That’s all for today’s AFL Daily. We will be back from 7am tomorrow. See you then.
Brisbane’s Mitch Robinson says the AFL left Adam Goodes ‘out to dry’ during booing saga
Brisbane hard nut Mitch Robinson says today's players owe a debt to Swans champion Adam Goodes, who was hung ‘out to dry’ by the AFL during the booing saga.
The AFL's zero tolerance policy on racists and trolls is a giant leap forward after the league left Adam Goodes "out to dry" during his booing saga, according to Brisbane's Mitch Robinson.
Robinson says today's players owe a debt to the Swans champion, who was booed repeatedly in his final season before retiring quietly at the end of 2015.
"He would have loved the AFL to come out and put a stop to this ... they kind of left him out to dry," Robinson said on his weekly YouTube show Rip Through It.
"I was a bit naive at the time. I was younger and I didn't understand what the booing was about. I initially thought it was about him sliding in with his feet ... obviously to him it wasn't about that.
"It was a bit of a disgrace what was happening.
"We didn't have players coming out then like we do now supporting our indigenous and multicultural players, so I think we've learnt as a whole how to deal with these things and I guess we can say it's a good thing that someone went through it."
A confronting documentary The Final Quarter, which delves into the painful saga, will be released publicly on June 7 at the Sydney Film Festival. AFL CEOs saw an advanced private screening this week.
Robinson, who has an indigenous partner, said he would take his kids to see the film, which should be shown at all AFL clubs and in schools.
"We have learnt from this so hopefully we can all wrap our heads around what he went through and show the man some respect."
The Lions hard nut also gave the league a whack for letting Nat Fyfe and Gary Ablett off after collecting opponents with raised elbows last weekend.
"That was ridiculous ... I just get angry with these things. I know for a fact if it was me I would have got a week, no matter what."
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Updates
Tigers injury news: Cotchin making slow progress
Richmond captain Trent Cotchin is still three weeks away from returning from a hamstring injury.
Cotchin suffered the injury against GWS in Round 3 and suffered a setback in his recovery and is now running at about 90 per cent.
The Round 11 clash against North Melbourne has been pencilled in for Cotchin's return, Tigers physical performance manager Peter Burge said.
Ruckman Toby Nankervis and young midfielder Jack Ross will both miss two months after suffering injuries in the Tigers' brave win against Fremantle.
In better news Daniel Rioli (corked quad) and Nick Vlastuin (ankle) are likely to return this week against Hawthorn.
Burge provided updates on the growing list of wounded Tigers on the club website:
Toby Nankervis (thigh): "He slipped on the ground and he avulsed his adductor longus muscle, so what that means is he's torn away the muscle and a little bit of tendon off the bone. It's unfortunate because it's a little bit of a freak accident when you slip like that and you haven't got full control of what's going on under you."
Jack Ross (ankle): "He's having some surgery tomorrow, what they'll do is wrap the tibia and the fibula. Time-frame wise we're thinking it's going to be somewhere in the 6-8 week mark and given he's a first-year player we're going to be a little more cautious."
Callum More (ankle): Has had surgery after fracturing his ankle in the VFL. The nasty injury also involved significant ligament damage and ruptured soft tissue around his foot. The athletic forward will be in a moon boot for four weeks. "It's looking like an 8-10-week injury."
Jack Graham (hamstring): "I would anticipate he'll miss this week and be available to play next week."
Trent Cotchin (hamstring): "Right now he's holding that speed, feeling good. We're looking at this stage the Kangaroos game in Round 11 as a return and that should give him at least a week, maybe two weeks of full skills training."
Jayden Short (elbow): Had a brace removed yesterday. "He's looking at the first game after the (Round 14) bye."
Jack Riewoldt (knee): "Looking to start jogging the end of next week."
Alex Rance (knee): "Alex is doing absolutely everything he can and he's progressing brilliantly."
Bennell edging closer to another comeback
Fremantle coach Ross Lyon is hoping for a slice of good fortune as Harley Bennell edges closer to his latest football comeback.
Bennell has been plagued by calf injuries since joining the Dockers at the end of 2015, and is yet to feature in the WAFL this year after suffering a series of setbacks during the pre-season.
But hopes are high the 26-year-old can make a return within a fortnight after he completed a match simulation session last weekend.
Bennell pulled up well from that hit-out and is on track to play for Peel Thunder in their June 2 clash with Subiaco.
Lyon has been thrilled to see Bennell’s progress but he’s not getting carried away just yet.
“I’m circumspect and Harley’s circumspect, and we should all be,” Lyon said. “But he trained really well with that session on the weekend and he’s progressing.
“But we just want to stay in the moment with him.
“We’re keeping our fingers crossed.” Lyon praised Bennell’s ability to stay focused despite the numerous setbacks. “He’s committed,” Lyon said.
“With any significant event you’re sort of in shock, anger, and then you give it meaning and you move on. Different personalities process that at a different pace.
“So he’s certainly been able to do that again, get back on the horse again and go.
“I’ve often said if it was me I would have flicked the bails and been elsewhere by now.
“But his persistence and perseverance has made him a stronger football character. We’ve just got to hold our breath a little bit.”
– AAP
Lincoln Moore, The Advertiser
Crows forward Josh Jenkin has hosed down social media reports that he’d been told he would be put on the trade table at season’s end.
St Kilda, Hawthorn, Essendon, Western Bulldogs and Melbourne were named as clubs that would present offers to Jenkins in the coming weeks.
A typically honest Jenkins laughed off that speculation on SEN radio Wednesday morning and said the first he had heard of the rumours were after being contacted by his brother on the weekend.
Full story: https://bit.ly/2W7KkQg
Jenkins hoses down trade rumours
Lincoln Moore, The Advertiser
Crows forward Josh Jenkin has hosed down social media reports that he’d been told he would be put on the trade table at season’s end.
St Kilda, Hawthorn, Essendon, Western Bulldogs and Melbourne were named as clubs that would present offers to Jenkins in the coming weeks.
A typically honest Jenkins laughed off that speculation on SEN radio Wednesday morning and said the first he had heard of the rumours were after being contacted by his brother on the weekend.
Full story: https://bit.ly/2W7KkQg
From local footy to mid-season prospect
Toby Prime, Leader Newspapers
Four games in and four mentions in the best players.
It’s easy to see why Frank Anderson has been touted as an AFL mid-season draft chance.
Anderson, 21, has been in sparkling form for Northern Blues this year in his first season in the VFL.
He established himself as a young star of Eastern league club South Croydon, helping lift the Bulldogs to the 2017 Division 1 premiership.
The strong-bodied midfielder was named in the EFL Team of the Year last year, and his form in the state league has kept him on the radar of AFL recruiters.
He attended the state combine last year and is one of 22 players invited to attend an AFL-run medical screening ahead of the mid-season draft on May 27.
MORE: https://bit.ly/2E8QCow
Former Sydney Swan and Western Bulldog Ed Barlow has revealed the time he copped a spray from legendary coach Rodney 'Rocket' Eade – and how he loved his "old school" approach.
Writing for the Players Voice website Barlow, who played 34 matches in a five-year career at AFL level, said he'd always recall a match in 2011 when playing for the Bulldogs against Gold Coast.
"… I went against the game plan and didn’t kick down the line, like I was told. Twice," Barlow wrote.
"The runner came out and pointed to the bench, where the dreaded phone was waiting. Any player will tell you: ‘No one wants to answer that phone’.
"I picked it up and Rodney ‘Rocket’ Eade was waiting on the line. I soon made my third mistake that day.
"I tried to explain myself and boy did I get one of Rocket’s famous sprays — an animated emotional response to an action that he disagreed with."
Barlow said post-football he has gone on to study psychology in a bid to try to better understand how people handled pressure and their responses in different situations.
Barlow said some might have considered him "un-coachable" as he could "often overthink, catastrophise or misinterpret every message".
"This is what I really liked about Rocket; as a player I felt I knew exactly what he thought of me and where I was in his future plans."
The day young Dog copped Rocket spray
Former Sydney Swan and Western Bulldog Ed Barlow has revealed the time he copped a spray from legendary coach Rodney 'Rocket' Eade – and how he loved his "old school" approach.
Writing for the Players Voice website Barlow, who played 34 matches in a five-year career at AFL level, said he'd always recall a match in 2011 when playing for the Bulldogs against Gold Coast.
"… I went against the game plan and didn’t kick down the line, like I was told. Twice," Barlow wrote.
"The runner came out and pointed to the bench, where the dreaded phone was waiting. Any player will tell you: ‘No one wants to answer that phone’.
"I picked it up and Rodney ‘Rocket’ Eade was waiting on the line. I soon made my third mistake that day.
"I tried to explain myself and boy did I get one of Rocket’s famous sprays — an animated emotional response to an action that he disagreed with."
Barlow said post-football he has gone on to study psychology in a bid to try to better understand how people handled pressure and their responses in different situations.
Barlow said some might have considered him "un-coachable" as he could "often overthink, catastrophise or misinterpret every message".
"This is what I really liked about Rocket; as a player I felt I knew exactly what he thought of me and where I was in his future plans."
Cats hope for additional $20m boost
Footy is a long way from federal politics but some at Geelong might be cheering for one team during this Saturday's election.
The Cats today announced that an additional $20 million would be invested into GMHBA Stadium should Labor win Saturday's federal election.
The extra funding would ensure the completion of the final stage of the redevelopment of the Cats' home base.
Buckley: AFL in tough spot on Rampe
BEN BROAD reports ..
Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley says he feels for the AFL over its handling of the Dane Rampe saga, believing the league's hands were tied.
Speaking the day after the league issued the Sydney Swans star a fine for climbing a goal post in Friday night's dramatic after-the-siren win against Essendon, Buckley understood the view a strict implementation of the rule should have been enforced.
Buckley said "integrity is key" and that AFL House – who he believes does a good job under tough scrutiny – had "opened itself up" to questions of integrity.
But he was happy common sense prevailed after the AFL had found itself in "an incredibly tough spot".
"I think that the reason they haven't been able to put their hand up and say that their rule wasn't applied as it should be is because they're worried about the challenge against the result of the game," Buckley said.
"But it wouldn't have been the only umpiring decision (on the night) that wasn't adjudicated correctly … I know it's a really hard place to be."
The Pies coach said he believed calls would likely have been made between Essendon and the league in recent days as the two sought to find common ground and some resolution.
"The last thing that the AFL wants is a club going, 'well we're going to challenge that, take you to court and get the four points'.
"I'm sure there's ways, the conversations the AFL may or may not have had … the game couldn't afford to have the AFL saying 'we got that wrong' and then a club challenging for the points."
Many believe Rampe should have penalised in the controversial Round 8 finish.
"I think if you're going to write a rule, well then (enforce it) … but I don't think the rule is correct," Buckley said.
"I don't like a 50m penalty for shaking a post. What's that? Just get the umpire to go up and say 'don't shake it anymore'.
"I suppose you have to have it written in there (that) after a warning, but the warning part isn't written in … the warning is common sense, and it is practical."
The Pies themselves were on the end of a tough decision late in last year's grand final, when Eagle Dom Sheed's mark stood and the midfielder slotted the game-winner.
Speaking on SEN, Buckley was asked his reaction had the AFL admitted it got the crucial call wrong.
"It would've meant something to us, no doubt," he said.
"Maybe you sort of have some form of victory where you say 'well, we would have won that game if not for one contest',: he said.
"But the reality is we didn't win that game because of one contest, and then another contest, and another contest and another contest … it would be a difficult thing to challenge, you wouldn't be able to challenge it because there's a bit of grey in that (Sheed decision).
"The difficult thing with the rule that we're talking about is there's no grey in jumping on a post or whether it was shaking or whether it was not."
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