Neild & Cameron muse the new BPL season

With the new season of BPL only hours away we were lucky enough to have two captains visit us here at the stately BUB Manor. Senor Mike Neild was more than willing to visit us from the depth of his Moreton Bay Cave, but Sensei Steve Cameron was a bit harder to pull away from his Michael Phelps' branded Kemuri Bong in the corners of the Dojo Gardens. After they both arrived, we retired out to hammocks on one of the many balconies of the BUB Manor, sipping Mai Tais. Eventually chat turned to upcoming season of BPL, and it was at this point that we decided to press the record button on our recorder.


Brisbane Ultimate Blog: So gents, thank you for joining us here this afternoon. Our apologies for the poorly made Mai Tais, we will certainly have to have a word to Work Experience Will about them. With the new season of BPL just around the corner, how do you see the dissolution of Rawhide affecting the BPL? Do you see a change in people's attitudes or the quality of play?

Mike Neild: The league will be different in a few ways. We now have a bye each round which gives teams an opportunity to regularly discuss training as a group before they decide to take a week off. The standard of the competition will increase as a result of the larger teams and the consolidation of experienced players.

Steve Cameron: Well, it's a shame to go back to a 5 team league (3 teams really) for the obvious reason that no-one likes byes. But I'm going to say that the biggest blow to the BPL is in the loss of diversity in leadership that comes with consolidating into fewer teams. Admittedly however, no-one really seemed to be in charge at Rawhide, except for turncoat Stu's brief time at the stirrups... The upside of the Rawhide implosion is that the rest of the teams have been able to pick up some seriously talented and experienced players, and we can see them now spread across all the rosters.


BUB: Well, very different opinions there about the bye round. How teams use that round may have an impact on their performances in later rounds. We can only imagine that the Buggers will use the week off the train hard and hit out some push ups, will the Dojo will spend the night sending out thoughtful emails. Speaking of the Dojo, Do you think the Dojo will be able to overcome their semi final hoodoo this season? Or in the next 3-4 years for that matter?

MN: Funny old club the DoJo. Lots of talent and paraphernalia and yet there is a weakness within the group that I don't understand which manifests itself at various times. I don't think the Dojo will be in the final this season.

SC: What hoodoo? Oh, you mean the small matter of us losing umpteen semis in a row? Well, I guess if we had two teams each like the UQ/Bug conglomerations we could carry on about how "we" are always in the final as well regardless of which variety of "us" it was.
But in all seriousness, we have had to let go to some people this season to ensure success. Lee O'Dwyer has been sent to South America (which he didn't complain about too much), and we're in talks with Ryan Black as well about maybe taking a little break for some "self-reflection". Dan Blacklock will be focussing on "other interests" whilst Luke is starring in an upcoming "Police Academy Down Under" production. So that should improve our chances. In fact, I'm going to go so far as to say that the only other team I really don't like the looks of is the one that combines the massive (but often highly dodgy) throws of Jason Ray with the stupendous receiving combo of Mike Neild and Leon McIntyre. That's assuming Leon can still run now that he's getting on a bit. Oh, and the names of Al Don, Buzz Burwell and Mat Ryan haven't made an appearance on any roster yet either...


BUB: Well those old timers certainly do know how to keep the punters guessing. They did stop off here to let us know of their plans, but we'll keep that to ourselves. But we can't see Al or Buzz ending up anywhere but UQ. On the topic of UQ, How do you see the split of the UQ teams this season? Which team do you believe will be stronger?

MN: The Lovers team looks to be stronger on big men and reception skills however their aggressive throwing stocks are not as illustrious. The Passion team are stronger with the disc in hand and I think in the end this will make the difference. There is the Burwell factor, which ever team he winds up on will be strengthened. I think Passion will be a harder team to deal with.

SC: Well, Passion have youth on their side, which is really just a nicer way of saying that they'll run around a lot with no idea of what they're doing. Lovers appear dangerous on first inspection with big Julz and Chris Cunliffe on the roster, but without any really dangerous throwers those two guys can't do it all themselves. Curiously absent from either roster are Al Don and Piers Truter. Al is worth several goals a night to his team, and Piers the opposite (Hi Piers!), so clearly whichever team lands one or the other will perform significantly better/worse than expected.


BUB: Now now Steve, this is no arena for you to try and pick up. On to the other super club of Brisbane Ultimate, how do you see the split of the Buggers this season? Which team do you believe will be stronger?

MN: Yeah this is a hard question. The Messy team has a lot of new players. 8 or 9 BPL rookies. It will take some time to get all that together, and the percentage of points that the more experienced players are on the field will be reduced than in the past. The Old school team is clearly a flatter list in terms of experience and caliber of players. The Old School team will be stronger at the start, however if things go to plan then in the second half of the year I believe the Messy group could be very difficult to deal with.

SC: Well, given that you're not giving away the whereabouts of Mr Ryan & Dr Burwell, it's a little hard to say for sure. But the combo mentioned above is pretty hard to go past. Jason is at his best when he can just throw it long and let the receiver do the rest, so having the aforementioned big guys ready to pull down whatever goes up will make that Bug team tougher to match. Sure there's experience aplenty on the other roster, but we all know what "experience" can mean. If Buzz & Mat do turn up on this team then all bets are off.


BUB: Ah yes Steve, we all know what "experience" can mean, we only have to look at the past Dojo results for that. We were all very sad to see the dissolution of Rawhide, with that in mind do you think the BPL will blossom again to have 6 teams? Do you have anyone in mind to potentially lead this treason committing team? When do you see this happening?

MN: This season is looking very strong. All teams are full and there are a large group of new players spread around. I think that we may actually go 5 teams in both leagues this year and then potentially expand back out to 6 in 2010. The Gold Coast could be an option. There are a handful of GC blokes in the mix currently and if the league down there is popular and if regionals and halibut are fun for a group of keen new players then it could be on the cards. There are always a few mercenary type experienced players who would jump at the opportunity to join with an exciting new Gold Coast BPL club. The team needs to hand an identity, it is only way to build passion, commitment and the competitiveness which follows.

SC: Absolutely. I was hoping you'd lead it yourself, Wetnose. You or Will Churchill (I know you'll love to be compared so directly) or Gref. In other words, someone with plenty to say (okay, you don't hear much from Gref except the odd on-field expletive) and plenty of future ahead of them in the game to build a solid unit. I'd tend to think that when it happens it'll be someone from UQ rather than Buggers, as I don't think anyone has the balls (or even the desire) to step out from Mike's shadow.
And while I'm here I'd take it a step further than this, and suggest that the BPL should really have six bona-fide teams, as opposed to the current setup with Dojo facing off against two massive squads that are in a state of perpetual flux. No-one ever knows who's going to be on which UQ/Bug team, and as a result no-one seems to care that much.


BUB: Interesting comments there Steve, almost sounds like you're scared. And if Mike's suggestion of a GC team comes through, surely that would mean the end of Dojo snapping up all of new GC talent through GC Frisbee Overlord Stefan. Well gents, it is almost time for us to head inside for a spot of lunch, finally what are your estimated predictions for placings 1-5 for this season?

MN: I think this will be one of the closest seasons we have seen for a couple of years. 5 big teams, all with game breaking players, most changing a bit from last year. I would suggest the hardest to pick accurately for a while. That being said:

1. Messy Buggers
2. UQ Passion
3. Old School Buggers
4. Dojo
5. UQ Lovers

SC: (1) DojoMojo winning a classic final by 3 points against - (2) Buggers with Mike/Leon/JRay, who scraped into the final after a single-point victory over - (3) UQ Lovers (assuming a late appearance from Al), with the others being harder to separate - (4/5) is UQ Passion and the Other Buggers in either order, with the wooden spooners performing well below expectations all season and the fourth-placers losing badly to Dojo in their semi. The Bug placings could be turned completely upside down though, depending on where Buzz & Mat end up. Trust you to keep a few aces up your sleeve, Wetnose.

BUB: Well, we do certainly have some great knowledge. And with great knowledge, comes great power. And with power in mind, let's head inside and into the powerful air conditioning.