This week…
We are at the tail end of a shitload of games in a row:
Welcome to Balls of Steel’s AFL Beat!
Like last week, we don’t really have much time to reflect upon the Round That Was because there is another Round starting tonight! Last week, the AFL revealed the schedule for Round 13, which will be the Doug Nicholls Round! As you will remember from previous years, this is the Round where the AFL teams wear special guernseys celebrating and recognizing Aboriginal and Torres Strait culture. I usually do a special post showing all the unique guernseys, but I haven’t seen anything coming out from the clubs or the AFL, so I’m not sure if they will do special ones this year or just go with last year’s designs. I’ll keep you posted on that.
Here are the results and highlights from Round Eleven:
Friday, August 7, 2020
Port Adelaide Power 93 v Richmond Tigers 72 at Adelaide Oval
This was probably the funnest game to watch this year. Fresca Top Notch!
Saturday, August 8, 2020
Brisbane Lions 96 v Western Bulldogs 72 at The Gabba
This was a great game by the Lions. They’re showing they belong at the top.
West Coast Eagles 72 v Carlton Blues 50 at Optus Stadium
The Blues started out very strong, but a great third quarter gave the Eagles the win.
Sunday, August 9, 2020
Melbourne Demons 92 v North Melbourne Kangaroos 35 at Adelaide Oval
This was an absolute beatdown. Embarrasing for the Roos.
Monday, August 10, 2020
St. Kilda Saints 34 v Geelong Cats 93 at The Gabba
This was a big win for the Cats that sets up an awesome matchup next week against Port.
Fremantle Dockers 48 v Hawthorn Hawks 32 at Optus Stadium
The Dockers are still in finals contention while the Hawks’ lost season continues.
Tuesday, August 11, 2020
Adelaide Crows 38 v Collingwood Magpies 62 at Adelaide Oval
Can you believe the Crows led by 9 at the half? The Pies woke up in the third and that was that.
Wednesday, August 12, 2020
Gold Coast Suns 73 v Essendon Bombers 73 at Metricon Stadium
It was a crazy game that came down to the last two minutes:
Here are the full-game highlights:
Round 11 Byes: GWS Giants, Sydney Swans
***
Let’s take a look at the ladder, shall we?
| P | TEAM | W | L | T | PTS | % |
| 1 | Port Adelaide Power | 9 | 2 | 0 | 36 | 142.7 |
| 2 | Brisbane Lions | 8 | 3 | 0 | 32 | 119.6 |
| 3 | Geelong Cats | 7 | 4 | 0 | 28 | 130.7 |
| 4 | West Coast Eagles | 7 | 3 | 0 | 28 | 117.3 |
| 5 | St. Kilda Saints | 7 | 4 | 0 | 28 | 111.6 |
| 6 | Richmond Tigers | 6 | 4 | 1 | 26 | 116.6 |
| 7 | Collingwood Magpies | 6 | 4 | 1 | 26 | 116.0 |
| 8 | GWS Giants | 6 | 4 | 0 | 24 | 104.7 |
| 9 | Essendon Bombers | 5 | 4 | 1 | 22 | 90.0 |
| 10 | Melbourne Demons | 5 | 5 | 0 | 20 | 109.9 |
| 11 | Western Bulldogs | 5 | 6 | 0 | 20 | 88.9 |
| 12 | Gold Coast Suns | 4 | 6 | 1 | 18 | 100.9 |
| 13 | Carlton Blues | 4 | 6 | 0 | 16 | 94.7 |
| 14 | Fremantle Dockers | 4 | 6 | 0 | 16 | 88.2 |
| 15 | Hawthorn Hawks | 4 | 6 | 0 | 16 | 85.2 |
| 16 | North Melbourne Kangaroos | 3 | 8 | 0 | 12 | 82.1 |
| 17 | Sydney Swans | 3 | 7 | 0 | 12 | 78.2 |
| 18 | Adelaide Crows | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 55.5 |
Here is the Balls GraphTM:
[gview file=”https://www.doorfliesopen.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/AFL-Ladder-2020R11.pdf”]
***
Footy Tipping Contest
Here is where we are after Round Eleven:
| P | TIPPER | Round Tips |
Round Margin |
Total Tips | Total Margin |
| 1 | BFC | 8 | 10 | 66 | 183 |
| 2 | SonOfSpam | 7 | 12 | 66 | 235 |
| 3 | Dolph Ucker | 7 | 5 | 65 | 245 |
| 4 | Litre_cola | 5 | 27 | 63 | 222 |
| 5 | BALLS | 8 | 17 | 62 | 241 |
| 6 | 5 | 26 | 60 | 320 | |
| 7 | Yeah Right | 7 | 4 | 58 | 239 |
| 8 | Sunrisesunrise | 6 | 29 | 57 | 342 |
| 9 | BC Dick | 8 | 21 | 56 | 245 |
| 10 | WhyEaglesWhy | 3 | 21 | 52 | 250 |
| 11 | Game Time Decision | 5 | 9 | 52 | 313 |
| 12 | Maestro | 8 | 13 | 45 | 246 |
| 13 | Reverend Mayhem | 3 | 21 | 42 | 231 |
| 14 | Sharkbait | 6 | 29 | 42 | 397 |
We have a new leader as four people were able to get perfect scores despite a tie taking place! Yes, this is all blowing Donovan McNabb’s mind. Does this mean that Litre_cola feels a little less special? I hope not!
With the new compressed schedule, it will be more important than ever to enter in the tips in advance. Like now because the first game of Round Twelve starts tonight. As always,
DON’T FORGET TO PUT THE FOOTY TIPS IN!
***
I’ve been providing, for your advanced Tipping reference, the schedule for the next few rounds (All times Pacific). Here then are the game schedules for Rounds Twelve and Thirteen:
Round Twelve
Thursday, August 13, 2020
3:10 AM – Sydney Swans v GWS Giants at Optus Stadium
Friday, August 14, 2020
2:50 AM – Geelong Cats v Port Adelaide Power at Metricon Stadium (new venue)
9:35 PM – North Melbourne Kangaroos v Brisbane Lions at Metricon Stadium (new venue)
Saturday, August 15, 2020
12:10 AM – Melbourne Demons v Collingwood Magpies at The Gabba
3:10 AM – Fremantle Dockers v Carlton Blues at Optus Stadium
8:05 PM – Western Bulldogs v Adelaide Crows at Metricon Stadium
10:35 PM – St. Kilda Saints v Essendon Bombers at The Gabba
Sunday, August 16, 2020
1:10 AM – West Coast Eagles v Hawthorn Hawks at Optus Stadium
Monday, August 17, 2020
2:10 AM – Richmond Tigers v Gold Coast Suns at The Gabba
Round Thirteen
Friday, August 21, 2020
2:50 AM – Gold Coast Suns v Carlton Blues at TIO Stadium (Northern Territory)
8:45 PM – Western Bulldogs v Melbourne Demons at Metricon Stadium
11:35 PM – Port Adelaide Power v Hawthorn Hawks at Adelaide Oval
Saturday, August 22, 2020
2:40 AM – Essendon Bombers v Richmond Tigers at TIO Stadium (Northern Territory)
3:10 AM – Fremantle Dockers v Sydney Swans at Optus Stadium
8:05 PM – Adelaide Crows v Geelong Cats at Adelaide Oval
10:35 PM – Brisbane Lions v St. Kilda Saints at The Gabba
Sunday, August 23, 2020
1:10 AM – West Coast Eagles v GWS Giants at Optus Stadium
Monday, August 17, 2020
2:10 AM – Collingwood Magpies v North Melbourne Kangaroos at The Gabba
The postponed Essendon-Melbourne game will be made up after Round 13, but there is no schedule out yet.
***
Without further ado, it’s
Balls’ Sechs
1- How bad is Adelaide that the North Melbourne Kangaroos, which just beat them easily, got their asses kicked by the Melbourne Demons, who are not good at all?
2- The Port Adelaide Power just passed their biggest test of the year. Beating Richmond at their own game is a very big feat indeed!
3- The Lions have stumbled a bit, but are slowly rounding into shape. They are beating the teams they should, which is good. If they can only start beating the better teams, they will be able to make the jump into a finals win.
4- The Saints did not do as well in their biggest test of the year. The loss of Paddy Ryder prior to the game hurt for sure, but one absence shouldn’t mean a 10 goal loss.
5- The Hawks looked pretty awful against the Dockers. It’s going to be interesting to see what the fallout is from this dismal season by Hawks standards.
6- Next week’s games start right away with a Sydney Derby being played on the opposite coast of the country, in Perth, TONIGHT!
***
That’s all for this week.
As discussed last week, Fox Sports has the rights to the AFL in the United States while TSN has the rights in Canada and the AFL is pressuring them to have more games available on the FS1, FS2, and TSN networks. Now is the perfect chance for you to see what all the fun is about!
Not only that, but ESPN has jumped back into the AFL pool! They’ll be broadcasting one game per week live on an ESPN network and streaming another live on ESPN3.
You can find the latest broadcast information on the Australian Football Association of North America website here.
Here is your Round 12 live broadcast schedule with North American broadcast partner:
Round Twelve
Thursday, August 13, 2020
3:10 AM – Sydney Swans v GWS Giants at Optus Stadium (TSN2)
Friday, August 14, 2020
2:50 AM – Geelong Cats v Port Adelaide Power at Metricon Stadium (FS1, TSN2)
9:35 PM – North Melbourne Kangaroos v Brisbane Lions at Metricon Stadium (FS1)
Saturday, August 15, 2020
12:10 AM – Melbourne Demons v Collingwood Magpies at The Gabba (FS1)
3:10 AM – Fremantle Dockers v Carlton Blues at Optus Stadium (TSN1, ESPN3)
8:05 PM – Western Bulldogs v Adelaide Crows at Metricon Stadium
10:35 PM – St. Kilda Saints v Essendon Bombers at The Gabba (TSN1, ESPN2)
Sunday, August 16, 2020
1:10 AM – West Coast Eagles v Hawthorn Hawks at Optus Stadium (FS2)
Monday, August 17, 2020
2:10 AM – Richmond Tigers v Gold Coast Suns at The Gabba (FS2, TSN1)
***
AFL Beat Round 12 will publish at the normal day/time on Tuesday, August 18, 2020.
See you next time!
This schedule is insane
Capitali’s with another tally!
You’ll feel better when you allow more Van Morrison into your life. I was on a walk earlier and this song popped into the cranium out of nowhere-haven’t listened to it in more than 5 years.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDTKdHJiOco
Sports during The Covid is different but there is one constant and that is Seven Fucking Nation Fucking Army being played far too often.
Capitals center out with a lower Backstrom injury?
90+3? Losing in overtime is so on brand for ATL teams
Atalanta Falacons
Maybe it is PSG’s year after all?
Well that was 2 quick strikes.
SUDDEN CHANGE!
Well, I’m not super thrilled with a draw against a 4-6 team, but I’ll take some heart from that 18-point comeback in the fourth quarter by Essendon. Hopefully this is part of the gradual process of them getting their shit together.
Cheeto introduces new expert Dr. Atlas. Seriously? Dr. Atlas. This is a terrible movie, I’m returning it not rewound to Blockbuster.
Hockey fight! Hockey fight!
/rating, meh
Know what is fun? Having a condo showing during your day and you leave at the appropriate time but they show up an hour later. Working via phone is nawt fun.
Also, having our place on the market during covid is fucking pointless.
Start a fire or a series of fires.
never a bad decision.
“I know, right?”
-Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes
Also never a bad decision, Lisa?
Not driving anywhere for any reason while in Honduras.
Let’s hope this Atalanta knows how to hold a halftime lead
This comment should have all the likes.
Hippo, didn’t you bet a future on ATALANTATA?
Oh yes, at like 50 to 1
Holy cats, Atalanta is sticking to their principles even with a backup keeper between the sticks. Gotta love the having and showing of balls.
Did everyone get a point for the tie or did it become an ATS thing or something like that?
Shempions certainly got one thing right – kept the 9/5 subs bench, but nixed the orange slice breaks
ATALANTA!!!
Ah hear yeeewwww calllllin
/also, Footy Manager taught me to love a left-footed RW like that Pasalic
Neymar – as jittery as an alley cat on bath salts.
“Happen to know where one would get those bath salts? Asking for me.”
-T. Marinovich
Well, they’re both pussies, to that makes sense.
Another GAMBLOR/pot odds thought – today’s winner will have a yuuuuugggge rest advantage for the Raging Semis.
I haven’t seen this many dangerous Italian crosses since the Crusades.
Could you imagine a Gasperini v Pep Shempions final? Be so universally entertaining that tWBS would roll over in his grave.
Indeed.
Awwww. You fixed the typo and now my image makes no sense!
Shempions tiempo, y’all. Huzzah Atalanta!!!
On local TV too, so I can watch hockey AND Champions League!
Solamente en Espanol?
I forked out for CBS All Access so I could understand the commentary. Plus, Kate Abdo.
Don’t worry. Ze Latinas are well represented in Spanish Footy shows…
Kate is just so boxing clever.
/my oldest kid also turns 22 today, and she was happy to have access to the dumb Big Brother live streams (without her Rooskie pirate website)
Pitch for a new series of posts: Kate Abdo and King Hippo Judge Your Fetishes!
You can use that as your banner image.
I’d make her an honoUrary WASP any day of the week, if u noe wut ah meen
“Bruins win! Bruins win! ” is something I take very little joy in reporting.
“AT LAHST, OW-AH LONG REGIONAL NITEMARE IS OVAH!”
Is that Bo Derek?
In sports related news:
The Masters Golf Tournament in Augusta, GA is planning to occur w/o spectators in November
Yay sports!
If racism occurs without spectators, does it make a noise?
Usually just a deep sigh, followed by a muttered “Those people are sendin’ this country to hell.”
Much louder in a crowd.
“Tech. support please……. I’ve been on hold for 89 minutes and transferred three times already.”
Just 3, then let me transfer you again
[gets back to second person again]
I actually had tech support solve a problem for me w/in 5 minutes this morning.
Yes, I will be buying lottery tickets later today.
How many goat had to die to make this happen?
Not enough.
/shakes fist at goats eating shrubbery
Oh the Saints are dropping back to normalcy!
I thought of you as I watched the replay…
We will not judge you on your spankbank material.
We will critique your technique, however.
LOL
That’s good advice for women at closing time.
Well, depends on the meaning.
“Worst cramp I’ve ever had.”
Lady Jane Grey gives good head.
I’m curious how good women looked back in the olden days. This gal looks like she doesn’t put up with much…
Same as they do now, except more inbreeding in the leadership.
I dunno. You think they had these gals in Scandinavia in the Middle Ages?
By the time they were that age in the Middle Ages they were either dead from measles or had three kids and arthritis from farming.
Horatio reads some history; death during child birth was the leading cause of death for women, well females 13 and over.
Gals? Plus the image is mis-posted; try again!
I don’t think I’m going out on a limb here saying that this game will not go 5 OTs…
Can’t go 5 if you don’t go 2 first.
– German Proverb