The celebrations were short-lived for Mick Malthouse, whose record-breaking 715th game as a VFL/AFL coach rapidly turned into a nightmare last weekend. Thankfully the Blues are pitted on Sunday against the competition's only winless team: the Brisbane Lions. Things couldn't get any worse, surely. Well that's what Robert Walls probably thought too.

The parallels with this week's game and Walls' final game as Carlton coach in round 10, 1989 are eerie. It was a wet Saturday afternoon at Princes Park, when Carlton - third-bottom on the ladder - fell to the second-last placed Brisbane Bears on the back of nine goals from Brad Hardie, and a rare long goal just before the bell from Warwick Capper, one of four "The Wiz" kicked that day.

Walls was sacked in the aftermath. Peter Banfield was in the Bears team that day and remembers it well. "We went in as complete underdogs, no one would've given us a chance ... I remember after the game Paul Cronin standing on a table leading the team song." Banfield reckoned it was one of Capper's best games for the club, but said there was no truth to Capper's claims that the Bears midfielders purposely didn't kick the ball to the highly-paid forward. "It might be good for his public speaking circuit!"

Another hit for cricket

As the cricketing world keeps an eye on the threat of a rebel governing body, in direct competition to the International Cricket Council, led by Indian billionaire Subhash Chandra, stay tuned for some news about the launch of a Twenty20 seniors tournament to be held in Dubai in February. There's even word Sachin Tendulkar could play - suggesting there is sizeable money on offer to some of the game's greats.

However, Shane Warne's manager James Erskine has said the socialite, err champion leg-spinner, has not been approached. Warne, meanwhile, will be enjoying how his former IPL team, the Rajasthan Royals, are travelling. The Royals sit in second spot on the ladder. Warne led the side to the inaugural IPL title and still owns 3.3 per cent of the franchise.

Happy families

Prominent cricket player manager Neil Maxwell has urged the governing bodies of all major Test nations to have a healthy relationship with their players' associations. Several nations still only pay lip service to their players, unlike the authority associations in Australia and England enjoy. Maxwell, who helped to turn Brett Lee into a household name and still boasts several leading players, said strong relationships between governing bodies and players was crucial.

"Administrations have got to be open to what's happening around them. I think they are, but part of that is working with the players' associations to ensure there is a happy medium," he said. "I think the relationship between Cricket Australia and the players association is in a good space. I just think that needs to be maintained. Every time you get into a MoU (memorandum of understanding), you need to work together. We have spoken about it - you don't wait five years to have a fight. These things should be worked out along the way." The current five-year deal between CA and its players does not expire until 2017.

Hawks on hold

The Hawks are still optimistic defender Matthew Suckling will re-sign with the club. The dead-eye left footer is off contract and is an unrestricted free agent. The Hawks are keen to open contract negotiations but his management so far has been keen to wait until the end of the season. Suckling has many good friends at the club, which is also hoping loyalty plays a part in keeping him in brown and gold. Suckling can expect some solid offers on the open market.

Money ball

Jamie Elliott spoke humbly about what Collingwood meant to him, after signing a three-year contract extension. "It's basically my second family and I hold family really close to my heart. I spend basically every day with these guys and I think that's the biggest thing - it's basically family for me. I just love it here," he said.

The high-leaping forward said he had also grown as a man, and learnt a lot. So much so that he enjoyed some banter with Eddie McGuire when told his No.5 guernsey was one of the biggest sellers in the club shop. "I'll have a chat to Eddie about that," he said, when asked whether he would get a slice of the till. "I'll see you in three years," McGuire joked back.

Myth buster

Eddie McGuire's comments that financial equalisation was a "myth", and his insistence that the national draft be uncompromised sparked a typically frank response from Swans chairman Andrew Pridham. Taking to Twitter, Pridham responded. "He is right. Equalisation is a myth. What's an Interstate club? One that travels every second week. Not 5 times a yr."

Pridham hasn't been the only one at a Sydney-basec club to have a crack at the Pies' president. GWS player welfare manager Craig Lambert also used Twitter to vent. "Would love 2 breakdown equalisation 1 day in its entirety.Won't happen because unfortunately city hall only sees it through their eyes #VFL."

McGuire has made it clear he believes the interstate youth academies provide those clubs with an unfair advantage. The AFL continues to work on how a revised father-son and academy bidding system should work. We hear that the opportunity to trade draft picks from future years - as is the norm in US sports - could yet emerge as a key plank of any plan.

Armitage a cut above

St Kilda midfielder David Armitage has taken his game to another level so far in 2015. When you're playing well, your club will want to get your face out there, and after 35 disposals last Sunday against Essendon, Armitage was asked to front the media at the team's recovery session the following morning.

He was a bit reluctant, though. Not because he didn't want to talk about the Saints' narrow loss to the Bombers. Rather, because the rather image-conscious Queenslander had recently had a haircut, and wasn't too pleased with the results. He decided to show up, handled himself with aplomb, and then duly turned up at Seaford on Tuesday with a shaved head.

THE WATCHMAN

10 minutes to midnight for... a Mayweather/Pacquiao rematch. As if the first one wasn't tedious enough.

LOCAL HERO

Jason Gillespie is of Aboriginal descent on his father's side and Greek on his mother's, and played plenty of sterling cricket for South Australia and Australia, and now as coach of Yorkshire remains unambiguously Australian. But watch how dizzyingly quickly he becomes an English local hero if, as predicted, he becomes England coach and puts one over Australia in the first Ashes series in July.

NUMBERS UP

50,871 the crowd at Etihad stadium to watch Melbourne Victory thump Melbourne City 3-0 in last Friday's A League semi-final.

30,050 the capacity of AAMI Park, where next Sunday's grand final will be staged.

20,822 the very least number of people who will be disappointed by this. The extra is Victory coach Kevin Muscat, who will be there anyway.

Got a tip? Contact Daniel Cherny or Jon Pierik. Twitter: @danielcherny or @pierik_agesport