THURSDAY night's Hall of Fame induction ceremony was another great celebration of the people that have made our game great.
Broadcaster Tony Charlton, 80, was one of the most recognisable faces and voices of his generation. And Horrie Gorringe was a legend of Tasmanian football from 1914-30, so good that stars of that era such as South Melbourne's Laurie Nash and former Test cricket captain Victor Richardson urged him to move to the then VFL.
But, for many, the stars of this year's function - the ones they'd seen firsthand - were four of the best players of the past 20 years: James Hird, Michael Voss, Nathan Buckley and Mark Ricciuto.
Herald Sun chief football writer Mike Sheahan enjoyed the occasion as much as anyone. Sheahan said the Hall of Fame night was now the "premier night on the football calendar". Ahead of even the Brownlow Medal, he said.
However, Sheahan has one gripe. He says we should be guaranteed one Legend a year among the six inductees.
Under the current Hall of Fame charter, only one Legend can be admitted for every 10 inductees.
But Sheahan argues there are already a "dozen" Hall of Fame members who deserve Legend status. In addition to this year's four recent stars, he nominated Hall of Fame members including Malcolm Blight, Royce Hart, Wayne Carey, Bobby Rose, Gary Ablett snr and Tony Lockett.
The current criteria meant it could take up to 20 years to induct all as Legends, with others with similarly strong claims certain to arise in that time, Sheahan said.
"Legend status is exalted status, but the game is big enough, its history rich enough, to justify a legend annually," Sheahan said.
Media Watch understands Sheahan's argument. The names he raises would sit comfortably alongside the Hall of Fame's existing 23 Legends.
However, we would make one point - part of the Legend status' allure is its exclusivity.
It is reserved for the elite of the elite. Champions good enough to be automatic selections for the Hall of Fame will inevitably miss out.
But is that necessarily a bad thing?
Surely, the lustre of being a Legend comes not only from the company you keep, but also from the calibre of the players not allowed into the club.
North's 'Sliding Doors' moment
This Saturday night, North Melbourne gets a glimpse of what could have been.
Then, it will run out onto the $140 million Metricon Stadium for the first time, the recently unveiled home ground of the Suns.
But three and a half years ago, North had the chance to make the Gold Coast its new home.
Offered a $100 million package to relocate to the Gold Coast, North's board ultimately voted - reportedly by a 4-3 majority - to stay in Melbourne, its home since 1869. Ironically, one of the factors that swayed the Kangaroos' decision at the time was the AFL's inability to provide firm details of the stadium they'd call home if they moved north.
North chairman James Brayshaw led the push for the club to remain in Melbourne. On Friday, Brayshaw told The Age the club had moved on from the tumultuous events of late 2007.
"People outside the club spend an inordinate amount of time on it, whereas no one within the club gives it a second thought," Brayshaw said.
Brayshaw said North had subsequently got on with the job of securing its future in Melbourne, which this week was bolstered by the announcement it would play two games a year at Hobart's Bellerive Oval in a lucrative three-year deal.
The Age also spoke with former North director Andrew Carter, who had voted in favour of the AFL's "once-in-a-lifetime" relocation offer. The offer had included eradicating the club's $4.25 million debt, a raft of recruiting concessions and benefits for the club's Melbourne-based members.
Carter stressed he had since moved on, but couldn't help thinking what might have been, saying the AFL's player concessions would have ensured North had "a good list for a number of years".
Who knows what might have been? While it's fun to deal in hypotheticals, football is ultimately about realities.
And the reality is North is still south and - with the hope of building new support even further south - is confident its future will be bright.
'Favourite-son' coaches more secure
Media Watch has kept close tabs on this year's coaching rumours. With seven coaches coming out of contract at the end of this season - John Worsfold (West Coast), Rodney Eade (Western Bulldogs), Michael Voss (Brisbane Lions), Dean Bailey (Melbourne), Brett Ratten (Carlton), Mick Malthouse (Collingwood) and Alastair Clarkson (Hawthorn) - the media focus on who's staying, who's going and who's going elsewhere has been so intense we've even given it a name in its own right, Coach Watch.
Steve Butler had an interesting take on this season's coaching merry-go-round in The West Australian.
Butler said as "favourite-son coaches" Worsfold, Voss and Ratten had a "safety net" the likes of Bailey and Eade did not.
Having won the hearts of their clubs' supporters as former champion players, Butler said, as coaches, Worsfold, Voss and Ratten could call on credits Bailey and Eade, never of whom played for their current clubs, could not.
He pointed to former West Coast chairman Dalton Gooding's unabashed admiration of Worsfold, Lions skipper Jonathan Brown's unqualified support for Voss earlier this season, and Blues midfielder Marc Murphy's similarly emphatic endorsement of Ratten recently.
Butler spoke with former North Melbourne and Carlton coach Denis Pagan, who played 120 games for the Kangaroos but none for the Blues.
Pagan told Butler the level of support he experienced at North, which he led to the 1996 and 1999 premierships, was noticeably greater than that he received at Carlton, which he coached from 2003-2007 with less success.
"You get a bit more time and your honeymoon period is a bit longer because everyone likes their favourite players and former stars," Pagan said.
"There's no doubt there's a difference. I could virtually do what I liked [at North], they supported me and they believed in me. At Carlton, it was completely opposite and it can change pretty quickly if you're not aligned."
Ken Judge also told Butler his experiences coaching the clubs he'd played at, Hawthorn and East Fremantle, had been easier than his troubled stint at West Coast because of his "stronger connection" to those clubs.
Being a favourite son may buy you extra time to put your imprint on a club, but, ultimately, you've still got to produce the results.
Pagan made it clear even favourite son coaches are not immune from coaching's one inexorable truth: "At the end of the day, there are only two types of coaches - those sacked and those to be sacked."
In short
North Melbourne midfielder Levi Greenwood has re-signed with the club at least until the end of 2013, thwarting reported interest from Greater Western Sydney, the Herald Sun reports. Greenwood said he was determined to help North's emerging young list win a premiership before captain Brent Harvey, 33, retired.
Highly touted West Australian midfielder prospect Stephen Coniglio is considering deferring his draft nomination for a year to avoid being selected by Greater Western Sydney in this year's NAB AFL Draft, the Herald Sun reports. The tabloid said it understood Coniglio, who is still weighing up whether to pursue a career in cricket over football, was "not keen" on relocating to Sydney.
Former Port Adelaide chief executive and ex-SA Football Commission member Brian Cunningham says the Power's future will not be secured by AFL financial assistance alone, with a change to the club's current ownership structure also essential, The Advertiser reports. The SANFL currently holds the Power's AFL licence.
Richmond has volunteered to be North Melbourne's first opponent at Bellerive Oval next season, The Mercury reports. Tigers CEO Brendon Gale told Hobart's major daily paper the match-up made sense given Richmond's "strong association" with Tasmania through former stars Royce Hart and Matthew Richardson and current spearhead Jack Riewoldt.
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
