■ Whoever said a week is a long time in football must follow the Bulldogs. The overwhelming mood of Bulldogs people I spoke to before the St Kilda match was of caution towards a danger game. At half-time they were high-fiving and talking about the play-off for top spot against Fremantle. By the end of the game they were stunned. Last week one of the great victories, this week one of the most baffling losses. Next week, who knows? The loss was hard to swallow, but the injury to Clay Smith was just heartbreaking. Clay is a very level-headed and smart young man, as tough as any I’ve seen in the red, white and blue jumper. This will test him mentally and physically. I really like him and hope it works out.
■ While Clay has the support of his club and a contract that will see him suffer no financial hardship, it’s a different story with injuries to players at lower levels. Even VFL players with long-term injuries have issues with not being able to work and losing both their full-time wage and their match payments. At local level, a broken leg or a torn Achilles can have devastating effects on the family budget. Sometimes the insurance doesn’t pay as well as expected either and the strain that puts on everyone just isn’t fair. It’s always good to see clubs rally behind an injured player, as Albanvale and Laverton plan to do for Blake Charlton, who broke his leg last weekend.
■ What Albion Football Club did at the weekend for Liam Keenan-Hayes and his terminally ill mother, Patricia, is magnificent. That’s what local sporting clubs are about and why we love them and give our time to them. The club is raising funds for the family and that’s immeasurable in the context of value that sport brings to the people involved. Well done to Albion and to the Western Bulldogs, who sent Bobby Murphy and Dale Morris down to represent them.
■ The decision to not telecast the game between Werribee and Williamstown this weekend looks even sillier when you study the VFL ladder. Sunday’s clash at Avalon Airport Oval is between the first and second sides on the ladder, while the televised Richmond-Collingwood game is between third and 12th. I can’t fully convey my disgust at this situation and I’m sure both clubs feel they have been hard done by.
Kevin Hillier
