As we move into August and the last month of the qualifying rounds, some teams will know they are playing finals and some won’t.
Others like us at the Brisbane Lions could go either way, but at least we are in the hunt.
It is always a great feeling when the weather starts to get that little bit warmer and you can almost smell September and finals action in the air.
I believe there is only three weeks left of the Brisbane Juniors season until finals time, so all of you who play club footy will know what I’m talking about.
For those of you who are out of finals contention, it is no excuse not to enjoy your football.
In the AFL competition, it is a hollow feeling when you know you are out of the finals race, but there is always something to be gained from every time you play.
Certainly at junior or school level you should be looking to use every game as an opportunity to improve yourself as an individual, and as a team.
Go out, relax and try putting into play some parts of your game that you might not normally work on.
If you’re not usually one to use a step, dummy or general evasive skills, why not try it a few times.
If you are not strong overhead, go for your marks and try and build some confidence in that area of your game.
Most importantly, make sure you go out there and enjoy your football.
Whether you are in finals calculations or not, it is still a good feeling to win and sing the club song at the end of the game with your mates.
That’s something I really want to be doing with my teammates on Saturday night.
We’ve got a massive game down at Carrara, and I hope all of you who live in Brisbane or on the Coast can get along to cheer us on.
If the fans can make it like a home game for us, it will give us a real lift.
Until next week,
- Jed
