THE INSIDIOUS nature of gambling was again highlighted in a front-page story on former Melbourne player Daniel Ward in the Herald Sun.
Ward told Mark Robinson his addiction had led to debts that had forced him to sell his house and nearly him cost his wife, Mel, and four-year-old daughter, Rylee, and, possibly, his life.
"I could be dead. I thought they could be better off without me, the burden of this person with addiction - my wife being lumped with it through no fault of her own - because as a person your mind is so consumed by this big, dark secret you're holding in," Ward said.
Ward, who played 136 games for Melbourne from 1998-2007, was not sure how much money he lost over the course of his 15-year addiction, but said he once lost a four-figure sum lent to him by former teammate Troy Simmonds.
Ward was publicly shamed and fined for betting on AFL matches in 2007.
But while this was the cue for him to start attending Gamblers Anonymous meetings, Ward regularly lapsed into his old betting habits, often blowing his family's "bill" money.
That's how strong gambling's hold can be on people.
While he has not had a bet since June last year, Ward realises his addiction lies in waiting.
"As I sit here right now in my living room, my addiction is over there in the corner doing push-ups waiting for me to be vulnerable again," he says.
Gambling has sunk its teeth into several AFL players in recent times. Ward's teammates David Schwarz and Travis Johnstone fought their own battles with the punt, while former Carlton and Brisbane Lions spearhead Brendan Fevola is still fighting his.
Fortunately, Ward seems to be in a good spot at the moment. With the support of his family and the AFL Players' Association, he is now in a new job and playing local footy.
By making his tale public, he says he hopes to send a warning to others on the dangers of punting.
Magpies may rotate midfielders out of games
Collingwood is acknowledged as the innovator of the 'revolving rotations' that are now one of the game's most distinctive features.
But this year's introduction of the substitute rule may mean the Magpies take this strategy one step further, Collingwood assistant coach Mark Neeld told Insider on Fox Sports.
With the interchange bench reduced from four players to three players and a substitute under the new rule, Collingwood may consider resting players from matches to guard against the greater physical demands imposed on them this season, Neeld said.
The Herald Sun speculated other clubs could again follow the Magpies' lead and target their games against the Gold Coast Suns as the perfect opportunity to rest players.
Clubs resting players is nothing new. But in the past they've mainly done so with younger players who tend to tire towards the end of a long season.
But if the increased game time players are forced to play this year is taking as big a toll as some clubs are suggesting, some may be tempted to rest senior players from time to time.
However, doing so is not without its risks. Most obviously, you're down one of your best 22.
But you also risk sending a message to your opposition that you don't rate them enough to play your best side. That can be all the motivation a struggling side needs to cause an upset.
Ball's bargain-basement contract
When St Kilda and Collingwood could not agree on a deal for Luke Ball to become a Magpie in the 2009 trade period, Ball and his favoured suitor had to be inventive.
It's become clear just how inventive in Wednesday's Age.
With clubs like Melbourne and Essendon expressing interest in the former Saint midfielder, Ball put a $950,000 price tag on his head for the 2010-11 seasons to scare them off.
That much we knew.
But The Age revealed Ball had re-signed with the Magpies late last year for the 2012 season for just $85,000-$100,000.
That's the contract renewal you'd expect of a second- or third-year player, not someone who placed fifth in the best and fairest in his first season at his new club, and helped lift it to its first premiership in 20 years.
But, we are told, that's what happened and that's how the Magpies got, and kept, their man.
The added beauty for the Magpies is Ball's bargain-basement contract will also free up money for them to counteract the inevitable GWS offers to their out-of-contract stars such as Scott Pendlebury and Dale Thomas.
The Ball investment just keeps paying off for the Pies.
Richie gets richer
Lionel Richie was one of the highlights of last year's Grand Final Replay. While the game itself didn't live up to the original, the '80s pop icon won the battle of the Grand Final bands, clearly outshining INXS before the drawn Grand Final.
Media Watch may have chuckled when it heard Richie had been booked for the Replay. It may have wondered how ballads like Hello would go down with a crowd that wanted to be pumped up, not serenaded.
If it did so - and we're admitting nothing - we were wrong.
Mr All Night Long had the MCG crowd at hello. Consummate performers tend to do that.
They also get paid well for their troubles. The Herald Sun reported Richie's fee for his performance before the Replay and at its after-party was $500,000, with the AFL forking out an additional $100,000 for his stage and sound expenses.
He may have done his best work in the '80s but clearly he's still got some currency.
In short
The NRL's Brisbane Broncos are preparing a counter-raid to entice former rugby league stars Karmichael Hunt and Israel Folau back from the AFL when their contracts expire at the end of 2012 and 2014 respectively, The Courier-Mail reports.
The AFL will introduce two full-time umpires over the next year under a pilot program, AFL football operations manager Adrian Anderson told The Age.
Two-time West Coast premiership player Chris Lewis has anointed Mark LeCras as a future Eagles captain, The West Australian reports.
Brisbane Lions veteran and AFL Players' Association president Luke Power has written a column in The Age outlining some of the changes the AFLPA is seeking in the 2012-16 collective bargaining agreement, including scrapping the rookie list in favour of an expanded senior list.
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
