Showdown 60 was a more complicated game than a lazy ‘Showdowns never go to script’ narrative allows, and Adelaide’s failures were more specific and instructive than a simple 26-point hiding suggests.

The Showdown should matter. Local rivalry is one of the few remaining things in football that still feels human. But when the siren goes, South Australian football has to remember that the enemy is not down or up Port Road. They’re the rivals. They enemy is the system that taught us to spend our deepest anger on each other.

Last night’s Round 3 match between Adelaide and Geelong served as an almost perfect case study for a number of the issues we speak to here at the Thebarton Enquirer. Examples of umpire inadequacy, league mismanagement and clubland gaslighting were all evident.

On the back of a ripping start to the season by Sydney last night, let’s look at what at a NSW/ACT side might look like if the The Allies concept was abandoned.

Every February, the AFL sends its clubs to suburban ovals and regional grounds under the banner of the Community Series. The messaging is consistent: taking elite football to new audiences, strengthening grassroots ties, growing the game nationally. Is that the real reason?