So, yes were only five weeks in to the season... but there's a few surprises in the top eight at the moment, suspect a few positional changes, and a couple of teams will drop out but after five rounds the top eight are:
- Fremantle
- Collingwood
- Western Bulldogs
- Hawthorn
- West Coast
- Sydney
- Adelaide
- GWS.
Have been surprised with the form of the Bulldogs or Eagles as they weren't my list for the eight, but they've both impressive to watch so far this year, will be interesting to see how long they kept their form up.
The Swans were let down with both the decision-making and execution, they had the opportunities to win the game (61 inside 50s). Mick Malthouse was all class in the press conference following the Blue's loss on Friday. He's a great steward of the game.
SuperRugby
Impressed with the Hurricanes continuing their dominance over the Crusaders and keeping top spot on the ladder. Hoping for a Waratahs-Hurricanes, though at this stage, it'd be in Wellington...
A-League:
Today was a bit of a dampener on the Phoenix's seasons. A few weeks ago, they were potential winners of the minor premiership but let it slip.
Next week sees the Victory take on City in a Melbourne derby and Sydney tackle Adelaide for a place in the final..
NRL
The League tests were played on Sunday after being washed out on Friday. The Junior Kiwi's lost by two yesterday, and the women's team were outclassed 22-14. The Men's team won the ANZAC test for the first time since 1998, and the first time they've won three in a row against Australia since 1952/53. Great to see the women's test played before the men's game.
The break to the season for the test is an interesting idea.. though I'd like a two week break for the State of Origin.. playing the games on Friday, Wednesday then Sunday.Would also be great to have a series for the women's teams, or a one-off match. The players who aren't involved in the State of Origin series could be invited to play in a knockout event held in a rotating regional centre. This would certainly help build the game in these areas. I'd love to see the NRL explore a knockout 'Cup' type competition using teams from each local area group, and the Toyota Cup teams from the NRL like the current football cup competition. Not sure if that'd work.
World Cup Countdown...
- less than 50 days to the Women's Football World Cup.
- less than 100 days to the Netball World Cup.
- less than 150 days to the Rugby World Cup.
Australia received the draw for their World Cup recently. Perhaps a logistical nightmare more than anything else, as fans work out how they can get to the games, but we'll see.