Swans Review - Grand Final: 2012 Premiers

2012 PREMIERS!!

SYDNEY 1.4  7.4  10.5  14.7 (91)
HAWTHORN 4.5  4.6  9.10  11.15 (81)
GOALS: Sydney: Kennedy 2, McVeigh 2, Jack 2, Morton 2, Malceski 2, Goodes, Hannebery,  Roberts-Thomson, Reid. Hawthorn:  Franklin 3,  Hale 2,  Gunston 2,  Breust 2,  Smith,  Ellis.

BEST: Sydney:  O’Keefe, Hannebery, Pyke, McVeigh, Roberts-Thomson, Goodes,  Johnson,  Kennedy.
Hawthorn: Franklin, Sewell, Mitchell, Gibson.

INJURIES: Sydney: Goodes (knee), Johnson (elbow).
Hawthorn: Hodge (cut eye), Ellis (leg).

UMPIRES: Rosebury, Stevic, Meredith.

CROWD: 99,683 at the MCG.

The Sydney Swans have done the improbable. They have beaten warm favourites Hawthorn to claim their second premiership in seven years, recording victory in a game that, while not high-scoring and often rather dour, was epic in every sense of the word. If this was the first time you turned on an AFL football match, surely you would be inclined to tune back in, because the contest that took place on the MCG, sometimes in sunshine, sometimes under heavy clouds, sometimes in rain, was the epitome of brave, selfless, courageous football, the very sort that is needed to win a premiership.

And the Swans won. A 19 point first quarter deficit became an impressive 16-point halftime lead, eight goals unanswered before Hawthorn stormed back late in the third. There was a stretch where they had five goals in twenty-one kicks. In the final quarter, the Hawks opened the best, looking as though they might run over the Swans, who seemed to be fading, but it was the red-and-whites who kicked the final four goals of the game, including a bouncing goal to Adam Goodes, whose PCL injury did not stop the champ from soldiering on and making his mark on the game, and from Nick Malceski, the last score with a half-minute to go, an unlikely hero. They came from two goals down for a ten-point win that was barely believable had we not seen it with our own eyes. Malceski, for his late game heroics, will now be remembered with the same affection and reverence as another defender was bac in 2005: that man, of course, is Leaping Leo Barry.

If Malceski's two goals were a surprise, the scintillating cameo from former Richmond forward Mitch Morton was nothing short of miraculous. He'd done it against Adelaide, and Grand Final history is littered with fringe players popping up on the big stage to make a huge impact. Now Morton will be one of those, scoring two in as many minutes in the midst of that rampant 8-goals unanswered stretch. It was quite something to see, and exactly why John Longmire left him in the side, despite going somewhat MIA in the preliminary final against Collingwood.

Who was good? Who wasn't, for the Swans. It was a team effort of the highest order, the sort of all-in mentality that had catapulted them to the top of the AFL pile. Led by Norm Smith Medal winner Ryan O'Keefe, the Bloods relied tremendously on their midfield. All the usual suspects dug deep: McVeigh, Kennedy, Richards, Hannebery, Jack, Bolton, Goodes, Jetta, Roberts-Tompson, Morton, Malceski, Shaw, Mattner, Grundy, Johnson...the list goes on. When a giant effort to drag themselves back into the game was required, there was not one man in red and white who didn't step up and dig in. It was thrilling to watch.

There were absolutely no passengers today. Deserving of special praise in this blog - and, indeed, in the wider AFL media - is the Canadian ruckman Mike Pyke single-handedly battled Hawthorn's David Hale late in the final quarter after Shane Mumford was subbed off for the speedy Luke Parker. Canada has it's first ever AFL premier and for those who said Pyke would never succeed, you need only take a look at what he did today and this season.

Hawthorn had their chances. You sensed that, at times in the second half, they were but one accurate kick away from burying the Swans, but it was but errant kicking, particularly from Lance Franklin, cost them - and errant kicking very nearly cost them last week vs. Adelaide. Today, their last five shots on goal were behinds. That just isn't good enough on this stage. Late in the game, when it was up for grabs, after the Swans had stormed back from seemingly nowhere, Jack Gunston hit the post and Brad Sewell, the Hawks' best, snapped badly twice. At the other end, Goodes and Malceski stood up, kicked truly and won their team the game.

Delving deeper, one can see the truck-load of key indicators - shots, Inside 50s, contested possessions, free kicks, scoring shots - in which Hawthorn came out on top. Yet, like three weeks prior at AAMI Stadium in the gutsy qualifying final victory against the Adelaide Crows, the Swans, hobbling to the line with some of their stars in injury trouble, somehow found a way to will themselves across and into a sort of nirvana that most of us will never experience and, therefore, never truly understand. 

When something herculean was needed, invariably someone delivered, be it a fierce tackle, well-waited kick or a timely goal. They stood tall in the face of what, at times in the final quarter and a half was immense, nearly game-winning pressure, and have recorded a famous victory in what will surely go down in history as one of the greatest Grand Final contests ever to be played. 

At the end of the day, as the sun sets on Melbourne, the Sydney Swans are 2012 AFL Premiers. And that much will never change. What a game, what a year! Go Bloods!

See you in 2013!

NCAA College Football 2012: Week Five Australian TV Guide

The Blog is back after a sabbatical during which time I enjoyed some marvelous spring skiing! Week Five sees College GameDay travel to East Lansing, Michigan for a tremendous Ohio State vs. Sparty afternoon game, and the primetime contest on ABC in America is Wisconsin vs. Nebraska at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, which is always a great scene. Lots of Big Ten football this week, so let's see what's what!

All times AEST


Friday September 28

College Football Live (10.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
Stanford vs. Washington (11.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

Saturday September 29

Hawaii vs. Brigham Young (10.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
College GameDay (11.00pm; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

Sunday September 30

College GameDay (12.01am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
Penn State vs. Illinois (2.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
Minnesota vs. Iowa (2.00am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)
Ohio State vs. Michigan State (5.30am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
Clemson vs. Boston College (5.30am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
Florida State vs. South Florida (8.30am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)
Wisconsin vs. Nebraska (10.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
Mississippi vs. Alabama (11.15am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)
College Football Scoreboard (6.00pm; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

Swans Review - Preliminary Final vs. Collingwood (21 September 2012)

SYDNEY SWANS 5.5  7.9  9.14  13.18 (96)
COLLINGWOOD 2.3  3.6  5.8  10.10 (70)


GOALS: Sydney: Jetta 3, Bolton 2, Kennedy 2, Roberts-Thomson 2, Goodes, Bird, O'Keefe, Mumford. Collingwood: Cloke 3, Fasolo, Johnson, Dawes, Tarrant, Beams, Swan, Goldsack.
BEST: Sydney: Kennedy, O'Keefe, McVeigh, Goodes, Hannebery, Jetta. Collingwood: Pendlebury, Beams, O'Brien, Cloke, Reid.

INJURIES: Sydney: Richards (ankle).
UMPIRES: Stevic, Meredith,  Rosebury.
CROWD: 57,156 at ANZ Stadium.

Finally - finally!! - it's over. One of the longest continuous streaks in professional sport came to a shuddering end last night. After eleven straight wins for the Collingwood Magpies against the Sydney Swans, the dynasty a definite hoodoo in every single sense of the word, the black-and-whites failed to win the most important contest that these teams have played - if not ever, then certainly in the last two decades.

Preliminary final, big crowd at ANZ Stadium, and it was the Swans who came to play, from the opening siren, and it was the Bloods who haven't beaten the Magpies anywhere since their last premiership year of 2005 - an omen Swans fans everywhere will be hanging onto this week - who broke a confounding stretch of games, more than 2600 calendar days, that both tormented and frustrated their supporter base. For the first time in seven years, at the end of a Collingwood vs. Sydney game, it was "Cheer, Cheer" that rang out around ANZ Stadium rather than the Magpie anthem, those supports in black and white long since having departed for a train home, their season over. The Swans fans, however, stayed and lapped it up.

As well they should, for this was a gusty, determined, intense and, at times, near-demonic performance from the Swans. Their tackling was fierce - indeed, demonic - the Bloods exhibiting an impressive a pack mentality, swarming to the football when they didn't have it, and when they did, their execution was calm and poised. It seemed that there were four red jerseys at every contest, engulfing the Magpies. On too many occasions since that one-point win in 2005, it has been the opposite, with a ratio seemingly of 2:1 Collingwood jerseys at any contest. For the first time in seven years, the Swans took a lead at quarter time against their arch enemies. In fact, they never trailed in the game.

This was the night where the Swans delivered. They've been close previously, losing by eight and six points the last two years, but Friday night was when the damn broke, when the vaunted Collingwood midfield couldn't find speed, couldn't find room to operate and, more often than not, found themselves cut to shreds by an inspired midfield led by Josh Kennedy, Dan Hannebery, Kieran Jack, Jarrad McVeigh and the 300-game legend Jude Bolton. For both Kennedy and Hannebery, sparkling players, this may have been their magnum opus in a Swans jersey. They were in everything, fighting, clawing, battling for every possession.

So, too, for Lewis Jetta, was this his best Swans performance. The live wire broke apart an often-dour struggle, stoppages and tackles, ferocious collisions, with highlight reel goals. The first was a 90-yard run, three bounces in that effort, with Collingwood's Nathan Brown a hapless chaser, left in Jetta's turbo wash. The second was a gorgeous effort, a freakish kick, the Sherrin bending around with a Messi-esque touch. No one is faster; no one is more dangerous in open space. Sixteen glorious touches for Jetta, and three goals that broke the Magpies' back.

For all but a frightening stretch late in the third and early in the fourth quarter  the Swans dominated. Collingwood's key forward Travis Cloke rarely impacted on the contest, seemed to be perennially surrounded by three Swans defenders and the rest of the Magpies forward line lacked any attacking pizazz. Once more, Mattner, Grundy, Richards and Shaw were supreme in the back half. The Swans aren't the best defensive unit in the AFL for nothing. This was an example of that. In the midfield, the dangerous names Beams, Pendlebury, Swan and others, were well corralled. All night, they simply had no room in which to operate. That pressure showed, the Pies making many uncharacteristic mistakes, coughing the ball up where they had seldom done this season, and, more often than not, the Swans made them pay.

That period of nervousness for Swans fans happened when Collingwood pulled to within twenty points - there was a palpable tension in the ground then, Swans fans worried, because they had seen their team give up a lead too many times before this season - It was Craig Bird, as unlikely a saviour this night as Andrejs Everitt had been against Geelong earlier in the year, who kicked a wonderful goal and steadied the ship. In fact, the six-pointer with thirteen minutes to play sent the HMS Sydney sailing on into the Grand Final. Shane Mumford marked strongly in the goal square, those long arms plucking the football out of the air. He converted, and then the great man, Jude Bolton added a final exclamation mark late, and it was Party Time at ANZ Stadium.

What a night at ANZ Stadium. There wasn't the drama of some finals - Nick Davis' miracle last quarter against Geelong in 2005 or Plugger's famous point way back in 1996; both in premiership years - but it was a satisfying night. The hoodoo is over, ladies and gentlemen. Collingwood's Fortress ANZ lies in ruins, and now, for the red-and-white Bloods, the Grand Final awaits.

Adelaide or Hawthorn? We'll see. One thing's for sure - the 2012 Sydney Swans are right in with a shot at premiership glory. What a week awaits!

GO BLOODS!!!!!!

NCAA College Football 2012: Week Four Australian TV Guide

The fourth week of the season - one-third done, already!! - and there are a few underwhelming games. Why ABC feel the need to broadcast Temple vs. Penn State in a prime early-afternoon 3.30pm slot to most of the United States I'll never know. I mean, aside from the situation at PSU, the team hasn't been particularly good. I won't watch UCLA, on at the same time, for anything in the world! 

 

Clemson at Florida State (College GameDay is in Tallahassee, too), the major ACC tilt, is the big game on ESPN this Sunday, the kick-off just after 10.00am on ESPN. As befitting the status of this game, we get Brent, Herbie and the delightful Heather Cox, on the call. Sadly, another week without any FOX games - they are making their Big XII debut on the network package - on any of the FOX Sports channels here.

Anyway, here we go -- all times AEST

Friday September 21

College Football Live (10.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

Brigham Young vs. No. 24 Boise State (11.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

Saturday September 22

College Football Live (5.30am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

Baylor vs. Louisiana-Monroe (10.00am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)
College GameDay - Tallahassee, Florida (11.00pm; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

Sunday September 23

College GameDay - Tallahassee, Florida (12.01am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
Virginia vs. No. 17 Texas Christian (2.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
UTEP vs. Wisconsin (2.00am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)
Oregon State vs. No. 19 UCLA (5.30am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
Temple vs. Penn State (5.30am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)
No. 2 Louisiana State vs. Auburn (9.00am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)
No. 10 Clemson vs. No. 4 Florida State (10.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
No. 22 Arizona vs. No. 3 Oregon (12.30pm; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

NCAA College Football 2012: Week Three Australian TV Guide

Some very interesting games as the season reaches it's 1/3 mark. Shame the last Holy War Utah vs. Brigham Young (at least for the foreseeable future) isn't on TV here in Australia. Sadly, on a similar note, FOX in America has the USC vs. Stanford game, so no coverage of that rivalry in Australia. Anyway, away we go. All times AEST.

Friday 14 September

College Football Live (9.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

South Florida vs. Rutgers (9.30am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

Saturday 15 September

College Football Live (10.00am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

Washington State vs. UNLV (11.00am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

College Game Day (11.00pm; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

Sunday 16 September

College Game Day - Knoxville, Tennessee (12.01am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

Wake Forest vs. No. 5 Florida State (2.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
California vs. No. 12 Ohio State (2.00am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)
North Carolina vs. No. 19 Louisville (5.30am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
Navy vs. Penn State (5.30am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)
No. 18 Florida vs. No. 23 Tennessee (8.30am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

No. 20 Notre Dame vs. No. 10 Michigan State (10.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
No. 14 Texas vs. Mississippi (11.15am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

NCAA College Football 2012: Week Two Review

Not exactly a set of awe-inspiring games in Week Two, but some interesting story-lines and results regardless. The review is here, regardless of game quality. Here we go...

It was bad last week for Pitt, losing their opener to FCS school Youngstown State, and it got worse on Thursday night inside Nippert Stadium where Cincinnati were up 34-3 late in the fourth quarter before Pitt managed their first touchdown of the game. It's been a rough start for former Wisconsin offensive coordinator Paul Chryst in his first ever head coaching job, and after so much drama with coaching changes at Pittsburgh recently, the 2012 season seems headed downhill in a real hurry. The Bearcats played all over the Panthers, with their QB Munchie Legaux, aside from having one of the best names in football, looking set for a big season. Pitt need to regroup quickly as they head towards Big East play in their final season in that conference before joining the ACC in 2013.

1997 was the last time that Utah State beat Utah. Until Friday night. A dramatic 27-20 overtime win capped a content that the Aggies dominated for large stretches. A missed PAT on a late first quarter TD was what sent the game to overtime, but the Aggies, after the Utes came storming back to tie the game, stood tall and pulled off a brilliant win in front of a home crowd that's waited a long time to see their team beat the Utes. Another QB with an awesome name, Chuckie Keeton, led the Aggies to their biggest ever victory, Utah State fresh off of their first ever bowl win in Boise, Idaho last December.

Disaster for another PAC-12 team. A week after losing to fierce in-state rival Colorado State, Colorado have lost to FCS foe Sacramento State, the Buffaloes taking a crushing 30-28 loss on a last-second 30-yard game winning field goal for Sac State's walk-on kicker Edgar Castaneda. It's getting old hat for this team, beating PAC-12 opponents in early-season games. They did it last year, too, stunning Oregon State 29-28 in OT last year. The Buffs are 0-2 and facing a long season. Sacramento State are at 1-1 and leave Boulder with a handy $460,000 pay check for partaking in the game. That's a win all around.

Speaking of Oregon State...well, the Beavers pulled off a win vs. No. 13 Wisconsin, the reigning Big Ten champions, in Corvallis, besting the Badgers 10-7 in a low-scoring game that saw Oregon State's defense absolutely blanket Wisconsin RB Montee Ball. He rushed for a meagre 61 yards. I mean, they were all over this guy like a cheap suit. The Beavers D forced two turnovers. On offense, Oregon State QB Sean Mannion threw for 276 yards and a TD to help Oregon State spring the upset. Wisconsin finished with 207 yards, only 35 on the ground, which was the lowest rushing total for the Badgers in 5 years. The loss snapped a 33-game win streak for Wisconsin against non-conference opponents. Big loss for Wisconsin, HUGE win for the Beavers at home.

For the second straight year Iowa State have gotten past Iowa, winning 9-6, in a dour struggle featuring just one TD - to the Cyclones - in which ISU relied on their defense to record their first win in Iowa City in ten years. Iowa's offense came alive somewhat at the end of the fourth quarter, but it wasn't enough in the end. Big win for the Cyclones and their head coach Paul Rhoads. despite being held scoreless in the second half. 

All the world seemed to think Miami-FL was back, and were the real deal behind QB Stephen Morris and RB Duke Johnson, but it was Kansas State, at home in Manhattan, who stamped themselves as the genuine article, routing the Hurricanes 52-13. QB Collin Klein, more known for his running ability, threw for 210 and a TD, complementing his aerial work with 71 yards and 3 more TDs on the ground. K-State amassed 498 yards of total offense, and their defense got to Morris often, recording 5 sacks, and recovered 3 fumbles, while holding the 'Canes to a putrid 40 yards on the ground, 1.4 yards per attempt. The Wildcats improved to 6-0 at home against BCS non-conference opponents under Bill Snyder, who really has K-Sate relevant nationally again. Whatever progress the Hurricanes made last week vs. Boston College, they regressed this week.

A 6-touchdown day for USC QB Matt Barkley, but it was the quietest 6-TD effort I've seen from any quarterback in some time. Not that it matters, I suppose. Despite being heavy underdogs, the Syracuse Orange gave the No. 2 Trojans everything they could handle, and it took another big day for WRs Marqise Lee and Robert Woods - with RB Silas Redd rushing for 100+ yards, his first such milestone for USC after transferring from Penn State - to give the Men of Troy a somewhat uneven 42-29 win at Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ. It was a win, of course, but USC head coach Lane Kiffin has some work to do, particuarly defensively. C Khaled Holmes was carted off the field in the last quarter. USC cannot afford injuries, not with depth issues brought about by scholarship restrictions.

A pair of SEC debuts and a pair of losses for the new boys on the big-time block, Texas A&M (lost to Florida 20-17 in College Station) and Missouri (lost to Georgia 41-10 in Columbia, MO) and both games were similar in the way they played out. Both the Aggies and Tigers were in the contest with a shot, particularly in the first half, but faded out late. They are probably now learning and really understanding just what sort of athletes SEC defenses possesses in greater numbers than Big XII defenses ever did.

Upset of the season so far, the Louisiana-Monore Warhawks beating No. 8 Arkansas in War Memorial Stadium, a shocking loss for a team expected to contend for an SEC title in 2012. It happened in miracle fashion, the Warhawks, 9-15 total in the last two seasons, rallied from a 21-point deficit to snatch a remarkable 34-31 (OT) win against the Hogs. Granted, Arkansas were without their star QB Tyler Wilson for the entirety of the second half, but Wilson never played defense, and made no difference to the unit on that side of the football, who allowed the comeback to happen - the game-tying score a 23-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-10 with 55 seconds remaining in regulation. The game was won on a 4th-and-1 play in OT, a wild scramble into the end zone to cap a victory that no one on either sideline or in the stands, will soon forget.

Swans Review - Qualifying Final vs. Adelaide (8 September 2012)

SYDNEY 2.2  7.2  8.4  11.5 (71) ADELAIDE 1.3  2.7  3.10  5.12 (42)
Goals: Sydney: A Goodes 3 L Jetta 2 M Morton 2 B McGlynn J Kennedy L Parker S Reid. Adelaide: G Johncock I Callinan N van Berlo R Sloane T Walker.
 
Best: Sydney: R O’Keefe A Goodes J Kennedy R Shaw D Hannebery T Richards J McVeigh. Adelaide: S Thompson D Mackay B Reilly B Vince M Doughty.
 
Umpires: Justin Schmitt, Matt Stevic, Luke Farmer.
Official Crowd: 44,849 at AAMI Stadium.

All week, aside from lauding the job that first-year coach Brenton Sanderson has done in rebuilding the Adelaide Football Club, all anyone outside of the Sydney Swans wanted to talk about was the form of Adam Goodes and how he just hasn't been at his best since coming back from the injury that kept him on the sidelines for a chunk of the middle of the 2012 season.

Perhaps that was the case. I beg to differ, but, regardless, the words printed and said, particularly out of Melbourne, seems to have had quite an affect on Goodes, to the detriment of the Adelaide Crows. Goodes is back, ladies and gentlemen. Back in the best sort of way: 20-odd possessions and three goals in a match-winning, match-shaping performance to send the Swans into a home preliminary final, proceeded by a week off to rest and recover, when most of the football world, citing a few losses in the last few weeks of the season - narrow losses, mind you, against Collingwood and Hawthorn before a mostly-competitive effort against Geelong last Saturday - as a signal that they were on the slide. It was said they could not win at AAMI Stadium.

Adelaide were red-hot favourites. No one wanted to tip the Swans. No one thought they could win. Walker, Dangerfield, Sloane, Rutten, Talia, that's all anyone wanted to talk about, the young Crows team that seemed primed for a Grand Final following a prelim final at home, after a season where, due to a fourth-last finish in 2011, saw them with a favourable draw that included two games each against AFL cellar dwellers Greater Western Sydney, Gold Coast and the Port Adelaide Power.

Now, all of that is in tatters. A vintage performance by the Swans, marked by sturdy defensive play from a sparkling back six and by a midfield and forward line, spearheaded by Goodes, who took the most of their opportunities where their opponents didn't, and it's now the Bloods who have the easier run to the Grand Final. This was a famous victory, a tough, scrappy, grinding win in a game that, although it was ugly by nature, also seemed deliriously beautiful at times. At the end, the AAMI Stadium hoodoo was squelched, as was the Adelaide hoodoo, and the Swans emphatically announced themselves as Finals Series heavyweights.

There was the run of O'Keefe and Hannebery, McVeigh and McGlynn, the ferocity of Kennedy and Bolton, watertight defensive work from Mattner and Richards, both of whom perhaps played the game of their lives today, and, in a departure from his work this season in the forward line, Lewis Roberts-Thompson made Swans fans almost want to ask, Grundy, who? Rhyce Shaw and Nick Malceski provided the necessary dash from the halfback line, springing the Swans into action so many times, off the back of stifling so many Adelaide raids.

Comprehensively beaten in the Inside 50's arena, the Swans took full advantage of their chances. Goodes was ably supported by the speedy Lewis Jetta - another man whom the media said was off his form and, now tagged, could not recapture his early season form; two sparkling goals suggest otherwise - and the unlikely hero, Mitch Morton, the late inclusion for Tommy Walsh, playing in his first ever final. Morton, a stand-out with the reserves in the NEAFL, kicked two important goals, and will be very stiff if he misses out on starting in the preliminary final.

It was the Bloods of old, a pack mentality when it came to tackling. One Adelaide player seemed to be permanently under siege, surrounded by three or four Swans jerseys, shutting down just about everything Adelaide tried. Sydney tackled themselves to a standstill. In the battle of coaches, Longmire completely outdid his opponent. It was a masterful game plan, executed to perfection by the players on the field.

The Crows, woeful in front of goal, were their own worst enemy at times, but there's no doubt that the intense pressure from the Swans got to their young players. This was quintessential finals football, and the veterans in red and white adapted better than those wearing the other jersey. The old hands needed to stand up and be counted on this day, and they did. Bolton, O'Keefe, Malceski, Shaw, McGlynn, Kennedy, Goodes, Richards....they were all spectacular and they were the keys to an impressive Swans win.

The only downside was the loss of Ben McGlynn. The tears on the nuggety midfielder's face at three-quarter time suggests that the season is done for one of the key cogs in the Swans machine. There is some hope that he could return in time for a Grand Final if the Swans progress that far, but the chances are slim, and the look on McGlynn's face suggested that he knows it, too.

Yet the day was largely positive for the Swans, who will enjoy a week to rest and await the winner of the Collingwood vs. North Melbourne/West Coast game in Sydney. Perhaps the most interesting news to come in Sydney in the next few weeks will be the availability of ANZ Stadium. Rumours abound that the League did not book the Olympic Stadium, necessitating a switch to the SCG. Not good for the fans, with renovations halving that ground's capacity, but wonderful for the Swans, who are rarely beaten there. What a day!

Go Bloods!

NCAA College Football 2012: Week Two Australian TV Guide UPDATED

The SEC debuts of Missouri and Texas A&M (part of an SEC triple header) headline week two's slate of games. All times AEST.

Updated: USC vs. Syracuse announced as ESPN2's Sunday morning 5.30am game

Friday September 7

College Football Live (9.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

Pittsburgh vs. Cincinnati (9.30am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

Saturday September 8

College Football Live (5.30am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

Utah vs. Utah State (10.00am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

College GameDay - College Station, TX (11.00pm; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

Sunday September 9

College GameDay - College Station, TX (12.01am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

Auburn vs. Mississippi State (2.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

No. 14 Ohio State vs. Central Florida (2.00am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

No. 24 Florida vs. Texas A&M (5.30am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)
No. 2 USC vs. Syracuse (5.30am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

Washington vs. No. 3 Louisiana State (9.00am; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

No. 7 Georgia vs. Missouri (9.45am; ESPN2/ESPN2-HD)

Illinois vs. Arizona State (12.30pm; ESPN/ESPN-HD)

NCAA College Football 2012: Week One Review

Some of my thoughts from the opening weekend of the 2012 season...

South Carolina barely escaped a plucky Vanderbilt team in Nashville on Thursday night - for mine, Vandy showed enough to suggest they are no longer going to be the week-in, week-out SEC punching bag - and it was largely thanks to the 2-TD, 110-yard performance by RB Marcus Lattimore, who returned to the Gamecocks line-up after a year out, having suffered an ACL tear last season. When he's at full steam, Lattimore is close to the very best back in Division One football. With a few more games under his belt to get used to the speed of the game once more, he's going to scare some SEC defensive coordinators. Spurrier's Gamecocks might be the real surprise packet of the nation's premier conference.

As good as Lattimore was, Week One's ironman effort award goes to South Carolina's QB Connor Shaw who came back from a shoulder contusion and led his team down the field for the go-ahead score that eventually stood as the game winner. He took some shots on the way, putting his body on the line for the team when they needed him the most, after second- and third-string signal callers came into the game and had little effect. There's no doubt that South Carolian's offense is infinitely better with Shaw under centre. His running ability is a wonderful complement to RB Marcus Lattimore. As I wrote above, if the stars align for Steve Spurrier's team, watch out.

Two years after being fired from Texas Tech, Mike Leach, the Mad Pirate, is back as a head football coach with his air raid offense in tow, this time at Washington State. The Cougars were in Provo, Utah on Thursday night in the second game of the national TV double-header, and it didn't go at all well for WSU, routed 30-6 by the Cougars of Brigham Young. It was still a pleasure to see Leach back, and his comment about QB Jeff Tuel's performance being "average" will probably stand up as one of the best sound bites of the year. Leach has work to do. It was a night of missed opportunities and bad penalties for the Cougars of Washington State, and certainly not what the WSU faithful would have been expecting from the first game of the Leach era.

A career night for Michigan State RB Le'Veon Bell (44 carries, 210 yards and 2 TDs) and it was just as well, because if Bell hadn't been on the field, the offense for the Spartans would almost certainly have sputtered and died. Sparty rode their undisputed No. 1 back all the way to a gritty 17-13 victory against the rebuilding Boise State Broncos. Of great concern for MSU's head coach Mark Dantonio was first-time starter at QB, Andrew Maxwell, threw 3 INTs, and didn't look particularly good, except when he handed to Bell and was able to bask in Le'Veon's reflected glory. MSU will need to find some more offense before Big Ten play rolls around, or it will be a long season in East Lansing.

Speaking of long seasons, Penn State might be in for one of those, too. Their first-up 24-14 loss against Ohio came after they took a 7-0 and then a 14-3 lead, and actually looked very good, with QB Matt McGloin effortlessly executing the new offense installed at PSU. 24-7 from the second quarter onward, and Bill O'Brien's honeymoon - if there even was one of those; okay, a football honeymoon, at least - is now well and truly over. McGloin had to throw it 48 times, because there just wasn't a running game to speak of. The transfer of RB Silas Redd to USC seems, as predicted, to be something of a body blow for the Nittany Lions. It could be a trying fall in State College, Pennsylvania.

Clemson appears set to be serious ACC contenders again in 2012, after grinding out an impressive 26-19 victory vs. Auburn in the Georgia Dome. Despite a relatively low-scoring game, there were plenty of big offensive plays in this one, from QB Tajh Boyd, RB Andre Ellington and the electric WR DeAndre Hopkins. The scariest thing, aside from how well the Tigers from Clemson played, is that their star player, Sammy Watkins, will return in the third game of the season, and add even more offensive power to a team not exactly short on it at the moment. Watch out, ACC foes. You figure the Tigers have something of a point to prove after West Virginia dropped 70 on them in the Orange Bowl.

Michigan will have something to prove the rest of this season after they were mauled 41-14 by the Alabama Crimson Tide at the Cowboys Classic in Arlington, Texas on Saturday night. If anything, the final score made the Wolverines loss seem far more respectable than it really was. Michigan were down 31-0 before they troubled the scorers, and basically had the Tide run all over their defensive unit. QB Denard Robinson, at the beginning of his senior season, looked okay at times, and horrible at others, tossing 2 INTs in a largely forgettable game for anyone wearing the maize and blue. In fairness, Robinson wasn't given very much to work with - nor was he given much time by a rampant Tide defense, the likes of which he's probably never seen before - and he still seems to be something of a tentative passer. The apparent shoulder injury probably didn't help. Once more, the reputation of the Big Ten takes another national stage pummeling.

How about Alabama? They lose some very, very good players from their National Championship-winning defense and seem to be able to rebound just like that. They faced a pretty good Michigan offense, smacked them right in the mouth and made them look decidedly third-rate. Anyone who thought the Tide wouldn't be right there in the hunt for this year's national title got a rude awakening on Saturday night. QB AJ McCarron silenced his doubters with a championship season in 2011, and looked good Saturday, too. That freshman RB TJ Yeldon looks like a serious player, with speed and moves, and he'll fight for backfield time with Eddie Lacy, a holdover from last year, who's certainly no slouch. Nick Saban just keeps reloading his gun. It's a marvelous program he's building in Tuscaloosa.

In sunny Southern California, the pre-season #1 USC Trojans wasted little time in showing everyone how dangerous they'll be in 2012. Returning QB Matt Barkley, who passed up NFL riches to return and spearhead the charge for a National Championship after the passing of their two-year Bowl ban, took only less than half a minute to show the country how good Lane Kiffin's offense will be. Their opening play from scrimmage? A 75-yard reception for WR Marqise Lee and a 7-0 lead. Lane Kiffin says Lee might be the best receiver in school history. Saturday's 10-catch effort (197 yards, and a TD) certainly set him off on the right foot. USC pummeled Hawaii 49-10 to signal their intentions.

First-up wins for notable coaches at new schools in 2012: Urban Meyer at Ohio State, Rich Rodriguez at Arizona (though barely; the Wildcats survived Toledo in OT, 24-17), Jim Mora and UCLA and Tim Beckman at Illinois. Not such a happy debut for, amongst others, Mike Leach at Washington State. Former Houston coach Kevin Sumlin, now at Texas A&M, has to wait for his first win with the Aggies, whose game against Louisiana Tech was postponed due to Hurricane Isaac.

Best game of the first week? Northwestern vs. Syracuse in the Carrier Dome. For most of the game, seemed that no Northwestern lead was insurmountable for the 'Cuse, who rallied from a 35-13 deficit to take a lead at 41-35 before backup QB Trevor Siemian rallied the Wildcats, tossing a 9-yard TD score to snatch back the ascendancy for good. Pat Fitzgerald's team claimed a wild 42-41 win, and seem to be following their trend of abysmal late-game defensive fade-outs which plagued their 2011 season.