I’ve got my scarf, got my old coat
I’ve got a footy game to go to
Footy’s on footy’s here again
Back to greet me like an old friend, and…
I could simply sing all of “The Thing About Football” or give Neds’ unique preview ahead of Round One of the 2019 AFL season, which gets underway on Thursday night.
It’s up to you, but I have the guitar at the ready.
The JLT series continues for the Tigers as they take on the Blues at the MCG on Thursday night.
For the Blues, despite single-handedly ruining Friday Night Football for everyone last year, they’ve been rewarded with the season opener against the Tiges yet again.
Yes, Carlton showed some promise in the JLT Series and many have prized number one draft pick Sam Walsh down for Rising Star, Cripps for Brownlow and the Blues to show some fight this year, but it ain’t going to happen on Thursday night.
Richmond looked scary in the JLT games and while that means nothing, they only played half a game and still won.
Dusty Martin is fit, Cotch has shaved the beard, Alex Rance is looking handsome and Jack Higgins is hungry for a snag or two.
6-6-6 will actually help Richmond. A lot.
Dusty being able to breakaway freely from the centre makes for a daunting prospect for the opposition.
Be prepared to be frustrated by the umpiring as well for the season opener.
Being the first game of the year, expect the umps to stuff up a few of the more controversial rules (such as the 50 meters protected zone) and people to be calling up SEN to vent their anger about the changes afterwards.
Tigers by plenty.
The Magpies, who have been patting themselves on the back for losing the Grand Final after being five goals up takes on Geelong who still rate themselves despite being a team that just tends to fill up the numbers come finals time.
This is actually set to be a cracking match on Friday night at the MCG and should really be considered the actual season opener.
Both teams will be desperate to win (well, of course, who tanks in Round 1?)
The best contest in this match will be between the Cats defenders and the Magpies forwards.
It was interesting to read Cats defender Mark Blicavs give his insight going into the game to the Geelong Advertiser this week.
“They’ve got Elliott, Stephenson — I was on his AFLX team — and he’s a gun, Cox, De Goey, Mihocek … they’re going to be really flighty.”
It’s great that Blicavs is taking something from his experience in AFLX, but I’d hardly call that insight.
Danger, Gazza and Selwood will do their usual thing.
Mason Cox will simply touch the ball and the Pies fans will think it’s amazing and despite an injury cloud, Jordan De Goey should be a-ok to play.
Expect this one to be an arm-wrestle, with the Magpies able to get the job done.
Is this the year Melbourne finally break through and end their premiership drought dating back to 1964?
Every chance.
Can Port Adelaide actually play some consistent football/make/win finals?
Every Chance.
Who will win the Jack Watts Cup?
Melbourne. Jack Watts might want to focus less on his swimming and white powders at Oktoberfest and just focus on getting a kick.
With the lethal cocktail of being flogged by Richmond in the 2017 Grand Final and the psychological clusterf**k of the infamous pre-season camp, 2018 was a write off for the Adelaide Crows and it’s time to start afresh.
They face the Hawks, who actually finished 4th last year but went out in straight sets.
Many expected Adelaide to be a top-four team and the Hawks to miss out last year, but it went the other way around.
So can the Crows live up to the assumption that season 2018 was just a blip on the radar?
Yes.
They will beat Hawthorn on Saturday and should do easily.
Then the hot-sweats and nightmares from that camp will come back to haunt them later that night.
In the first AFL game to be played under the Marvel Stadium name, the Bulldogs host the Swans and will be wearing special Thor-themed jumpers to mark the occasion.
For that alone, the Western Bulldogs deserve to be thumped and the Sydney Swans are the team to do it.
Expect Buddy to kick a bag with his superhero powers of being bloody good at Football.
The Western Bulldogs won’t start with a win, while the Marvel jumper joins the ever-growing list of bloody awful Football jumpers.
The mighty Brisbane Lions, proudly co-sponsored by Neds take on the reigning premiers the West Coast Eagles at the Gabba this Saturday night.
The West Coast Eagles will clearly still have a bit of a premiership hangover and rumour has it the Eagles boys have been enjoying a bit too much of their sponsor (Hungry Jack’s) product.
With a team full of young guns led by Coach Chris Fagan the pride of Brisbane town impressed the AFL world last year despite only winning five games.
This year is time for the team (proudly sponsored by Neds) to take the next step and beating West Coast in the first round will show the Football world that the Brisbane Lions are back in town.
If St. Kilda drop this then coach Alan Richardson might as well scrub up his CV and check what’s available on Seek later that night.
If Gold Coast Suns win this, it would be funny.
Remember, St. Kilda actually sung their song in the rooms after beating North in the JLT Series.
Peak Saints.
Essendon, who have not won a final in over 15 years travel up to Homebush to take on The GWS Giants who didn’t even exist the last time the Bombers won a flag or a final.
Giants coach Leon Cameron often speaks about his team being a Ferrari, well the Ferrari broke down a couple of times last season but has had a good service over the summer and should be right for the season ahead.
And what irony for Dylan Sheil? He moved to Essendon from the Giants because he wanted to play in front of big crowds – but his first game for the Dons he’ll be back at Spotless Stadium with a sparse crowd. Oh, the irony!
Essendon rate themselves this year, as they do every year since they last won a flag in 2000, even the year when 34 past/present players got suspended for systematic doping – they still rated themselves.
The Giants should be too good for Essendon on their home deck.
You know that feeling, it’s Round One of the new footy season and you want to absorb as much as you can and it comes down to the final game of the round only to discover it’s Fremantle playing North Melbourne.
Is it time to do something else?
No, it’s not.
Even if it is Freo v North.
Neither of these teams will play finals this year.
Neither of these clubs matter.
But if you must, go with the upset to North Melbourne.
It happened last year, if that’s anything to go by.