sidelined

And so it begins. Eight teams enter. Only six leave. Doesn’t really have that ominous ring to it unless your are a fan of the two teams that get knocked out. And history suggests that this will the teams that have finished seventh and eighth. The money is on the Storm to repeat their winning [...]

With the finals series almost upon us, yours truly and regular Sidelined commentor, Bismarck O’Measles are heading to the footy. Not sure which match yet but one of the games at ANZ or the Sydney Football Stadium before the Grand Final.
If you’d like to come along and join us in talking crap imparting footy [...]

The excitement of the new season doesn’t seem that distant really. The season has flown by and here we are with one round to go. There are plenty of games this weekend that will decided final positions in the eight. And lets not forget the nervous waiting over the weekend in the footy tipping comps. [...]

I’m loving the footy at the moment. The season is winding up nicely. The only sure thing is the Storm to be minor premiers. The top four is still up in the air as is the final eight. Let’s get straight into it. This weeks tips being decided by using the Bible code.

Winter is having one last go but it can’t hide the fact spring and the the NRL finals are only a few weeks to play. Last week confirmed that, as expected, the Storm are the team to beat. Not that Manly were that bad. They still have a shot. And don’t forget that Sharks.
Below [...]

Craig Emerson is the federal Minister for Small Business, Independent Contractors and the Service Economy, and the Minister Assisting on Deregulation. He has some opinions on rugby league post the SBW saga as outlined in The Australian.
I have no idea how is performing as a minister, but as a league pundit he needs some [...]

You can smell the finals in the air. 5 rounds to go and some very intriguing games. Mathematically, 13 clubs are still in the race. Realistically, I’d say 10 clubs have a chance. But you never know. 4-5 wins on the trot will change a loss. 4-5 losses will do the same. I’ve consulted the [...]

One positive aspect of the Sonny Bill imbroglio is that attention has been turned to what the NRL needs to do to strengthen the game. Some pundits (Andrew Johns for example) have argued that Perth and Adelaide need to included in the competition. However, this would be a huge mistake for the NRL. Now before [...]

Defecting to the game that supported the Vichy government has a nice touch of irony don’t you think? As agents of those cheese eating surrender monkeys circle player-manager, rugby league marches on. And this week round 21 looms, the finals almost within reach. The question is what is more cruel to fans? Having your finals [...]

As Bismarck mentions Sonny Bill Williams has broken his chain, dug under the fence and off to join second division French rugby union club Toulon. And if we never see Sonny again in the NRL it won’t be Toulon for most of us.
The main reason seems to be $3 million for two years work. [...]