Malthouse’s media manner is bad news
Mick Malthouse can be a prickly customer at the best of times, but last weekend he took it to a whole new level. At a press conference after the narrow loss to Hawthorn he was asked a question near the end about umpires. He returned fire to the person asking the question, demanding to know which newspaper he was from. The young journalist responded that he was from community radio. Malthouse then dismissed the question and, without any acknowledgement to the individual, got up and left the press conference. I have been involved in the media for seven years and know what it’s like to be on both sides of the fence. Without a doubt it was one of the most disrespectful things I have seen from an experienced person involved in Aussie rules. He showed no compassion as a human being and came across as an arsehole of the highest order. The young journalist could do nothing but think that he may have asked something so ridiculous that Malthouse gave it no credibility. But the question he asked was like many others being asked by journalists each and every week. There is no way Malthouse would have disrespected a senior journalist the way he did this young fellow. I hate seeing people being put down when they’re trying to do their job and Malthouse has been around long enough to know right from wrong. I hope the AFL fines him for the way he disrespected a person of the media who is there to promote our game.

Going out with a roar
Richmond was down by 59 points early in the third term against Port Adelaide last Sunday and looked like it was going to be beaten by 100-plus the way it was playing. Damien Hardwick would have had some stern words for the Tigers at half time knowing this was the last hour of football they would be playing for the year. The Tigers then showed enormous spirit and courage to get within three points of Port Adelaide halfway through the last quarter. The young group decided it wasn’t going to throw in the towel and wanted to show that it was better than what it had dished up prior to the break. The Tigers could have given up and headed into the off-season with a disappointing loss after what has been a pretty good second half of the year. But they dug deep and proved to themselves that they have pride and passion in the Richmond jumper. Hardwick would have been more proud of that effort than some of their wins this year because he saw his side fight to the death after everything had looked to be lost. The Richmond supporters were unbelievable in the second half when their side needed them most. With 37,500 fans at the MCG to send off Ben Cousins and laud Coleman medallist Jack Riewoldt, they made the noise of a 70,000-strong crowd. It has been a very positive year for Richmond and a great launching pad for 2011.

Dodging bumps in road
The top eight was decided before Round 22 so there were sides playing on the weekend with very little to gain and a lot to lose. Players from the top four sides were clearly engaging in bruise-free football to ensure that they wouldn’t get injured before the finals. Geelong came up against bottom side West Coast and it was obvious the Cats just wanted to get out of there as quickly as they could. The intensity certainly wasn’t there and on occasion players were pulling out of contests. Some of the Eagles were trying to suck the Geelong players into committing undisciplined acts, which the Cats weren’t falling for. They weren’t going to be reported in a meaningless game just because a couple of opponents were trying to bait them into making a poor decision. The Adelaide-St Kilda game was no different. The intensity and commitment to winning the football was as low as I’ve seen from the Saints in three years. It must be hard for teams to get excited about a game that has no bearing on their season. It probably reinforces how damn good the Melbourne Storm have been in the NRL this year, playing the entire season with no chance of getting any points or competing in the finals. Bruise-free football is now finished and only the toughest teams will progress from here.

It’s a mad, mad world
I’m writing this article on Monday morning knowing that at about this time there are eight AFL clubs beginning their “Mad Monday” celebrations. Things have changed somewhat over the past 10 years, but it is still a time when players get to farewell the just-finished season by having a pretty big drink. Mark my words there will be some player or club that will find themselves in hot water over the next few days. For most of the season players have controlled their partying and when you let loose after being so committed poor decisions tend to be made. I can’t ever remember the week following the final round of the season being incident free and I have no reason to think that will change this year. Rumours will have started circulating by about three o’clock on Monday about individuals who are out of control and acts of stupidity that have occurred throughout the day. With some veterans having played their last game it gets very emotional at these events and things can flare up among teammates. Still, I hope Mad Monday is incident free and injury free and I reckon the AFL will be praying for this also.

– DAVID 'THE OX' SCHWARZ