Oh, and there was one other thing; I was named captain which is one of the highlights of my life so far.
It was very strange running out in front of the boys and tossing the coin but when the game begins, everything reverts back to normal. We’ve got a great group of leaders at the club and it makes being captain so much easier. I said it a few weeks back, but the whole group will lead the club, not just me.
There’s leadership on the field and there’s leadership off the field and as has always been the case at North, leaders don’t always have to be current players.
I watched Glenn Archer jump into the ring against champion boxer Daniel Geale and although it’s almost impossible, my level of respect for Arch went up about a thousand levels. Apparently Euge (Eugene Arocca) called Arch one day and asked if he’d help out with our Box On debt reduction campaign and before he even described what was required, Arch said ‘no worries mate, I’m in’.
He went toe to toe with Geale for two rounds and helped raise awareness about debt which was an amazing thing to do. Arch was at the club on Friday and he was saying his head was sore for about a week after the fight because he was hit so many times. I reckon he held his own.
I’ve taken a few hits off the field lately, the boys have been pranking big-time.
Someone advertised my apartment in Port Melbourne as having a room available and I had about 20 calls and am still getting them.
There’s a new prank going around called ‘dim-simming’, which is when you get someone’s bag, turn it inside out, re-pack it, then zip it back up.
Shaun Atley (Atts) and Ben Mabon (Sawny) got Jamie Macmillan (Bikkies) as you can see here…
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There are blokes getting taken advantage of and others seeking revenge all the time.
Loose had all his cards taken out of his wallet and scattered throughout his locker and our dietician Jona Segal told Brad McKenzie there was a delivery for him at reception. When he went out there, there was nothing and he was embarrassed.
Then there are blokes who just embarrass themselves like Sawny. He lives with Bikkies and Atts and they just found out he has never used an oven. Bikkies had taught him how to crumb a chicken and then Sawny decided to make chicken nuggets. When he asked if he should use the frypan or oven to cook them, he refused to use the oven and admitted it was because he didn’t know how to turn one on.
He is great value and I wish he was here in Sydney with us.
When we arrived yesterday, we saw fast bowler Doug Bollinger heading to one of the gate lounges and Ben Cunnington had no idea who he was. He asked Ryan Bastinac, “Does he like cricket?”.
We have a fair bit of time to kill before our match against the Swans and we’re all playing a game on our phones called ‘Draw Something’. It’s kind of like Pictionary.
I have established myself as a pretty good illustrator and it doesn’t take long to guess what I’m drawing, but some of the others are kindergarten level to be honest.
Here are some examples.
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| Scott Thompson 'Catfish' | Scott McMahon 'Thinking' | One of my best 'Recycle' |
Our head masseur and soft tissue coordinator Luke ‘Flushrubs’ Warnett is clearly the worst of everyone. If his drawing was the same as his massaging skills he’d be working at an Auskick clinic.
With no television or radio coverage of North Melbourne's round two NAB Cup match against Sydney on Saturday night, kangaroos.com.au will be providing live updates for supporters. Click here to set a reminder
