AFL calendar fails

Angus Monfries (second from left) features on the cover of Essendon's 2013 calendar. Source: Herald Sun

Adelaide's 2013 calendar featuring Kurt Tippett. Source: Herald Sun

THINK trade month was tough on players and fans - try being an AFL calendar printer.

It doesn't sound that hard to pick 16 big names from each club that fans can plan their years by.

But the calendars for 2013 must have gone to the printer before the end of the season to get in the shops before Christmas.

Then the printers cross their fingers and hope they got their selections right.

With the introduction of free agency and trade week extended to a month, this year they never really had a chance.

St Kilda fans who pulled a brand new calendar out of their Christmas stocking would have been greeted by the sight of departed star Brendon Goddard sharing the cover with Nick Riewoldt, Nick Dal Santo and Lenny Hayes.

Goddard was clearly one of the Saints' best players, but the will he-won't he sign saga had been dragging on for months, surely they could have hedged their bets by at least putting someone else on the cover.

When Essendon traded Angus Monfries no one really saw it coming, but didn't the Bombers have any bigger names for their 2013 calendar?

The Melbourne calendar is an instant collector's item thanks to Mark Neeld's huge cleanout, with Brent Moloney (July) and Jared Rivers (October) given a month each. 

A stranger decision was to give November to part-time ruckman Stefan Martin who only managed seven senior appearances in 2012 - and is now at the Brisbane Lions.

The Roos were also active in trade week, saying goodbye to Aaron Edwards (Mr October) and Hamish McIntosh (November).

Bulldogs fans, meanwhile, can look at new Hawthorn full-back Brian Lake for all of August.

But the biggest fail goes to the Adelaide calendar, which features Kurt Tippett, a player so hated at the club it prompted forward Taylor Walker to take to Twitter: "Really? KT in the 2013 calendar... What a stuff up.. #mustofhadafewbeers"

At least the printers got the timing right. Tippett features in July, which is about when he's due to make his return from an 11-match ban for salary cap and draft cheating.

Click HERE to see our gallery of AFL calendar fails.

Seen any others we've missed? Send us a note on Twitter @superfooty

You're reading an article about
AFL calendar fails
This article
AFL calendar fails
can be opened in url
http://aflnewstop.blogspot.com/2013/01/afl-calendar-fails.html
AFL calendar fails