Standard of SANFL this year?

[sjt]

You never saw Rick Davies, Mick Redden or Peter Carey play?

Peter Darley would have had Paul Lindsay for breakfast not to mention what Neil Kerley would have done to him!

Look, put it this way. If you were able to take a sample of 1,000 people and take them to the 1973 SANFL GF then the 2009 SANFL GF then say to them which one do they want to go back and see again I think the majority would say the 1973 GF. Don't you?

No, I really enjoyed the 2009 grand final, much more.

[doggies4eva]

You never saw Rick Davies, Mick Redden or Peter Carey play?

Peter Darley would have had Paul Lindsay for breakfast not to mention what Neil Kerley would have done to him!

Look, put it this way. If you were able to take a sample of 1,000 people and take them to the 1973 SANFL GF then the 2009 SANFL GF then say to them which one do they want to go back and see again I think the majority would say the 1973 GF. Don't you?

No, I really enjoyed the 2009 grand final, much more.

agreed and the 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004........

[MagareyLegend]

[redden whites]

the current Geelong side would be far superior to any VFL side of the past.

Geez I doubt that" far superior" claim........Harry Taylor v Dermott Brereton; Scarlett v Dunstall; Cam Mooney v Chris Langford; Tom Hawkins v Chris Mew; Matthew Stokes v Gary Ayres; Andrew Mackie v Dipper , Shannon Byrnes v Andrew Collins.

No mention of Buckenara,Platten,Pritchard,Tuck,Curran,Morris,Schwab and Morrisey yet which would be a few break evens too I would think.

The cat machine of Ablett,Bartel,Corey,Kelly,Enright,Chapman,Ling ,Milburn and Stevie J all being able to play Forward,Midfield and help out down back ;and all being at the 1 bloody club at the 1 bloody time is incredible. Let us not forget they CAN play these all guys because of a 4 man bench too which makes them look even more daunting maybe compared to the great sides of the past.
FAR SUPERIOR .......I think not

[doggies4eva]

the current Geelong side would be far superior to any VFL side of the past.

Geez I doubt that" far superior" claim........Harry Taylor v Dermott Brereton; Scarlett v Dunstall; Cam Mooney v Chris Langford; Tom Hawkins v Chris Mew; Matthew Stokes v Gary Ayres; Andrew Mackie v Dipper , Shannon Byrnes v Andrew Collins.

No mention of Buckenara,Platten,Pritchard,Tuck,Curran,Morris,Schwab and Morrisey yet which would be a few break evens too I would think.

The cat machine of Ablett,Bartel,Corey,Kelly,Enright,Chapman,Ling ,Milburn and Stevie J all being able to play Forward,Midfield and help out down back ;and all being at the 1 bloody club at the 1 bloody time is incredible. Let us not forget they CAN play these all guys because of a 4 man bench too which makes them look even more daunting maybe compared to the great sides of the past.
FAR SUPERIOR .......I think not

OK I'll psy thst one Redden white (suffering the blues).

Delete the word far. The rest stands

[am Bays]

Its frigging awful, a slow decline started about 5 years ago but its become steep in the last 2 years.
Some SANFL clubs try to play the AFL style that was in vogue before Geelong revolutionised the AFL and don't have the skills to pull it off.
Amateur, Country Footy or SFL is more appealing to watch than the current SANFL standard.
Go watch a couple of VFL games, much better to watch. (WAFLs probably same but I haven't seen any recently)
Let the abuse begin but that's my opinion.

I agree. I'd rather watch a local SFL game than go to the SANFL. I'm afraid my SANFL viewing will be limited to watching it on the ABC.
I am no SANFL expert but the standard has decreased over the past few years perhaps due to a number of players opting to go to regional leagues instead

Well having watched an SFL game yesterday the first half anyway (and judging byt he last half scores it didn't get any better) if you think SFL is more enjoyable to watch than the SANFL - give yourself an uppercut. Slow, bumbling and fumbly and at least the game I watched was reasonably close rather than a one-way procession judging by the scores in todays Mail.

Nup, SANFL still the best footy to watch bar none. Really enjoyed the standard of the Bays v West game two weeks ago and Sturt played a top natch brand last week when we played them. Painfull to watch from a Bays fan perspective but from a footballing purists point of view, you had to appreciate it.

[Wedgie]

Well having watched an SFL game yesterday the first half anyway (and judging byt he last half scores it didn't get any better) if you think SFL is more enjoyable to watch than the SANFL - give yourself an uppercut. Slow, bumbling and fumbly and at least the game I watched was reasonably close rather than a one-way procession judging by the scores in todays Mail.

The SFL currently has big issues with the discrepencies between teams, they really do need to go back to 2 divisions.
Make sure you go watch a match between the top teams.
Mind you "slow, bumbling and fumbly" would be an improvement on what I've seen in the SANFL the last couple of years (and I wont even go into the varying umpiring standards/systems)!

[Dutchy]

The standard the Eagles played yesterday was first class, some of the best cleanest SANFL footy ive seen for a while

[am Bays]

Mind you "slow, bumbling and fumbly" would be an improvement on what I've seen in the SANFL the last couple of years (and I wont even go into the varying umpiring standards/systems)!

Well, you wll keep watching North....

[Wedgie]

Mind you "slow, bumbling and fumbly" would be an improvement on what I've seen in the SANFL the last couple of years (and I wont even go into the varying umpiring standards/systems)!

Well, you wll keep watching North....

No need for the smiley faces, you're right!
Mind you the only other games that appeal to me are at Norwood so I doubt that would change my opinion too much.

[Adelaide Hawk]

I watch Norwood each week, so it's obvious what I think of the standard. I watched a quarter of the Eagles v Sturt game on TV, not bad, but we used to watch a better style of footy than that each week in the 70s, 80s and 90s. One, maybe two handballs, then a long kick to position. These days it's 4, 5, 6, handballs then a kick under pressure.

Also, watching Norwood means mostly night games, so that doesn't help the standard much either. The Norwood v South game was entertaining because it was close, but that's the only reason.

[redandblack]

I agree totally with am Bays (faints)

Players who struggle for a kick in the SANFL Reserves are often very good players at Amateur level. There's not a remote comparison between the standards. The SANFL standard isn't affected by a lack of talent, it's affected by game styles and pressure. That's just the natural progress of the game. It's tough out there and it's hard to get a kick. Some games are crappy, some are great, but that's footy in 2010.

[Wedgie]

I look forward to seeing a great one, seems years since the last one I saw, been a bloody long time where I only have to look back to my last AFL game watched to remember one. Even though footys my favourite sport I currently enjoy watching Union, League and even soccer games to the SANFL as far as a spectacle goes, luckily watching teams like Geelong in the AFL and watching kids play keeps my faith in the game. Blind loyalty, this site and the Roost, alcohol and my mates that go help maintain the only interest I have in SANFL, if I was there to watch enjoyable footy I would have given up a while back.
Feel like its child abuse dragging my kids along who love footy but are bored silly at SANFL games. They know if they behave we'll take them interstate to see some decent footy a few times a year though.

[redandblack]

I watched the Eagles playing Sturt on TV yesterday and thought it was a very enjoyable game to watch.

Then again, I thought the Round 1 game against the Roosters was a great game

[Wedgie]

I watched the Eagles playing Sturt on TV yesterday and thought it was a very enjoyable game to watch.

Then again, I thought the Round 1 game against the Roosters was a great game

lol, one side was great, I'll give you that!

[Adelaide Hawk]

if I was there to watch enjoyable footy I would have given up a while back.

I feel the same way. I really only turn up each week out of loyalty, and because I have been watching Norwood since 1965, it's more out of habit than enjoyment. I have a resignation walking into the ground that I will most probably be annoyed, rather than delighted by the standard of the game.

But, I know that nobody is going to wave a magic wand and restore football to the great game it once was, so I just have to live with it. They only thing that keeps me going is my interest in the history of the game.

[redandblack]

AH, I suspect I've been going to the footy about as long as you, or not far short of it, and I feel the opposite. I get just as much enjoyment watching the courage and skill of Jimmy Ezard as I did watching other players of the past.

Each competition has its glory days and the SANFL has obviously suffered due to the drain of its best players to the AFL, but the game is tough and demanding.

Yearning for the old days won't bring them back and I look forward to each game just as I always have.

[Adelaide Hawk]

I don't yearn for the good old days, I yearn for football that entertains me. Remember the days when the umpire would bounce the ball and the crowd would yell in anticipation? Now, all you hear is the murmer of about 100 private conversations around the ground. Not much excited cheering, because there's not much to to get excited about.

[redandblack]

I think you've made upyour mind before you go, AH?

[Adelaide Hawk]

I think you've made upyour mind before you go, AH?

Look mate, you're happy with today's footy .. I'm happy for you. I'm not. Is that okay?