Necks on the chopping block......?

Goodness gracious me. Bless your cotton socks young fella.

I once saw an interview on that teeny bopper 'Channel V' with Bernard Fanning. For those of you that don't know, he is the lead singer of powderfinger. Anyway, the interview happened just after the classic album 'Vulture Street' was released and went something like this:
Interviewer - "So Bernard, I have heard your album and it sounds really rock and roll really heavy, almost violent compared to your previous albums"
Bernard - "Thanks man, we really had a great time making the album"
Interviewer - "How can you make such a heavy, issue-laden record when you have done nothing but kick back and bask happily in the glow and commercial success of your previous albums?"
Bernard - "Well actually it hasn't been all basking and happiness dude, my brother died last year, so I went through the deepest, darkest period of my life in the making of this album.."
Interviewer - "Ohh....Right. I am.. umm...sorry to hear...umm...about that..."

Might I suggest ye AFL fans take note of this story. Do your research before you put your necks on the chopping block.

I respectfully beg to differ fine sir on your points about league fans (9/10 no less) caring more about State of Origin then their club team. Oh, yes, I can see how people who only tune in for State of Origin three times a year could be counted in these 'figures', however, are these really fans of rugby league? Your answer: NO. These are fans of State of Origin. They are fans of the spectacle. Fans of the hype. Fans of an excuse for a pissup. They may even just be people who exhibit an extreme disliking of anyone South or North of their respective border. These are not true rugby league fans in the same way that once a year Melbourne Cup punters are not true equine junkies. Let's add a little cross code perspective here. I wonder whether fans who only came out to watch Victoria v South Australia in the old days of Aussie Rules State of Origin would be called true fans by our esteemed colleagues? I would doubt this very much.

No, the real rugby league fan would never swap a State of Origin victory for a grand final appearance. There is something special about a team that plays together for 30 weeks to get to that final day in September. Something inherently primal. It's an investment in your teams very existence.

And as to your experience at the rugby league game, I would love to bet that the crowd was a whole lot louder than that miserable rabble you call an AFL 'crowd'. I mean seriously, how passionate can you be with a radio stuck in your ear the whole game. I have witnessed this phenomenon first hand (at a Cats game no less) and it was the most boring, dreary crowd atmosphere I have ever seen at a sports game. I mean, really if you wanted to sit down the whole game and listen to the radio so you didn't 'miss anything' (and there's a clue for you, if the ground is so large that you can't catch everything that is happening, maybe the AFL should consider shortening the field so you can actually see something) then surely you could get the same atmosphere sitting in your lounge room with your TV dinner. I remember getting to my feet to shout support for a J Brown special and I got a polite, "please sit down sir, you are blocking my view..". Where was I, at the cinema watching Bridget Jones' diary, or at the FOOTY....?

So next time Mr. Scooter, I would spend less time focussing on body parts (seems to be a recurring theme of your posts) and more time talking with real Australians. Yes, we of the no neck variety. Rugby League Fans.