A man and his Dogs

[LostDoggy]

There's a can of worms to open right there.

I loved Libba, but at a guess, he would barely scrape into my top ten.

Not talking about skill. To a large extent, you are born with that or at least the ability to develop skills.

Talking about passion for the game and the club, talking about sacrificing his game for the team, talking about raw courage, talking about giving 100% everytime he hit the field, talking about fighting out of his weight division, talking about overcoming lack of skills and talking about completely changing his game for the betterment of the team.

These are qualities within the individual. No Bulldog delved within to exhibit those qualities like EJ and Libba.

[Sockeye Salmon]

Not talking about skill. To a large extent, you are born with that or at least the ability to develop skills.

Talking about passion for the game and the club, talking about sacrificing his game for the team, talking about raw courage, talking about giving 100% everytime he hit the field, talking about fighting out of his weight division, talking about overcoming lack of skills and talking about completely changing his game for the betterment of the team.

These are qualities within the individual. No Bulldog delved within to exhibit those qualities like EJ and Libba.

Absolutely.

To say he was the 2nd greatest Bulldog ever, though? Steve Kretiuk busted his guts out every week against bigger opponents too, but as much as I loved Kritter, he wouldn't be up there for me either.


The guts of it is, it's your rating, you can whatever you like.

[Dancin' Douggy]

The other thing is it's about favourites, not necessarily best.

Some great players just don't turn you on.
Some lesser players maybe just appeal to you.

For example, I really don't find Jennifer Hawkins attractive.
U2 bore me to death.
And I don't really like chocolate bars.

[anfo27]

Not talking about skill. To a large extent, you are born with that or at least the ability to develop skills.

Talking about passion for the game and the club, talking about sacrificing his game for the team, talking about raw courage, talking about giving 100% everytime he hit the field, talking about fighting out of his weight division, talking about overcoming lack of skills and talking about completely changing his game for the betterment of the team.

These are qualities within the individual. No Bulldog delved within to exhibit those qualities like EJ and Libba.

Great post. Libba would be my most admired sportsman ever. Libba is an exception to the rule that you have to be a certain type of player to make it. Libba was too short, too slow & just didn't have enough skills to make it but his heart, desire & resilience not only got him a shot but he left the game with one of the most decorated CVs ever.
If i'm not mistaken Libba is the only player in history to win a Morrish medal, (2) Gardiner medal & Brownlow medal. To achieve all of this with limited ability but a massive heart & belief is a credit to him & his family. Libba epitomises the word underdog.
Having said all that Chris Grant is my favourite all time dog.

[ledge]

Great post. Libba would be my most admired sportsman ever. Libba is an exception to the rule that you have to be a certain type of player to make it. Libba was too short, too slow & just didn't have enough skills to make it but his heart, desire & resilience not only got him a shot but he left the game with one of the most decorated CVs ever.
If i'm not mistaken Libba is the only player in history to win a Morrish medal, (2) Gardiner medal & Brownlow medal. To achieve all of this with limited ability but a massive heart & belief is a credit to him & his family. Libba epitomises the word underdog.
Having said all that Chris Grant is my favourite all time dog.

If players are judged on medals he is the greatest of all time.

[Sockeye Salmon]

If players are judged on medals he is the greatest of all time.

Hayden Bunton's 3 Brownlows and 3 Sandovers probably has him covered.

[Before I Die]

The other thing is it's about favourites, not necessarily best.

Some great players just don't turn you on.
Some lesser players maybe just appeal to you.

For example, I really don't find Jennifer Hawkins attractive.
U2 bore me to death.
And I don't really like chocolate bars.

Now you are just being silly

[LostDoggy]

Now you are just being silly

Hmm.. I don't love chocolate either. Didn't eat it for years and only do now because my wife fancies herself a chocolate "connoisseur" and gets 'really good' ones. I can't tell the difference, mind you. Scotch, rioja, jamon, sashimi -- I can taste every nuance. Chocolate to me however just tastes like heavy, milky mass whether it costs 50 cents or 50 dollars.

ps. Jennifer Hawkins -- meh. She's a pretty face, but pretty bland.

pps. U2, we've been in the pit, two rows from the stage, the past couple of times they've toured here, and we actually met Bono's wife last year (we used to see her sometimes as the apartment we live in when I'm in NY for work is in the same complex on the upper west side, but we actually met last year at one of the many charity events my sister-in-law organises for the Trump-lite set). Having said that.. great live band, but other than a couple of classics, I DON'T LOVE THEIR MUSIC. (Don't tell my wife!)

So, Dancing Douggy, I get you man.

ppps. Libba is awesome, and Flanagan's wonderful article still made Libba better than he's ever been. I can't think of another player that has embodied the Bulldogs battling underdog past more than the wee man (EJ was actually successful), and it's probably poetically but tragically apt (in the sense of a Homeric Greek tragedy) that it was Libba's clear but disallowed goal in the '97 prelim that robbed us of a modern day premiership.

[LostDoggy]

Hmm.. I don't love chocolate either. Didn't eat it for years and only do now because my wife fancies herself a chocolate "connoisseur" and gets 'really good' ones. I can't tell the difference, mind you. Scotch, rioja, jamon, sashimi -- I can taste every nuance. Chocolate to me however just tastes like heavy, milky mass whether it costs 50 cents or 50 dollars.

ps. Jennifer Hawkins -- meh. She's a pretty face, but pretty bland.

pps. U2, we've been in the pit, two rows from the stage, the past couple of times they've toured here, and we actually met Bono's wife last year (we used to see her sometimes as the apartment we live in when I'm in NY for work is in the same complex on the upper west side, but we actually met last year at one of the many charity events my sister-in-law organises for the Trump-lite set). Having said that.. great live band, but other than a couple of classics, I DON'T LOVE THEIR MUSIC. (Don't tell my wife!)

So, Dancing Douggy, I get you man.

ppps. Libba is awesome, and Flanagan's wonderful article still made Libba better than he's ever been. I can't think of another player that has embodied the Bulldogs battling underdog past more than the wee man (EJ was actually successful), and it's probably poetically but tragically apt (in the sense of a Homeric Greek tragedy) that it was Libba's clear but disallowed goal in the '97 prelim that robbed us of a modern day premiership.

Having read that I finally feel at peace with that dreadful day. Until this, I thought Con Gorizidis was the only Greek tragedy connected to the Dogs

[Desipura]

Having read that I finally feel at peace with that dreadful day. Until this, I thought Con Gorizidis was the only Greek tragedy connected to the Dogs

There is no such thing as a greek tragedy, they were just unlucky, much like their current economy.

[Sedat]

Great post. Libba would be my most admired sportsman ever. Libba is an exception to the rule that you have to be a certain type of player to make it. Libba was too short, too slow & just didn't have enough skills to make it but his heart, desire & resilience not only got him a shot but he left the game with one of the most decorated CVs ever.
If i'm not mistaken Libba is the only player in history to win a Morrish medal, (2) Gardiner medal & Brownlow medal. To achieve all of this with limited ability but a massive heart & belief is a credit to him & his family. Libba epitomises the word underdog.
Having said all that Chris Grant is my favourite all time dog.

Libba's ability was underrated. He single handedly revolutionized the modern game with his defensive capabilities, particularly in tackling. Before Libba came onto the scene, tackling was almost an after thought. He took the skill up about 10 notches, regularly doubling the next best tackler in the league (usually Paul Kelly). These days tackling and defensive pressure are arguably the most important weapons in the arsenal of every single player in the AFL - Libba was a massive influence on this.

[Dancin' Douggy]

Hmm.. I don't love chocolate either. Didn't eat it for years and only do now because my wife fancies herself a chocolate "connoisseur" and gets 'really good' ones. I can't tell the difference, mind you. Scotch, rioja, jamon, sashimi -- I can taste every nuance. Chocolate to me however just tastes like heavy, milky mass whether it costs 50 cents or 50 dollars.

ps. Jennifer Hawkins -- meh. She's a pretty face, but pretty bland.

pps. U2, we've been in the pit, two rows from the stage, the past couple of times they've toured here, and we actually met Bono's wife last year (we used to see her sometimes as the apartment we live in when I'm in NY for work is in the same complex on the upper west side, but we actually met last year at one of the many charity events my sister-in-law organises for the Trump-lite set). Having said that.. great live band, but other than a couple of classics, I DON'T LOVE THEIR MUSIC. (Don't tell my wife!)

So, Dancing Douggy, I get you man.

ppps. Libba is awesome, and Flanagan's wonderful article still made Libba better than he's ever been. I can't think of another player that has embodied the Bulldogs battling underdog past more than the wee man (EJ was actually successful), and it's probably poetically but tragically apt (in the sense of a Homeric Greek tragedy) that it was Libba's clear but disallowed goal in the '97 prelim that robbed us of a modern day premiership.

You know when I was typing that post I was trying to rack my brain for a universally admired player who was considered a champion by all, but I just found dull and uninteresting. Now I've come up with two.
S. Kernahan. and G. Lyon.
Yaaaaaaaaawn. Boring in the media as well. Dull, efficient and serious men.