Time On: Tony Jones says AFL can ‘get stuffed’ after Brownlow snub

Tony Jones says the AFL can get stuffed after he was left off the invite list for the Brownlow for the first time in thirty years.

Time On is your Monday wrap-up of all the footy gossip from the weekend.

Channel 9 host Tony Jones says he’s been snubbed by the AFL after not being invited to the Brownlow for the first time in three decades.

Jones wasn’t happy when he realised he had been overlooked while talking to his Sunday Footy Show colleagues.

“If the AFL is watching, you can get stuffed, it’s a crap night,’’ Jones said, adding that he had attended footy’s night of nights for about 32 years.

Sunday Footy Show host Tony Jones. Picture: Channel 9

Asked if he had done anything to warrant a ban, he said: “Just promote the game in a good light.

“I was unaware of it until I heard Damo (Damian Barrett) speaking to the wardrobe department. I’ve gone through all my emails, archives, junk, anyway, so I’ve officially been snubbed.”

The AFL’s head of communications, Jay Allen, reached out to Jones and admitted it was awkward. He extended an invite, which were sent out to other media at the end of August.

Jones tells us: “I’m not sure … it’s very kind of Jay … but I’m not sure the ego can recover from this one”.

Double whammy hammy

Former Hawthorn captain Richie Vandenberg has suffered his worst injury — playing in a local dad’s game of footy at the weekend.

“I’m getting too old for this stuff,’’ he said.

“It’s an annual match they play, and I took off and bang I’ve just torn my Achilles and my hamstring at the same time. The funny thing was I was not keen to play at all and my wife and kids were like, ‘you’ve got to play’.”

Vandenberg hadn’t pulled on the boots since he retired in 2007. He went for scans on Monday morning and will be out of action for 8-12 weeks.

“I’ve never had that before,’’ he said.

There was also another casualty from the game, with Saints great Stewart Loewe injuring his glute.

Richie Vandenberg in action for the Hawks in 2007.

Gill brings the laughs

AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan welcomed footy back to the MCG with an enthusiastic and light-hearted speech on Friday night.

Speaking before the game, the outgoing footy boss delivered a few witty one-liners for VIP guests, with no single issue spared, from border breachers to North Melbourne and Dusty’s viral video shock.

“Great to be back here, the buzz and the excitement,” McLachlan said.

“We can see how much football means to this city. Melburnians are obsessed with football and I know not having the grand final the last couple of years was incredibly tough, but I didn’t know people were willing to go to jail to get to the grand final.

“They’re actually the first Melbourne supporters to go to jail for something other than insider trading,” he joked, referring to Hayden Burbank and Mark Babbage who were jailed for illegally entering WA.

After welcoming Sheedy, a beloved footy figure, McLachlan said: “And now thanks to his role in getting Alastair Clarkson to North Melbourne the Kangaroos fans love him as well.”

He also made reference to Carlton fans still being in a foetal position and video controversy both on and off the field.

“It is the best time of year and footy dominates in anticipation of what is ahead,” he said.

Spotted at the MCG matches were big names including footy champion Chris Judd, swimmer Mack Horton, cricketer Brad Hodge and former Premier Steve Bracks.

Shaq ‘whole other level’

Mark Howard, who recently interviewed Shaquille O’Neal for Main Event, gave high praise to the basketball great.

“It was interesting, it was good and I was trying to think where I would put him compared to people I’d had the privilege of seeing through a work sense’’ he said.

“And Lewis Hamilton was top of the tree and David Beckham — this was 10 times that. It was a whole other level of super stardom.”

O’Neal certainly did the interview rounds while in town. Howard’s Triple M colleague Nathan Brown suggested Howard was paid upwards of $200,000 for the two one and a half-hour shows.

Shaquille O’Neal on his recent trip to Australia. Picture: Getty Images

Daisy the Cat

Steve Hocking, the man being credited for changing the rules that are creating epic finals, has lifted the lid on Daisy Pearce’s coaching role at Geelong.

The club’s chief executive, who was general manager of football operations at the AFL, said before the game on Saturday that times were changing for women in footy.

“It’s more than that, it’s Daisy’s partner who is a firefighter and her twins, it’s not just about recruiting Daisy, it’s the whole family,’’ Hocking said.

“Simon Lloyd and myself actually had a catch up with the family and her manager roughly three or four months ago ... Daisy is a Melbourne footballer and we respected that, but we spent 4-5 hours at the football club just making sure that they were settled in the football club she was choosing to come to.

“Daisy will actually go in and sit alongside (coach) Chris Scott and have access to all that knowledge. Football is transitioning. It’s incumbent on all of us to recognise the world’s changed. Get with the program.”