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Tiger of old wrote: you had junior footy on a Saturday morning Jardine? it was always on a Sunday for me.

from memory my boys club zone changed several times from SD, EP and WP. And the younger kid played always on Saturday mornings. Because of that only a few dads could make it. Once the older one got to under 15's then it was a Sunday thing. Busy weekends but enjoyable. I was always the goal umpire.

astro wrote: Great post Jardine. Alignment still crap but am thinking it will be another WAFL clubs problem in a few years

You could be right. I hope someone else gets a run with it. I cant begrudge people who support EP. That's their prerogative like I have mine. I just want WAFLites to lead the way in keeping footy as actual footy. For the good of every club and fan.

I sense perhaps it will be an alignment free Grand Final this year anyway.

?? Sorry that was a slip of the keyboard, I was going to respond to your post but decided not to. But as usual you can't keep a civil conversation for long Jardine. Some good sentiment in that post and perhaps I can forgive some of the absolute nonsense you have posted before. Myself and many others continue to support the Royals like Wulff, Lee etc even if through gritted teeth, as long as this alignment has an end date. Even if I walked away from EP I would not turn on them like you have. I respect those that walked away but I really hope people like yourself don't return to the club when and if the alignment ends. Look forward to the knew enlightened Jardine from now on though.

jardine wrote: I don't know about you fellow posters on here, <<<< yada yada yada >>> You know Im right, Im Sam Kekovich.

Yeah brother the WAFL fire has never been put out in my house , for a brief while I watched the Vicco league simply because they'd raped all the best players from my club - managed to escape the evil cult pretty easily in the end too

There will always be things ya don't like or bodies ya don't like that's life - aint it grand mate?

However it always boils down to Thursday & the release of my Staffordshires' weekend squad for the game (drooooool!)

The drive down through the all that Limestoned history in South Freo , the familiar faces , the smell of the markets , the Norfolk Pines , the Moreton Bay giants , the old scoreboard & members area & the legendary Ronnie Johnston selling the tickets in front of the Stephen Michael picture

WAFL is the go my friend

Larry Bird wrote: ?? Sorry that was a slip of the keyboard, I was going to respond to your post but decided not to. But as usual you can't keep a civil conversation for long Jardine. Some good sentiment in that post and perhaps I can forgive some of the absolute nonsense you have posted before. Myself and many others continue to support the Royals like Wulff, Lee etc even if through gritted teeth, as long as this alignment has an end date. Even if I walked away from EP I would not turn on them like you have. I respect those that walked away but I really hope people like yourself don't return to the club when and if the alignment ends. Look forward to the knew enlightened Jardine from now on though.

If the alignment ends, I will be back on the outer with bells on. Sorry Larry.
I guess you don't really understand me mate, but that's ok. I have gotten a bit emotional I know, and I guess that is taken in a certain context by yourself and others. I cant help that. I really really really really miss East Perth. More than you can ever imagine. Maybe Im a stubborn bugger I dunno. When I go to a neutral WAFL game, I still cant help myself but look up at the scoreboard and check the "EP" score, out of habit more than anything. And as a result I do have this little hollow moment, but I redirect myself to the game Im watching and move on.

But Larry, enjoy your footy and stay positive. We need the league overall to thrive and we need a youth injection through interest. Without it, I hate to think what lies ahead. No hard feelings.

I think all the stuff about drugs in the AFL has contributed to the frustration and focus on off field issues. I have lapped up every minute of Swans first few games and I am disappointed that my team are not playing this weekend as I want to see more. I may go to one of the good friday games anyway, the WAFL has a unique opportunity to promote the competition here. If I don't get there I will certainly tuning in to the TV coverage. Enjoy your Easter footy and good luck to all teams....

jardine wrote: I don't know about you fellow posters on here, but I am sick & tired of the endless negativity with footy these days. Whats even sadder is this negative saturation isn't just aligned to the AFL anymore, us over here in WAFL circles are constantly drawn into everything other than talking about the actual game of football.

Are we to blame for it?
Damn right we are, but I am not saying we don't have a gripe. We have had to endure plenty along the way. And I myself have been drawn into it, Im part of it. But there comes a time where we have to all sit back and just get on with loving our game again. For our own sake if anything.

Just for something different, I would love to hear what other posters "ritual" is on game day. And try to keep it purely about your daily Saturday culminating in an afternoon at the football. I don't know about you, but waking up on a Saturday morning in winter gave me an instant rush. It may not be that way exactly these days, but I do still have my moments.

Back in the old days our Saturday morning was plenty of coffee, and tune into 6PR for the pre-recorded "Football World" pub panel show replay. Then get the newspaper off the front lawn, while the missus would try to iron it flat so I could read it. And it was generally straight to the footy line-ups page to dissect the EP line up, and to see what radio station was broadcasting the game. By 8.30am it was off to take the kids to junior footy, which was all over by about 10.30am. We would give the kids some money to by a hotdog and a drink. Then the kids would race back to the car with their footy boots still on and covered in dirt. The kids themselves wanted to get home and cleaned up because they themselves wanted to get to the WAFL that day asap. Once we all scrambled into the car, fully kitted out, it was off to the game quickly so we could watch at least a half of the reserves game, and then the league match. Unlike most kids of today, my kids were absorbed in the game itself. They sat there and watched everything. They never got bored. This allowed me to go off and get a beer at half time, like the responsible parent I was . But that was my ritual, my weekly 15 minutes after a 40 hour week at work. After the game we generally went up to the club rooms to watch the presentations, which hundreds of people did in those days. Then it was fish & chips on the way home, and no dishes to worry about. That is the way a Saturday was for us. We never discussed or planned a Saturday, it was routine. Some may say that is boring, but it was one of the best times of our lives. We loved the footy and everything that revolved around it. There were no grey areas and not a mention of peptides & drugs, an unfair draw, player drinking issues, unfair advantages, rule changes, 3 umpires, subs, negative coaching, kicking backwards etc etc etc... We just talked about our bloody wonderful game Aussie Rules. Back then we actually couldn't find anything to piss & moan about. It was the greatest outlet for most of us, after a long week. The WAFL & footy was our weekly saviour!!

I have my issues these days with EP & the alignment. But Ive learnt to move on. I have to. I still have my opinions of what I want for the WAFL, but my match day Saturday today is still one of purity. Going to the footy and thinking about nothing else but THE FOOTY. I still get to a game. I like to watch any contest unlike before when the mere thought of going to a game other than a Royals game was considered a sin. This weekend I cant get to any game, but the following week I will venture out to East Fremantle for the EF-C game, and more than likely the week after perhaps the SF-Subi game. I cant just cut myself off from the game I love because of certain things. I refuse too.

We have a great game, a great local traditional clubs that have a century of history. All I ask is for you to consider taking a fresh positive approach to the footy, especially on game day. Get out there, spread a positive vibe and enjoy your football day/afternoon without these hang-ups. Do it for yourselves, enjoy the simplicity of the footy again. Try it. Heck, if we all did it or at least trained ourselves to just love it like we used too, it may just rub off on a few more people.

I will take this time to wish everyone a great Easter break. And remember there are a bunch of real good WAFL games coming up on the weekend. Get out there, breathe in the hotdogs from the caravans, enjoy a cold beer, and just love the game itself again. Now is a good time to leave the bullshit behind.

Reminds me of the lyric's to this great footy song from the past, and its not Up There Cazaly. It used to always get me juiced up for the pigskin.

When the football season comes around again,
And the fans start swarming too the grounds again,
There's this kind of fever, that keeps us on our toes,
Hear the fans are roaring, as the whistle blows,
Though it pouring and your teams behind,
But still you never throw in the glove,
Its the football season, and that's the reason,
Its the time - of the year - that we love.
So grab your coat and your rug,
And your thermos and mug,
If your team is behind,
If it rains or it shines,
Its the football season, and that's the reason,
Its the time of the year THAT WE LOVE!!

So with all of that, just have a great Easter everyone, give the kids chocolate - it wont kill them. Have a block of Dairy Milk yourselves - it wont kill you. We can keep talking about Essendon, Hird, Crowley, The alignments, The AFL incompetence, The stupid Hippe Club fight, OR start enjoying our actual game again. Like we all should. Enough is enough. You know Im right, Im Sam Kekovich.

Good post Jars sounds similar to my ritual bar the EP part & I like to watch the up & coming Ducklings in the Colts.

I understand where you're coming from jardine and I think you're right. However, it's hard to stay positive when we are bombed with AFL drug cheating, salary cheats, salary manipulation, unequal fixturing, constant game rule changes....etc..etc. Then in the WAFL, we have incompetents running the game, clubs like salaryacco, epbackstabbers and peel bludgers. Doesn't leave a lot to be positive about - all equality is gone and the richest clubs win the chocolates.
And you know what? The cockheads of the game rely on people like me...the ultimate lover of Aussie Rules who needs his game fix week in week out - they rely on people like me, because they know I'll never watch any thing but our great game.

Always enjoy your posts Jardine. Another good one here. Thanks

You wanna hear negativeity Jards?.....Then come on the Perth thread. We've been bitching and moaning on there for years! Deep down we still luv em though