Goodes going to South Africa in Feb

[Sanecow]

Just in: The trip has been extended to Zimbabwe.

[goswannie14]

Originally posted by Sanecow
Just in: The trip has been extended to Zimbabwe.

...and Mugabe is going to umpire the matches.

[j s]

Originally posted by goswannie14
...and Mugabe is going to umpire the matches.

Some years ago (when things were more stable) I took a holiday to Zimababwe.

The flight over was uneventful but after landing at Harare there was an announcement: We would not be able to disembark for a while.

The reason: Mugabe was due to land on his official jet and for "security reasons" we mere tourists couldn't share the same airport with him.

Two hours later we eventually got off the plane. Believe me, being on a plane on the ground in the tropics for two hours with no adequate airconditioning is not fun.

For a nation that even then had an economy that was in tatters and was desperate for foreign revenue it was a act of supreme arrogance. But that's Mugabe! Adolf would have loved him.

[AussieAnge]

Originally posted by Charlie
Yes we can.

External interests are all well and good, but there's a right time and a wrong time. February is the wrong time. I expect the players to be working their butt off to be ready for round one in February. Not chaperoning a bunch of teenagers on an overseas trip.

I hope that you will be as dedicated to your future employers' cause as you expect the players to be.
I feel fairly confident that the club would not have sanctioned this trip had they thought it would be detrimental to Adam's pre-season preparation.

[Charlie]

Originally posted by AussieAnge
I hope that you will be as dedicated to your future employers' cause as you expect the players to be.
I feel fairly confident that the club would not have sanctioned this trip had they thought it would be detrimental to Adam's pre-season preparation.

I'm quite sure you're right. Unlike some here, however, I don't happen to believe that I should agree with something simply because the club does. I'm also quite sure that AFL players know and should accept that their occupation requires dedication to the cause beyond that of a typical employer/employee relationship.

[ROK Lobster]

Goodes (or any player) is not answerable to the fans. He answers to the club. If the club have approved the trip (and I expect that he would have had to have taken leave etc, that if he were to just up and go he would be breaching his employment agreement) then what is there to complain about?

[Charlie]

Originally posted by ROK Lobster
Goodes (or any player) is not answerable to the fans. He answers to the club. If the club have approved the trip (and I expect that he would have had to have taken leave etc, that if he were to just up and go he would be breaching his employment agreement) then what is there to complain about?

I'm not expecting him to answer to us. However, last time I checked this was a discussion forum. If any discussion was rendered irrelevant simply because the club has already made their decision, this would be a pretty quiet place.

[ROK Lobster]

Originally posted by Charlie
I'm not expecting him to answer to us.

Originally posted by Charlie

External interests are all well and good, but there's a right time and a wrong time. February is the wrong time. I expect the players to be working their butt off to be ready for round one in February. Not chaperoning a bunch of teenagers on an overseas trip.

[Charlie]

There is nothing contradictory between those two posts. Perhaps the part of my post that you elected not to quote was inconvenient for you.

[goswannie14]

Personally with it being Goodes I don't have a problem with this trip. If it was others I may be more concerned. I don' doubt his lack of commitment, and I would never expect anything more of him than I would expect of myself. I think both Adam and the South African youngsters will benefit from this experience.

[originalswan]

It is the maturity and level headedness of the player to undertake such an exercise that must be stressed. Certain "immature" players may not be able to keep up to the standards required, but Goodes does not seem to give any indication that he would require constant supervision. How would you feel if your "employers" gave you a couple of weeks off the rigours of office/factory work with a two week new and exciting assignment? An assignment close to your heart! - I myself would appreciate it and want to prove to my "employers" that their decision was correct and their faith in me was warranted - So will Goodes from what I have seen of him.

[katie-scarlett]

this might be a naive question, but will 2 weeks away really harm his preparation that much?

[Eala ?ireann]

doubt it if he trains while there.

[Eala ?ireann]

which i'm sure he will.

[Wardy]

Originally posted by Charlie
There is nothing contradictory between those two posts. Perhaps the part of my post that you elected not to quote was inconvenient for you.

Charlie, you have said to others in the past not to be so defensive. Perhaps its time you took some of your own advice.