The Australian Football League and AFL Travel have announced a tour package for the International Rules Matches in Ireland this October. The AFL is expected to announce the identity of the Tour Ambassador shortly. The ground portion of the package will be available to non Australians and will cost approximately $3,800 in US Dollars ($AUD 4,990) and includes the following:
In Galway:
AFL Weekly Review
by Tim Murphy
This was heritage round with a 1980s theme. Unfortunately the theme didn’t extend off the field, so we could pay $10 to get in and buy beer in cans at $2 a go.
At Football Park:
Adelaide 4.3 7.6 14.7 19.10.124
North Melbourne 1.3 4.4 6.8 7.10.52
Big crowd in to celebrate a significant milestone - Drew Petrie’s 100th game. Oh, and Camry skipper Mark Ricciuto played his 300th. The papers were full o’tributes to ‘Roo’ including Ash Porter’s hagiography in ‘The Age’, which omitted any mention of Ricciuto’s judiciously-applied thuggery. No elbows-to-heads or Ramsgate Hotel car-parks at all. Ricciuto is a terrific player though, who’s won everything the game has to offer and here became the quickest to 300 games - only 13 seasons. Just a premiership as captain to go, this year maybe.
Grundy Steals The Show On Debut
Frank Ienco reporting for AFANA from Sydney
Sydney have put a controversial fortnight behind them to put their 2006 season firmly back on track and remain in the top Eight with a convincing 48-point victory over Richmond at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Saturday night (AEST).
Two weeks after coach Paul Roos dismissed his side’s chances of defending their Premiership following a loss to Adelaide and the subsequent fall-out of Nick Davis’ demotion after that match, (which has since dominated the Sydney media), the Swans returned to some semblance of the side that won them last year’s flag, playing committed, uncompromising football to rip the Tigers apart in the third quarter on their away to a 14. 17 (101) to 7.11 (53) win.
CBA First, Clubs Second
The league will not commit to the annual dividend sum for the 16 clubs until negotiations are concluded with the AFLPA over the new CBA, which is now expected to be a done deal by the end of July. It is believed the clubs were pushing for a $32 million disbursement, but may get half or less that sum.
As for the CBA negotiations, it is likely the AFLPA will get the pay raises it wanted over the next 5 years. The pay raises will be incremental with a 7% raise in 2007 and 2008, then 5%, 4%, and 4% over the following 3 years. The players' retirement
West Coast Scrape Home, Again
by Tim Stone reporting for AFANA @ Subiaco, WA
It may have been a small consolation, but West Coast have inflicted the knock out blow to Sydney in the much anticipated Grand Final rematch in Round 15, in front of a packed house at Subiaco on Saturday.
And didn’t they get their moneys worth...
AFL Preview Round 16 Season of 2006
Last Week: 7 from 8 – Total 80/120 (66.6%)
Not a bad effort lat week but I must admit I am a bit savage about missing the 8 correct. It was either Fremantle or Collingwood that let me down and I’m thinkin’ Freo. They lose when you tip them to win and they win when you tip them to lose. A very inconsistent team. How did you all go? I made up one extra point on the leader who is 3 ahead with 7 rounds to go. Another point made up this week would make it interesting.
AFL Preview Round 15 Season 2006
Until Collingwood and the Western Bulldogs ran out onto their respective grounds on Sunday the tips were looking good. I’d even given you all a boost with the selection of Richmond to beat the Power.AFL Round 15 Review by Tim Murphy
At the MCG:
Richmond 1.2 2.3 3.8 7.10.52
Melbourne 1.4 5.9 8.12 9.16.70
The gap between contenders and pretenders. The scoreboard flatters the Tigers, Melbun hit the post half-a-dozen times and were in control for most of it. Not an attractive game, it was played between heavily flooded backlines at a brain-deadening tempo by the Tigers.
Better late than never. This recap of the last fortnight has an authentic Chinese air, I’m chain-smoking in a public place, spitting continually and sucking down some Tsingtao.
Adelaide
R13 Adelaide 21.21.147 d. Geelong 8.7.55 at Football Park
R14 Adelaide 15.11.101 d. Sydney 8.14.62 at the SCG
The Camrys are now warm flag favourites and are routinely referred to in the Melbourne press as the ‘Adelaide Androids’ and the ‘Crowbots’, born of coach Neil Craig’s predilection for training programs based on NASA fitness routines. A fortnight back the Cressidas brought Geelong’s nascent revival to a screeching halt,
ENJOY 40% OFF SITEWIDE!
