Tuesday @ footyalmanac

CRIO’S QUESTION: What buzz words or phrases in the sports world annoy you intensely? Chris Riordan takes a shot on goal.

FOOTY LINK: In the third of our series Billy Miller Goes to the Old VFL Grounds, young Billy goes to the Glenferrie Oval, aka the Sardine Can, once known for ruining Huddo’s knee and for sausages on Thursdays, now a bit of an oval with a bit of a grandstand in a really expensive real estate area.

FANTASY FOOTY: For the most tragic of fantasy footy tragics, John Butler provides information and links to some of the super-serious dreamteam websites.

FOOTY/MUSIC: Channelling Johnny Cash, Phil Dimitriadis gets excited about the season ahead in his piece Footy’s Coming.

FOOTY: A solitary leaf fluttering to the ground can mean so much, writes Damian O’Donnell in this lyrical homage to the onset of autumn. And we all know what autumn means.

FOOTY/CRICKET: Sometimes a star struggles to shine as it should, writes Paul Daffey in this elegiac account of the bush Bartel.

FOOTY: An Aboriginal community stirs anew when a footy tournament beckons. Sue Currie emerges from beneath the vials and bandages of her clinic to give us this wonderful slice of desert life.

EXHIBITION: It sounds obvious enough, but Paul Daffey always felt that a day at the footy started at the gates. Once he was inside the ground he was immersed in a new world for the afternoon.

SPORTS JOURNALISM: Danielle Eid seeks to capture the look that identifies one as a future sports journalist.

COUNTRY FOOTY: Richard Jones takes us on an 80-year journey, celebrating the rich history of the Wade Street Oval, home of reigning Bendigo Football League premiers Golden Square.

FILM REVIEW: In Invictus, his perspective on the 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa, Clint Eastwood continues to intrigue as a director, writes John Butler in this thoughtful appraisal. And yet Clint does play it safe …

EXHIBITION: A Melbourne University field trip to Cohuna has begat an exhibition called Strewth! That’s Heritage. Paul Daffey writes about the trip and one of the exhibits, a fun and instructive  six-minute film on one of country Victoria’s most spirited rivalries. A film link is provided.

AMERICAN FOOTBALL: The clear-eyed Colts stand in the way of a Saints Superbowl fairytale, writes Cade Lucas.

RACING: It was a wonderful day’s racing at Caulfield on Awe Stakes day, as Chris Riordan describes it.

RACING: There’s plenty on offer at Caulfield for occasional and dedicated punters alike, writes Chris Riordan. Typhoon Tracy should win the Orr Stakes if she is to confirm her trainers’ opinion that she’s world-class.

FANTASY FOOTY: John Butler, such a mild-mannered man in so many respects, has a confession to make. Join in him as he describes his Kurtzian descent.

FOOTY: Inspired by the discussion on this site about which clubs have fair dinkum rivalries, Josh Barnstable recalls North Melbourne’s best games of recent years.

CRICKET: Chris Gayle received the ultimate gift after a Canberra coaching clinic, writes Pamela Sherpa, who was responsible for this unexpected bonanza.

RACING: American jockey Patrick Valenzuela flew out here to ride Cannonball in Saturday’s Lightning Stakes at Flemington. You might think racing officials were all over the visiting hoop, but that wasn’t the case, says Philip Tyndall, who bumped into Valenzuela standing around outside the track.

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