Israel Folau's Switch To Team GWS Makes Sense

What do you think about Israel Folau's switch to Team GWS. Here I've written a story on The Roar about it, so follow the link, have a read and pop in a comment and your opinion. Cmon, It'll be fun.
http://www.theroar.com.au/2010/06/02/israel-folaus-switch-to-team-gws-makes-sense/

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AFL's Holding The Ball Interpretation Is All Wrong

The umpires have been making some pretty awful Holding the ball decisions this season and it appears to me they've got the interpretation wrong. What do you think? Click on the link to this story and have a look, make a comment.

http://www.theroar.com.au/2010/06/01/afls-holding-the-ball-interpretation-is-all-wrong/

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Do AFL Players Really Need Farewell Games?

Something to chew over the weekend on farewell games, what do you reckon folks? Click on the link, have a browse and post a comment.
http://www.theroar.com.au/2010/05/29/do-afl-players-really-need-farewell-games/

And good luck with your DT this wknd!

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Fraser Problems From Bad To Worse

Those DT coaches who've been hanging onto $286k Pies ruckman Josh Fraser, it's time to trade him out.

Fraser - who is owned by just under 5,000 DT coaches - has struggled for a game lately and now has an injury problem.

"He just rolled his ankle at training," Pies footy manager Geoff Walsh said.

"He had a scan and there is no structural damage. There are no breaks or ligament problems but it did blow up very quickly.

"So he obviously didn't come up this week and now we'll just have to wait and see what happens."

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Around The Grounds

• Collingwood's $275k fwd Leon Davis - owned by over 18,000 DT coaches - may miss two games with a calf injury. Teammate Shane O'Bree said: "Leon's carrying an injury at the moment so it's probably better that he has a week or two off just to freshen up and get himself right."
• Geelong's $222k def Matthew Scarlett - owned by almost 20,000 DT coaches - is set to miss a month with a hamstring injury.
• Richmond's $164k ruck Tyrone Vickery - owned by over 8,000 DT coaches - is set to be rested until the mid-season break after a heavy workload.
• WB $326k fwd Jason Akermanis - owned by almost 9,000 DT coaches - could be suspended by his club next week after lying about his controversial Herald Sun article last week.

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Armstring Close To Bursting Bubble

Those DT coaches keen on Adelaide's $94k midfield two-gamer Tony Armstrong will be pleased to hear coach Neil Craig speaking positively about his chances of a recall.

Armstrong - who is owned by over 16,000 DT coaches - played Round One for the Crows but disappointingly only posted 36, before his Round Eight return where he scored 123!! Then he was dropped?

So Craig was asked about Armstrong and recalled: "Tony Armstrong travels with us and misses out on an SANFL game. He plays against North Melbourne and plays a reasonable game, but gets omitted.

“He then goes back to North Adelaide and plays another good game- that’s the sort of pressure that you want to underpin a bit more internal competition that we haven’t had… it’s a good problem to have for a change."

It's difficult to kinda negotiate Craig's comment there, but me thinks Armstrong's close to a recall and a bubble bursting third game.

Also, Adelaide's $359k fwd Chris Knights will miss a further 6 weeks after foot surgery this week. Still over 3,000 DT coaches own Knights.

Knights' Crows teammate, $94k one-game def Will Young, will also miss some more footy as he undergoes arthroscopy on damaged knee cartilage.

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Carlton Changes Aplenty

There's likely to be changes aplenty at Carlton this week following some injuries.

$220k defender Simon White - owned by over 43,000 DT coaches - has a knee injuy.

As you've probably heard $322k midfielder Andrew Walker - owned by around 1,500 DT coaches - is back for Carlton. Not big news in the DT world.

"It is a big boost and I think it's a credit to Andrew with his rehab and what he's done to just keep up with his knowledge of football," Blues coach Brett Ratten said from Visy Park on Thursday.

"He's been at most opposition games to have a look with the coaches so I think it's been a real credit to him."

But Ratten admitted there were a few others in the blender for this week.

"Shaun Grigg will probably come back in after three weeks out," Ratten said. "Brock McLean will be pretty much in the mix as well with Grigg, and Richard Hadley's in the same boat so we've got a few decisions to make."

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Presti To Return?

Owners of $134k Collingwood defender Simon Prestigiacomo will be pleased to here he could return this weekend.

Prestigiacomo - owned by almost 19,000 DT coaches - along with $351k fwd Tarkyn Lockyer and $286k ruck Josh Fraser are under consideration for the Pies game in Brisbane this weekend.

“All those guys had a great last game in the VFL,” Pies football manager Geoff Walsh said.

“They all were very prominent in the stats and with their form overall, so they’d all be in contention, there’s no doubt about that.

“I don’t think there’ll be any compulsory changes [from the Geelong game]. From a selection point of view there may well be, but we’ll see how blokes pull up tomorrow.”

Also $271k fwd Brad Dick - who recently returned to VFL action - isn't far off a return either.

Walsh said: “Hopefully he’s not too far away from senior selection.

“Now it all comes down to form because his fitness is there, so hopefully he pushes in on a form basis.”

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Medhurst Misses Another

Collingwood's $259k fwd Paul Medhurst - owned by over 20,000 DT coaches - will miss out again this weekend due to a foot injury.

“He wasn’t [able to train] … and on the basis of that he won’t be available for selection,” Collingwood football manager Geoff Walsh said on Wednesday afternoon.

“It’s a foot problem that he’s had before, and it hasn’t responded as quickly as we thought, so he certainly won’t be available this week, but we’re hopeful that next week he’ll be up and going.

“He had a stress reaction last time, a bit of a hot spot in the foot, which is not a fracture or anything like that but there’s a bit of pain there so we just want to make sure he can control that pain first and then hopefully get him back up and going.”

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Roo Could Be DT Finals Must-Have

St Kilda's $445k premium forward Nick Riewoldt is on track to return to AFL ranks in the latter part of the season.

Riewoldt has been back running with the Saints and could return just in time for the DT finals.

At his price, that's not bad news for those who sold him. Curiously almost 25,000 DT coaches still have him!

St Kilda coach Ross Lyon said: “He is running at the higher end; he’s not yet 100 per cent but he is certainly doing a lot of quality work and it’s been pleasantly surprising because I’ve stepped away from it and got really good reports off the surgeon.

“We’re really optimistic that Nick will be back in the latter third of the season.”

But Lyon didn't offer a return date.

“If I put a timeframe on it, it becomes a countdown and every week [people are asking] ‘is he playing?’” he said.

"There are no certainties until it occurs but he’s really vibrant and positive.”

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Freo Set For Changes

If you've got any Fremantle fringe players in your DreamTeam look out as the Dockers could make a few changes this week.

Dockers coach Mark Harvey said on Wednesday: "We’ve had three big games in 14 days and we might just need to make a few changes through that."

$184k midfielder Matt de Boer and $246k defender Clancee Pearce travelled with the squad to Sydney last week and could be a chance.

Also $89k defender Dylan Roberton might be in the blender. He, of course, has only played 2 games and is ready to burst his bubble.

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Bruce Close To Dees Return

Melbourne's $381k midfielder Cameron Bruce could return for the Dees after a hamstring injury.

$327k fwd Matthew Bate is also a chance, but Demons coach Dean Bailey rated Bruce the more likely.

"Matthew might be close. Brucey actually trained reasonably well last week, wasn't quite as bad as first thought, so he might be better than 50-50."

Melbourne face reigning premiers Geelong at Skilled Stadium this weekend.

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Brock McLean Back

Carlton have revealed $293k midfielder Brock McLean will be back from injury this week.

"McLean was a chance to play last week," football manager Steven Icke said on Tuesday.

"But we just held him over for another week and if he gets through all the training this week then he's up for selection.

"He's had some quad soreness and that's what primarily kept him out over the last couple of weeks. Initially he had a hip injury, but it was the quad injury he sustained in the Collingwood game which has been the issue in the last couple of weeks."

Icke also revealed Andrew Walker (shoulder) and Brad Fisher (knee) were closer to returns, while Ryan Houlihan will resume after being a late withdrawal last week with a hamstring worry.

Chris Yarran will probably miss with a thigh injury, while Kane Lucas is definitely out.

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Daniel Bradshaw To Miss Three

Sydney media release...
Sydney Swans forward Daniel Bradshaw had an arthroscope today on the right knee he injured in the third term of Saturday's game against Fremantle.

Bradshaw had minor wear and tear in his knee which was cleaned up, but otherwise no significant problems were found.

Bradshaw is expected to miss three matches and be available for selection to play Collingwood on June 26, the weekend after the Club's split round break.

As Swans coach Paul Roos confirmed yesterday, Tadhg Kennelly has strained his medial ligament and will also miss three matches.

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Motlop Suspended By Club For One Match

Port Adelaide media release...
Port Adelaide forward Daniel Motlop has been suspended by the club for one match.

The club-imposed suspension has come after Motlop left the team hotel in Darwin to pick his girlfriend up from the airport early last Saturday morning when she arrived at 2am on a flight from Adelaide.

This came ahead of the Saturday night game in Darwin. There was no other breach involved. The club has also fined Motlop $2,500.

Power Football Operations Manager Peter Rohde says the decision was made by the football department in conjunction with the leadership group.

“While we understand this is a challenging time for Daniel in his personal life and he believed he was doing the right thing by his girlfriend, he has nevertheless not met the standards the club requires or accepts regarding professional preparation for a game,” Rohde said.

“We are very serious about setting high standards and Daniel has unfortunately not met those standards. He made a poor decision regarding his preparation and he accepts that.

“We will now work closely with Daniel to help him bounce back to be the player we know he can be.”

A decision on whether Motlop returns through the SANFL or AFL will be made next week.

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Bombers Injury Concerns

Essendon coach Matthew Knights has revealed a few of his side's injury concerns ahead of the Bombers clash with the Dogs on Friday night.

Nathan Lovett-Murray is a chance after a foot injury, while Jake Melksham is only 50-50 due to an ankle injury.

Ricky Dyson is an outside chance with a knee problem, while after a month out Kyle Reimers may return via the VFL following a thumb injury.

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MRP Lets Barry Hall Off?

Barry Hall is free to play in Round Ten after the Match Review Panel downgraded his rough play charge to misconduct. It's quite staggering really (good news for most DTers) but here's an article on the MRP's surprising show of sympathy towards Hall.

http://www.theroar.com.au/2010/05/25/match-review-panel-sympathy-lets-hall-off-the-hook/

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Kennelly Gone For A Month

Sydney have confirmed Tadgh Kennelly and Daniel Bradshaw will miss a fair chunk of footy with knee injuries.

Kennelly, a $254k defender, has a medial strain and will miss a month, while Bradshaw will miss two weeks.

Swans coach Paul Roos said: "We're simply not the same team we were at the start of the year,'' he said.

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Jed Adcock Injury Update

BL Media Release:

Scans have today revealed that Lions Vice-Captain Jed Adcock has fractured the third metatarsal in his left foot.

The injury occurred during the second quarter of last Sunday's match against the Adelaide Crows at AAMI Stadium.

Adcock will undergo surgery tomorrow and is expected to spend an indefinite period of time on the sidelines.

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Saints Second-Half Subi Surge Says They're Back

What do we think of the Saints after their win in the west? The Saints have been struggling for form in the last month and that looked likely to continue for two-and-a-half quarters on Sunday before they kicked into gear and returned to some of their best footy. Are they back?

http://www.theroar.com.au/2010/05/24/saints-second-half-surge-says-theyre-back/

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