IF Ginni is to pull out a well-planned goal celebration ... THEN
Sliding Doors is in full swing for 2025 .. and Damo's got plenty on his mindSTRAP yourselves in, footy fans - Damian Barrett's Sliding Doors is back in full swing for 2025.With the 2025 Toyota AFL Premiership Season underway, Damo's got plenty of thoughts about all 18 clubs - and the AFL - after another big off-season.So what is he saying about your team? What's he saying about the AFL? You can't say that, Damo, can you? Check it out below.>> ALL THE LATEST NEWS AND OPINION FROM DAMIAN BARRETTIF ...the short break between Saturday in a tough match against the Suns in round four and the Thursday night lights opener to Gather Round was far from ideal ...THEN ...so too was the inability to deal with the Cats' pressure. They're still brittle, the Crows. They've beaten no team of note yet, and lost to two who may be there when it counts.IF ..the Lions have made the past two Grand Finals and still can't crack it for a Gather Round match at Adelaide Oval ...THEN ...maybe they will need to make a third consecutive Grand Final to get a gig there next year. The club may not want to say so publicly so I will on its behalf. It is highly disrespectful.IF ...Harry McKay is back ...THEN ...the Blues' chance of a revival is also back. Without him, lost to premiership favourites Hawthorn by 20 points, the Dogs by eight, and Pies by 17. Time for him to play a Jeremy Cameron-style roaming role.IF ...Houston, De Goey and Schultz are unavailable for a massive Gather Round Friday night lights match ...THEN ...that's enough for me to switch my pick to the Swans, who are also smashed with unavailability issues. What a match this should be.IF ...the bad start to the year was snapped with a good win against Port Adelaide ...THEN ...no excuses against the Demons.IF ...Murphy Reid was unlucky in round one and again in round four to be overlooked for a Rising Star nomination ...THEN ...his time is guaranteed to arrive. His four goals in nine minutes against the Cats were special, his last three minutes – including kicking the match-sealing goal – against the Western Bulldogs even more important.IF ...you needed another reminder of what this club has created in the past 20 years ...THEN ...watch back the big moments of Thursday night's epic win against the Crows to open Gather Round 2025. No Stewart, no Henry, no Kolodjashnij in the backline, against the purported most dangerous forward line in the game. No worries. How good is O'Sullivan going to be? And Danger, Jez and Bazlenka – mega recruits from other clubs who chose Geelong for the club and lifestyle, stepping up, at times brutally, in the hottest of moments.IF ...Dimma didn't want to engage in discussions about umpires after being the beneficiary of a couple of controversial calls at the finish of the game against the Crows ...THEN ...I can only imagine how he would've erupted had he been wearing Matthew Nicks' shoes.IF ...Darcy and Thilthorpe have had blistering starts to the 2025 season and are dominating conversations about the game's best key forwards ...THEN ...it's almost an insult to Jesse Hogan. Reigning Coleman Medallist. Missed the Giants' first two games with injury. Thirteen goals from the two matches he has played.IF ...everyone now expects a plane celebration from Ginni on Sunday night in the much-hyped Gather Round closer against Port Adelaide ...THEN ...it may just be too obvious for him to bother with it. Maybe he's rehearsed something else. Perhaps a counting-the-cash cele, given Kenny's $20,000 fine? Fingers in his ears to block the Kenny noise? Or an old favourite shoosh routine? Cannot wait to see what it will be.IF ...the previous CEO announced his resignation last October ...THEN ...it's staggering the Demons are yet to find Gary Pert's replacement. Myriad issues, on and off field, at this club. Someone needs to properly plot a path through the problems.IF ...the Roos' midfield gets a lot of positive media despite a dreadful win-loss record ...THEN ...overdue time for it to stand up big-time. Let's see how it goes against Rowell, Anderson, Graham and co. No excuses.IF ...Zak Butters has already copped a record near 50k in AFL fines ...THEN ...he might be up to 60k by the time Sunday night's match against now-hated rival Hawthorn is finished. Season-on-the-line stuff for the Power, and it's guaranteed Butters will be flying the flag in some form at some stage. For pure theatre, would love to see him wandering over to shake hands with Ginni before the first bounce.IF ...as of Monday night the Tigers were committed to selecting Noah Balta for his first game of the season in the Gather Round fixture ...THEN ...by Thursday public sentiment had rightly forced an about-turn. The Tigers have handled this poorly. It just would not have felt right to watch Balta playing in the AFL knowing that in two weeks a court is scheduled to announce findings relating to his assault case, over which he has already pleaded guilty. For Tigers football boss Tim Livingstone to say on Thursday night that the decision to leave Balta out of their Gather Round team was a "football decision" was embarrassing, given coach Adem Yze’s near-emotional defence of Balta last week.IF ...Jack Higgins' beautifully innocent Brownlow night 2018 offering of "my heart is pumping a thousand minutes per second" while accepting Goal of the Year honours will always be a favourite ...THEN ...his "I don’t like Adelaide" comment this week somehow resonated even louder. Arguably one of the bravest things he's done, given he was already booked to stay in the SA capital all week. Will no doubt be subjected to some choice words from the locals at Norwood Oval on Sunday. Playing great footy this year, too.IF ...Will Hayward clicked into gear last week with four goals and a brilliant performance against North Melbourne ...THEN ...I hope that's the turning point for him for this season. With so many gun teammates out with injury, he needs to step right up.IF ...the Eagles dare ask the AFL for a compensation pick in the 2025 national draft ...THEN ...I'll do as Terry Wallace threatened way back in 1996 and spew up. This demise has been self-inflicted. Rival clubs should not be adversely impacted because of that.IF ...it's been nearly a year between senior matches for Jason Johannisen ...THEN ...it's a big call to bring him back in Gather Round.AND THIS ONE'S FOR THE AFLIF ...it is only now that the AFL has realised the coaches are collectively seething over their conditions compared with other football industry cohorts ...THEN ...not sure what it's been doing the past three seasons. This is not new noise.
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