How many disgusting, repulsive, abominable donuts will you have this weekend at your Donut Factory?

Just as a general point (and I've got 6 doughnuts I think after planning for 3) I think, as per the TS Extra that arrived in our in boxes last night or this morning, that this sort of thing can't continue.

I tend to agree with Walesy - after seeing what has happened this year with bye rounds already (and we haven't even played one yet) I think it will become clear to those that run SC that there needs to be something done to put a cap on the Homer Simpson-eating doughnuts.

Not at all saying that it is the easy way out, nor having a whinge that the doughnuts are happening. But I just feel that if we here at TS are feeling the pain, then the average punter/player is going to look at their team and almost throw up their hands ... and then do so again twice more.

And if people lose interest in their team/the game in the second half of the season, there will be a percentage lost to the game full stop - something News Limited, Virtual Sports, etc, don't want.

I don't know what the remedy is, but I reckon Walesy might be right with what he said in TS Extra - that something will be done to address the problem next year (and extra trades don't really address the problem I'm afraid).

Whether we actually agree with any action that will be taken ... well, that's another thing entirely I guess!!

 

I'm pretty certain that the issue will be sorted by the AFL - I hear they are looking to have 2 byes per team next year.

This could mean:
- Byes are able to be well spread out with a system of 18 rounds where 2 teams have a bye over a 24 round season, or something similar. You won't have big blocks of teams missing like this - because the broadcasters bleed.

It's a disaster for C7 over these 3 weeks.
- No Sunday footy at all this weekend, and only one Saturday game (night) though thank goodness no bloody #rompingwins and #thankskirky show for all 3 weeks - small mercies. Monday could be a disastrous spectacle.
- Next week I hope C7 gets value on Thursday night, because there is NO footy on FTA on Saturday or Sunday. Gillon will get a blast from C7 over this schedule, and so he should. Ridiculous Thursday footy. Then again the Fox games on Sat-Sun are all chaff.
- The following week is a little better balanced, one game each day, and the delightful Melb GWS blockbuster on Sunday arvo.

Once we've got out of the habit of watching footy on weekends I guess we'll just move to the Olympics a few weeks later and C7 will lose lots of momentum.

Oh yeah, and I've got 5 donuts this week if I don't trade. I'm thinking 8 donuts for all bye weekends with 3 enforced upgrades and one measured downgrade. Will leave me with a near fully upgraded team and around 8-10 trades for the rest of the year when the General strikes. I reckon I'd probably cost myself 350 points on the leaders through this strategy but I can't see a great alternative. (My plan was to have 3 donuts and one less trade but injuries have smacked me around)

Finally I think the difficulty of SC is a good thing, it means you need to do your best and if you have a tough situation, swallow a spoonful of concrete and harden up.

Today's donut might be tomorrow's 150.

 

Lucas and Swert - agree wholeheartedly with what you say. Like I said, not having a whinge at all in regards to the doughnuts I'm copping.

But there are other factors that drive this game - money, advertising, click-throughs, page views, more money, etc. Looking at how a percentage of disinterested or disgruntled players could impact on bottom lines and that type of thing, I have a feeling that action may be taken for the 2013 season.

I don't mind the difficulty, but we here at TS are a sub-section of a wider audience - an audience more casual in its pursuit of SC and who often play it for fun as part of a league with mates.

And if that type of audience loses a bit of interest, and the bottom line has the potential to be impacted on, then something will give.

 

Mate the fact that a large number of players are managing a multiple of teams, and the others are either social players having a hit and giggle for a league win - occasionally not updating teams, copping a loss or two, whatever players, or fairly competitive who would play regardless.

I reckon there's about 30000 people who actually give a stuff, maybe less, maybe even as low as 15000 once you take into account the multiple teams for parents, grandparents, girlfriends, sisters, brothers and a few more IPs.

The click throughs will hardly change because most of them will give a stuff next year because the prizes will still be good, and they will continue to spread their risk over multiple teams.

Corks I reckon Horsley is an interesting one. If you have decided firmly to keep him as your M7 then you should keep but otherwise he needs to go this week, because his usefulness as a cow is fast approaching abattoir status.

Chris - we have to wait until the fixture is announced to work out how this whole thing will go. Anything else is conceptual but in the end useless speculation

 

Fair points Lucas. Guess I'm just saying that the minute there's any hint of attitude change or loss of interest, those making money off of SC will be concerned.

And the mooted changes to next year's fixture might just render the whole thing, well, moot, anyway!

 

And Corks - ditto on Horsley with Lucas - I've sent him off to the slaughter house this week and brought in a premium Mid