HPN

Collingwood is real. No amount of denialism will change that. You can get a beer at Stomping Grounds (or The Tote), watch the footy team at the ‘G or the ressies at Victoria Park, or even glance at houses and apartments that you have no hope of affording to buy. Collingwood,

From the violent use of shepherding second ruckmen in the early part of the 20th century to the handball-driven innovation of Polly Farmer and more forgettable times in-between, the ruck has almost always (literally) been at the at the centre of play in Australian Football. However, no position has waxed

If you’ve stumbled across this piece hoping for a plaintive call to keep football the same, or to return it to the “glory days” (whatever they are), you’ve clicked on the wrong article. Our thesis is instead: change is generally good where it is reasoned and researched, while unnecessary or

Over the previous three or four seasons, two eschatologically opposed sides began to march up the ladder in lock-step – the Demons and the Saints. The Saints edged the Dees for the wooden spoon in 2014, and while times were tough for both clubs, there were bright sparks for both.

Look, we’ve been trying to keep this on the down low at HPN, but recently we contributed to a book called Footballistics. A fair amount of our contributions related to the draft and trade period, and with Carlton’s 2018 trade intentions in the news, we thought we’d provide some unsolicited

Football players aren’t machines. Not every player wants to play until their body can take no more, until their body is a sinewy mess. Not every football player feels compelled to make football their only focus, which is a great thing in our honest opinions. Most players study or undertake

With the 2018 AFL season entering its final third (or so), attention has turned to the winners of the year end awards. This week, the AFL Rising Star Award has grabbed much of the attention in the media, especially around the form of Jaidyn Stephenson. We thought it would be

Football is often quite narrow in its current manifestation. Whereas in the past players would be planted across the ground, such a usage now would be considered to be a wasted resource. Wings are that for the barest of seconds before the bounce, forwards often condense up the ground. This

Last week we looked at half the teams in the league in no real order at all, and their season to date. This week, we discuss the other half of the league. North Melbourne – Still a surprise After round 5 we wrote about North Melbourne’s intriguing tactical schemes and

Usually in pissing contests about national pride there are many ideas on what the most Australian thing is. HPN won’t indulge in that debate, but there is little doubt that the humble suburban football club is one of the key markers of 20th century Australia. For the past two years,