three games where the results will count...

big games this weekend, hawks vs swans, collingwood vs adelaide and if the suns want a taste of finals action , well they are going to have to beat brisbane at home...that's it folks! nice to have a week off. the lady army will be getting ready to bring their game plan to melbourne next round...now that is gonna be big viewers, hee,hee.

lucky jocks, lucky rock...what a round!!!

farewell Dom...

the dice had been thrown. lucky double for port. roos defeated, freo smashed. who on earth would have seen the freo flogging coming? not me viewers. and how stressful was it for son number two might i add. OMG had to take him home at half time because he was having a complete meltdown. not enjoyable freo, not enjoyable one bit. but hey have to give credit to the saints. that performance was awesome and what a fine effort to honour lenny hayes. i tell ya this was panning out to be the cursed round and a tipsters nightmare. the fact the roos lost well what can one expect from them? most frustrating and disappointing side in the comp. how they win at times defies belief because on paper they are not drowning in a sea of talent.

      i must say the pressure was certainly on. would the curse continue? i bet some were feeling nervous. all i can say it was a golden opportunity for port to grab the footy beast by the horns and kick it out of the oval. midway through the second quarter that is exactly what it looked like. 30 point lead it seemed we were on a run and on our way to a percentage boosting win which would see port reclaim a spot in the four. but alas two quick goals before half time which was just the beginning of a demonic inspired comeback that almost spoilt it. 

      not a pretty game to watch folks. so many mistakes, rubbish umpiring that left one confused with what is holding the ball FFS? little sista freaking out. all i can say is that it is lucky for us the kids weren't sitting next to us. i reckon she is due at least a hundred hail mary's...no make that 1000 for the expletives firing from her mouth. shame on you. i think i am going to have to revise the lady army membership rules. in the end one way or another we scrapped and fought our way back to a desperate win in the last two minutes of the game. i said...schulzy has to save us and he did, allelujah footy gods and one has to be grateful for a win even if it was ugly. and thank goodness the boys got over the line for Dom. he certainly deserved to go out on a win, perhaps not a blaze of glory but a win nonetheless. it was a big day, Dom's farewell game, my nieces 12th birthday, having to get home and get ready for a feast to celebrate with friends...blah,blah,blah.

      and still the doubt remains. a media cloud hanging over port's head. personally i will maintain my own opinion and  will make an effort to get on talk back radio this week, hee,hee. 

PS i did make the effort to wear my lucky jocks to the game, teal bonds hipsters. as i put them on getting ready i thought to myself these will be my lucky jocks, hee,hee. we were also given the lucky rock by a lady army member who was unable to join us. so lucky jocks/lucky rock...four points thankyou very much we wil take them.

have a groovy week viewers,

love FFFandF XXX

post mortem...are we still alive? the armchair critic from round 17

we miss you Trengove...

OMG, my frigging donuts. thank the lord krispy kreme wasn't open as i drove home in a state of disbelief. how many would i have bought? a bootload full? (well not really coz i am in training for the city to bay and an advocate for a chemical free as much as possible healthy lifestyle to maintain my youthful exterior, hee,hee). 

honestly? we were outplayed and flat, no discredit to the tigers. oh how i wish they had been turned into kittens instead. an opportunity gone missing. was the pressure too much? did some of the players have a fight with their mum the night before? did some actually forget to wear their lucky jocks? i don't know. i don't have the answers apart from the fact that the season is long, we are missing two key defenders and perhaps it is only natural that a team should slide downhill and wade in a pool called the slump. the worst part being folks is that of course there is going to be a tidal wave no make that an avalanche of criticism heading ports way. and is it justified? well no. for frigging sakes what do people actually expect? dare i say it and risk being identified and having my home paint bombed or my tyres slashed?? dare i? dare i? ok i will. 

     of course i would love the fairytale ending. grandfinal win 2014, fitting for the tenth anniversary of our first premiership. but will i get upset if it doesn't happen? will i burn my membership? will i  hide out in my car with a paintball gun so i can vent my frustration on the players, coaches and anyone else who happens to be coming out of ports home turf? mm...the second one sounds tempting but alas no viewers just in case the crowtiser, (oops i mean the advertiser) happens to be around to turn that story into an unwarranted massacre. and also just in case my paintball frenzy does injure some players and i get banned for life. i will do none of that because i just can't risk any carnage... but really because i am in it for the long haul. i don't think we are quite ready for the flag. did i actually say that? did i? did i? yep you heard me viewers and before some of you become too hysterical and burn effigies of me on the streets of port adelaide, hear me out. i will give you my reasons why, just so you heard it from the armchair critic with her dot points in tow, lol.

• to begin with a side takes time to develop. it takes time to gel and if the culture is a positive and selfless one then that is the first step in building a strong foundation.( tick for port)
• players take time to develop. their bodies take time to mature and get strong physically. ( third youngest list)
• players take time to toughen up mentally with the relentless presure and expectations of the game ( we are now the hunted)
• considering all the players who have played any games this season the statistics are the following: we have 11 on our list who have played 100+ games, of that 11, 5 have 150+ up their sleeve and two have surpassed the 200+ milestone 
• 7 players on the list have managed 50+ games
•  9 have between 20-49 games and 4 have played less than 20
•  carlisle and trengove have more games between them than four of our defenders combined...so yes a big OUCH for injuries

      so taking the above in consideration i do believe we are on track for premiership glory and a lot of it if we continue to develop and improve. i won't cry if it doesn't happen this year... did i just say that? yes i did. realistically we are still an inexperienced side that is yet to join the ranks of a hawthorn, sydney or geelong. but i believe we will get there. port is a work in progress. my expectation as a supporter is that they improve from last year and play finals again, end of story. and as far as the advertiser is concerned i am not going to buy into some of the negativity. put it into perspective journalists and see it for what it is...still a rather remarkable turnaround and achievement in less than two seasons. the dynasty is unfolding...i say it is just a matter of time. and yes we are very much still alive folks because the port heartbeat is strong.

over and out from the armchair analyst, lol.

love FFFandF XXX 

round 17...time for tipping

big game tonight for both teams, crows win they will enter the eight for the first time this season and there will be a bonus should port win as well. lose and it is going to become that little bit harder. my heart says hawks but my mind says crows by 21...i will wait and see what happens. going out on a bit of a limb this round as far as my tips go viewers. no son number two to back me up this week. he is busy enjoying his campervan adventure with his dad and brother, no doubt freezing their bums off.

     so for round 17... i tip the CROWS by 21, CATS, BULLDOGS for a bit of an upset, ROOS, SYDNEY, WEST COAST (although i did think about the lions at home), PORT, ESSENDON, yes folks the bombers for an upset and FREO who should smash GWS and get a huge percentage boost. i say they will most likely finish top two with their run home. not much longer and before we know it we will be hitting the finals series...AWESOME! and even more awesome to see my beloved PORT in there battling it out. predictions from here? mm, let me think about that. so until the close of this round viewers, keep warm, keep cozy and keep LOUD ( well perhaps my neighbour might disagree, hee,hee)

love FFFandF XXX
PS and maybe keep your uggboots on!!!

from the couch....

gone missing...

Rickster from LA...

seems like a few of us have gone missing, me included. i must be experiencing a slight writing slump but hey viewers don't despair i shall dig deep to find some inspiration to return to my former witty, writing style. well for one i can tell you exactly what has gone missing...GOALS. yes GOALS...where are those damn goals? 7.18...SUPER OUCH GUYS!!! did you hear me? bloody super ouch, no make that a stab in the guts keeled over in pain realising that the siren is about to blow and we have just run out of time to snatch victory. i do believe some serious goal kicking practice is due with a bit of old fashioned torture thrown in. how about for every goal you miss you have to do one hundred push ups? or a 1000? mm, sounds too easy. how about for every goal you miss you have to eat dinner cooked by my former mother in law? hee, hee. that sounds more like it and boy that accuracy would improve dramatically guys i am telling ya. (sorry joy division you never really cut it in the cooking stakes) and where we come from very few will ever be able to match it with lovie's culinary nous. perhaps i should be dangling a dinner prepared by the infamous lovie herself. i'm telling ya, you will be wanting to move in next but she won't be cooking unless you are winning!!!
     seven from nine this round, did not get port nor roos although i should have listened to my footy instincts and gone with the roos. i did actually say to lovie, what's the bet that the roos beat hawthorn? true viewers and if you want confirmation well then you can ask her yourself. fancy that ?the roos have beaten the top four sides. so you can imagine i for one wouldn't be crying if that did not make the eight. nor would i be if the crows miss out too because those two teams are too unpredictable and the ones likely to inflict some damage come finals time...
     well i was at the game with lady army in tow. it also happened to be son number two's bday but unfortuntaely i have lost him to the dockers. that has been brewing for quite some time folks and i will leave it as it is coz he still supports port in sa. as i mentioned before it is a dad thing. luckily for him he was at the game with his dad and brother so it somehow softened the blow and just confirmed to my teenager that he doesn't want to particularly come to the football with me. moi? well i was the ambassador of international relations, bringing along an AFL virgin from venice beach, california. and to make sure i got in first i have given him my port power cap to take back and spread the message. he loved it and i have requested a photo of him wearing his new cap in front of an iconic landmark or better still with a world famous celebrity. i think he is up to the mission, go the rickster!!! 
     in a nutshell? wet conditions maybe but essendon were tougher at the tackling and put us under enormous pressure. trengove and carlise missing? yes of course it hurts but good teams find a way to plug the holes and get on with the game. thought the defence held up pretty well but our goal kicking let us down and it has for the past couple of weeks. even in the games we have won we have kicked far too many behinds that if a few had been converted would have made the difference between four points and zero. in anycase i wasn't going to sulk or blame the umpires. in actual fact we ended up having a pretty good night. upstairs in the magarey room to show our guests the after game gathering. we even got to meet some of the players and got the rickster in a photo with boaky for a memento of his AFL experience. i did notice that the room wasn't as full as usual but i can't say whether that was due to a loss or the weather. i can say yes it was disappointing. top spot was up for grabs and we didn't seize the opportunity.in anycase it certainly makes for an interesting finish. it is gonna be tight viewers. big blow to suns who may lose ablett which will certainly impact on their ability to keep a foothold on eighth position. collingwood need to find some form and hawthorn could be the team to struggle to stay in the top four.they are going to find adelaide hard to beat particularly if the adelaide we have seen in the past two weeks ( even though i hate admitting it) is the the team that shows up on friday night. one part of me wants hawks to win ( i think it is the emotional me) but the logical me says for goodness sakes let the crows have another win to crow about because it goes to the port cause. oooh what is one to do?
      well what is one to do? CHILLAX folks. yep. what will be will be. i subscribe to what i have said on many an occassion, come september and then the real games of footy begin. as we have already seen injuries, a bit of luck and everything can change in a blink of an eye. personally i am not going to rise to any hysteria regarding port and the bait that if one is to take just distills confidence and increases fear. and it may surprise some of you but i predicted ports premiership would come in 2015 because i am a realist folks. time and experience will only strengthen this dynamic, talented side. and as much as i would be ecstatic if the flag came our way this year i won't be crying if it doesn't.  i am patient and am optimistic to believe it will come and there will be more to follow. that is what is exciting. don't lose sight of the long term vision my friends, until the next round if you are an adelaidean, rug up coz it's bloody freezing outside.
love FFFandF XXX

PS we happened to meet peter caven ( former crows premiership player) on our way to the train station with his mate who was an essendon supporter but gracious in victory. lindi and i had a great, in depth footy conversation with him, ( he is impressed with port's turnaround) nice bloke. also met sam gray's dad ( now i know where he gets his height from, hee, hee) but a fun and amiable man willing to stop and have a chat coz he heard me mention sammy gray. yes a loss viewers but still an entertaining night for the rest of us who happened to miss the train...i wonder why? can't ever say i have been short of a word. LOL. time to bounce back and turn those tigers into pussycats!!!