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Yes, I think that it's the right call to go ahead. And I tend to have a more optimistic view about how likely it is, that coronavirus cases will peak fairly soon and then gradually decline. While I agree that introducing tough measures to stop the spread is a good thing, it seems to me that the number of carriers may still be quite small. For instance, the total number of number of confirmed cases is currently 565. Percentage wise, that's around 0.0022% of the population. Or in football terms, if you randomly selected 100,000 people and put them in the MCG, you would only expect around two people to be a confirmed case. I'm not sure how carrier numbers relate to confirmed cases, but I suspect that the number shouldn't be that much higher? Anyway, if you have 44 players and a couple of a hundred staff at the MCG, it's not very likely that they'll catch the virus. And if that likelihood is similar in almost all day to day situations, then we might start to get on top of it, sooner than most people expect.
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One thing about playing to no crowds, is it opens up a lot more venues that don't clash with cricket. Am I right that blacktown oval is the only AFL standard ground permanently available for footy in Sydney?Comment
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How will players not in the Firsts get to be promoted? No NEAFL. No chance for them to show their wares, or even get solid practice?Comment
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The 2020 draft is going to be interesting with no form for a year to go on except for players who have just been delisted.Comment
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I'm picking Essendon to win the Premiership this year.
They already have Hird Immunity!
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There is U17s form to go on. It's not as instructive as the draft year form, including full NAB League fixtures and U18s Championships, but it is still quite indicative. Some of the names from last year's top ten like Rowell, Anderson, Ash, Young, Serong and Green were all touted as top ten prospects around March of 2019, and by November were all selected in the top ten. The year before, Walsh, Lukosius, Rankine, the King twins, Blakey and Bailey Smith were all already top ten prospects at this point in their draft year, and by November, were selected as such. That is usually the case in most drafts.
I have a suspicion that we will finish bottom four again this year, which could allow us the chance to sneak a live pick in before a bid comes for Campbell (5-10 range he'd fall in on current form). If we managed to get two top ten picks, as well as Gulden, that's a win for us. I would much rather us make finals however.Comment
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Titus is on song as usual......here's some selected gems.
"Imagine if the politicians who have slashed funding to science in the past few years and have been slow to react to this thing, were also in danger of losing their jobs? I bet we’d see a lot more direct financial assistance flowing far quicker. It seems the best approach if you’ve lost your job is to quickly start an airline and then watch the government support role in."
"Given we are talking about Fremantle, a reminder to stop panic buying toilet paper."
"It’s fun to make jokes about the Giants having no fans, mainly because it upsets GWS fans, but even they have more people than are legally allowed to gather. Mocking the size of a Giant’s crowd is now a relic of a simpler time."
"Plus, this one involves Gold Coast and Port, a match up that couldn’t even win over the Chinese, notorious AFL fanatics."
"Obviously, the real tragedy is that Juddchella may not go ahead this year, denying us all the chance to mock something together. Sad."
"Somehow this is all Hawthorn’s fault. I’m not sure how but I’ll figure it out."
"Perhaps the only real winners in all this are Melbourne, who don’t have to face their nemesis, Eagles supporters. An empty Perth Stadium should see the free kick count approach something close to fair."
A highly unhelpful guide to Round One - Titus O'Reily | Don’t have faith in yourselfComment
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The reason for the shorter quarters is to allow time for more gambling ads and for the commentary "team" to regale us with even
more tales from their own illustrious careers. They were originally pushing for twelve minute quarters but the AFLPA go wind of
it and bucked up as they sensed another pay cut discussion rearing it's head.Comment
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Wild speculation, unsubstantiated rumours, silly jokes and opposition delight in another's failures is what makes an internet forum fun.
Blessed are the cracked for they are the ones who let in the light.Comment
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I have to weigh in. The whole Corona virus concern during the game was ... well ... farcical.
In tonight’s game it opens with the two captains approaching the middle and the umpire instructing them to stand on opposite sides of the centre circle (so as not to get too close).
The miked umpire then instructs “No hand shakes mate” at the toss of the coin.
After kicking goals, they tap feet and bump elbows or forearms.
Stand a few meters from anyone interviewing them. Don’t let fans near them at any stage ... before or after the game. The Swans have instructed supporters not to approach players for autographs at this stage. Chartered flights. Straight from the plane to the hotel. Isolated in hotels. All fair enough to reduce the risk of virus spread. No fans at games is to protect the supporters as much as it it to protect players (and this is good).
But then tonight both teams then spend 4x 17 minute quarters tackling, bumping, breathing on, sweating on each other. Completely at odds with the PM’s advice of being 1.5m apart (obviously impractical when playing sport).
Then after the game, some players hug, some still shake hands, a couple of them spit. They huddle up at times and breath on each other nice and close.
The contrast in meticulousness is simply ridiculous and perplexing.
And given the in the NBA the season has been suspended after a player is found positive for COVID-19, and now that many players have been tested and at least 10 and 4 staff have tested positive - and asymptotic. I can’t see how this season will be sustainable. The AFL would surely fear testing every player as the probability is there will be some who do test positive. & even if they did test every player at the same time tomorrow - and all were lucky enough to test negative, we are approaching the flu season where weekly, we will all be vulnerable. It is statistically inevitable that players will contract COVID.
As someone who works in a hospital and daily seeing the serious attention to precautions against COVID and receiving alerts regarding the virus, I am truly perplexed at the AFLs precautions, the actual execution of these precautions at a practical level and as to the point of this season continuing.
Don’t get me wrong. I love footy. I adore my Swans. But I can’t understand the point of the AFL continuing an already compromised season, or the motivation for it (ok, I might have suspicions regarding the latter). If the persistence is financially driven - it will potentially result in a multi-million dollar fiscal loss to the organisation and any affiliated organisations, the perspective should be the the UN is estimating that the global cost of COVID will be over a trillion dollars.
$1,000,000,000,000
And I’d imagine this is US$. At our current exchange rate, that’s 2 trillion Aussie dollars.
The AFLs concern is a drop in the ocean.
And that’s just the financial impact.
Data from Johns Hopkins University showed on Wednesday that cases of COVID-19 have surpassed 200,000 worldwide, with more than 8,000 people killed by the virus globally to date. More than 82,000 people around the world have recovered from the virus, according to the data.
"We assume that the virus will infect around 50% of the world population; 20% of the cases will be severe, and 1-3% will result in deaths," analysts from the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) declared in a note.
I hope they are wrong, as 1-3% of 7.5 billion people is still a staggering number.
I love footy. I love the Swans. But - especially this year ... it’s just a game.Last edited by goswannies; 20 March 2020, 10:08 PM.Comment
.....and it would be sweeter than bitter. Eddie would probably try to have it annulled.
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