From the do-or-die to danger games, scrappy wins to four-quarter performances, the dictionary of Australian rules football is choc-a-bloc full of unique phrases, cliches and for the uninitiated... banana skins. What counts as must-win? Which players deserve public nicknaming? And how much gusto should each post-victory song earn? Harper Pestinger, Hamish O'Brien, Connor Buttigieg and guest adjudicators you've actually heard of are here to answer the questions you didn't know you care about but actually really, really do. New season on SYN kicks off at 6pm on Sunday, 9th of February.
Latest episodes
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1 h 03
Coin toss arcs, players with anxious faces and the most generic fixture imaginable
The final siren has sounded at Dictionary HQ, but the boys are in the studio to give one last worthy hurrah in radio junk time. Thanks for listening this season, DicHeads. Catch Ha…
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42 min
Commeti-isms, purple patches and the footy-loving king of Egyptian pop
Harper's coming into the studio at his highest point this week, still buzzing off Essendon's streak-snapping win over Port. Hamish is not so happy - at least until he hears a footb…
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51 min
Shushing, scoreboards and the fate of the Auskickers who wore team jumpers
A hush has gone 'round Dictionary HQ after Carlton and Essendon were consigned to 0-2 starts ahead of their primetime fixtures this weekend. Hamish has some melancholy melodies and…
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48 min
Ill-suited sponsors, sporadic score announcements and an 1860s legend
Hamish O'Brien and Harper Pestinger have a lot to say about the final week of AFL pre-season. Stadium MCs, sponsor contract negotiators and tropical weather systems are all in the…
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43 min
Goalsneaks, commentary shake-ups and prime ministerial ramps
Pre-season action is gaining speed, Robert Menzies is ramping up and The Footy Dictionary is hitting its straps this week. Join Harper Pestinger and Hamish O'Brien for another powe…
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52 min
Sunken seats, smooth jazz and Stonehenge
Nothing brings people together like a match sim at Whitten Oval. All it took was four-goal second half from Tom Edwards, and just like that Harper Pestinger and Hamish O'Brien are…
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53 min
The Very Best of The Footy Dictionary
'What's this whole Dictionary show even about?' Well, it's definitely not on-field analysis, and we've stretched beyond just the language of Aussie rules. To kick off the new seaso…
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1 h 23
Love letters, AFL South Africa and a guest appearance from Chris Martin
It's come to this. Six weeks of scouring the depths of history to find football's greatest journeymen. Today, we finalise our All-Journeyman line-up, including, crucially, the fabl…
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1 h 05
Ben Cameron | Wool and leather, crepe paper, and the very fabric of the game
In this crafts and textiles edition of The Dictionary, art aficionado/ABC Sport commentator Ben Cameron joins Harper Pestinger and Hamish O'Brien to tear through his favourite foot…
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58 min
Marnie Vinall | Dubious journeymen, jazzed-up jumpers and soup scepticism
Marnie Vinall - of ABC and The Footy with Broden Kelly fame - is in the studio with Harper Pestinger and Hamish O'Brien to present her greatest niche loves and hates of Aussie rule…
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1 h 33
The Return (with Mark Fine)
I see it, but I don't believe it! Don't adjust your set! It's the greatest miracle since Brendan Fevola's 2006 Grand Final sprint triumph! Your mainstream footy media is off on hol…
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49 min
The art of banner making, overzealous announcers and Graham Johncock's cat
Back and energised after a three-week suspension for failing to acknowledge Josh Walker's journeyman credentials, Harper Pestinger, Hamish O'Brien and Connor Buttigieg convene to c…
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55 min
Sexy sirens, fortresses and the animal kingdom's best 22
Fresh off their best performance of the season, Harper Pestinger and Hamish O'Brien are back to tackle the footy questions you didn't know needed answering. Why has Connor made him…
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54 min
Evangelical dominators, low-level big time and Ricciuto's handiest point
You thought the journeymen deep dives were over. We thought the journeymen deep dives were over. Anthony Hudson, though, had different plans and has thrown us the biggest, juiciest…
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55 min
Al from Alberton, slugs under the roof and Hawkins Disease
Harper, Connor and Hamish are back again to over-analyse this week's critical talking points and shake up Greg Champion's tyrannical footy song monopoly. Why should Josh Schache gr…
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47 min
Jack Langdon + Joe Horrigan | Goalpost thickness, satisfying sirens and scoreboard design
All the way back in November, journalism students and future media big dogs Jack Langdon and Joe Horrigan ventured north of the Yarra to detail their Things About Football with Har…
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51 min
Pill up the arse, eye-raising eye-lowering and the battle of Porn City
The Footy Dictionary is back, in a big, Elliott-Himmelberg-kick-into the-Torrens kind of way. For our debut SYN Radio episode, Harper Pestinger and Hamish O’Brien are joined by Con…
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54 min
Sarah Black | Saga-gate, train-to-game walks and seat thwacking
Sarah Black from AFL Media joins Harper Pestinger and Hamish O'Brien at Footy Dictionary HQ to dissect and discuss footy's niches on The Things About Football.A quick debate on cor…
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49 min
Peter Ryan | New Sherrin smell, Frank Walker and administrative euphemisms
The Age's Peter Ryan jumps on The Things About Football to talk through the niches of footy with Harper Pestinger and Hamish O'Brien. Before that though, the tribunal: 0:18 - Can t…
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56 min
Ryan Daniels | Animalistic nicknames, numerically sequenced name reading and overeager news-breaking
Back from a post-finals bye, Harper Pestinger and Hamish O'Brien are joined by 7 News Perth's Ryan Daniels for The Things About Football. The tribunal is first: 0:29 - What makes f…