Disco’s Weekly
Round 5 – Gather Round Update
In this week’s edition we go back and look and at the best of Gather Round and some slight adjustments that may help, a close up look of how the AFL’s fixturing is not rewarding the back-to-back Premiers the Brisbane Lions, a crack at Gary Lyon’s biased commentary style, why Zak Butters is the hottest trade target, where did it go right for the Bombers, as well as the latest voting for the Mirrorball Keyring in the Casey’s Over 30’s Nightclub Award, and maybe a snippet or three.
Gather Round – Can you dig it?
The success of Gather Round can be summed up best by the 47,000 people who attended the Port Adelaide v St Kilda clash at Adelaide Oval on a bleak Sunday night. 47,000 people attended a clash between two mid table participants (action talks, bullshit walks) – now that’s success.
Based on the above and before I go any further, it is a no brainer that South Australia retain the rights to Gather Round. The State Government is willing to pump more money into the concept, the SANFL are onboard and SA it is the only state that can craft a schedule to accomodate both the east coast and west coast states. Further, the Premier the Honourable Peter Malinauskas wants to expand the regional games by building boutiques stadiums in areas such as the Clare Valley.
If the brains trust at the AFL in their wisdom don’t offer South Adelaide a long-term deal, then the question needs have to be asked, who spiked the Kool-Aid?
For the record, I have no allegiances to South Australia, but I know when something works and this just works.
Apart from the surprising success of the Power and Saints game, other highlights of Gather Round are:
- The Crows season finally getting off the runway,
- Essendon silencing the doomsayers by winning and winning in style against the Dees,
- Hawthorn flexing their muscle against a Doggies side that lost several players throughout the game – now their depth will be tested in coming weeks,
- Adelaide and Port Adelaide bookending the weekend works well, regardless of where they sit on the ladder,
- Build it and they will come, even in rainy, dank conditions,
- The accommodation at Adelaide Oval is special – seriously, that is on my bucket list, and
- The entire Gather Round had a great feel and ‘vibe’ about it.
Overall, the negatives were very far between, however (gotta love that word) my major qualm is not with Gather Round but it is with the AFL, and how they are fixturing the reigning Premier (more later).
In true vaudeville style, all the villains came out to play, with special mention to Toby Greene, Jake Stringer, Jack Ginnivan, James Sicily, Zak Butters, Ollie Wines and Brayden Maynard. Very entertaining.
Adelaide has built up Gather Round over the last few years, and the people have attended in throngs, even during storms, financial strain, and a petrol crisis.
Bravo South Australia.
What have the back-to-back Premiers done wrong?
A couple weeks ago, the Lions had a game in Melbourne at the invisible timeslot of Saturday 12:35 at Marvel Stadium, and in they Gather Round they were again short shifted by the AFL by being fixtured once again to play in the same invisible timeslot, this time at the boutique Barossa Park oval.
Barossa Park is a beautiful oval (I have never liked Marvel) and in no way do I write this to undermine their privilege to host games during Gather Round, rather it is a dig at the AFL fixturing which seems to be burying the Lions by stealth.
Brisbane have earned the right to primetime fixturing, and they should be celebrated in weekends like the Gather Round.
No offence to Essendon, Melbourne, Richmond and North Melbourne, but currently they don’t deserve primetime status and it is more appropriate they play at boutique stadiums than the reigning Premier.
What is the solution?
No good comes from whinging without offering a possible solution.
Firstly, Adelaide and Port Adelaide works well for the bookend matches. Secondly, the AFL’s love child and cash cow, Collingwood will be given a primetime spot on the Friday or Saturday night (no point in arguing against the inevitable), which basically exists now, however that still leaves one primetime spot available – so what to do?
It may sound revolutionary, but the remaining primetime spot should be for a Grand Final replay, paying homage to the two best teams from the previous season. In reality, both Brisbane (Barossa) and Geelong (Norwood) deserve a grander stage than ovals with a maximum capacity of 10,000 after making the Granny in 2025.
Making a Grand Final is an amazing achievement in an 18-team competition, and the teams that do make it to the grandest stage (yes, there are some Wrestlemania undertones) deserve to be showcased the following season.
Think about it, a Grand Final replay on one of the most pristine ovals in the Southern Hemisphere would be a must-attend, must-watch game.
Garry Lyon – you do realise you are working for a national broadcaster?
Interstate teams and fan bases often criticise the AFL, Channel Seven and Foxtel for their bias to teams and games in Victoria and it often called #vicbias. One of the chief protagonists displaying #vicbias is Gary Lyon, especially in games featuring Collingwood.
Last Friday nights game between Collingwood and Fremantle was a dour (if not boring at times) affair where the winner in a low scoring affair was always going to be decided by the team which took full advantage when they had their 10-minutes of dominance.
Watching the game, it was a case of ‘who blinks first’ wins and come the final siren the Dockers played their poker face better than Collingwood; however, the Foxtel commentary raved lyrical about Collingwood and made it sound like Collingwood lost the game more than the Dockers won it.
For the entire match Garry Lyon raised the tone, pitch and inflection of his voice stating how good Collingwood were playing sticking to their dour style of shutdown football, in particular one Collingwood player who wears the number 35, while sounding dismissive when commenting on the Dockers, even when they were in front.
I’ll state this now, the Chief and Huddo weren’t much better, while Gerard finally got on board with the Dockers in the last stanza, but the loudest and most prominent voice was Garry Lyon, and not for the first time. A common complaint, especially from Dockers and Giants fans on The Mongrel Punt reviews each week is the #vicbias of some commentators, especially singling out one Garry Lyon.
I understand all commentators from each state will show some bias, however, the Channel Seven and Fox commentors are all pronominally Victorian based for the main featured matches of each round and as such they should be professional enough to commentate without fear favour or bias.
Zak Butters – the Most Wanted Public Enemy of 2026
The above “Kafka-esque” heading can mean many things all at once, and it is for the reader to draw their own conclusions.
It could mean:
- Does Zak now have a target on his back with the umpires,
- How much money will Zak donate to the AFL this season in fines,
- Is Zak 2026’s ultimate (Warrior) anti-hero,
- How many clubs will be chasing Zak for his signature in 2027 if he decides to leave Alberton,
- Will Power fans still laud him as a great of the club if he departs, and
- How many articles (true or false) will be written about Zak by the usual suspects in the media looking for clickbait.
Harley Reid can breathe a sigh of relief this season as one Zak Butters is the most wanted and talked about player in 2026.
The discourse surrounding Butters this year will be a rollercoaster of a ride, and I hope in true villain style, Zak holds his bottle and keeps everybody guessing until October.
Let the Zak show roll on.
From one wanted Zak to another wanted Zach
Parenthesis; the Tale of Zach and the Hangar
Last year’s major clickbait story was the future of then Essendon Captain, and six times Crichton Medal winner, Zach Merrett and where he would be playing season 2026. In true soap opera drama style, the saga played out to very last minute of the trade period with a bumbling collection of parties fluffing up their lines and leaving Zach with no choice but to play on with the Bombers this season.
Merrett’s punishment was to be relieved of the captaincy, deconstructed to the hilt when he played a below his normal consistency game this season, and for his wife Alexandra to become a story as she was bored watching the Bombers putting in some inept performances to start the season, going to the boutique restaurant Gimlit instead of watching her husband play.
Prior to Gather Round, the Grim Reaper Coach who stated the obvious about us all dying one day, Brad Scott, showed good humour stating he would buy a voucher for Gimlit next week if she didn’t want to watch the Bomber lose by 50 plus points each week.
Well played Brad Scott for the comedy relief, but it highlights how trivial and, at times, insipid the reporting can be about players with a price tag hanging over their head. Zach much like Zak is a true professional and his personal pride and discipline would never let contractual issues interfere with his week-to-week performances. I am not a betting person, but there is a good chance Zach with the ‘h’ will be in the running to win his seventh Crichton Medal this year.
Happily, for Zach, Alexandra, Brad and the legion of Bombers fans, the limelight eases a bit for a while and the free advertisement for Gimlit can stop, with the Bombers unexpected but well-earned win over the Dees in the early game at Adelaide Oval last Saturday afternoon.
Brad Scott’s Halftime Speech in the Round Four match against the Doggies
Essendon’s unexpected win over the Melbourne has its genesis in the speech Brad Scott gave his charges at halftime in the Round Four clash against the Bulldogs. It must have been one hell of a speech as the club sunk to its lowest ebb of the season with their first half effort against the Bullies.
Essendon has been a totally different outfit since Brad Scott’s Round Four halftime message.
The question as to whether the Dogs took their foot of the throat of Bombers in the second half against the Bombers or had the Bombers turned the corner was well and truly answered last Saturday, with a resounding victory over Melbourne.
Twenty-one-year-old Archie Roberts has been a real revelation since Scott’s halftime speech with six quarters of scintillating football, with him being the best on ground against the Dees. Roberts isn’t alone, with the at times much maligned Peter Wright has suddenly finding career best form in the ruck, while the same could be said about Darcy Parish, Jordan Ridley, Xavier Duursma and Kyle Langford who all found form with the added bonus they are all now finally leading by example the young’uns coming through the system. Heavens above, even Ben McKay has started holding his marks as a halfback interceptor.
Hats off the Bombers on field leaders, Zach Merrett, Sam Durham and current captain Andrew McGrath who have shown enough solidarity at the top end for the rest of the team to follow.
I would dearly like to know what Brad Scott said at halftime when the Essendon Football Club was at its lowest ebb under the tutelage of Coach Scott with a ‘B’.
Mark Blicavs – Mr Reliable gets to 300 games
There are some players in the system who are just there from week to week and year to year as the backbone of their team, the consistent performers. At times clubs don’t realise what it had until it they are gone being categorised as “ever-reliable”. Ever-reliable is a category which sums up Mark Blicavs career, so it is great to see how Geelong are celebrating his 300th game at the hoops under the one coach, the other Scott brother, Chris.
No player likes to miss a game, but Geelong have done the right thing by resting Mark last weekend so his milestone can be celebrated with his adoring fans at the Cattery.
Celebrating milestones is something Geelong probably do better than any other club in the competition and allowing a club stalwart to play his 300th at GMHBA is just another example of that (instead of interstate).
I hope the weather holds for Friday night and congratulations Mark Blicavs from The Mongrel Punt. I let the readers into a little secret, amongst the writers at The Mongrel a number of them have a bit of a bro-crush on the former steeplechase runner and Geelong jack of all trades Mark Blicavs (don’t tell anybody I told you).
Tidbits
I have mentioned Archie Roberts earlier, but there is nothing better than watching a talented junior realise their potential in a manner that makes the entire football world sit up and take notice. Again, well played Archie and welcome to the bigtime.
I’m not buying in the Butters and Foot debate, other than to say any officiating umpires under the employ of the AFL should, for transparency purposes, declare any possible conflicts of interests, and these conflicts should be taken very seriously by the league.
While no Bulldogs supporters worth their salt would agree with me here, it is good to see all teams are beatable on any given day. With top 4, top 6 and wildcard considerations this season, there may be high tension come the last round of the season with teams vying for all spots on the ladder.
I have been harsh on Josh Rachele in previous seasons, but he is playing with a lot more mongrel this season than previous seasons, and it is good to see. The public often expects more from players like Rachele without realising they are still relatively young and yet to reach the same maturity as players who have been in the season a year or two longer.
The has been a glut of games since Easter Thursday, without there being not much time between times to really appreciate the full spectacle of the great game. With Round 7 being another long round because of the Monday Anzac match, it might not have hurt to start Round 6 on the Friday instead of tomorrow night.
There is such a thing as too much of a good thing.
Disco’s Over 30’s Casey’s Nightclub Award
This award for the players proving there is life after 30 in the AFL is theoretically sponsored by the once legendary nightclub located in the Glenferrie Station arcade, Casey’s Over 30’s Nightclub, where on any given Wednesday or Saturday night the more mature singles of Melbourne would pack the joint to the rafters.
There are many players in the AFL thirty years of age or older performing gallantly and as such The Mongrel Punt introduces this award aimed at the elderly citizens of the competition who will be competing for The Mirror Ball Keyring.
Similar in style to the Coaches Votes, the voting system for this cherished award is the top ten elderly citizens of each round will be ranked with ten being the maximum and one being the minimum.
Votes for Gather Round
10 Brodie Grundy (Syd)
9 Luke Ryan (Freo)
8 Lachie Whitfield (GWS)
7 Zach Merrett (Ess)
6 Brayden Maynard (Coll)
5 James Sicily (Haw)
4 Tom Atkins (Gee)
3 Peter Wright (Ess)
2 Toby Greene (GWS)
1 Callum Wilkie (StK)
Leaders Board
12 Brodie Grundy (Syd)
10 Jack Steele (Melb)
9 Luke Parker (NM) Luke Ryan (Freo) Zach Merrett (Ess)
8 Jack Gunston (Haw) Lachie Whitfield (GWS)
7 Max Gawn (Melb)
6 Alex Pearce (Freo) Brayden Maynard (Coll)
5 Marcus Bontempelli (WB) James Sicily (Haw)
4 Jake Melksham (Melb) Tom Aitkins (Gee)
3 Lachie Neale (Bris) Peter Wright (Ess)
2 Toby Greene (GWS)
1 Jack Darling (NM) Callum Wilkie (StK)
Note, we have decided to not backdate this award – as such, Round Zero to Round Three are excluded.
Fin
Gather Round was a success in no small measure to the enthusiasm of all involved in South Australia including the Premier, SANFL, the Crows and the Power.
Gather Round must remain in SA for the foreseeable future.
This weekly post is specifically designed to be a bit loose, and we encourage a bit of banter in the comments – Nothing too Serious (until it is).
Thanks for reading, and as this is a new weekly we are very open to suggestions.
May your team win in the first normal round of the season.
