer of Joey Lauren Adams' lesbian and jealous boyfriend. He's relaxed and believable the whole time and makes his likable in a way many of actors would have been unable to do.

So far Ben's had a pretty solid acting career and I'm hoping that as he nears 40 it can continue to grow as different types of roles are offered to him.

Honourable mentions:

Phantoms - He was the bomb!
Clerks 2 (Kidding)
Reindeer Games

Until then hail to Fenway!

New York Giants - PREVIEW - Cornerbacks

2011-08-25T10:58:00.001+10:00

I figured I'd go with the most talked about position for the G-Men ATM. Unfortunately it's for the wrong reasons, injury.

So far during training 3 have gone down with season ending injuries and another 1st round pick Prince Amukamara for 6 weeks with a broken foot.

Brian Witherspoon a 3rd year pro was impressing until a torn knee ligament prematurely ending his season.

Terrell Thomas a starting corner who was looking to have a breakout year also torn his ACL during the rout of the Chicago Bears on Monday - season over!

Bruce Johnson tore his Achilles tendon and Woodny Turenne was waived after hurting his calf.

With only 5 healthy CB's on the roster the Giants Brian Williams a 128 veteran with 99 starts with the Minnesota Viking, Jacksonville Jaguars and Atlanta Falcons. The 4th round pick out of North Carolina State is a proven playmaker recording a career best 5 interceptions and 63 tackles in 2003 for the Vikings. While he is being signed as a back up his durability will be an asset to a position notorious for knee injuries.

The other healthy CB's are Corey Webster, Aaron Ross (who will claim the right CB position), Michael Coe, Joe Burnett and Darnell Burks.

Webster and Ross will need to stay healthy in a division consisting of quarterbacks Michael Vick and Tony Romo for fear of the secondary being renamed 'toast'. Webster ironically was thrown into the starting spot through injury during the 2007 post-season run to the playoffs and played a staring role including 2 clutch interceptions in the play off win over Tampa Bay.

Michael Coe is leading the Giants in tackles (10) after 2 preseason games, probably due to the playing time of 1st and 2nd stringers and will need to keep improving if they don't want to be exposed in the nickle and dime packages.

For the secondary to find it's groove it needs to start the season well and build confidence. 300+ yard 4 touchdown games may be enough for cracks to appear and a charge at the Superbowl to be a distant thought.

"Injuries may be forgiven, but not forgotten" Aesop
“Reject your sense of injury and the injury itself disappears.” Marcus Aurelius

Until then hail to the Ligamentum!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Must Win Saturday Night Game!

2011-08-24T11:17:00.001+10:00

With 2 weeks to go North Melbourne sit 6 points out of the 8. That is 1 and a half (draw) wins for those of you who aren't used to the simple scoring systems of the Australian Football League. A win is worth 4 points, a draw is 2 points, a goal is 6 points on the scoreboard and a behind is 1 point. Yes that's right if you miss the target but are pretty close you get rewarded.

Well now that you've caught up, the Kangaroos need to win both of their last 2 games to be a chance to play finals. Their first opportunity comes this Saturday against St Kilda. This will be their biggest challenge then they finish off the regular season against Richmond which should (sic) be an easier offering. Like a virgin (which I'm assuming Jack Riewoldt is!) sacrificed into the volcano (which is Eddie McGuire).

North Melbourne accounted well for themselves in their last meeting in round 15 falling just 9 points short after kicking 1 goal 4 in the last quarter and keeping the Saints scoreless. The Roos have been a much more successful playing an up tempo game since then culminating in the 98 point drilling of the Fremantle Dockers last Saturday night. What most bouys me most (apart from my unusually high fat %) is the fact it was such a team game. 10 players had 20+ possessions, another 8 had 15 -19 and every player registered 10 or more apart from Jack Ziebell who received a bruised lung early (he still tried to play for almost a quarter before coming off, what a hard man he is. At 20 give him 2 pre-seasons and the AFL will have to introduce a new Ziebell rule for his crunching tackle sand shirt fronts). Another promising sign was the debut of Aaron Mullett who looked at home with 17 possies, 3 tackles and 4 inside 50's. He was also cleaned up and jumped to feet adding to the strong mind strong bodies of the new age Roos. Former All-Australian Hamish McIntosh has also recovered from Achilles issues to push for selection. Brad Scott will never drop AA contender Todd Goldstein so will he play 2 feature ruckmen who can go forward and kick goals?

Where the game will be won:

Total Disposals: 11th in the AFL - Dal Santo (StK), 14 - Swallow (NMFC)
Goals: 6 - Milne (StK), 11 - Petrie (NMFC), 18 - Edwards (NMFC)
Tackles: 7 - Jones (StK), 9 - Swallow (NMFC)
Hit Outs: 1 - Goldstein (NMFC), 7 - McEvoy (StK)
Inside 50's: 11 - Wells (NMFC), 14 - Swallow (NMFC)
Total score for: 1932 - NMFC, 1670 - StK
Total score against: 1541 - StK, 1856 - NMFC

Most does it mean? Both teams are about average in total disposals and tackles. North kick a lot of their goals with their 3 tall forwards, Petrie (42 goals), Edwards (32) and super mature aged rookie of the year Cameron Pederson (17 from 13 games) (who since solidifying his position in the team has kicked at least a goal 8 of the last 9 weeks, the one week off being the slapping by Collingwood where the team kicked only 3 goals total.) and evergreen Brent Harvey's 29. Whereas St Kilda have dangerous small forward/serial pest Stephen Milne (48 goals) with Nick Riewoldt kicking 30 and Adam Schneider (another small forward) kicking 23.

Goldstein should have the advantage over St Kilda's Ben McEvoy in the ruck and if he gives the Roos midfield first use of the ball they need to spread and run up a score. North have scored 250 more points and St Kilda have been winning by keeping the score down. So North are more likely to win a high (100+) scoring game where the Saints will win if they keep the score down.

Both teams matched up pretty well earlier in the year so this is likely to be an intriguing clash for the non-involved spectator and a real white knuckle encounter for us Roos and Saints supporters.

Until then hail to the high hat!

New York Giants - PRESEASON - Chicago Bears

2011-08-23T13:48:00.002+10:00

I'm writing this as the game progresses.

To give you some perspective I'm very competitive person, if I'm playing a friendly game of tiddly winks I still like to win. I'm not a bad loser (or at least I don't think so) but I still like to do my best. It's the same for my sporting teams. Particularly the North Melbourne Kangaroos and New York Giants. I don't care if it's a pre-season game or the last game of the season and they are in no chance of making the play offs/finals. I still like the team to win and I'm a stats man from way back so I like people like Eli Manning to have 80%+ comp no INTS and tonnes of yards and TD's.

So when I see the Bears march down the field in 2 long plays I get annoyed. Can't help it!

Well I had to take a class and come back and what do I see. Butt hurt Bears baby! 41 - 13 hahaha I know I know, it's only pre-season and the 1st stringers don't play much but I still like a win!!!

It was great to see no injuries, an improved special teams and a couple of big plays. All in all a satisfying win to keep me quenched until the real deal rolls along.

EDIT: Damn Cornerback Terrell Thomas has done his ACL!!!!!

Until then hail to the Cruz control!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - The Run Home (The Final 2 Rounds)

2011-08-22T10:29:00.000+10:00

When looking at a run home situation you should focus what you/the team can do to get themselves into a position to play finals.

Well the Kangaroos have screwed themselves into a position where they need 'help' from results including three other teams. St Kilda Essendon and Sydney. Too many 'close' finishes mean we rely on a little help from the result fairy.

Currently North Melbourne sit 9th on the ladder but must move up to at least 8th if they want to play more than just 2 more games.

Ladder
6th St Kilda 42 pts
7th Sydney 42 pts
8th Essendon 42 pts
---------------------------------
9th North Melbourne 36 pts

This puts the Kangaroos 1 win and a half a game or a draw behind the next three teams.

St Kilda play the Kangaroos and Carlton. With 1 possible win.
Sydney play Geelong and Brisbane with 1 likely win
Essendon play Port Adelaide and Bye with 1 probable win.
North Melbourne play St Kilda and Richmond with 1 likely win.

So.... If the Kangaroos win only the 1 game (against the Tigers) they need either a Sydney loss to Brisbane (Unlikely)

But... If the Kangaroos win 2/both of their remaining games they will leapfrog Essendon into 8th place if they lose to Port Adelaide and could move even further up the ladder with a Sydney loss to Brisbane (unlikely) and St Kilda loss to Carlton (probable). If all of that happens the Roos would move into 6th spot and a home final.

So does that clear it up? North need to win this Saturday Night against St Kilda and half of the battle has been won. Another performance like they exhibited against the Dockers last Saturday and they'll be a great chance to win.

Until then hail to the runs!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Todd Goldstein - Hit Out Record

2011-08-21T14:41:00.000+10:00

Last night Todd Goldstein single handedly battled against twin towers Aaron Sandilands and Zac Clarke. Although the towers got their share of hit outs Goldstein still managed 20 of his own to go alone with 16 possessions and 2 goals.

While his 20 hit outs didn't move him up all-time hit out list, it has him right behind the next 3. Next week against St Kilda Goldstein needs 10 more to jump from 8th spot to 5th an 24 to make 4th spot. Considering last time Goldstein played the Saints he amassed an extremely healthy 47 hit outs and constricted #1 ruckman Ben McEvoy to 25. Either way barring an injury or suspension Goldstein is highly likely to reached the top 3 position after the final 2 regular season games have been played out.

Home and away hit-out tallies

878 - Gary Dempsey - 1982 (North Melbourne)
738 - Gary Dempsey - 1983 (North Melbourne)
711 - Mark Lee - 1984 (Richmond)
703 - Simon Madden - 1983 (Essendon)
688 - Gary Dempsey - 1981 (North Melbourne)
686 - Aaron Sandilands - 2010 (Fremantle)
682 - Darren Jolly - 2009 (Sydney)
679 - Todd Goldstein - 2011 (North Melbourne)* (19 games)
659 - Aaron Sandilands - 2009 (Fremantle)
649 - Mark Lee - 1983 (Richmond)
646 - Aaron Sandilands - 2008 (Fremantle)
643 - Mark Jamar - 2010 (Melbourne)
628 - Peter Everitt - 2004 (Hawthorn)
623 - Rod Blake - 1980 (Geelong)
619 - Justin Madden - 1982 (Essendon)
611 - Mark Lee - 1981 (Richmond)
611 - Simon Madden - 1984 (Essendon)
607 - Matthew Allan - 1999 (Carlton)

Until then hail to the palm down!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Round 22 Review

2011-08-21T13:54:00.000+10:00

Round 22 @ Etihad Stadium vs Fremantle Dockers

North Melbourne Kangaroos 6.1 10.7 16.10 21.17 143

Fremantle Dockers 3.1 3.4 5.7 6.9 45

With both teams sitting in 9th and 10 spot with a slim chance of slipping into the top 8 this is literally a make or break game. Loser = out and the winner can keep their marginal hopes alive. Sure the Dockers have had their share of injuries and more but they came into this game as full strength as they have all year including skipper Pavlich and perennial All-Australian ruckman Aaron Sandilands. This was always going to be a good challenge for the young and hungry Roos as they had battled valiantly bust lost their previous two games against top 4 teams.

Fremantle scored the opening goal in the first 45 seconds but the Roos didn't shirk winning the first quarter with 6 goals to 3. Andrew Swallow was getting lots of it including important contested stuff. Cam Pederson chipped in with 2 important goals while Petrie was having a quiet one.

In the second quarter what became apparent was the stiffling defence and the midfield making it hard to Fremantle to get any quality inside 50's. Scott 'Hunter' Thompson and Michael 'Spud' Firrito were particularly stingy! The Roos won the quarter kicking 4 goal to none and opened up the margin like a pinata.

This is where I was worried the Roos would take their foot off the throttle and either win by a slim margin or heaven forbid lose. Instead they stepped on toes and necks winning the quarter 6 goals to 2 and putting the result out of reach.

The Roos kicked 5 goals 7 to 1 and if not for slight inaccuracy in front of goal would have won by 100+ points instead having to settle for a 98 point victory.

What was most interesting was the absence of Drew Petrie on the score sheet and the evenness of the contributors across the ground. Andrew Swallow was best a field with 30 possessions including 16 contested, 7 inside 50's and 7 tackles. Aaron Edwards and Cam Pederson finished with 3 goals a piece and Todd Goldstein battle 2 200+cm giants alone and finished with 20 hit outs, 16 possessions, 4 inside 50's and 2 goals. 10 players registered 20+ possession games on the way to achieving the greatest winning margin for the Kangaroos since 2003.

Stats of interest: The Kangaroos scored 10 goals from marks and 10 from general play. Fremantle were 4 and 1. Fremantle also fielded more than player with 100 or more games under their belt. 7 to 5. It must also be noted that match winner Matthew Pavlich left the game for the Dolce and Cabbana red vest which did not help the Dockers. However one of our most important midfielders for the last 2 months Jack Ziebell was hurt in a heavy collision very early in the game and left also before being able to even register 1 possession. Not a straight swap but please don't use injury to argue a 98 point pounding.

Roo Rating: 9 1/2 / 10

Daniel Wells

Daniel did have some quiet patches but stood up when it counted finishing with 25 possies, 2 goals and a stunning 10 inside 50's. A far cry from Wellsey's best but after a couple of quiet weeks this is what he needed to remind All-Australian selectors he can play.

Wells Rating: 8 / 10

St Kilda are playing Sydney as I type this and 'we' play St Kilda next Saturday Night. These 2 games are crucial for the Kangaroos to get a sniff at the panties of the voluptuous siren I call Mistress Finals.

Until then hail to the Purple People Eater!

Podcast Smodcast - What I'm Listening to!

2011-08-20T10:52:00.000+10:00

I have finally thrown off the shackles of having a 32kb download limit and moved all the way up to a 4GIG one. Yes I know this ain't great but it does allow me to get back to my Smodcast ways and so much more. Since I've been gone Smodcast has grown up. There's a whole new community for Smods and my brother who is now a part of a writers podcast on iTunes (I couldn't be prouder). Anyway here is a smattering of the gear that has been passing through my generation II ipod.

SMODCAST

Nothings changed here, and that's not a bad thing. Kevin Smith and Uber Producer Scott Mosier shoot the breeze over any topic and usually in a humorous way. I'd love to just sit down and see where our conversation went!

HOLLYWOOD BABBLE-ON - SMODCAST

This was recommended by Stinkbrown and I cut my teeth on the very enjoyable 43rd instalment reading of Cacophony (A Batman comic written by Kevin Smith). Smith is his usual self but he is accompanied by man with many voices Ralph Garman. They have a look at what is happening in Hollywood as well as sharing their own stories.

RED STATE OF THE UNION - SMODCAST

This is a masterclass of the up coming Kevin Smith horror movie Red State. I knew this was out there but with my insipid download limit was unable to access it. Well 'm catching up baby!! As an aspiring filmmaker this is awesome. Smith with lead a discussion with a member of the movie. This has included the A.D. (Assistant Director), the casting lady/actor and one of the stars of the show so far. I am very intrigued by the whole process and it's delivered in an entertaining way too. As will all things Smod those who are offended by bad language be warned! It's just a shame there are only casts. Very much looking out for this movie on it's release in Australia.

THE PROCESS - IMAGE ADDICTION

I was aways going to listen to this. At least the first few. It revolve around 3 writer on the verge of making it big in the comic industry. Lead vocal Kurtis J. Wiebe already has some award winning comics out there and Jeremy Holt and Ryan K. Lindsay have a few projects in the fire also. They discuss their process and look at other work out there. It's interesting, informative and a well produced cast. Very enjoyable for any writer who is interested in hearing the thoughts and opinions of people who know what they are talking about!

These have kept me pretty busy so far but I'm sure I can unearth some more hidden gold dust in my travels.

Until then have a week!

My Top 5 James Bond Movies

2011-08-19T10:49:00.001+10:00

My stand out favourite James Bond movie was a lock before I need to think about it. The following 4 and their order are not so easy. Their haven't been too many dud Bond movies and a lot of good ones but seperating and ordering the great ones was not an easy task. I've cut it down from 10 to 5 because I found places 6 to 12 were too close to seperate or even order.

#5

Goldfinger

There are so many iconic scenes and characters from the 3rd Bond film. Odd Job and his menacing hat and the eponymous baddie Goldfinger and his memorable line to Bond: "I don't expect you to talk Mr Bond. I expect you to DIE!" The iconic Fort Knox was also shot for the first time and was a wonderful backdrop. Not to mention one of the greatest bond girl names on the many; Pussy Galore played by Honor Blackman. Goldfinger was the first to win an Academy Award. Bond's car was probably the most iconic of the series in his Aston Martin DB5, with the requisite gadgets.

Shirley Bassey sung the well received title song 'Goldfinger', and John Barry produced a quality score.

#4

From Russia With Love

The 2nd instalment FRWL is raised into the #4 position by an underrated bad guy in SPECTRE assasin Red Grant played by Robert Shaw and one of the best Bond fights between Connery and Shaw on a moving train.

#3

On Her Majesty's Secret Service

In the 6th instalment Aussie George Lazenby takes the reigns after Connery decides to retire from the role and does a bloody good job. Set on the beautiful white peaks on the swiss alps this Bond delivers in all key Bond areas. A tall, dark and handsome Bond; Lazenby. An iconic villain in Ernst Stavro Blofeld; Telly Savalas. A plethora of bond beauties including Bond's future and only wife Contessa Teresa "Tracy" di Vincenzo; Diana Rigg and a string of exciting set piece action scenes particularly involving skiing and bob sledding. The balls to have Bond marry Tracy then have her shot dead at the end of the movie almost has this at #2. It's also a very faithful adaptation of the brilliant novel by Ian Fleming.

#2

Golden Eye

In Peirce Brosnan's 1st attempt at 007, he makes my 2nd best Bond movie ever. As far as opening scene stunts go their have been many that have reached for and grabbed the stars. Golden Eye's is up the with the best of them. Brosnan is very beleivable at getting the girls but if I had a question mark it would be his ability to kick butt. There are also the usual bad chicks but the most memorable would be Famke Janssen as the sadistic girl with coconut crushing thighs. Judi Dench is also brilliantly cast a 'M' the head of the MI6.

It's also the first of the films NOT to be based on an Ian Fleming novel.

#1

Casino Royale

This is a damn good flick on any list and absolutely ticks every James Bond box. Amazing action opening sequence - tick, tough but ladies man Bond - tick, casinos and cards - tick, beautiful bond girl - tick, gadgets - tick, ruthless bad guys - tick. The movie opening with a visual flurry hitting it's high note with a crane scene involving Parkour. I particularly like that Bond is obvioulsy note as agile and crunches himself pretty good during the chase. The movie also has some beautiful scenary ranging from Montenegro and The Bahamas. Eva Green more than matches Daniel Craig's 007 and is quite stunning in a natural way. Daniel Craig is pitch perfect as a Bond who can kick your butt and get the girl - something not all of the actors can say. Much kudos has to go to a movie that can have a 20 minute poker scene that involves self-defibrilation, a cool cocktail and suspense. It also lifts an awesome torture scene from the book where Bond is sat sans pants into a chair without a seat and he has 'an itch scratched'. Special mention also the stunts in Venice particularly the sinking of a whole building.

It's also has a cool song 'You Know My Name' performed by Chris Cornell of Soundgarden fame and my favourite retro opening credit sequence.

Hourable mentions go to both Timothy Dalton flicks (Licence To Kill and The Living Daylights), Sean Connery's (Dr. No, You Only Live Twice and Thunderball) and Roger Moore's (Live and Let Die and The Man With the Golden Gun)

Interestingly there are no Roger Moore entries in my top 5 but not surprising as he's my least favourite. Sean Connery and Daniel Craig are my favourite Bonds as they epitomise the character's strengths but Dalton and Brosnan were involved in some quality editions.

I'm also very pumped for the currently being filmed James Bond titled 'Red Sky at Night'. This will be Daniel Craig's third and final attempt.

Until then hail to Vesper!

Tom Cruise's Top 5 Acting Roles

2011-08-17T14:57:00.000+10:00

Remember that I am picking my favourite performances based on my enjoyment of the character/movie and the level of difficulty pulled. Again this doesn't mean having handicaps like wheelchair, gay, red hair or ugly will give the role more points. I'm looking more at believably performances and varying emotions.

#5

Born on the Forth of July

Tom plays Ron Kovic, a paralysed Vietnam war vet from his biography. He returns homes to become an anti-war and pro-human rights political activist after seeing how horrible war is and the waste of human lives.

This didn't make the role cause Cruise did a reverse 'Advance hair for men' or because of the wheelchair. He earns this spot because of the character he pours onto the screen and the empathy he draws out of the audience. Cruise is also helped with the deft directing of Oliver Stone who sets this story around the main protagonist rather than the war around it.

#4

Collateral

If you take the fake/odd gray hair out of the equation Tom gives a measured and worthy top 5 performance. Again as in many of actors top 5's the film is helmed by a credible director. In this case Michael Mann. Cruise manages to pull off a cold-blooded killer with charm when it could easily have been over the top and just another role. The malevolent hate between Cruises Vincent and Jamie Fox' Max is the driving force and both actors bring it. I also rated Tom pulling off such a character when he's so short with his boyish looks. A lot of actors in the same position would have over compensated. Tom did not!

#3

Magnolia

This performance came out of the blue for me and on further views is a well measured and control acting performance. In an ensemble piece lasting a touch over 3 hours there are many memorable scenes and performances but the Cruise one is the stand out for me. Cruise does slick so well it often makes me wonder? hmmmm

#2

Interview With The Vampire

I had read the Anne Rice book before seeing the movie and Brad Pitt was the hottest thing in town. That with the buzz of the young actress' performance (Kirsten Dunst). I was surprised how Cruise made his Lestat de Lioncourt purr throughout the film. As far as memorable and menacing vampire being recorded to celluloid go Lestat is one of the best for me. Tom's nuanced performance is highly underrated and he manages to own the screen without doing a lot of visual acting. It also show that I prefer Tom as a bad guy and not try to rely on his good looks.

#1

Jerry Maguire

This is the rare role where I enjoy Tom being a charming likable guy. Well almost. Some of you will claim I love this movie/role because it centers around my 2nd favourite sport Gridiron. Hey maybe it does, isn't that why we love certain movies. Any Given Sunday is definitely one of my favourite Oliver Stone movies. I'm not going to love a movie just because it has sport it needs more. And Jerry Maguire does deliver more. Sure there's the obvious Cuba Gooding Jr turn as team player who can smoke all you fools Rod Tidwell, and Renne Zellweger is cute and holds her own. But the movie needs Jerry to take off his cloak of failure and show the audience the money. Tom plays different parts as a cocky sports agent, a jilted boyfriend, a boss, a buddy and eventually a guy that cares.

Again the movie is steered by the very capable Cameron Crowe with a strong supporting cast but Cruise had me at hello pretty early on. This is also a very quotable movie that means the dialogue permeated into the subconscious long after the credits have rolls. Sure for some of you this just couldn't be his best performance but it is the one I've seen the most and the one I'm most likely to go back and see again.

Honourable mention has to go to these unlucky entrants:

The Last Samurai
A Few Good Men
Mission: Impossible

Tom Cruise has been involved in some iconic hollywood movies but I was interested in how many of them have either; another actor (Dustin Hoffman in Rainman), effects (CGI in War of the Worlds) or the story line (Minority Report) carry it to greatness. It's not that Tom was bad in any of these, he just had to be himself and flash that toothy grin of his and let the movie roll. For all of his success and fame in my eyes Tom has never had that breakout performance but rather a breakout movie: See Top Gun.

Until then hail to Tom and Jerry!

Mel Gibson's Top 5 acting roles

2011-08-15T11:21:00.001+10:00

Ok so I started this knowing my to position and thinking it would be easy to round out the 5. Through further investigation there are at least 7 quality performances along with several good ones.

As an Aussie I can make excuses for Mel's bad behaviour to a point but some of his bizarre rants even have me baffled. But you know what, when I'm watching his movies I'm usually so immersed that I just enjoy the movie. This is particularly the case for these 5 movies. I'm also going to take into account Mel's performance and not necessarily the films as well as how much I enjoyed the performance. For Example in The Man Without a Face, Mel was pretty good and the movie ok, but I wasn't grabbed by much by either so it doesn't rate a mention here. Ergo you don't have to play a gimp/mentally incapacitated gay man to rank in my top 5. This is not the academy awards.

#5

The Patriot

I'm surprised that some people just didn't connect with this flick. Sure it has all the hallmark syrup of a Roland Emmerich movie but a great cast including stand out performances by Heath Ledger, Adam Baldwin, Jason Issacs, Tom Wilkinson and Chris Cooper it rises above it. For Mel to so openly dominate shows he was perfect for the role. Mel plays Benjamin Martin in a relatively common patriarchal hero who was brave back in the day and but is trying to raise kids (usually sons) in a time of unrest and stay out of trouble. (see. Legends of the Fall) Mel particularly stands out when dealing with grief and his parental responsibilities. I total believe Mel has this haunted past and he deftly shows us when he takes out several officers with brains and hatchet. On a side note Robert Rodat wrote this script as well as Saving Private Ryan which also has a remarkable male role model.

#4

Mad Max

When I first started this list I assumed this would be top 2 material but Mel plays Max Rockatansky more than adequately but compared to the top 3 just doesn't have the range. Some would argue that this role is limited in what Mel could do with it and it is but that's the way cookie crumbles. The next 3 roles are much juicier and therefore Mel is able to really show his chops. Mel very successfully pulls off being the stone-cold hard cops dealing with life in a post-apocalyptic wasteland where petrol is the main currency.

#3

What Women Want

This is by far Mel at his most charismatic. Sure it's easy when you know what women are thinking but this is Gibson at his Cary Grant smoothest. Nancy Meyers is the queen of directing 40 somethings rom-coms and this is one of her best. Mel plays a vast array of emotions and situations here ranging from cocky ladies man, to vulnerable boss and out of his element (donnie) father of a teenage girl. I rate this so highly because I've seen many great actors try this suave charming guy and fail. Mel plays all of his roles very well particularly the well-aware heart throb. Bonus points for his Sinatra dance including props such as a hat rack, a chair and a bottle of red.

#2

Lethal Weapon

In the wrong hands this could have been a camp parody of a character with no heart and funny yet crazy eyes. Mel manages to create one of the most iconic good/bad cops in Martin Riggs that went on to carry 3 sequels with varying degrees of success. The task Mel had to bring this character to life is very underrated. Just think who would be capable of being a suicidal cop with a mullet but we also have to care for him. Not many if any would be my guess! This is also one of the best black/white good/bad cop combinations ever!

#1

Braveheart

Well what can I say? This is one of the best movies and one of the best directing jobs of all time also. This is a perfectly executed piece of cinema and is held together by William Wallace. I'm not going to go into how historically correct it is. I watch this for the entertainment otherwise I can go to the History Channel. Mel has given himself the tough task of playing a man mourning his true love and leading thousands into battle and probable death. And you know what? I would have followed him too! Mel hits this role pitch perfect with different emotive ranges required. His final scene of being disemboweled and screaming "Freedom" has been mocked and reused and is very well known, it could have been a cringe worthy moment but was a perfect ending to what has thus far been Mel's finest achievement.

Honourable mentions must go to Gallipoli, Lethal Weapon 2, Man Without a Face, Maverick, Air America, Forever Young, Signs and Edge of Darkness. (Haven't seen The Beaver yet.)

Until then hail to the Icon!

Moroccan Beef Tagine (Jamie Oliver)

2011-08-13T20:11:00.000+10:00

I thought that since I am so lucky as to receive some 3 hat quality meals and in the absence of Master Chef I'd share with you good folk when I masticating a huge quality meal. I'll give an impression of the outcome, share secret recipes and give a shout out to the particular cookbook when it applies.

Tonight I was lucky enough be eating Beef Tagine from Jamie Does... Morocco.

My lovely wife substituted squash for sweet potato and I loved it. The cous cous was perfectly cooked but it was the spices (cumin, paprika, ginger, cinnamon, salt and pepper) and the beef that made the dish. The beef was slow cooked for 3 hours and peeled off the fork like paint off my house.

My 22 month old son was sucking it down like Darjeeling so that only solidifies this dish as a winner.

Lindsay Cuisine Rating: 9 out of 10

Until then hail to the 15!

New York Giants - PREVIEW - Running Backs

2011-08-12T11:54:00.000+10:00

Maybe I should have held off on my Wide Receiver list with the shock departure of New York Giant reception record holder, Steve Smith to division rival Philadelphia Eagles.

Well the top 2 running backs in Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs have re-signed so I feel confident in this preview.

The Giants have always been a bruising team on both sides of the line. The last few years have been no exception. Bradshaw and Jacobs have their own little Thunder and Lightning show. Jacobs is a large 6 foot 4 and 264 pounds with Bradshaw at 5-10 & 214.

The 2 pronged attack rushed for over 2000 yards between them and scored 17 touchdowns between them.

In the NFL the respective backs ranked:

Total Yards: AB 9th, BJ 22nd
Avg per rush: BJ 2nd(in rushers over the 800 yard mark)
Touchdowns: BJ 9th
Longest run from scrimmage: BJ 7th
20+ yd runs: AB 2nd, BJ 6th
40+ yd runs: AB 7th
1st Downs: AB 7th
Fumbles:AB 2nd (unfortunately)

Having 2 quality running back is invaluable in the NFL as not only a back up for the inevitable injury but also one of the running backs wears the defence down and the 2nd one can come on fresh and hopefully finish off the game strong. Also the differences compliment each other and allow the coached to pick any running play for any circumstances know 1 of the 2 will be best suited to the task.

I'm predicting a similar output for the pair as the O-line has been reshuffled but the wide-receivers will help open up the defence. If Ahmad can solve his fumbling problems we may even see our second ever pair of 1000+ yard rushers.

Running Back Rating: B+

New York Giants - WR Steve Smith signs with rival Eagles.

2011-08-11T12:00:00.000+10:00

Damn!!!!

As far as possession in-side slot receivers go, Steve Smith is the best the Giants have had for a awhile. He was part of the 2007 Super Bowl 42 winning team and a Pro-Bowl player in 2009 after catching a record smashing 107 receptions for 1220 yards and 7 touchdowns.

Last year he was hampered by injury catching the pigskin 48 times in only 9 games. He suffered a season ending injury in a Giants' win over the Vikings at Ford Field in Detroit on Dec. 13.

Giants Coach Coughlin announced that Smith had "a ways to go" from this injury which Smith refutely denies.

If Smith lines up this year amongst the star-studded receiving line-up for the Eagles that boasts 2 time pro-bowler DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin who held onto the ball 70 times last year, he will have 2 opportunities to play his old team the Giants. They are NFC EAST rivals and both will be pushing for that East crown and this only makes the duels that more interesting. Not to mention the punting fiasco form last year when the Eagles came storming back in the last quarter and won the game on a punt return on the last play of the day. The Eagles have been ruthless during the last 2 weeks bringing in 6 pro-bowlers into the team including, cornerbacks Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Nnamdi Asomugha, defensive end Jason Babin, quarterback Vince Young and running back Ronnie Brown.

Until then hail to the slot!

Kevin Smith Movie List (New and Improved)

2011-08-10T19:32:00.000+10:00

This is my updated Kevin Smith list to include Cop Out. Since my last 'list' I've watched every Smith movie so I can get a better handle on their respective placings. My wife doesn't understand why I like these movies so much but she doesn't have a predilection to dick and fart jokes. I guess what I appreciate most is Kevin's eye for dialogue and getting the best of his cast. (see Shannon Doherty) Ok let's proceed to:

#9

Cop Out

This didn't smell like a Smith movie, it didn't sounds like a Smith movie and it damn well didn't taste like one. I do like me some Bruce Willis and I was hoping for a 'Last Boy Scout' type character but instead got 'Whole nine yards' one. Tracey Morgan took his pay check and just 'did' himself. Bizarre cameos from people like Sean William Scott didn't add to the plot either.

#8

Zak and Miri make a Porno

Maybe if this came out when I was 18 I would have enjoyed the flesh more, but... it wasn't. The 2 main characters were so immoral that it was hard to fall for the nice warm moments at the end. Definitely not Smith at his best.

#7

Clerks 2

I am a huge fan of the first installment so was even more disappointed by this crass lacklustre performance. This was missing the witty dialogue and sense of restraint from the 1st. Surely when Smith and uber producer Scott Mosier were watching the dailies the 'donkey' scene was obviously too far, even for Smith. I also found the bright visuals were at odds with the black and white original.

#6

Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back

J&SBSB has some great dialogue and excellent cameos (Will Ferrell, Ben Affleck & Matt Damon) but is too conscious of itself and doesn't try as hard as it should. This is much better than 7 through 9 but not quite up to the top 5.

#5

Mallrats

For a follow up script to phenomenon Clerks, made all the better by the fantastic debut of Jason Lee. A more capable supporting cast to match Lee would have made this one of the cult teen movies of the 90's. An honourable mention has to go to Michael Rooker who played his character pitch perfect! Ethan Suplee can be seen in a less than meaty role;)

#4

Dogma

I really dug the look and feel of Dogma. It's a very derisive topic handled mostly with care. A great young cast of some of the best up and comers accompanied by a pretty tight script makes for a very enjoyable flick. The poo monster seemed out of place with the tone of the movie but doesn't kill it.

#3

Jersey Girl

As seen by my top choice, I like the movies with a bit of heart and a story to say. There's something about Jersey Girl that strikes a chord with me for the heart it has even if it is a little too cheesy sometimes! An underrated performance by Affleck lifts this as the the angelic Liv Tyler. I particularly liked the relationships. Father and daughter, father and son & father and career. A quality cameo from Will Smith was a surprising and worthy addition.

#2

Clerks

Although it is revered as a look what a first time director with no money or cast can do, I appreciate it for the funny and witty script is delivered by a cast of nobodies. Kevin was making a movie he wanted to see and didn't have a production company looking over his shoulder. Proves that you do not need a big budget to make 90 minutes of enjoyable film.

#1

Chasing Amy

This is one of my favourite movies of all time for it's heart, dialogue and Jason Lee. There are some great little scenes here and although it is purely a static camera with people walking into and out of shot the script is so good as too rise above these limitations. Jason Lee and Ben Affleck are perfectly paired as the best mates who may have muddies how close their relationship is. Little nuances like the ice hockey game linked with the Affleck and Joey Lauren Adams argument is awesome. Many great quotes from this are still being bandied about. At least in my house! This is a must see movie for lovers of the relationship genre who wants some different fro the usual troupes handed out.

Overall an above average career with a couple of gems. Kevin Smith's strength is his eye for dialogue and interesting look relationships. His new movie coming out is 'Red State', a horror/slasher flick that looks at the moment to tick all of my boxes so I hoping for a top 4 finish. I hope it also shows Kevin Smith and his detractors that he can be diverse and doesn't need to pander to the lowest common denominator!

Until then hail to Amy!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Todd Goldstein moves up the All-Time ruck ladder

2011-08-09T09:12:00.000+10:00

Back on the 3rd of August I discussed who was in the running for All-Australian Ruckman for 2011. During the discussion I mentioned that Todd Goldstein was currently sitting in 14th spot on the all-time hit-out tally. He was averaging 36 hit-outs a game and on Sunday against Hawthorn he had 37. This moves him up to #8 on the list equal with Aaron Sandilands from 2009. With another 36 in 2 weeks time against St Kilda (after the bye) he'll move up to #5 on the all-time list with 695.

Home and away hit-out tallies

878 - Gary Dempsey - 1982 (North Melbourne)
738 - Gary Dempsey - 1983 (North Melbourne)
711 - Mark Lee - 1984 (Richmond)
703 - Simon Madden - 1983 (Essendon)
688 - Gary Dempsey - 1981 (North Melbourne)
686 - Aaron Sandilands - 2010 (Fremantle)
682 - Darren Jolly - 2009 (Sydney)
659 - Todd Goldstein - 2011 (North Melbourne)* (18 games)
659 - Aaron Sandilands - 2009 (Fremantle)
649 - Mark Lee - 1983 (Richmond)
646 - Aaron Sandilands - 2008 (Fremantle)
643 - Mark Jamar - 2010 (Melbourne)
628 - Peter Everitt - 2004 (Hawthorn)
623 - Rod Blake - 1980 (Geelong)
619 - Justin Madden - 1982 (Essendon)
611 - Mark Lee - 1981 (Richmond)
611 - Simon Madden - 1984 (Essendon)
607 - Matthew Allan - 1999 (Carlton)

With 3 games to go it will be interesting to see if Goldstein can finish up in 2nd position (he needs to average 26 for the last 3 games) as Gary Dempsey's #1 spot is out of reach.

Until then hail to the 22!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Round 20 Review v Hawthorn Hawks

2011-08-08T19:15:00.000+10:00

Well what can I say another go against a top 4 team and another loss. Don't get me wrong it wasn't a thumping, the Roos were even briefly ahead with 4 minutes to go. But.... they faded and the old guard for the Hawks came through and again showed us that the Roos are still off the mark. Not much in my mind but still can't seem to win the games when they're in the balance. The Kangaroos have won 2 games by okay teams and through responding to the opposition surge that inevitably came. Round 13 vs Essendon and round 17 vs Western Bulldogs showed a glimpse of some semblance of ticked for the boys in Royal Blue. The rest of the games were a mix of downhill skiing against inferior opposition, getting blasted by Collingwood or Geelong or most frustratingly being in the game for 3 quarters or so before rolling over and giving the game away. This was particularly prevalent against West Coast (Rd1) by 4 points, Richmond (Rd 5) 9pts, Brisbane (Rd 9) 14pts, Sydney (Rd 10)1pt, St Kilda (Rd 15) 9pts, Carlton (Rd 19) 18pts, and on Sunday against Hawthorn (Rd 20)17 pts.

Yes that's correct we have been either even or ahead at some point in the last quarters and lost on 7 occasions. Just because I'm drinking scotch and researching doesn't make me wrong! If the Roos could have pulled 2 of those losses into victories they'd be playing finals this year and getting valuable experience into a core group of 30 - 100 gamers. Considering the Roos held considerable leads at some point in some of those games makes it even more disappointing. All the Kangaroos can do now is take the bye week off and regroup, hope for Essendon to lose to the Bulldogs and win their last 3 games. If results fall the way so that the Roos make it, great. If not, they probably didn't deserve it!

Round 20 @Aurora Stadium vs Hawthorn Hawks

Hawthorn Hawks 2.1 6.6 9.8 15.13 103

North Melbourne Kangaroos 3.7 5.7 9.7 13.8 86

Again North squandered early chances kicking 3 goals 7 behinds and failing to take ascendancy, with a strong breeze in their favour no less. Hawthorn kicked a little better in the second quarter taking a 5 point lead into the main break. Jack Ziebell was again strong in the engine room while Daniel Wells and Andrew Swallow seemed affected by the supposed flu they had. Todd Goldstein again held his own in the ruck. The Roos pulled the deficit back to 1 point at the 3 quarter break. Hawthorn were going to be kicking with the wind in the last so it was always going to be a tough ask. The most disappointing part of the loss was the fact that the Roos took ascendancy and kicked 4 quick goals, all to forward pocket speedster Matty 'Flash' Campbell, he finished with 5 goals for the match. His last goal giving the Roos a 4 point lead with 4 minutes to go. Things started to unravel from there, Lance Franklin finally decided to play and the Hawks kicked away with the last 3 goals of the game. Scott McMahon was great off half back with a team high 29 disposals, 8 marks and 6 tackles. Jack Ziebell was clearly Norths best with 27 disposals including 17 contested and 16 clearances and a goal. Todd Goldstein finished with 37 hit outs to go with his league leading tally. In the end the Hawks midfield stepped it up a gear when it was needed and proved they are about 5 ladder positions ahead of the Arden St boys. Rumour has it that several North player came down with flu like symptoms and diaargha and Lachlan Hansen actually had to pull out just before kick off.

Roo Rating: 7/10

Daniel Wells

Daniel apparently was suffering from mild flu symptoms and even though he finished with 19 touches and 5 tackles he only showed glimpses of brilliance including a much needed long range goal in atrocious Tasmanian conditions.

Wells Rating: 5/10

Until then hail to

T.V Series Top Ten (Updated) - 2011

2011-08-08T10:48:00.001+10:00

It's that time of year where I need to update my top 10 T.V series list. New seasons come on and hit the right note and jump into the top ten but after the honeymoon period is over sometimes the passion is over and you need to think, 'are we strong enough as friends?' There are two new additions to the list. One is a new find and the other is me being honest and open. It's a bit like wearing a pink shirt. They're cool but it still takes a man in touch with his masculinity to wear it.

Well here they are:

Top Ten #10 (previously unlisted)

My Wife and Kids -

Michael Kyle: Well, actually I said so long, see ya sucker, bon voyage, arrivederci, later loser, goodbye, good riddance, peace out, let the doorknob hit ya where the good Lord split ya, don't come back around here no more, hasta la vista baby, kick rocks, and get the hell out, like that.

This is probably the weakest of the lot and could be interchanged with several other funny but not great sitcoms. This show is an anomaly from the others in that the main character Michael Kyle is the draw card. He lifts each of the characters and makes me laugh in the every episode. The show also has heart and at the crux of it it's a show about a dad who is trying to the best job and having fun at the same time.

Top Ten #9 (unlisted)

Big Love -

Bill: You're my wife, Margene. You can't be seeing the girl I'm dating.

This is a newly found show in my house and we have watched the 1st 3 season in the last 6 weeks of so. It's set in Utah and revolves around Bill Paxton and his 3 wives and 7 kids. Yep he is a Mormon who lives by the principle in a polygamous marriage. The 3 wives are all very different and bring something different to the marriage and show. Bill and his second wife Nikki come from a cult compound run by the brilliant Harry Dean Stanton as Roman the self-proclaimed prophet. There are several stand out characters including Roman and his odd son Alby but the most enjoyable episodes are the ones revolving around the Bill and his family problems. These included the need for Viagra, wife squabbling and keep their true identity secret form the neighbours. This is new and has shot into #9 so it will be interesting to see where it sits next year after the dust has settled.

Top Ten #8 (unlisted)

Sex and the City -

Carrie: So what's your book called?
Berger: Half-off. That's all it's called now, half-off.

Yeah yeah. I know! I probably wouldn't have watched this if it wasn't for my wife and I didn't see a single episode until the last episode had aired. I've laughed, cried and yelled at the characters and got emotionally involved. I still think Carrie Bradshaw was better of with Aiden, but maybe Aiden is better off without Carrie? The show is about 4 different girls linked by the 'dry' Sarah Jessica Parker character who share every detail of their lives and relationships. Boys come and go throughout the series but the 4 girls remain the constant. Followed by 2 movies. 1st one good 2nd not so good.

Top Ten #7 (#7)

Arrested Development -

Narrator: Although George Michael had only got to second base, he'd gone in head first, like Pete Rose.

In some ways it's a shame there were only 3 seasons of this but on the other hand quirky off-beat sitcoms like this can become drag quickly and lose their lustre. Again the main character is a dry normal guy played by Jason Bateman but he is the safe port of call while being surrounded by off/dead-beats like sister Lindsay and brother-in-law Tobias to name a few. Clever writing like this often 'misses' the masses but due to it's cult following and cheap dvd's it's available to plebs like me!

Top Ten #6 (#6)

Scrubs -

Turk: Surgery is long, tedious and boring.
Cole: Oh I get it, like episodes of Entourage that revolve around Turtle.

Scrubs lurched through to a ninth season through it's cult following. Sure the last couple of seasons weren't up to it's usual fare but it was still above the standard of the regular rubbish on our screens. Scrubs got to nine seasons because the core of main characters are funny/likable/relateable. Zach Braff's J.D character is like Seinfeld's. Never really get the best stuff but he is the golden orb that the celestial beings revolve around.

Top Ten #5 (#3)

The Office (US version) -

Dwight: Don't you want to earn Schrute bucks?
Stanley: No. In fact, I'll give you a billion Stanley nickels if you never talk to me again.
Dwight: What's the ratio of Stanley nickels to Schrute bucks?
Stanley: The same as the ratio of unicorns to leprechauns.

This show has shown longevity thus far in it's seventh season and has another cracker of a character in Dwight Schrute. Just saying/typing his name makes me smile. Sure Steve Carell as Michael Scott is a great character but the show stealer, Jack Nicholson style in Batman has to be Dwight!!

Top Ten #4 (#4)

Entourage -

Turtle: All right. What do you say we start with little miss fluffy-white-poodle over there?
Drama: That's not a poodle, turtle. That's a Lhasa Apso.
Turtle: Whatever. Check out the ass on the broad walking it.
Drama: Lhasa Apsos are very finicky dogs. And finicky dogs have finicky owners. And finicky owners wait two weeks before they even give you a tug

I've seen every episode at least 4 times and they never wear thin. George Costanza may be my favourite TV character of all time but Ari Gold and Johnny 'Drama' Chase are my #2 and #3. There's also a lot of heart beneath the cussing and boobies. A very watchable show even on the 5th and 6th times.

Top Ten #3 (#2)

Friday Night Lights -

In some situations, you need to ask yourself 'WWRD?', What Would Riggins Do?

The small town of Dillon, Texas is football mad and the heroes are the current crop of high school footballers. Well as long as they're successful. There are a vast array of interesting characters who bring something different to FNL's but the general similarity is that I care about them. Sure I love American Football but the show revolves around the drama of the town and my wife who does not like gridiron is a big fan of the show.

Top Ten #2 (#2)

Madmen -

Pete: Come on.
Don: You wanna be on vacation Pete? Cause I can make that happen.

This is another case of brilliant writing and fabulous casting. Don Draper is one cool cat and his backdrop is a very hip early 60's New York. The subplots are tight and every season holds up their share of the bargain.

Top Ten #1 (#1)

Seinfeld -

"They don't have a decent piece of fruit at the supermarket. The apples are mealy, the oranges are dry... I don't know what's going on with the papayas!"

- Kramer in The Mango

I love this show so hard it's not funny. I love it during high school and I appreciate it even more today. I thought Kramer was the funniest hipster doofus ever but now I tend to connect more with Costanza's angst and frustration. I don't know what that says about me? Extremely clever script coupled with fantastic cast equals an A+ TV series.

There's too many honourable shows to mention. hehe But feel free to drop a line of judgement!

Until then hail to the beet farm!

Other teams results other than the Kangaroos

2011-08-07T12:19:00.001+10:00

It's that time of year again in the AFL. After the 3 games today are over, there is only 4 rounds to go. The Kangaroos have their bye next week so will only have today (vs the Hawks in Tasmania, 4th on the ladder) and the final 3 rounds against Fremantle (9th), St Kilda (6th) and Richmond (13th). The Roos should account for the Dockers in Melbourne and Richmond in the last round. I've calculated that the Roos are a very good chance of making the finals if they win all 4 and a possible chance if they beat either the Hawks or Saints and other results go their way.

This is where the other team results come into it. Usually I wouldn't give a toss about an Essendon Vs Sydney game but at the business end of the season and both teams fighting for one of the last 2-3 finals places the game became an interesting one. I couldn't care who kicked the goals, picked up Brownlow votes or was subbed off. I was only interested in the final score. Unfortunately Essendon pulled off a 1 point win and could be the points to hold us out.

As it stands the top 5 team are going to play finals. Collingwood and Geelong will take the top 2 spots, probably in that order. Carlton, Hawthorn and West Coast will fill out spots 3 to 5, again not sure of the order yet. This leaves red hot St Kilda, Sydney, Essendon, Fremantle and the Kangaroos fighting for the last 3 spots to have the honour of playing finals. As it stands, not including the results today, Sunday the 7th of August the Ladder is:

6th - St Kilda 10 wins a draw - 42 points
7th - Sydney 9 wins a draw - 38 points
8th - Essendon 9 wins a draw - 38 points
-------------------------------------------
9th - Fremantle 9 wins - 36 points
10th - Nth Melbourne 8 wins - 32 points

An unlikely win for the Roos today against Hawthorn will see then move into 9th spot with superior percentage to the Dockers and sit a draw(half a game) out of the 8. This is where the Roos have their finals aspirations in their own hands but surely it's not bad sportsmanship to follow the games featuring the aforementioned teams and hope they lose.

St Kilda have hit a purple patch recently winning their last 6 games and 9 or their last 11. So they are probably out of reach for the Roos, so when they are playing one of the other 3 teams I hope they win. As seen this Friday when they beat Fremantle. The Kangaroos game today is the last game for the round that could have an affect on who will make the finals, so I'll be taping the game that is being broadcast at midnight tonight : (

Next week, Round 21 there are several games that I will keep a keen eye on. I'm bolding the ones I hope win for the hopes of the Roos making the finals for 2011.

St Kilda v Collingwood - Pies hot favourites ;)
Fremantle v Carlton - Carlton favourites ;)
Western Bulldogs v Essendon - Close game but going with Essendon. I'd love an upset though!
Richmond v Sydney - Sydney favs but who knows
North Melbourne have the bye. If all results go according to plan the ladder will look like this:

6th St Kilda 10 wins a draw - 42 points
7th Sydney 10 wins a draw - 42 points
8th Essendon 10 wins a draw - 42 points
-----------------------------------------
9th Fremantle 9 wins - 36 points
10th Nth Melbourne 8 wins - 32 points
I'm giving the Roos a loss to the Hawks, St Kilda and Fremantle likely to lose and wins to Sydney and Essendon.

Round 22
West Coast v Essendon - Eagle at home to win
Nth Melb v Fremantle - Roos favs in Melb to win
Sydney v St Kilda - Saints favs due to better form to win
Ladder
6th St Kilda 11 wins a draw - 46 points
7th Sydney 10 wins a draw - 42 points
8th Essendon 10 wins a draw - 42 points
-------------------------------
9th North Melb 9 wins - 36 points
10th Fremantle 9 wins - 36 points

Round 23
Fremantle v Collingwood - Pies to win
Geelong v Sydney - Geelong to win
St Kilda v Nth Melb - Roos to learn from last loss that should have been a win.
Essendon v Port Adelaide - Essendon to win. YCW Stonecats U15s could beat Power!
Ladder
6th St Kilda 11 wins a draw - 46 pts
7th Essendon 11 wins a draw - 46pts
8th Sydney 10 wins a draw - 42pts
--------------------------------------
9th Nth Melb 10 wins - 40pts
10th Fremantle 9 wins - 36 pts

Round 24
I not going to look at Fremantle as they will be out of contention by now.
Sydney v Brisbane - Sydney to win
Carlton v St Kilda - Carlton likely playing for top 4 spot to win
Richmond v Nth Melb - Surely Nth to win
Essendon have te bye
Ladder
6th St Kilda 11 wins a draw - 46 pts
7th Sydney 11 wins a draw - 46 pts
8th Essendon 11 wins a draw - 46 pts
--------------------------------
9th Nth Melb 11 wins - 44 pts

So if the results go according to plan and the Roos are able to beat either the Hawks or the Saints they'd still miss out by 2 points (the draw). That is why I will be hoping for an upset and a team like the Bulldogs or Richmond to beat 1 of the 3 teams ahead of us on the ladder.

I guess I should focus on the game today but that's how I roll.

Until then hail to an upset! (or two!)

Little boy gets a Big bed

2011-08-06T15:06:00.000+10:00

Ben turns 2 in 2 months and will be a big brother in 3 and a half weeks so we thought it was time he moved into a bed.
The 1st night took 30min and after that he just lies down and even if he stays awake he just lies there till he drifts off. He also loves his doona cover and says, "Car" a lot when he sees it. I was also able to construct it by myself in under 2 hours.

Until then hail to the Beech!

The Process - Podcast

2011-08-05T11:58:00.000+10:00

I listened to Episode 1 of The Process (free on iTunes) because my brother is one of the three voices but I listened to Episode 2 because it was interesting and enjoyable. The voices I speak of are Kurtis J. Wiebe, Jeremy Holt and Ryan K.Lindsay. Kurtis is the writer for the award winning comics Green Wake and The Intrepids. While Jeremy and Ryan haven't enjoyed the same success at Kurtis yet, they have been chosen for this podcast because they are clearly on the cusp and have their fingers in several pies. Jeremy writes for Joy Hog and Ryan CBR among others. On a side note does anyone else think Jeremy Holt sounds like Walt Flanagan?

As a non comic lover I was worried it'd be all talk of characters I don't know and issues I've never read. I was pleasantly surprised that The Process does exactly what it says on the box. It talks about a variety of topics, like what they listen too when writing, what works they have in the pipeline and some of the great work that is currently out there. So in a word, the process of writing.

I enjoyed the first episode as a get to know you exercise but I really dug the more planned out format that has different sections in episode 2. These are those sections!

Wow Factor – Interesting look at current comic moments of the week/month.

Progress Report – This would be one of my favourite sections where the boys chat about the current victories their having and where their work is at. I'm looking forward to hearing as each one progresses through the production process. Ryan's story about a dude who wants to penetrate a building needs to be heard.

Grill ‘Em! – This is where audience participation is invited. Anyone can post a question on Facebook or twitter. This week’s question from Danial Carroll was about the pro and cons of using real-world locales.

The Process – This looks at the creative development of each of their projects - this week looking at the effect of music and what they listen to and why during the writing process.

The Roundtable – An open talk about a random comic related topics, this week an interesting look at Kurtis' artwork vs writing using a behind the scenes example from Green Wake #1.

Wrap it – Here Ryan Lindsay closes out the show with a quote that manages to take 3 minutes after he adds his little spin on it.

Can't wait for Episode 3.

Until then hail to Cryptological Zoos!

New York Giants - PREVIEW - Quarterback

2011-08-04T19:27:00.001+10:00

Eli Manning

In 2004 Eli Manning was drafted to the New York Giants in very unusual circumstances. Those circumstances are well documented so I won't rehash them here but the crux of it was Eli was always going to be a 1st pick but he publicly stated he did want to play for the San Diego Chargers who were the holders of said pick uno numero. Well... the Chargers ended up with the very handy Phillip Rivers + and the Giants ended up with Peyton's brother Eli.

I'm not going to rate the depth in QB as very few teams have a 2nd string who can take their team deep into the playoffs and it's unlikely to be proven anyway. (God I hope I didn't just jinx the Giants!) I'm going to look a little at Eli's past and predict how his 2012 campaign will be.

The New York Giants 2004 year started with Eli sitting next to the lonesome kicker on the bench until the last 7 games of season after the team had failed to show enough promise and Eli replaced journeyman Kurt Warner. The 7 final games were a great learning curve but 48% completion percentage and more interceptions than touchdowns fail to build a great hype in #10. 2005 saw Eli start a streak of 6 whole seasons without missing a game. This durability would help stabilise the Giants offence and help them on their quest to winning Super Bowl 42 in 2007 where Eli won the coveted Superbowl Most Valuable Player award.

Eli's stats have steadily improved each season with him being 1 of 6 current quarterbacks to throw for 20+ touchdowns for 6 straight seasons. He has reached the 4000+ yardage mark in the last two years and his rating has been over 80 for 3 consecutive years including 93.1 in 2009. Eli had the highest number of completions last year (339) and his rating would have been much higher had his interception number not been blown up by the 9 tipped balls that went to the opposition been caught. Eli was also without his favourite possession receiver in Steve Smith for half of the year and another injury to Hakeem Nicks. Eli is also a proven big game player having a good post-season record of 7-7, including that Super Bowl run.

Considering these stats I'm anticipating E. Manning with again throw for 4000+ yards with 32-38 touchdowns and a rating in the 90's. I also think if Eli and his main receiving targets stay healthy can could be invited to the Pro Bowl for a second time (previously 2009).

The Pre-Season is this month but I don't anticipate seeing much of Eli so 'we will have to wait til September to see some real action.

Quarterback Rating: B+

Until then hail to the Ole Miss!

All-Australian Ruckman - 2011

2011-08-03T15:05:00.000+10:00

Dean Cox vs Todd Goldstein

Thanks to injuries to perennial AA Aaron Sandilands, Mark Jamar and Darren Jolly, Cox and Goldstein are clearly the two best ruckmen in the comp for 2011.

I'd be inclined to say both will make the squad and 1 or 2 of them will make the team of 22 at the end of the year. A 2 ruck team hasn't been in vogue for a few years with the exception of last year (Sandilands & Jamar) and with the sub rule it is probably even more unlikely.

If one of these players misses out on the honour of making the team it will be a shame as they are definitely in the top 22 players in the comp but the position they play is quite a specialised one. It's a bit like a quarterback in American Football. Only 1 takes the field at a time. Yes I know several teams play with 2 ruckmen!

Yes I am very aware raw stats don't tell all of the picture but if we look at more than the basics we can make an educated decision on who has had a better.

NOTE: Watching games and seeing the impact the player has made on the game is more important that just stat hawking. For example a mark, kick and goal is great. But Dean Cox did it in the dying minutes to win the game last week!

So let's look at some comparative stats.

Cox gets a lot more of the ball 100 times more and twice as many marks. Goldstein leads in tackles 75 to 31 and hitouts 622 to 543. Goals and assists are comparable.

Based on this I'd say Cox has been the most valuable ruckman in the comp as he has had quite a few more possessions and he uses it well too. The gap is slightly bridged in the amount of hit outs Goldstein has and the exceptionally high tackle count for a ruckman, this means he stops the opposition run and he's already there for the stoppage for a likely hitout.

While Cox is having a slightly superior season overall Goldstein is having an incredible season in hitouts. This has been helped by the injury for former #1 Kangaroo ruckman Hamish McIntosh and left Goldstein to shoulder the role alone with Cam Pederson and Drew Petrie pinch hitting when needed. Todd Goldstein missed the 1st game of the season (ironically against Cox's West Coast) but still sits at #14 in the all-time hitout tally (see table below) and if he averages 29 for the remainder of the year will finish 2nd on that list. 29 will not be out of the realms of possibility as Goldstein is averaging 36 a game in the 17 he has played.

Home and away hit-out tallies

878 - Gary Dempsey - 1982 (North Melbourne)
738 - Gary Dempsey - 1983 (North Melbourne)
711 - Mark Lee - 1984 (Richmond)
703 - Simon Madden - 1983 (Essendon)
688 - Gary Dempsey - 1981 (North Melbourne)
686 - Aaron Sandilands - 2010 (Fremantle)
682 - Darren Jolly - 2009 (Sydney)
659 - Aaron Sandilands - 2009 (Fremantle)
649 - Mark Lee - 1983 (Richmond)
646 - Aaron Sandilands - 2008 (Fremantle)
643 - Mark Jamar - 2010 (Melbourne)
628 - Peter Everitt - 2004 (Hawthorn)
623 - Rod Blake - 1980 (Geelong)
622 - Todd Goldstein - 2011* (17 games)
619 - Justin Madden - 1982 (Essendon)
611 - Mark Lee - 1981 (Richmond)
611 - Simon Madden - 1984 (Essendon)
607 - Matthew Allan - 1999 (Carlton)

So where do I sit in All-Australian contention? Based on form up to date, Cox is slightly ahead but Goldstein would be very stiff if he doesn't make the team.

Until then hail to the tap tap tapparoo!

New York Giants - PREVIEW - Receiving Corp

2011-08-02T15:06:00.001+10:00

Well the lockout is over and the National Football League's 2011 season is on!

I'm very pumped and believe the New York Football Giants are in for a good year. To whet my appetite till the season kicks off I'm going to look at some of the strong areas for the Giants and where I see them being at season's end. I'll even come back then and reassess my predictions.

The Giants have always had a strong O-line but it's not glamorous and I'm not going to predict how many pancake blocks or sacks they concede. It's not Hollywood (or should I say Broadway?), so I'm going to stick to the 'sexy' positions. So I guess what I'm saying is that receiving is a sexy position.

2010 wasn't the greatest year for the 3 best wide receivers for Big Blue but that was due to injuries no form. Steve Smith only started 7 games out of 16, Hakeem Nicks 12 and Mario Manningham 8 started 16 played. They were the 3 focal points for QB Eli Manning and helped him reach his 1st 4000+ yardage year. If all 3 can stay on the field for the 16 games along with 3rd round pick Jerrel Jernigan, Tight End Kevin Boss and a running back out of the backfield then another record season is on the cards.

The 3 WR's compliment each other in style, Smith is a fantastic possession receiver, Nicks is big bull who reaches over defenders and Manningham is always dangerous for a 40+ yard reception.

STEVE SMITH

MARIO MANNINGHAM

HAKEEM NICKS

2010 NYG

I'm predicting that if all 3 receivers can stay fit they'll all catch 80+ receptions and 1000+ yards and 30 touchdowns between them. This would also see QB Eli Manning reaching his 2nd consecutive 4000+ yard season and hopefully 40+ touchdowns. Wishful thinking? Probably. At least they'll have better seasons than the Packers or Bears! I guess I'll just have to wait and see.

Receiver Rating: B+

Until then hail to the Mary!

Yearly Booklist est. 1994

2011-08-02T11:35:00.000+10:00

My Obsessive Compulsive tendencies have been well documented and this post will just enhance these claims.

I'm a sucker for stats and although I usually stick to those of the sporting kind. These however are of my reading kind and range from number of books read to average pages for book. My brother and I would spend quite a lot of time reading and it just seemed natural that we would enter our books read including page totals as a sort of competition. Now it's just a habit and I can look back on certain years and remember the types of books I was reading.

They probably won't be of immediate interest to a stranger but I must admit when I first visit a house the first thing I look for is the bookcase and I give it a pretty good study. The eclectic range of books say a lot about the owner and are often a great conversation starter. It's funny because a few times I asked about books and the owner hadn't read any of the 'good' ones. It got me thinking would someone buy a book to have on their shelves for the aesthetic of looking smart?

The only stats that stands out to me is the fact that I've read at least one Stephen King book every year since 1994 (the year I started recording the books read.) except 2004, my first year teaching when I read 3 books in total.

Anyway here is a look at the books I have read so far this year and an overall look at my yearly stats.

Until then hail to the 37!

The Fifteen Movie Questions Meme

2011-08-01T13:58:00.000+10:00

Stolen from Sunset Over Slawit...

1. Movie you love with a passion.

El Mariachi

2. Movie you vow to never watch.

The Sound of Music

3. Movie that literally left you speechless.

Fight Club (1st viewing)

4. Movie you always recommend.

Sideways.

5. Actor/actress you always watch, no matter how crappy the movie.

Jason Lee

6. Actor/actress you don’t get the appeal for.

Angelina Jolie

7. Actor/actress, living or dead, you’d love to meet.

Quentin Tarantino

8. Sexiest actor/actress you’ve seen. (Picture required!)

Liv Tyler
9. Dream cast.

Kevin Dillon, Jeff Bridges and Bea Arthur

10. Favorite actor pairing.

Ben Affleck & Matt Damon

11. Favorite movie setting.

The Overlook Hotel.

12. Favorite decade for movies.

90's
13. Chick flick or action movie?

Both, either - depends on the company and mood.

14. Hero, villain or anti-hero?

Villain

15. Black and white or color?

Either if it's warranted.

Until then hail to the Bandit!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Round 19 Review

2011-07-31T15:14:00.001+10:00

In the Kangaroos only Friday night game of the year they were pitted against top 4 Carlton in a true of test of their place in the pecking order. 3 heavy losses to Collingwood (twice) and Geelong only enhanced the view that they were a fair pace of the mark.

The Kangaroos have been able to match it with teams out of the 8 and 2 disappointing losses to Sydney (1 point) and St Kilda (9 points) prove they are comfortable in he middle of the ladder. The middle of the ladder however could be seen as ranging from 7th to 11th and you only get to play finals if you finish 8th or higher. So where abouts do the Kangaroos sit in the 'middle pack'? Well losses to Sydney (6th), St Kilda(7th), West Coast (5th) and Fremantle (8th) make it appear they are just off the mark at the moment but a closer inspection shows the Roos were a chance in those games losing them by 1, 9, 4 and 29 points respectively. Sure I here you say, the good teams wins the close games (see Geelong) but it also points out that the Roos aren't that far off either.

The last 4 games of the year against Hawthorn (4th), Fremantle(8th), St Kilda(7th) and Richmond(13th) will give a good indication as 3 are top 8 sides and Richmond sitting in 13th spot. The Roos should win the last game if they want to be seen as improving and heading in the right direction. A home game against an injury riddled Fremantle, a visit to Tasmania against the Hawks and a rematch against the Saints will show the Roos where they're at. 3 wins out of 4 could see them playing finals and 4 would give them a likely chance.

But I'm getting ahead of myself let's look back at Friday night. If we must.

Round 19 vs Carlton Blues @ES

North Melbourne Kangaroos 3.2 6.2 7.6 9.8 62

Carlton Blues 1.4 3.9 6.12 11.14 80

I was quietly confident about the match up with several key position players missing through injury and our ability to match up well against the Blues. 5 scoring shots a piece but wayward kicking from Carlton saw the Roos go into the first break 10 points up. The usual players for both teams were laying well.

Again wayward kicking saw the Blues go into the main break 11 down after kicking 3 goals 9. Carlton clearly had the better of the 3rd quarter restricting the Roos to 1 goal 4 and clawing back the deficit so that both teams were tied at the last break.

The going was tough at the start of the last quarter and the Kangaroos squandered a couple of gettable chances particularly marks inside 50 to Drew Petrie and Lachie Hansen. Carlton capitalised on these mistakes and took their chances in a 5 minute spurt kicking 3 quick goals, the ascendancy and as it turns out the game. Andrew Swallow toiled hard all day and tried his heart out in the last but in the end there were too many travellers and the Roos were over run by a fit Carlton side led admirably by skipper and new dad Chris Judd who was instrumental in the last quarter. Bryce Gibbs also shone in a different role in attack kicking 4 important goals in a low scoring match. Swallow ended with a game high 32 possessions, 5 I50's a goal and 9 tackles. Ziebell continued his consistent form with 22 touches and 10 tackles. Goldstein as always played his role with 36 hit outs and 5 tackles.

Roo Rating: 7 1/2 / 10

Daniel Wells

Wells had by far his quietest night with 5 tackles and 13 possessions. Most disturbing was the fact he went missing in the last when he was most needed and this game alone could be his unravelling for an All-Australian selection. Overall a disappointing performance by Daniel.

Wells Rating: 3 / 10

Let's hope Wells and his Roo mates can bounce back next Sunday @Aurora Stadium, Launceston.

Until then hail to FNF!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Must Win Friday Night Game!

2011-07-29T14:22:00.000+10:00

The Kangaroos take on 4th placed Carlton in arguably their most important match so far.

The Roos have been able to account for most teams below them on the ladder and have also been blown out of the park against the top 2 teams. This is a chance to prove to the AFL public that they belong and can match it with the big boys. The Kangaroos currently sit in 10th position a half a game out of the 8 and play Hawthorn next week in another test before a bye. A win tonight and a Fremantle loss to Hawthorn would see the Roos enter the 8 and finals talk for the first time all year. After losing the first 4 games of the year and dropping several winnable games the Roos have won 6 of their last 8 and apart from being gangbanged by Collingwood have been playing good uncompromising footy with loads of contested footy to accompany clearances and inside 50's. If not for inaccurate kicking in front of the big sticks, the Roos would have an even better %.

Where the game will be won!

Let's look at the raw team stats (Totals):

Clearances: 2nd Carlton - 3rd Kangaroos
Contested Possessions: 3rd Carlton - 4th Kangaroos
Inside 50: 3rd Kangaroos - 5th Carlton
1%ers: 3rd Kangaroos - 6th Carlton
Contested Marks: 5th Kangaroos - 11th Carlton
Hit Outs: 2nd Kangaroos - 3rd Carlton
Goals: 3rd Carlton - 6th Kangaroos
Tackles: 2nd Carlton - 8th Kangaroos

Is there a clear winner? The only thing clear here is both teas are doing well in all of these statistical areas.

How about players in the top 10 (Total)
Clearances: 3rd Judd (C); 4th Swallow(NM); 9th Murphy (C)
Contested Possessions: E4th Swallow (NM) Judd(C); 6th Murphy (C)
Inside 50: 4th Simpson (C); 6th Wells (NM); 9th Murphy (C); 10th Judd(C)
1%ers: 2nd Thompson (NM)
Contested Marks: 3rd Petrie (NM)
Hit Outs: 1st Goldstein (NM)595; 6th Warrnock (C) 373 - 222 diference
Goals: 4th Walker (C); 7th Petrie (NM); E8th Betts (C), Garlett (C)
Tackles: 8th Swallow

Any clearer? The match winners will be Judd, Murphy and the Carlton small forwards vs Swallow, Wells, Goldstein and the Petrie up forward.

Whoever can win the clearances and contested possession should result in more inside 50's and scoring shots. If it's North Melbourne they need to kick above .500 and they're a red hot chance.

Check in in a couple of days for the review.

Until then hail to the clearance!

Quentin Tarantino Soundtrack List - Part 2

2011-07-29T09:55:00.000+10:00

While I'm rating the soundtracks on their respective A List and B List songs I'm also weighing in their relistenablity (it's a word!) and structure. A couple of dud songs can bring down the rating however. This top 4 has a couple of surprises particularly #2 being as high as it is! Well let's jump in, the waters warm!

#4

Kill Bill vol. 2

I generally listen to the Kill Bill's (1 & 2) combined so was surprised that vol. 2 has 3 times as many A - List songs and 10 tracks altogether I rate so highly. A strong Ennio Morricone influence lifts this compilation into the top 4. But there's more to it with great tracks including Johnny Cash's "A Satified Mind", Shivaree's "Goodnight Moon and a fantastic interpretation by Chingon of the common Mexican ballad "Malaguena Salerosa". This is a perfect example of a complete soundtrack that does what it says on the box. All of the songs add their part to the puzzle making this a more than enjoyable listening experience.

A - List
A Satified Mind - Johnny Cash
Goodnight Moon - Shivaree
Malaguena Salerosa - Chingon
Il Tramonto - Ennio Morricone
LArena - Ennio Morricone
A Silhouette of Doom - Ennio Morricone
B - List
Urami Bushi - Meiko Kaji
Summertime Killer - Luis Bacalov
About Her - Malcolm McLaren
Can't Hardly Stand It - Charlie Feathers

#3

Pulp Fiction

I absolutely loved the movie when I saw it in 1994 and had the soundtrack in my sweaty little hands as soon as it was available. It suits Pulp's non-linear structure and offers a few hidden gems such as The Statler Brothers' "Flowers on the Wall", Rick Nelson's "Lonesome Town" and "If Love is a Red Dress (Hang Me in Rags)" by Maria McKee. It also has proven gold with Al Green and Dusty Springfield along with a fantastic rendition of Neil Diamond by Urge Overkill. Although this is an eclectic collection it would most aptly be described at Rock & Roll Surf music. Without putting too much thought into it I had Pulp Fiction battling for the #1 an #2 position so this shows how close the top 3 are and how good the top 2 must be!

A - List
Let's Stay Together - Al Green
Flowers on the Wall - The Statler Brothers
Son of a Preacher Man - Dusty Springfield
Girl You'll Be a Woman Soon - Urge Overkill
B - List
Bustin' Surfboards - The Tornadoes
Lonesome Town - Rick Nelson
Jungle Boogie - Kool and the Gang
If Love is a Red Dress (Hang Me in Rags) - Maria McKee

#2

Death Proof

This is a case of the soundtrack being vastly superior to the movie. I like the movie, it is what it is and although QT took the brief too seriously, unlike Robert Rodriguez, he does manage to achieve what he set out to achieve. He made one of the greatest car chases in cinematic history. Well to go along with that feat he also has compiled a bloody good collection of quasi-obscure 70's rock and R&B. Most are not well known but they are great songs that also pull into a tight huddle giving us a fun and enjoyable listening experience. Not only are there 5 dead set A List songs but also 3-4 B's that could/should be brought into the premier league. Finding and compiling such great songs that also compliment each other is quite the achievement and making this a very worthy #2 even ahead of Pulp Fiction! Smith's rendition of "Baby it's You" is as great the original which can be found on one of the all-time greatest soundtracks - Wanderers!

A - List
Baby it's You - Smith
The Love You Save (May Be Your Own) - Joe Tex
Good Love, Bad Love - Eddie Floyd
Staggolee - Pacific Gas & Electric
Down in Mexico - The Coasters
B - List
Hold Tight - Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Titch
Jeepster - T Rex
Paranoia Prima - Ennio Morricone

#1

Reservoir Dogs

This is the1st of the great QT soundtracks and the best. He set a precedent and although he hasn't matched it he is yet to have a dud also. My brother and I listened to this over and over again and the reason is sits in #1 is because every single song earns it's spot on the roster. I'm not going to relate a song to it's corresponding scene as the song needs to stand on it's own two beat (get it?). This is a great little hark back to 60's music and tying it to K B I L L Y, K Billy's home of rock is genius. Stevie Wright is also dead pan prefect for the role. Ok down to the stats. I've listed 6 undisputed A - List songs with the other 2 unlucky to be relegated to B status. That's right, the worse (if you can call it that) song on the disc is a B+ at worst. I also admire the fact that QT has shot a 50's style heist movie but managed to marry it up with an equally impressive 70's compilation. These are all great sing along songs and I never feel the need to press 'skip' when any arrive on my iPod. My only criticism would be it runs at a very short 30 minutes but I'd rather that than to have an extra song that doesn't pick up the slack.

A - List
Harvest Moon - Bedlam
Little Green Bag - The George Baker Selection
I Gotcha - Joe Tex
Magic Carpet Ride - Bedlam
Fool For Love - Sandy Rogers
Hooked on a Feeling - Blue Suede
B - List
Coconut - Harry Nillson
Stuck in the Middle with You - Stealers Wheel

Next up for QT is Django Unchained, a Southern Western about the oppression of slavery starring Jamie Foxx as the eponymous protagonist. Can't wait to see what QT uses for his 'chain gang' soundtrack.

Until then hail to the Behemoth!

Quentin Tarantino Soundtrack List - Part 1

2011-07-28T10:17:00.000+10:00

Before you gather your posse and come at me with pitch forks, I'm ranking this list on the number of songs each soundtrack has on MY A, B and C list (I'll only list the A and B). Not how many grammy's it may have won or in any way how good the film was. I'm also going to leave From Dusk Til Dawn out of this list as it's easier to just have Tarantino directed soundtracks. Otherwise do I add Desperado (Quentin also acted in this) or even the Little Nicky soundtrack, god help us. I am also going to ignore the dialogue extracts and focus on the music.

Okay I'll jump into this with my:

#7

Jackie Brown

There are a variety of genres here but 70's soul and R&B is the flavour and it serves it well. I would say the soundtrack matched the film in that they are serviceable but not great. There are touches of greatest in "Didn't I blow your mind this time" by The Delfonics and "Across 110th Street" by Bobby Womack (arguably the theme of the film). But then there's "Tennessee Stud" by Johnny Cash that although it's not a bad song doesn't fit the mould for this compilation. Then almost inexplicably great songs like The Supremes' "Baby Love", Jermaine Jackson's "My Touch of Madness" (which isn't found easily), and The Delfonics "La-La (Means I Love You)" are missing but included the extended version. I'm also not a fan of the rap ditty "Letter To the Firm" by Foxy Brown that is played for a few second in the record store. At 51minutes the list is also a little light on considering the songs that could have been chosen. Overall there are 5 good soul songs that could be an integral part of a good soul play list but that's about it.

A - List

B - List
Who is he - Bill Whithers
Natural High - Bloodstone
Across 110th Street - Bobby Womack
Midnight Confession - The Grass Roots
Didn't I Blow you Mind this Time - The Delfonics

#6

Kill Bill vol.1

I am a big fan of this soundtrack and it stood out to me on 1st viewing of the movie and I'm surprised it is so low on the list. But after viewing the number of A and B songs it just proves QT has been able to compile some great lists. The movie and the sound track open with "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down) by Nancy Sinatra and it sets the tone perfectly for both forums. The only other A List song for me is Santa Esmeraldo's "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood", it's 10minutes 29seconds of head bopping goodness. There are 5 B List songs that given my mood could swing into the A List category and the disc itself is congruent in theme but there are 5 other QT soundtracks better. Much better than Jackie Brown and pretty close to #5. I'd have no qualms about recommending this to anyone who liked the movie.

A - List
Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down - Nancy Sinatra
Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood - Santa Esmeraldo
B - List
That Certain Female - Charlie Feathers
The Grand Duel (Parte Prima) - Luis Bacalov
Run Fay Run - Isaac Hayes
The Flower of Carnage - Meiko Kaji
The Lonely Shepherd - Gheorghe Zamfir & James Last

#5

Inglourious Basterds

I am including tracks from the extended version because that's the one I have. This would still place #5 without those tracks. QT is great at picking a strong genre and making it fit seamlessly in his little eccentric universe. IB (the film and soundtrack are no exceptions. The movie is a great WWII flick and this soundtrack is the same. Great use of the eminent Ennio Morricone and a collaboration of eclectic tracks makes this the tightest of the soundtracks so far. The only oddity is the obviously post-WWII Bowie track "Cat People (Putting Out the Fire"). The lack of lyrics makes this a great disc to have on in the background especially when reading.

A - List
the Verdict (dopo La Condanna) - Ennio Morricone
Rabbia E Tarantella - Ennio Morricone
the Surrender (la Resa) - Ennio Morricone
Un Amico - Ennio Morricone
B - List
White Lightning - Charles Bernstein
One Silver Dollar (un Dollaro Bucato) - The Film Studio Orchastra
Tiger Tank - Lalo Schifrin
Cat People (Putting out the Fire) - David Bowie

The top 4 Quentin Tarantino soundtracks will be posted very shortly!

Until then hail to the Maestro!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Top 3 individual performances

2011-07-25T13:10:00.002+10:00

There are 2 performances that stand out as 2 of the best for the whole league but choosing the third best was a little tougher. Having a high number in one or more statistical areas doesn't necessarily make it a great performance. Brady Rawlings often picks up 30+ possessions but they aren't as damaging to the opposition as 30 possessions from a more skillful player like Daniel Wells. Shear possessions and marks don't tell the same story as taking into account whether they were contested or a number of uncontested half-back time wasters.

So these are in order and I'm going to start with #1.

#1 Individual Performance (so far)

Andrew Swallow

Round 11 vs Adelaide Crows

I rate Andrew's game against the Crows as the most complete and influential by any player wearing the Royal Blue this year.

Swallow started the game hot winning 2 clearances and kicking a goal in the first 90 seconds. By quarter-time he had 17 disposals, 14 contested possessions, and 10 clearances to his name. Swallow single handedly won the team the quarter and although he didn't replicate these dizzying stat for the 3 subsequent quarters he still played a great game and ending up with some near records on the way. His 39 possessions were used at an astonishingly high 84% effectiveness. He laid 5 tackles, picked u 17 clearances and kicked 2 goals. He also took 3 uncharacteristic bounces as he was obviously aware he was playing a blinder. His most impressive stat was his 27 contested possessions that was 1 off the all-time record. This stat shows that Swallow wasn't on the end of easy kicks and he went and got the ball himself.

#2 Individual Performance

Jack Ziebell

Round 17 - Western Bulldogs

You could excuse Ziebell his relatively slow start to the season as his is coming off 2 broken legs and hip surgery and he's only 20. Coach Brad Scott subbed him out of most games at the start of the season as his fitness slowly built up and Ziebell has started to repay the faith picking up 20+ possies in 7 out of the last 9 games.

It was on the Sunday afternoon against the Bulldogs that Ziebell played his breakout game picking up 41 valuable possessions. His 28 kicks were more than any Bulldog could manage in possessions for the match. Ziebell entered the league with a mature body and show this by shrugging many tackles as well as laying 6 of his own. He was able to pick up 20 contested possessions and executed 8 valuable clearances. His confidence building during the season and reaching a crescendo as he attacked the ball and took the game on as evident by his 8 inside 50's an a goal.

Ziebell still needs to build a bigger fitness base as an uninterrupted pre-season will help with this but his game is even more magnificent in the reality that Ziebell was only on he ground for 68% of the game time. Imagine what he'll be able to do when he can play a regular midfield role at about 85% GT?

#3 Individual Performances

Todd Goldstein

Round 14 vs Port Adelaide

Picking the 3rd IP was difficult as a few players has very good games and Daniel Wells was unlucky as was Drew Petrie but Goldstein needs to be rewarded for his ultra consistent season thus far that could/should result in an All-Australian selection.

Goldstein set the tone early and finished the game with a staggering 53 hit outs (His second 53HO game for the year) and his attack on the footy a marvel for a player who stands 201cm and 103kgs. He picked up 13 handy possessions including 4 rebounds out of 50 and a goal. When he didn't have the ball on a string he laid 6 tackles.

I'd love to be able to update this post with another stand out performance before the season is over particularly a finals game.

Until then hail to Spitta!

North Melbourne Kangaroos - Round 18 Review

2011-07-24T16:54:00.000+10:00

Round 18 - Brisbane Lions @ET

North Melbourne Kangaroos 4.7 8.10 12.15 17.20 122

Brisbane Lions 4.0 8.5 10.6 11.11 77

I hate game when we're quite strong favourites and this one was as important for final 8 aspirations as any this weekend. 'We' also owed the Lions an uppercut after they beat us earlier in the year when they had no rights!!!

Another dominant 1st quarter wasted by inaccurate goal kicking had me prepared for the worst. 11 scoring shots to open the game is a good effort but 4 goals from those opportunities is not. 4 goals 3 in the second quarter was in improvement in accuracy but saw the Roos holding onto a tenuous 5 point lead at the main break. Daniel Wells was having a rare quiet half but Ryan Bastinac was having a consistent ball winning half to counter it. While some of the usual suspects were playing well Swallow, Goldstein and Petrie (Despite his inaccurate goal kicking!?) what was most refreshing was the younger brigade in Leigh Adams, Bastinac and Jack Ziebell picking up the midfield slack.

I was always of the belief that the Roos would wear the young Lions down and eventually pull away and they did just that kicking 4 goals to 2 in the 3rd quarter and 5 to 1 in the last to pull out a percentage boosting 45 point win. The key match up for the game was in the ruck between 2 of the up and coming tall timber of the AFL Todd Goldstein and Matthew Leuenberger. They are 1 and 2 respectively in the league for hitouts and are capable of going forward and adding to the scoreboard. It was almost a tie but Goldstein stamped another claim for All-Australian honours with 42 hit outs and 2 very important goals. Leuey was probably 50/50 in ruck contests against Goldy but Goldy's tank enabled him to play an astounding 98% of game time to Leuey's 68% which allowed him to attend more stoppages and therefore end up with the more hit outs. I tipping this two ruckmen to be the premiere ruckmen of the comp for the next 10 years like Dean Cox and Aaron Sandilands. If Petrie had kicked straighter we would have been 'Best on Ground' with 13 very strong marks and 8 scoring shots. Unfortunately he kicked 3.5 and should have had at least 6 but in the end it was enough and the Roos have the chance to enter the 8 next weekend if they can beat Carlton on the big stage of the Roo grown Friday Night canvas. On a Lions note Simon Black played a blinder and should be good for at least 2 more years!

Roo Rating: 8 / 10

Daniel Wells

Daniel had a quiet day amassing only 17 possessions and almost half of them in the last quarter. It is his lowest output for the year and goes with a n 18 and a 19 possie performance as the only time he hasn't had 20+ in 18 rounds. It goes to show how good he is when his 12 kicks all hit a target and he drifted forward and kicked 2 goals plus an easy snap that was just wide left. He also laid 5 bone crunching tackles to match his new aggressive inside game. If Wells wants to be considered elite and one of the A grade players in the comp he will need to step up on Friday night with a team lifting performance.

Wells Rating: 6.5 / 10

Until then hail to the Dish!!

3 about to become 4

2011-07-22T14:47:00.001+10:00

Damn, it hit me today that in less than 6 weeks I'm going to be a father (again).

Are we ready and how will Ben react. Apparently he has hit a couple of babies at Childcare and maybe this is because we are talking about babies more.

We're still waiting for Ben's bed to arrive and the transition for him out of his cot is probably going to be the hardest. Yes I know we'll be hit by a whole new level of sleep deprivation but I'm already up at least twice during the night at the moment and Annaliese will be doing the late night feeds. So hopefully Ben accepts that they will be a little bundle taking up our attention and time. Guess we'll find out - in 5 weeks 6 days actually!

Anyway it's about to get real, real soon!

Until then hail to Caesar!

North Melbourne Kangaroos R14 - R17 Review

2011-07-21T14:53:00.001+10:00

Round 14 – Port Adelaide Power @AAMI

Port Adelaide Power 5.3 9.4 10.5 14.7 91

North Melbourne Kangaroos 5.0 12.4 18.8 21.10 136

This was a must win for the Roos and as such is always seen as a danger game for me! Port are fighting very hard NOT to be the team that wins the 'spoon' in the Gold Coast Suns 1st year. At quarter time when they were up by 3 points I wasn't panicking but knew they need to stamp their authority on the game and thankfully in the 2nd quarter they did. Despite Port kicking 4 goals for the term the Roos poured 6 goals 4 onto the scoreboard and it had the effect of warm treacle. Port felt the omnipresent pressure from said scoreboard and the scoreline slowly drifted out of reach like Wilson (or should I say Sherrin) out at sea. Daniel Wells and Jack Ziebell were having quality games and supplying the forward line with quality entries. If Drew Petrie and Brent Harvey could have kicked straighter the final margin would have been larger than the 45 points it eventuated into. Petrie kicked 4.3 and Harvey 3.3 but 21.10 for the team was a great sign after games earlier in the season being sub .500 and seemingly costing the 4 points. Todd Goldstein didn't gather a heap of the pill (6 possessions) but he did rag-doll the opposition recording an almost record 53 hit outs and 6 tackles to stamp his name in All-Australian contention. The Roo interestingly again had the most players on the field who were yet to notch up 50 games.

Roo Rating : 8.5 / 10

Daniel Wells

Daniel again gathered 20+ possies, equal leading the team with 27 including a team high 6 inside 50's. His silky skills helped break the Power back in the 2 and 3rd terms and his attacked on the ball has proved thus far not to be an aberration. He also chimed in with a handy goal.

Wells Rating: 8 / 10

Round 15 - St Kilda Saints @ET

North Melbourne Kangaroos 3.2 7.3 9.6 10.10 70

St Kilda Saints 3.4 10.5 12.7 12.7 79

This could prove to be an important game finals wise as the Saints are finally hitting form that pre-season selectors were tipping. In a typically low scoring see-sawing affair the lead changed several time and neither team ever looking out of the running for the biccies. It was arguable the 2nd quarters that won the Saints the game when they piled on 7 goals to 4. They were only to score 2 goals for the 2nd half but it was enough to hold on for a 9 point victory. The Kangaroos more than had their chances in the 2nd half but rushed wayward kicking cost them the win. 1.4 in the last quarter was inexcusable considering the high amount of time the ball spent inside their 50 metre arc and the fact the Saints didn't score a point and never looked like it. They flooded their back line and the Roo didn't play smart football bombing it onto Drew Petrie when he was often outnumbered 3 to 1 instead of looking for a 2nd lead up option. Brady Rawlings picked up a Roo high 25 possies but is rarely damaging with the ball. Todd Goldstein continued his stellar and consistent year with 47 hit outs giving him 100 over weeks. Leigh Adams was a bright light up forward kicking 3 goals straight in a close game.

Roo Rating: 7 / 10

Daniel Wells

Well again picked up 20+ possessions and pumped the ball 5 times into attack and laid 6 tackles. He wasn't at his best but 13 of his kicks are more damaging than 30 Rawlings disposals

Wells Rating: 7 / 10

Round 16 - Collingwood Magpies @MCG

Collingwood Magpies 4.3 10.6 16.12 22.15 147

North Melbourne Kangaroos 1.5 2.8 3.9 3.12 30

After the jail style pumping the Roos suffered in the 2nd round to the Pies I was just hoping for a better effort, not deluding my self with a win. The Roos actually had more of the ball and had they kicked straighter (1.5) could have been in the game but the lead slowly then quickly blew out and the young Joeys put their heads and eventually lost by a record (to the Pies) 114. Kicking 3.12 for the day didn't help either. I will say however that the Pies are a bloody good team!! Zeibell and Wells again tried with 27 and 29 possies respectively and Goldstein won his position with 38 hit outs.

Roo Rating: 1 / 10

Daniel Wells

Daniel tried for much of the day but with so many passengers even his impact on the contest was lessened. Still one of the best Roos though that doesn't say much.6 tackles and 5 I50's are handy stats in any game.

Wells Rating: 6 / 10

Round 17 – Western Bulldogs @ET

North Melbourne Kangaroos 3.3 11.7 13.11 21.16 142

Western Bulldogs 5.3 7.4 13.6 17.9 111

I hope hoping the Roos would respond after a 100+ point walloping and according to history it was never in doubt. Since 2001 the Roos have lost 6 games by 100+ and have also won every game after that. They are the only team with a 100% record. When the Doggies picked up a 22 point buffer last in the last quarter I was cautious but all the typical Roos were playing including a great opening quarter to Daniel Wells. Halfway through the 2nd quarters the game opened up and the Roos managed to score a flurry of goals. Live-wire small forward Matty Campbell relished the insistent I50's registering 3 1st half goals and Petrie was clunking marks. North finished the quarter with a year record of 8 goals 4 and a 27 point lead. The Bulldogs came out and played some good footy in the 3rd kicking 6 goals to 2 trailing by only 5 points at the last break. I was still optimistic as Ziebell, Wells and Swallow were getting plenty of the ball and Goldstein was having another solid game. The lead changed several times through out the term and Ziebell continued to find the aget with ease ending up with a crazy 41 possies including 21 contested and 13 clearances. He had 28 kicks, 5 marks, 6 tackles, 8 I50's and a goal to his name by the final siren and all on playing only 67% game time. Ziebell has been much maligned through out his career but when you take into account he has had 2 broken legs and hip surgery and he's only 20 it's quite remarkable that he is not playing in the #2's let alone picking up 40+ possies. He is the 2nd youngest player ever to get that much leather in one game. The Roos had too much of the ball and ending up kicking another 8 goals 5 for the quarter to run away with a 31 point lead and a real chance of playing finals. This would be up there with the Essendon win in the fact that they were challenged and responded with great footy. Andrew Swallow also had a good game after a couple of quiet ones finishing with 33 including 8 I50's and 5 tackles. The skipper Boomer Harvey had a blinder of a last term and provided a lot of spark finishing with 26 including 2 goals and 5 goal contributions.
Roo Rating : 9/ 10

Daniel Wells

Daniel got the ball 33 times including 23 extremely damaging kicks 9 I 50's and 4 tackles. At half time Wells had more kicks than any Bulldogs player had possessions. If Ziebell hadn't hadn't gone berserk Wells would have been a clear Best on Ground. As it was during the coaches voting Wells equalled Ziebell with 9 out of a possible 10 (a 5 and a 4 vote). Wells is seriously getting All-Australian and Brownlow talk in many media circles and would be a favourite slightly ahead of Goldstein for the Syd Barker medal (North Melbourne Best and Fairest). This has clearly been Wells' best season so far in consistency and the amount of great games.

Wells Rating: 9 / 10

Until then hail to the zieBULL!!