On Notice: Richmond star Jack Riewoldt on notice, AFLW season confusion and Jobe Watson’s Bombers snub
AFLW players have been left in the lurch about when next season will start and anger is growing. It’s why league boss Nicole Livingstone is on notice to make an announcement — soon.
In a new weekly column, eagle-eyed football journalist Scott Gullan sharpens the pencil and announces who is on notice for the coming round …
NICOLE LIVINGSTONE
We have a lot of time for Nicole and we know her hands are tied to a fair degree when it comes to organising the next AFLW season but someone has to put their hand up for our gals. Yes the change of season date to August is a controversial move and yes we know the collective bargaining agreement is dragging its feet but seriously someone from headquarters needs to present themselves and try and either calm the masses or make a definitive statement. Surely confirming the actual season starting point and giving clarity around it needs to be done by May.
JOBE WATSON
We fear there may have been some overcompensating done with the Anzac Day Medal. Let us start by saying doing votes for these games is a harrowing experience – we are still gun shy after a Michael Tuck Medal many years ago – but Jobe seems to have gone too far to ensure no Essendon bias. Darcy Parish was in the top three players on the ground on Monday FULL STOP. This argument about cheap possessions and not enough forward 50 entries is rubbish, the kid was at the coal face all day and got leather poisoning with 44 touches, including an historic 30 in the first half. To his credit Jobe explained later he gave more weight to Collingwood players because they won the game in his voting of 3 – Jack Ginnivan 2- Jordan De Goey 1 – Jeremy Howe. When in doubt we bow to the coaches’ votes who jointly gave Parish, Ginnivan and Howe the best-on-ground honours. Missing from their list of seven players who received votes was De Goey.
JACK RIEWOLDT
Everyone is understandably waiting for the return of Dustin Martin to save Richmond’s season but a fellow premiership hero needs to start playing his part in that – and quickly. Jack Riewoldt has been a victim of the Tigers poor start and when your midfield is getting smacked, life as a full-forward can be tough. Seven goals in four games is not good reading but it’s more how Riewoldt has looked and his lack of impact in other areas. In many ways he brings an energy and enthusiasm to his teammates and can be the fire-starter for the Tigers but there has been nothing resembling a spark this season. If he can’t feast on a West Coast carcass on Friday night then it becomes a selection discussion at Punt Rd and no-one with yellow and black in their veins wants to see that.
DAN RICHARDSON
Let’s be clear, umpires need to be cherished and supported and we totally agree with the dissent crackdown. But, please can we get the bouncing of the ball sorted out. Too many clearly can’t do it so rather than scrapping the tradition because of incompetence, let’s organise ourselves better. Umpires boss Dan Richardson needs to get inventive and ensure each umpiring crew have a designated bouncer who does the start of each quarter and every centre bounce in the last 10 minutes of the game. Surely we have nine of them in the country and that way the good decision-makers who are poor bouncers stay in the game and would operate with far less stress. Last week’s embarrassment in Ballarat where the Western Bulldogs were denied a miracle because of the clock ticking during a recalled bad bounce can’t be repeated.
TODD GOLDSTEIN
There must have been mixed emotions for the North ruckman last week given he had the opportunity to go to Geelong a couple of years back and it’s not overstating it that he could be a premiership player now if he’d made the move. Goldstein in his prime could have solved the Cats ruck problem and been that extra 10 per cent they were missing in September. Instead he’s struggling to get a kick with the worst team in the competition and if youngster Tristan Xerri didn’t get injured, a spell in the VFL was looming. Three kicks against the Cats came after just two kicks against the Western Bulldogs the week before is not good enough for a ruckman who is at his best roaming around the ground as a linkman.
MATT ROWELL
Clearly the Gold Coast youngster is a victim of setting the bar way too high in the first four games of his career. Rowell famously scored nine Brownlow votes when he burst onto the scene two years ago before injury cut short what was looming as an extraordinary debut season. Backing that up coming off a serious injury was always going to be tough and he struggled last year. This season he is again taking time to adjust with his influence not at the level the Suns would like yet. The kid is a star and the MCG on a Sunday afternoon against powerhouse Collingwood is the perfect setting to flick the switch. Hitting the scoreboard – he kicked six goals in his first four games – would be a good start given he is yet to trouble the scorers this season.
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