Hogg Shield Grand Final Thread 2012

[Rik E Boy]

Hogg Champions League

Has Been vs. Longwood Lions

When I look at these two lineups I suddenly realise just how much I still have to learn about this SuperCoach caper. There isn't any room in these teams for guys like Lee Spurr or Travis Cloke all of whom make servicable backups while the rest of us put the fires out.

There are eleven uniques in this final and I make it 6-5 the Lions way. The most questionable calls are Wright over Chapman as I think Chapman will be better next week when the finals are on but who knows what the Chapstick may produce. The battle between Dangerfield and Thompson is also a very tough one to pick but I've gone Thompson because of his awesome record against the Sunnies. There are a lot of Eagles in the two teams and I'm picking most of them to lose their match ups. The Lions have Dean Cox though so I'm picking him to score more than Nick Nat as there are huge questions marks about him..he's all duck or no dinner and he went big last round. My selection for this Grand Final is that Longwood Lions will win the first ever Hogg Champions League title.

regards,

REB

[Rik E Boy]

Hogg Premier League

Q Before You vs. Captain Who?

With Collingwood playing Essendon this week the Captain faces a selection conundrum in regards to Travis Cloke. Cloke has been spudderific for most of the season but you can't help but feel he has a big match coming against the dispirited Bombers. His cheapest option Zorko should be a lock for selection and a possible omission could well be Pavlich who looks a candidate for a late withdrawal or the red vest.

I reckon the uniques go 8-2 the Captain's way in this match but there are some mighty close calls - Lewis over Chapman, Goldstein over Giles, Pavlich/Cloke over Roughead could all easily go the other way. I reckon the Captain is going to lose plenty of sleep with his forward line selection as the Q Man is no bunny as myself and CoverKing could tell you. Having said that, Groover hasn't done much wrong now for many weeks and I reckon his magic touch will not desert him. I'm tipping that Captain Who? will be the Hogg Premier winner this season after a very close contest indeed.

regards,

REB

[Rik E Boy]

Hogg Division I

Longwood Lions vs. The Spuds

This is going to be a very close Grand Final with two excellent teams playing off. The Longwood Lions I have as favourites in the Champions League Grand Final but I'm not sure they can pull off the double by beating The Spuds in this match. I'm not too sure why The Spuds are called that though as they have blokes like Matty Kruezer and Chris Yarran sitting on the bench although Brett Ratten might say 'and rightly so' about now.

There are eleven uniques in this game and even though the Lions look to hold a 6-5 advantage here I'm liking the overall squad of The Spuds to score more points. The Lions really need a big match from the Porpise which is possible against the Suns and they need Pearce Hanley to be consistent in this match as Alaska is up against top opposition here. Consistency is hardly a strongpoint for Hanley although when he is on song he does score well. For the Spuds the worry is as always this year, Brian Lake. While Lake won't miss again what score is he going to produce this week? I reckon he might produce a half decent one to finish off an up and down year by him. In what looks to be the closest of all the Grand Finals I'm tipping The Spuds to win this and deny Alaska the chance to win the double.

regards,

REB

[Rik E Boy]

Hogg Division II

cdfcdevils vs. Greedy Guns

As I don't have access to this division (that's actually the Boongas Bulldogs jumper up there) this is more of a toss of the coin than the others. I've only had Dogmatic's excellent analysis to go on so I'll try to do it some justice here. Firstly, even though the sharks were dead unlucky to miss this Grand Final there is no disputing the claims of the two sides who did get promoted. cdfcdevils have been in Division II for a few seasons and cleaned up the Guns narrowly in the Qualifying final a few weeks ago so they have form against this opponent. Both teams racked up over 2500 in that game and that was something that spiro started to struggle with as the season drew to its conclusion.

The Guns of course, have Champions League pedigree and this might have effected their performance over the course of the season. Despite this they only finished one game behind the devils on the ladder. With the guns concentrating solely on Division II glory here I'm going to tip the Greedy Guns to win the Grand Final and reverse the Qualifying Final result from two weeks ago.

Just don't ask me why LOL.

regards,

REB

[Rik E Boy]

Hogg Division III

WLF vs. Harrynutts

If you are looking for Duds and Donuts don't expect to find any in either of these teams. Normally when you lineup the uniques there are obvious weak links but only Lake for WLF looks the odd one out. In terms of uniques I give Harrynutts the edge 6-5 but one match up in particular that could prove to be decisive in this final is Taylor Walker for WLF vs. Adam Goodes for Harrynutts. While Goodes has the better pedigree he will be off to Cat Park while Tay Tay should have another day out against the Gold Cost Midgets. He'll get more delivery than that chick on '19 kids and counting'.

Having said that though you just can't go past the number one ranked team in the Hogg and that's where Harrynutts currently sits in the pecking order. In a match that could go either way I'm tipping Harrynutts to claim the flag and correct his Grand Final loss from last year when he went in unbeaten in the Bunny Bowl and got rolled. But then again, no one will know what the hell is going on cos that is one hell of a jumper clash.

regards,

REB

[Rik E Boy]

Hogg Division IV

Ecky's Fevolas vs. Hodges_Heroes

The last time these two sides met in Division IV the match ended up a draw and since then no one has been able to take any points off Ecky's Fevolas as they marched their way to the Grand Final. Hodgey missed out on the top four by the skin of their teeth but have played very well in the finals series to earn a play off spot against the minor premiers.

Even though the points were shared the last time these sides met it looks as though Ecky has considerably added to his firepower and he looks to have Hodgey covered. Ironically, it might be Luke Hodge himself who proves to be the player that sinks Hodgey so full credit to Ecky there as I haven't seen Hodge in too many sides when doing these previews and he has been braining them in recent weeks. I have already stated in an earlier preview that I feel that big Trav Cloke is due and could prove to be a handy collect for anyone who dares to select him in the Grand Final. Unlike other Grand Final teams I can spot a donut in the backline for Hodgey so I reckon he has to bite the bullet and roll the dice on Cloke. I have him 7-1 down in the uniques and Cloke could well be a saviour. Saviour or not though the numbers appear to be too heavily stacked in favour of Ecky and I can't see anything other than an Ecky's Fevolas premership.

regards,

REB

[Rik E Boy]

Hogg Division V

Hzlwood Pk Cowboys vs. crockocrack

This is going to be a crazy final with a massive 14 uniques. The Cowboys go in with the far superior form but the lack of selection carnage has given the crocks a chance. I still rate the Cowboys a massive chance to win this one though as I have them 9-5 up on uniques. The Cowboys have invested wisely although they have a selection issue in regards to whether or not they play Dustin Martin. It seems to me to be out of Martin against Port or Barlow against Melbourne, both of which appear to be attractive options. The aggressive move would be to play Barlow as the crocks have Martin as well but it is not a move that I believe the Cowboys need to make. Meanwhile the crocks are yet another coach facing the Cloke issue this week...do I or don't I? It will be interesting to see what Cloke owners do this week and I don't mean Collingwood.

Unlike last week crockocrack won't be rolling in the donuts but I can't see them winning this final. Hzlwood Pk Cowboys will be the Division V Premiers.

regards,

REB

[Rik E Boy]

Piglet Shield

Underdogs vs. Ginger Ninjas

If the Underdogs can win the Piglet Shield this year they will create history as they are going for a hat trick of Piglets. The Underdogs looked under the pump a few weeks ago to fight back into yet another decider and Ginger Ninjas had to knock off the sharks to qualify for his first ever Hogg Grand Final.

This close match up is going to be decided by Nick Riewoldt who suspicously lingers in the Underdogs lineup. If Gibbo can't trade him out I reckon that she's a man short and that Ginge can salute and win the Piglet and get a run in Champions league next year. There are only nine uniques here although another one may be created depending on what the coaches do in relation to Lake vs. S Shaw. Both coaches have both players and I'd expect both coaches to bench Lake and play Shaw but if they split the difference that could settle this match. I have Gibbo ahead 5-4 on uniques but having to rely on Dickson will cost Gibbo the hat trick. I'm selecting the Ginger Ninjas to stop the rot in the Piglet and win his first ever Hogg flag.

regards,

REB

[Rik E Boy]

Bunny Bowl

Bunnyhop vs. Heater's Hotshots

Nine year old Bunnyhop has already made history by being the youngest coach to qualify for the Grand Final and he can go one step further and beat Heater's Hotshots to claim the second Bunny Bowl. The young fellow has pulled some frankly freakish moves that I would have loved to have made myself such as the selection of Harley Bennell who is an outstanding POD player who has gone massive more than a few times in recent rounds. He's picked up players like Steve Johnson and Alan Christensen on the cheap and they've proven to be good scoring options as well. The lad also has gone for Naitanui and Cox and silly old dad is saying 'what the bloody hell are you doing that for' LOL.

There are a massive 16 uniques and I can see Bunnyhop winning 12 of them. Bunnyhop has a weak link up forward in Smedts and is carrying Ellis down back but the Hotshots have Warnock in the backline and Gartlett and Hampton on field up front. I also think Watson owners are going to be a bit let down by the Essendon champ this week as he looked cooked to me last week - emotionally and physically. He's had to carry Essendon on his own for weeks and he looked a sorry sight last week. Another low score might be on the way there. I'm selecting Bunnyhop to win this Grand Final reasonably comfortably against Heater's Hotshots.

regards,

REB

[Ecky]

Ironically, it might be Luke Hodge himself who proves to be the player that sinks Hodgey so full credit to Ecky there as I haven't seen Hodge in too many sides when doing these previews and he has been braining them in recent weeks.

Firstly, great writeups REB and also well done on all your detailed and timely updates throughout the season.

I actually only brought Hodge in last week as I couldn't afford anyone better and I was purely trying to maximise my chance of beating Q in the Lobster League. If I had the cash I would have definitely preferred Murphy or Swan, but since I was committed to upgrading Suckling-Waters, Hodge was the best player I could turn J Selwood into. Mayz and I actually wasted a lot of time going through about 20 different trade scenarios (he was faced with a similar situation). It was fun though, and it turned out I couldn't have done much better in the end.

[Rik E Boy]

Ironically, it might be Luke Hodge himself who proves to be the player that sinks Hodgey so full credit to Ecky there as I haven't seen Hodge in too many sides when doing these previews and he has been braining them in recent weeks.

Firstly, great writeups REB and also well done on all your detailed and timely updates throughout the season.

I actually only brought Hodge in last week as I couldn't afford anyone better and I was purely trying to maximise my chance of beating Q in the Lobster League. If I had the cash I would have definitely preferred Murphy or Swan, but since I was committed to upgrading Suckling-Waters, Hodge was the best player I could turn J Selwood into. Mayz and I actually wasted a lot of time going through about 20 different trade scenarios (he was faced with a similar situation). It was fun though, and it turned out I couldn't have done much better in the end.

Cheers Ecky. Good luck in your Grand Final this week. Hope you do better than I have in the darn things.

regards,

REB

[Media Park]

I'm still dirty on Buddy Franklin costing me a place in this.

[Alaska]

I'm still dirty on Buddy Franklin costing me a place in this.

Don't get dirty mark it down in the little black spreadsheet for future years!
This old fart has been doing this since 2003!

[Q.]

Used my final trade. Went Giles to Jacobs

[Q.]

Used my final trade. Went Giles to Jacobs

Instead of Dangerfield to Franklin, which I thought would just be playing with fire...meanwhile Franklin has 3 first quarter goals

[heater31]

I'm selecting Bunnyhop to win this Grand Final reasonably comfortably against Heater's Hotshots.

I'm not going to disagree, the lad pulled my pants down in the Qualifying final despite me getting 1 up during one of our league clashes

[fish]

In Div III Harrynutts will go in as marginal favourite but this may be a shootout as both these teams have the potential to score very big scores.

Projected score before tonights game were Harrynutts 2,643 to WLF 2,604.

[fish]

In Div III Harrynutts will go in as marginal favourite but this may be a shootout as both these teams have the potential to score very big scores.

Projected score before tonights game were Harrynutts 2,643 to WLF 2,604.

After tonights game WLF edges into marginal favouritism after Harrys Naitanui and Priddis fail to reach their expected scores.

Projected score is now Harrynutts 2,570 to WLF 2,617.

[Alaska]

Interesting how in a game a couple of players define your season.

Cox, Stevie J and Wright are HURTING.

[Rik E Boy]

**** sake. First time ever I've never been in a Grand Final and the first time ever I've scored well in Grand Final week. 1598 with 8 to go!

regards,

REB