NRL Review Judiciary But Wrong Part

The NRL has decided to review parts of the judiciary but it seems the only thing they are concerned about is the loading on minor infringements. This means that they are going to review the case of Grade 1 charges loading period being reduced from 2 years to 12 months.  As well as this they are going to review player safety from growing tactics such as the cannonball tactics in the kind that Issac Luke seems to be able to get away with consistently.

Why is it though that the NRL is not looking at the main problem which is the judiciary itself.  This year the judiciary was constantly on a differing opinion to that of the majority.  As per usual there was no standards held it it appeared that a spear tackled was viewed upon which colour jersey you wore.  Or as most Queenslanders will tell you it doesn't matter what the offense is, if Origin is happening then as long as your state is NSW then you will get off, but if you play with Maroon in your blood then it is a hit and miss affair.  State bias aside as I am sure that south of the border the thinking is the other way around as there were plenty of decisions all year around that puzzled many. The handling of the brawl in the Manly Melbourne game was one of the worst cases handled all year.  Yes the two players suspended should have been, but how three players can come running from so far away with one leaping in the air to throw a punch like the coward he is and get away with it makes you wonder what is going on in Sydney.  Imagine the outcry from Sydney if their favourite Queenslander (I mock) Sam Thaiday did the same thing and got away with it.  We would still be hearing the cries from Sydney.

The judiciary may be made of ex players but that does not mean that they are the right people to make the decision. In the past some of the players to sit on the panel have been some of the worst offenders on the field, this is akin to the thinking that a courthouse judge should be a convicted criminal.  It is time that the muppet in control of the NRL, Gallop, acted on an issue that needs addressing.

Liverpool Dispose of Chelsea

Seeing Bellamy emotional at the start was a sign of things to come

It was well and truly worth getting up early to watch Liverpool play Chelsea in the Carling Cup quarter-final.  Chelsea must be seriously considering whether or not they need to offload their coach and a under performing Torres.  On the other hand though Liverpool must be on a high with the form of Bellamy, who though was obviously distressed before the game started, performed superbly in what I considered a man of the match performance.  Add to that the fact Suarez was not needed and got a well earned rest, Liverpool are getting closer to earning a piece of silverware this season.

Liverpool are looking much more stable all over the field and their calmness under pressure in defense reminded me of how Brisbane Roar are playing.  The only thing not working quite right at the moment is the man who seems to be so popular and that is Andy Carroll.  I have seen the potential and we all now he has ability but at times he seems petulant, rash and then suddenly has a burst of skill.  Without Suarez in attack he seems to be inefficient in attack and easily held at bay.  For Liverpool to really start climbing back up the order they need Carroll to start repaying the faith and find some consistent form.

A 2-0 defeat of Chelsea on their home soil is always great to watch but for me the best thing was when the home ground fell silent after the first goal and from that moment on were drowned out by the Liverpool faithfull and with ten minutes remaining seeing the Chelsea fans start streaming out.

Something in the Water

It might be the weather or maybe it is in the water but Queensland is producing something special in the sporting world.

After Queensland made it 5 outright wins from five games to be leading the Sheffield Shield it makes you wonder what it is about Queensland.  Our cricket team is sitting on top in both the 4 day and one day competition and are clear favourites this summer.  Then there is our mighty Brisbane Roar who are on a record beating undefeated streak in football and playing a style of football that is the envy of all other teams in the A-league, not to mention that they are also the defending Champions from last season.

Then there is the Queensland State of Origin team that is on a record run as well, 6 series in a row and don't look like they want to give up that mantle anytime soon.  Even with the great Darren Lockyer retiring the maroons won't be worried with ample talent to fill his void and more passion than all of NSW put together will ever understand.  Queensland might not have the NRL premiers at the moment but a winning state of origin team always makes up for that.  Especially when you look at how many Queenslanders are in the National team.


Then there are the Queensland Reds who were doubted by everyone outside of the state to go on and win the Super Rugby competition.  Although Australia were disappiointing at the World Cup, it would have been a different story with the right squad selected and the Queensland Coach McKenzie taking the reins.

Queensland also boast the Netball champions in the Firebirds who won last season and never looked like being bettered by an opponent and going undefeated for the season. 

There are also plenty of individuals to add to this mix but it is the sporting teams that really make you wonder if it is the state.  Besides the Origin team, all the other teams have players from other states or countries who have found a new lease of life and excelled in the sunshine.  For me though all it comes down to is the lifestyle in Queensland. 

Weekend Wrap

A big weekend in sport and lots of talking points, some of which I have already covered but either way here is how I have seen the weekend.

Atomic Force Back In Action

I have mentioned it before and I will say it again.  This is a champion horse and one that should be backed everytime it races.  Race 3 at Canterbury saw Atomic Force racing at good odds and not considered favourite.  Which was good for me and anyone else that put a wager on this horse.  As per usual it hit the straight and brought it home like all followers of this horse know.  If you managed to get a wager on after reading my past posts, well done.  And to those few that get a text from me to advise it is running, my pleasure. 

Cutting In The Test Squad

Ben Cutting has been rewarded with selection in the Test Squad so let's hope he is given the opportunity to shine at the Gabba.  Still amazes me that for Australia A  he was not given an opportunity to open the bowling in either innings or even considered as first change bowler.  Definitely some favouritism given to others from the Australian A captain.  Either way another Queensland quick in the mix to reaplace a wayward one that is out for the season by the looks of things.  Since heading west things have not gone well for Johnson.  Lets just hope the selectors do the right thing and make him play a good season of first class cricket before ever seleceting him again.

Roar 36 and Still Marching

Already mention the Roars great record breaking effort but it is worth another mention.  And to all the doubters, it is 36 games without defeat, like it or not the Roar have the record and the team that they beat, Eastern Suburbs also had draws in their run.  As you can tell I am sick of the AFL and NRL fans trying to finds reasons to belittle this achievement. With the Roar going so well it will be interesting to see what happens from here.  I always enjoy talking sport with my father and he is more knowledgeable than most I know and he has raised an interesting issue.  How long will it be before an European, or other foreign club for that, makes an offer for the Coach Ange Postecoglou?  Besides Nichols how many more Roar players will be targeted.  It is no wonder Ange wants a marquee player for his roster, he is making sue of the future as well as the present.


Lots of other sport has occurred but not much that makes for interesting debate or rated on my radar.  For me it is a matter of seeing if Liverpool can take advantage of results going their way and defeating Man City tonight to get closer to a top 4 spot.

Roar Break the Record

All congratulations must go to the Brisbane Roar for breaking the 74 year old record and now going 36 games undefeated.  This is an amazing achievement and is a deserved record for a team that plays the best club football ever seen in this country.  And to do it in the style they did against Perth Glory was a credit to the team and coaching staff. 

It is unfortunate though that there are a lot of negative comments going around on twitter, news sites and other social media forums.  It seems that many people cannot understand the term "undefeated".  The Roar have not broken a winning streak, they have broken a streak of going the longest without being defeated.  Many wish to suggest that the record should not count as the Roar have drawn games along the way.  How hard is it to understand that a draw is not a loss.  Maybe it is from the same people that cannot understand that a game can finish in a draw after ninety minutes.  The great thing about football is that is about who is the best team of a season, not just the weekend. 

Enough of the negatives though and time to look at some of the statistics that have occurred in the streak.

Started:  18 September 2010
Match Record: 23 Wins 13 Draws
Scoring Record:  84 For - 32 Against.
Scored in every game and held opposition scoreless 11 times
27 Players used and three have played every game: Michael Theoklitos, Erik Paartalu and Matt Smith

There are more and more statistics to get but the one I am concentrating on how many more games can the Roar add to this tally.

Suspicious or Stupid?

This is the only way to describe the captaincy of George Baily for Australia A against New Zealand.  In typical gloomy humid conditions in Brisbane Bailey sent the Kiwis in after winning the toss.  With four bowlers to choose from it was always going to be interesting to see how he used his bowlers but unfortunately he might have show more about his inept captaincy than anything else. 

With Cutting being the form bowler and bowling in home conditions one would have thought he would open the bowling or at least be first change bowler, especially when the opening bowlers (Hilfenaus and Pattinson) do nothing to impress and first change bowler, Starc, is nothing but expensive.  Interestingly though bailey waited until New Zealand were 0-100 and with two overs left till lunch that he would throw the ball to Cutting.  To add to the confusion of it all the off-spinner Beer got a bowl before Cutting.  A lot will say that Cutting got hit around the park by McCullum and went for a few but once McCullum is in he will carve up any team.  Let a fired up Cutting at McCullum early and it might have been a different day altogether. 

With Australia needing to see if these bowlers can step up and be a candidate for the first test the onus was on the captain to ensure that all the bowlers have a fair chance of proving their ability.  But with New Zealand wanting to prepare for the Test Match they will take every chance to use time in the middle and potentially may not have to bat again in this game.  With Bailey from the same state as Hilfenhaus it is no surprise he made sure he had the best chance to impress, didn't quite go to plan though. If anything Bailey may have only ensured that Hilfenhaus, Pattinson and Starc are not ensured a call up with their inability to do anything with the new ball.  There is still plenty of time to go in the match and tomorrow might see Cutting given a chance with the ball first up.  Either way I think Bailey might have done damage to his chances of leading an Australian A team again.

Who Is Liked In The Big Bash

Today I found out that Big Bash League is now following me on twitter and as a return in favour I have to make mention of their website and an amazing statistic being published there.

The BBL has posted a table of the teams and allowed fans to "like" their favourite team.  Now Sydeny and Melbourne are always going on about how sport evolves around their cities but it seems that the Australian landscape says otherwise.  Take a look at the table it is looks like it will be hard to get tickets at the Gabba.

1. Brisbane Heat   23,997
2. Melbourne Stars 8,464
3. Melbourne Renegades  6,280
4. Sydney Sixers  4,413
5. Sydney Thunder 3,893
6. Perth Scorchers  3,158
7. Hobart Hurricanes 2,555
8. Adelaide Strikers 2,227

Now this is what the table looked like at the time of writing this article.  Even if you combine the two Sydney or Melbourne teams Brisbane would still be on top. In fact Brisbane is higher than all four combined, Queensland for me are the true sporting state.

There i plenty of other good information to be found at this site and it is worth checking out.  The BBL starts December 16 and will be bigger than any Twenty/20 season so far.

Humble Pie

I am prepared to admit that after my criticism of the Australian team and in particular Ponting, Haddin and Johnson that they have come out and played a large part in Australia's win over South Africa to square the series.

I admit that I thought all three would struggle in this game and potentially be playing their last test match and was very glad to wake up to the news that Australia had won a close game.  I won't go as far as saying my calling for changes in the team was unwarranted though.  One innings does not always deserve another chance, the time has come for Australia to move forward and stop hoping that players will return to past glories and the old "his next good game is just around the corner." 

Although Australia won it was still a lot closer than should have been.  Ponting got his long awaited fifty but didn't hang around to ensure the victory, Haddin did the same and whilst Johnson had a good game with the bat he is in the team for his bowling.  Johnson has had a woeful tour yet again and should be preparing himself for a long shield season before he gets national selection again.  Haddin's time is surely up and Victoria's Matthew Wade might get the tap on the shoulder for the Gabba.  In sacking Haddin Australia will lose nothing as his glove work is easily replaceable and his batting is sub-standard on most occasions.  Then all it comes down to whether Ricky Ponting is allowed to continue on and retire when he is ready or is given the tap on the shoulder to allow an up and coming form batsmen in the team.

Looking forward to the Test match Johnson will be missing and you will see either Harris if he is fit or ben Cutting who form deserves a run at his home ground.  Also missing should be Haddin but for some reason the selectors have always liked this guy so it is hard to know who will be behind the stumps.  With two changes the selectors will be cautious about replacing Ponting too but maybe that is what the Australian team needs.  When players think that they will always be picked, complacency always occurs.

Johnson's Brilliance For Liverpool

Traveling away to Chelsea is never an easy feat yet Liverpool walked away triumphant and looking more like the championship team they can be.  Only relying on highlights and match notes it seems Liverpool deserved the victory and left plenty of headaches for Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas.  If any readers saw the game I would appreciate their comments on the match in whole.

A win over Chelsea might be the tonic Liverpool need to really get their momentum rolling and press further up the ladder. The next match is against Manchester City and will be a real test of where the club is positioned.  A win against Man City will have quite a few re-evaluating Liverpool's chances this year.  The team have the belief, the fans have the belief and a win next will start having everyone else believing.

I would like to mention the presence of black arm bands worn by the entire Liverpool team in memory of Brad Jones' five year old son, Luca Jones, who lost his battle with leukaemia on Friday.  It is always sad to write about such events and even harder to know what to write, it this case all I can write is that Brad Jones will be well supported by Liverpool FC who are a club that value their core beliefs that echo their motto.  "You'll Never Walk Alone". 

Should Issac Luke Be Charged?

Chase must not have been a good close Cuz

Now that Issac Luke has admitted that he tried to break Rangi Chase's leg in the 4 Nations game vs England, should he be held accountable?  Although Luke has been suspended for two games it is now a case as to whether or not he should be facing criminal charges.

To do such a low dog like act is one thing but to come out and admit that he went into the game with hatred towards Chase over his decision to turn his back on New Zealand and play for England indicates that the action could be seem as premeditated. Regardless of whether it is a game or not, assault is assault.  Why should an action done in a high level professional game be seen any different to anywhere else.  Laying charges on sportsman will always provide heavy debate but if he had successfully managed to break Chase's leg would the discussion be different.

Even with consideration of assault put aside is Luke not also guilty of bring the game into disrepute which is a charge the officials like to throw around now to make sure sponsors don't walk away from the game.   To come out after the fact and make light of the details is appalling and thinking that saying the following is going to make things all ok is where things are wrong.:

"I just saw red, a lot of the legends that played in the black and white jersey, they wanted blood. I know Rubes (Assistant Coach) wanted blood.
"I guess that's the mentality us young ones have taken on board. We had a talk the night before about what the jersey meant and that must have come out.
"When you come up against your family you want to outplay them. I didn't outplay him. I tried to break his leg. It was the wrong thing to do. Now I see that – at the time I didn't. After the game I said sorry. He said it stays on the field."

is going to make things all ok is where things are wrong.  Surely I cannot walk down the street, see someone who used to work for the same company as me only to go to a rival and decide that a stray elbow to the face is deserved, apologise and then expect things to be alright.  Action needs to be taken on this and the media needs to be a lot more critical in their coverage of this player.

I do not condone violence on the rugby league field but I will not be upset if karma decided to weigh in on Issac Lukes career at some stage in the near future.  Issac should be wary about a big target on his back for quite sometime.

Weekend Wrap

Another weekend over and I feel like I haven't had a chance to rest and get ready for another week of work.  Lot's happened and the weekend isn't over yet.  Liverpool play later tonight so they will get a special report as the game has missed the deadline for this post.  Hopefully their performance will warrant a lengthy analysis.

4 Nations Final

Although I have already posted about this game, my previous post was more about the farcical performance of the video ref Ian Smith.  Now I will highlight how well the Aussies accounted for an English team that still hasn't learnt that a game goes for 80 minutes and two halves.  Yet again England were blown away in the last twenty minutes and were shown to be well and truly short of being able to really test Australia.  And is was very fitting that Darren Lockyer scored a try in the final play of the game to cap off his extraordinary career.  His conversion attempt was for the career highlight reel but how good was it to see him cap off a swansong year in style.  What England need to take from this game is that relying on favourable decisions is not enough at the top level.  They need to get stronger, fitter and faster before they can seriously think beating Australia is more than a pipe dream.

The Roar can thank Theoklitos for keeping the run going.

Roar Equal Record

The Brisbane Roar came from a goal down to equal the all time record (35 games undefeated) and don't look like stopping there.  At no stage do Brisbane ever give up or look defeated and yet again they showed they play to the last minute rather than just being happy with a draw.  The scoreline makes it look like it was close but if Brisbane were able to convert their chances it would have been a lot bigger margin.  Also of note in this record run of the Roar is the fact that they have scored in every one of those games.  Positive attitude is a big thing in sport and this team is oozing of that at the moment.

Presidents Cup

I Always enjoy watching matchplay but unfortunately missed most of this tournament.  Unfortunately the International team fell too far behind in the foursomes and having to rely on winning most of the singles matches was always going to be difficult.  They did not give up though and made the US fight to the end and can hold their heads high.  It would be great to see more of this type of golf in the future, possibly on a yearly cycle would be good.

Bulls Still Undefeated

After earlier in the week defeating NSW outright to make it 4 out of 4 outright wins in the Sheffield Shield, Queensland have gone on to make it 4 out of 4 for the Ryobi one-day competition.  Queensland struggled early and according to commentators and experts on the game were at least 40 runs short of the total needed after being dismissed for 221.  No-one obviously told the Queenslanders though as they routed NSW for 171 and showed why they are the form frontrunners.  NSW were never in the hunt after losing early wickets and faltering to be 4/32 early.  It seems the Bulls are drinking the same water the Brisbane Roar are and don't like the taste of defeat.



Australia Cricket

With the current test match in a position where either team can win it I will wait until it is over to see how I analyse the game.  One thing for sure though is it is possibly the last time Ponting will be seen in a test side and it could be the last game Johnson bowls for his country for write.  Add to that a potential change behind the wickets and it will be an entirely different looking team in Brisbane.  What I do hope for though is if they make a few changes that they go with form players and players on the right side of thirty. 


That is it for this wrap although there was plenty more sport going on.  If I have missed an event on importance or one is coming up that you want my opinion on let me know.  Otherwise keep reading and let others know what your reading.

Video Ref Almost Ruins Final

In the end Australia won the 4 Nations with a scoreline that was true to their dominance. After only being in front 8-6 at half-time it was looking nervous for Australia and England were not the reason many Australian would have been nervous.

It seemed that England had picked the perfect player for their team and he wasn't even on the field.  Video referee Ian Smith gave a performance that will be talked about for a long time and should warrant investigation by Rugby League officials.   Smith did all he could to keep England in the game to such an extent that one can only say that he favoured England to such a point that he should never be allowed to officiate at this level again.

When the try to Australia was denied I was left scratching my head whilst trying not to yell abuse at the TV in fear of waking up the family in the early hours.  How he managed to pick out an offside player within ten metres is beyond belief.  Then to back that up with a penalty try to England for an incident that clearly under the rules should have been ruled as a penalty was confirmation that England were getting all the help he could give them.  At this point I was yelling but thankfully the sound proofing in the room muffled the noise.

Imagine how bad the game would have been if he was on the field with the whistle in his mouth.  It is bad enough we have to listen to the English commentators who would be the most one-sided commentators going, but to have to have a game affected to such an extent is not good for the game. 

I have never been a fan of Ian Smith and he has had a history of making poor decisions but his decision making in a game as large as the Tri-Nations Final makes you wonder how bad all the other officials are if he is the best they have.  All the talk will end up being about Lockyer's farewell and how he has gone out the champion he deserves.  Yes Lockyer deserves all the media hype and I for one will add to that hype but it should not be forgotten when an official is blatantly biased and action needs to be taken to ensure that Ian Smith is held accountable.

Have The QLD Bulls Booked A Home Final?

The Queensland Bulls are now four games into the Sheffield Shield competition and looking good to have booked a place in the final.  There is still a long way to go with six more games to be played but looking at past seasons it is hard to see how they won't make it.

Currently the table has Queensland on a maximum 24 points from 4 games with Western Australia 10 points adrift in second place and Victoria a further 4 points back.  In most cases any season total above 26-30 points is good enough to make it into a final and anything above that a good chance to be hosting the final. 

The most recent game was a trilling 14 run victory over NSW and is being done with players that rarely get a mention for National colours, although this afternoon it was announced that Ben Cutting was named in the Australian A team to play New Zealand next week.  For a undefeated team dominating domestic cricket this season it is the snubbing of the players this side of the border that is the reason Queensland will go on to be very successful this year.  North of the border it is this sort of thing that drives our passion in sport and feeds our hatred of any team wearing blue.

On one hand I hope none of the Queenslanders get picked for Australia this season to enable them to win the 4 and 1 day competitions this year, but Australia will be worse off for it.  Australia needs players in it's team that are on top of their game, in form and know they can win, something that has been lacking of late.  Maybe if Lehmann eventually becomes coach of the national team we will start seeing players picked on form rather than promise and performances too far back to consider.  Otherwise I am happy to sit back and see Queensland dominate in yet another sporting competition.

Taking a Dive

For me taking a dive in sport to gain a penalty or simply just to stop play is a blight in sport.  Recent games by the Socceroos against Oman and Thailand have raised this issue again and it won't be the last time. 

It is amazing how many times a player goes down like he has been chopped down with an axe, writhing in pain, only for a trainer to come onto the field, apply a magic sponge or spray and suddenly the player can bounce back up and continue to play the rest of the game.  This has been going on for years and as long as the refs and officials allow it to happen it won't stop anytime soon. 

Just ask Lucas Neill about diving and the serial offenders Italy

Of late it has come to a point that teams are not playing by the unwritten code of kicking the ball out if a player is injured or not returning the ball to the opposition that kicked it out.  The media and team officials are always very loud and vocal in pointing out this sort of action but very quiet about the diving.  Yes you will read articles here and there but it is not much more than a murmur. 

What needs to happen is serious changes to rules to get positive change to the situation.  Yellow cards should be wielded more often or on a more contentious note a player who requires treatment must be taken off the field for 5 minutes to be treated.  This would be a unwelcome course of action and would cause lots of debate but it is at a point where something drastic needs to happen.

On top of this there should be more scrutiny and highlighting of players that are serial offenders of diving and impositions of 1 match bans imposed.  If a team has 3 or more players dive in one game then the coach should be banned for a period as this many players indicates a directive from coaching staff. 

There are always ways to remove negative tactics from a sport it is just whether or not the authorities who can make the change have the bravado to do so. 

Eddie Mcguire is a Hypocrite

Eddie can never handle what he dishes out

Eddie McGuire is at it again.  It is now wonder McGuire is the president of one of the most hated clubs (Collingwood) in Australia after yet another outburst equal to that of a spoilt child who has had his lollipop taken off him.

So now McGuire is not happy that Greater Western Sydney is looking to sign on of Collingwood's star players.  Quoted:
"If they go after Scott Pendlebury, I will declare war on Greater Western Sydney and I will set up a tent embassy outside their tumbleweed-blown ground up there in Greater Western Sydney, I will steal every one of their good players for the rest of my life. I will go feral. I will make it my life's ambition to destroy them and run them into the ground. As long as they know ... this is not Melbourne where you can just walk in and steal the players. If you do this at Collingwood, good luck."

It seems that everytime something does not suit Collingwood McGuire is out their screaming for change.  This is from a  team that rarely ventures out of Melbourne during the year and gets more games at the MCG than any other team. If they don't have a player they simply put a big offer out there to buy them and see nothing wrong with what they do.  If another club does something wrong or a player at another club is on the wrong side of the law you will hear McGuire asking for action to be taken and the club to be held to account.  Yet when a player at his club was caught up in gambling on games McGuire was not very audible.

Getting back to the Pendlebury issue though if he is so important to the club why is he only on a 12 month extension.  Surely such an important player to a club would be signed up for longer, that is if the player wants to stay.  It is time that McGuire was held accountable for his rants by the AFL, after all he is only one person at one club.  But due to McGuire's standing in the media he seems to be able to do what he wants and say what he wants and never be held to account by the AFL or media.  You will very rarely see a critical article on McGuire and probably never will.  McGuire might be like in parts of Melbourne but he is definitely despised in most parts of Australia.

Adding to that it is the way the AFL has allowed the game to be solely Melbourne orientated for a national competition that is killing it.  They are expanding but realistically never want the trophy outside of their state.  Last year I almost turned completely off AFL with the way the game is going and McGuire is only enhancing the reason as to why this has become a game I am really turning off too.

Is Pontings Career Over?

It happens to all great sportsman and now it is time for Ponting.  The retirement of a cricketer these days is not what it used to be.  With the big money around most stay on for as long as they can and will never step aside knowing their time has come.  Very few are given the opportunity to go out on their own note instead usually given the tap on the shoulder or completely blindsided.

Their has been strong talk of late that this will be Pontings last summer and after the dismal effort in the first test in South Africa Ponting is now facing even more scrutiny.  Is it warranted?  Yes Ponting has been a great player and his record speaks for itself but when you look at the last two years should he still be there.

Only last year it was deemed that he should no longer be the captain after losing yet another series to the English and in poor form with the bat he was no longer the right person to lead the team.  So while he is not the captain only his batting should be viewed when deciding if his form warrants his selection.  And this is where the selectors are seen to be absolute idiots when it comes to the selection table.

Looking at his recent form indicates a poor showing. In his last 14 Test matches Ponting has not scored a century and only five half centuries. Five notable scores out of 28 Innings is not a notable achievement and his last 50+ score was 14 innings ago. In fact he has only scored 1 century in the last 28 Test Matches.  He is getting dismissed LBW on too many occasions and is scoring a low strike rate which is signs of a batsmen struggling for form. One only has too watch him at the crease to know he is struggling.

I have never liked how Australian selectors have handled the ending of any careers over the past and I feel this is another they will mess up.  For all the talk, and enquiries Cricket Australia seem to be a rudderless ship at the moment.  No coach leading into a home series is not acceptable and when you have a captain running the team overseas is from a bygone era.  With all the ongoings in Australian Cricket I find it hard to believe that CEO James Sutherland is still running the show.

At the end of the day it looks like Michael Clarke will have a big say on whether Ponting gets to carry on in test cricket.  Clarke has ruined the career of two cricketers at least so it will be interesting to see what pans out and if he continues to make sure Ponting is in his team.

Weekend Wrap

An interesting weekend and plenty of talking points.  Not sure if I am covering all the sporting activity but here is what I saw and read about.

Peter Roebuck

I was in shock when  first read about this in the early hours of Sunday morning and with more facts on the story slowly coming out I am really at loss as to how I go about writing this article.  Roebuck is widely considered a great commentator and will be missed on the ABC's Grandstand this summer.  He called as he saw it and often polarised when he criticised popular players, but he spoke his thoughts and felt no reason to gloss over facts that he considered needing talking about.  Unfortunately the image of Roebuck will be forever tarnished and his private life may leave a bitter after taste on his image.  To take ones own life is a drastic step and is never an easy subject to handle.  It either means one cannot face up to what life is about to serve, they think that there is no other option or simply put a cowards way out of handling the reality of life.  With the allegations  of sexual assault now surfacing Roebucks personal life will take centre stage.  If it turns out to be true then take from it your own way to see how you remember him but if the claims stay unresolved then why would he take his own life. It would seem a strange reaction for an innocent man. I will be following this story closely to see how it folds out.

Do not think that I am not sympathetic to those who take or attempt to take their own life.  This is an issue I am close too and now how easily one can get into such situations.  If you are ever feeling like you are in dangerous territory or think someone you know is, you need to talk about it.  Trust me when I say that people will listen and take you seriously, you will be surprised how much your family and friends really care.

For help call:
Lifeline Australia:  13 11 14
Beyond Blue:  1300 224 636

 4 Nations

It will be Australia vs England in the final after England easily accounted for a lacklustre, grub of a team from New Zealand and Australia put on a score bigger than their cricket counterparts after an early scare.

I have only seen highlights of the Australian game and don't think much can be taken from this game.  Once the big guns Scott, Thaiday and Gallen came on the game changed and with Lockyer back in the team Australia will turn it on against an improving England.

What I think needs to be addressed though is the continual tactics of New Zealand and in particular Issac Luke.  Every game they play they have players on report for acts that are designed to specifically injure players.  Issac Luke for instance has been reported in both games against Australia and now the game against England, surely he does not have a clean record to allow him to keep getting off.  Then you take the actions of Packer and Jeremy Smith with deliberate elbows and you wonder what sort of message this team is sending the next generation.  And after his performances against Australia and England it is time everyone stopped saying how good Benji Marshall is.  Here is a game that New Zealand needed to win and he was missing, which is pretty much the same in most tests he plays.  A few minutes of brilliance does not make a great player.  A game is eighty minutes and how you play even when your team is behind is what makes you.

Roar on 34

The Roar were held by bottom of the table Wellington but should have really won this game.  Issey Nakajima-Farran had plenty of opportunities and missed one easy chance to put this game away.  Watching Issey play in amongst a well drilled clynical team is frustrating and seems out of place.  He definitely has talent but is very erratic.  It could have been the nerves of a starting game and having to step up for the missing Nichols but he needs to improve to get another starting spot.

Nice Guy Greg Chalmers

It is always nice to see the nice guys win and to see an emotional Chalmers win the Australian Open was great for the game.  All the talk has been about Tiger Woods and to his credit he came third but it is time everyone got over this bloke and gave credit to other golfers.  He is not bigger than the game and now that he is not winning al the time maybe his angry outbursts should be held in the same light as John Daly's.  Albeit though Woods wouldn't walk off on the first round.  Chalmers is now a two time winner of the Open and currently ranked 215 in the world beat a very highly regarded field.  He should be given every due that goes his way.  He has shown that nice guys don't always finish last.


It is looking like an interesting week unfolding reading todays headlines and with the 2nd test coming up their could be some heads on the chopping block.

Socceroos Disappoint

I stayed up and watch this game and wish I had of gotten some extra sleep instead.  Australia never looked like they could win this game let alone get away with a draw.  This team does not seem to understand what possession is and too many times gave it up easily.  There seemed to be no intention of building up pressure and mounting attacks of substance.

What is Australia's fascination with long balls and meaningless crosses is I don't know.  Once we had the ball in the final third it was like their was no-one who had the ability to make a serious attack on goal.  Australia looked slow and never seemed to get out of second gear.  Also many comments have been made about how it looked like they were in a training match.  And that is where the problem might be, everyone knows the Brisbane Roar train like they play and therefor the intensity is always there and the ability to thrive on it.  If Australia is training at a low tempo then it is a lot harder to lift a gear when needed.

On a side note for the game what I did find frustrating to watch was the Oman players ability to drop like they had been hit by a sniper any time they thought they got touched.  It is time referees started getting harsher on players who feign serious injury, get the free kick then jump up as if nothing is wrong.  They are always happy to card a striker in the box for a dive but very rarely in the remainder of the field.

If Australia continue to play in the same style and with the lack of killer instinct the next World Cup might be a long way off.  Kewell will not be at the next World Cup so I don't see why we continue to think he should be in the team.  It is time to inject youth and speed into the team and hopefully Mitch Nichols gets a run against Thailand and has not been wasted this trip.

Aussies Cricketers, National Disgrace

When the test match started I did not think that I would be writing such critical posts about a team I follow passionately.  But when a team performs at such low standards they need to be told exactly how it is.

This is a team that plays in the professional era and thinks they deserve top dollar for performing for their country.  They demand contracts and do not take lightly to attacks by the media when things are not going well.  This time though they need to eat a lot of humble pie and realise that putting on a baggy green is an honour not a right and to perform in such a way will bring the heaviest criticism of their performance.

Something is seriously wrong with Cricket Australia and has been for a long time.  It is showing that by taking so long to sort out the coaching and selecting positions of the national team has had an affect.  And by having a captain that does not in my opinion deserve all the accolades and silver plate gifting of everything thrown his way does not help the situation. 

But where to for here for Australian cricket?  Are wholesale changes needed? Not all of the players in the team should be punished for one performance but their are certainly some in the team that should be watching their back.  Haddin is the first I would put on the chopping block and as much as he has been a match winner and great player of past Ponting should be given the tap on the shoulder.  Johnson would be the next I send home and Australia need to stop picking him after one good performance and make him go back to state level and perform for a season.  Hughes is by far the worst opener to choose from and how he got back in is a puzzle.

Keep the rest but change to the makeup of the team.  Watson is by far the best but should be slotted into the middle order to lengthen his career and utilise his bowling.  Hussey is close to going but has been in form of late and is either one game away from success or failure.  If he fails in game two, sack him.  Australia needs to really start looking to the future but without direction at the top it won't come straight away.

Australia might have hit rock bottom and it could be a long summer of short games.

Aus v Sa Test 1 Day 2

Australia has reached the worst and most pathetic level I have ever seen in cricket.  After getting to almost 300 in the first innings on the back of Michael Clarkes best innings things were looking good.  South Africa started alright until 20 odd balls from Shane Watson destroyed them and routed them for under 100.  At this point Australia were looking good with a lead of almost 200 after the 1st innings and victory was not far off.  That is until the pathetic Australian batsmen that have tarnished the baggy green took to the wicket.

To be bowled out for 47 is not excusable and shows where Australia is at.  When you have to go back to the days of uncovered wickets to find a worse performance sums it all up.  I am still trying to figure out how one day a batsmen can score a century and the next day the last two batsmen outscore the rest of the team is embarrassing.  Even if Australia somehow manages to win this game and route South Africa tonight they deserve every criticism that goes in their direction.

All aside though I have watched footage and have to question the standard of the pitch. Too often we see a dry track that results in mass scoring the complete opposite it not entertaining.  Too many LBW decisions and too many referrals.  Either way Australia really needs to learn how to bat for more than twenty overs.

Aus v SA Test 1 Day 1

Well Clarke has finally managed to score a hundred when his team really needed it but will it be enough.  Losing the toss was not a good start when the game is already rain affected but to say you would have batted first anyway does not look good when at the end of the days play your team is struggling at 8-214.

For too long now Australia has not fought out good tough cricket in a test match and today was no different.  Clarke must be given credit for his almost run a ball century but his team can not hold their heads high.  The openers fell with the ball zipping around, surely patience was required.  Ponting came and went but Marsh and Clarke were starting to show that it could be done and headed for a good partnership.  With Steyn bowling well it is always going to be the case that openers get out early but it is the middle order that are Australia's problem.  Ponting is good but it has been a long time since his last hundred and if the he keeps failing surely he can not be kept in the team.  His form was poor enough to remove his captaincy, maybe this might be his last summer if he fails to get runs, would like to see him back getting big scores though.  Hussey has been in great form of late so he might be excused for the odd failure, not sure if he will be around if he does not keep performing this summer though.

At the moment I might seem critical and maybe I am but I am very passionate about Australian cricket, I am prepared to stick with the batting line up to here but it is the next batsmen I am tired of seeing continually do too little for all the talent that he gets picked for.  Haddin too often gets out cheap, throws his wicket away and generally seems like there surely is a better player for his position and I have not even had to comment on his keeping yet.  Don't want to see an Australian fail in sport but see more failures then triumphs from this guy at the crease.

But all credit for Michael Clarke and an unbeaten century at the end of the innings will be well deserved.

All being said hopefully the tail can stick around for a bit and Australia can push the score up to near 300.  If Australia can get a few early wickets South Africa will start doubting the pitch and then anything can happen.  Our bowlers really need to be on song on day 2.

Manly Are Run By Fools

Would you trust this man?

So Manly have decided to stand down Des Hasler and demanded he face the Club Board and answer to accusations of breaches on contract.  The board at Manly must be run by some of the biggest fools in the game if they thought Hasler was going to stay true to his loyalties for the last year of his contract before going another club.

Even I knew that Manly should have torn up his contract when I posted this article "Contracts in Sport" back on October 9.  Hasler was always going to help his new club Canterbury recruit players ready for his reign in 2013.  And with players in his current club on contracts that have get out clauses if the coach leaves then surely there must have been obvious signs that things would go to pieces very quickly within the club.

It is even more ridiculous that a decision to send Hasler on his way has not happened yet.  Manly has now started to dive in the premiership markets and is a club in turmoil. Any serious gambler would be putting some money on Manly for the spoon at the rate that the club is going.  Regardless of how good your playing roster is, if the administration is falling apart everything else at the club will fall apart too.  Their seems to be no organisation at the club and internal fighting will tear them apart. 

The problem is, Manly is in a position that they have brought upon themself.  The moment Hasler signed with another club they had grounds to send him on his way before he could start damaging the club from inside.  When a coach leaves he will always take staff and players with him, but you do not leave him inside your own precinct and enable him better opportunities to do so.  By not having the balls to sack him and start fresh hoping he would deliver them one more premiership will have long lasting effects.  They will end up losing not only staff and players they could potentially be looking at the loss of supporters and sponsors, something no club in Sydney can afford.

UPDATE:

Well Manly have finally done what they should have done a a couple of weeks after they won the grand final.  They have finally sacked Hasler.  But all is not good for Hasler as he is now facing the prospect of lgal action.  Will be interesting to see how the dust settles on this one.  Maybe the Broncos will look back and wish they ahd of handled the exit of Bennett better.

Smokin' Joe

November 7 saw the passing of a legend of boxing.  Joe Frazier lost his battle with cancer but will forever be remember as an undisputed world champion and Olympic champion winning gold in the Tokyo Olympics in 1964.

Frazier fought 37 fights for 32 wins and 27 by knock-out in his professional carer.  He was to became the undisputed champion in 1970 and will always be remembered for his battles with Ali.  His fights with Ali started with the famous "Fight of the Century" at Madison Square Gardens at a time when both fighters were undefeated.  Frazier would go on to win the fight and forever be known as the first man to inflict defeat upon Ali in a professional fight.  These two would fight two more times culminating in the "Thriller in Manilla" of which Ali won both.

Fight of the Century

Frazier who lost his title in 1973 to George Foreman never reached the lofty heights again but will always be remembered as one of the top 10 heavyweights of all time.  It is always sad when a great sportsman is lost but I find it is a time to go back and reflect on their career highlights and be re-amazed at the levels at which they reached.  Frazier was in the sport when the greatest names of boxing were around and might be a heyday the sport never sees again.

This Week In History

A bit delayed but here is some history to sit back and reminisce about...

November 7

1991 - Magic Johnson announces he has HIV virus & retires from LA Lakers - This announcement shook up the sporting world and forever led to a change whenever a sportsman started bleeding.

November 8

1987 - Australia beat England by 7 runs to win Cricket World Cup - No minor achievement as this team was written off before they even started the tournament.

November 9

1961 - PGA eliminates caucasians only rule

November 10

1991 - South Africa's 1st cricket international since 1970 - one-day v India.

Weekend Wrap

Another week gone and another week of sport is being heavily discussed around the world.

Carroll is a favourite but is finding it hard to put the ball in the back of the net.

Straight off the bat I will state that Liverpool FC were disappointing at home.  Anfield is a home fortress and yet Liverpool are unable to put teams away.  In a game they should have won they were held to a draw by a team that was written off before the game.  A draw is still better than a loss but it is still points lost.  Liverpool need to get more out of their great home ground advantage.

The 4 nations is half way through completion and the weekend games saw no surprises.  The kiwis made easy work of Wales and the Kangaroos won over a English team that thinks it is better than it is and Australia didm't even hit top gear.  Australia are now without Slater for the rest of the tournament but have ample coverage in Boyd and Stewart. Australia though may need to look at the team structure.  Surely Corey Parker should be on the bench and used in tandem with Watmough would have the pair of them hitting hard during the entirety of the time they are on the pitch.  Lawrence is doing ok but I cannot see how he is one of the best two centres in Australia.  His positioning is questionable and never looks like being a game breaker in attack. England will be nursing their wounds and all the whinging in the world about the ref and what could of been will not help them in their next game.  With injuries to their forwards, Powell, Peacock and Ellis they will struggle to back up and defeat the Kiwis next week.  Either way they it will be a hard game for either team to back up from and be fresh for the final against an Australian team is will be looking to farewell Lockyer in style.

  

Darren Lehmann has definitely brought the magic back to Queensland cricket

The Queensland Bulls just keep on winning and after a good win in the Shield game have gone on to defeat Western Australia in the Ryobi One Day Competition.  Queensland now have 3 outright wins in 3 games in the shield and 3 wins from 3 games in the one day comp.  This is a team that is performing with abt and ball and the results are well deserved.  Fingers are crossed Lehmann is not beckoned away for National duty until this season is over.  It is looking good for silverware this season.

Ian Thorpe has made his comeback and even by his own assessment was not where all expectation had him performing.  What is annoying is how the media make such a big issue of his return expecting him to be back at his best but love to highlight now that he has not done too well.  The Australian media is beyond a joke when it comes to the expectations they place on our athletes, applaud there achievements and then be the first one to stick the boot in when the chance arrives.   For me it is a long road back for Thorpe due to the length of time out of the sport and may never reach his past heights. Give him credit just for getting back and being competitive.


There was plenty of other action during the week so if you haven't read some of my previous posts you might find articles about events not covered here.  Thanks again for reading, pass the word, and I am always happy for feedback.

Billy the Kids own Fault

The biggest news to come out of the Four nations win Australia had over the English was the injury to Billy Slater.  After receiving the International Player of the Year Award for the second time Slater would have been on a high going into this match.  But it was the decision to attempt a shoulder charge on the English winger Ryan Hall to stop a try when it all came crashing to an end for the season.

For some reason Slater of late never tries to make a genuine tackle as his try stopping effort, rather instead going for the big bump.  A shoulder charge is always risky and if it goes wrong leads to serious injury.  Slater has now learnt this lesson.  What I cannot understand is why he did not try and go low and take out the wingers legs, the winger was far enough out and in taking the legs it is easier to put them into touch.  I don't think we will ever see a change to the way Slater plays but I think he needs to look at changing this part of his defence.

All said I wish Slater the best of recoveries and hope he is back on the paddock soon without any long term affects.

Melbourne Victory See Red

The Melbourne Victory deserve the credit for holding Brisbane to a draw with 9 men after what can only be described as a first half of highlights and a second half of what looked like a training drill with only one team attacking with the ball.  Instead of talking about the game though I will talk about the hotttest issue from the game and that is the two red cards in the first half.

Match Highlights - Have a look then make your own opinion.

Were they warranted?  In my opinion the Melbourne Victory team and supporters have no reason to complain.  Watching the first offense by goalkeeper Ante Covic the referee had no choice after the keeper took down Bersart Berisha in the box. The keeper was clearly beaten and yet still chose to sweep his feet to take down Berisha, and was not even close to making contact with the ball.  All keepers know that if you take down a player in the box and are making no attempt to stop the ball it will be a red card.  Most agree this was a red card.


In the second case Matthew Foschini was given red after he came in with a crude tackle of Broich. Many say he should have only been given yellow but clearly on the replay he came in late, sliding and tags up.  He was not close to getting the ball and crunched into Broich's ankles.  A tackle like this can always result in an automatic red card and the player rather than the umpire should be receiving the fallout.  If the game was in the eightieth minute the talke would ahve been different, especially if it was the first red for the game.  What people have to realise is the ref sees the incident and ahs to make an immediate decision.  He does get get the benefit of a slow motion replay.  The ref is to also look at the incident on it's own.  If there has already been another red card that does not affect the decision. 

Maybe what Melbourne should be doing is looking at the paying style of their players.  It seems every year there is a game or three with the Victory and red cards are the talking point. Red cards are there for a reason.  They are to stop dangerous play and goal scoring opportunities.  Whenever a player gets carded for a crude tackle the referee should never be held to account.  If my eight year old son can understand why it is dangerous to slide in late then it should not be hard for the football community to figure it o

Slater wins 11th Title.....Maybe Not.

It seems the ASP has made a blunder of the highest embarrassment in sport for a long time.  Sporting blunders happen regularly but a blunder of this magnitude by a governing body is something that should never happen.  The ASP will now go on to be my second Poor Form nomination for the year.

How can an organisation not understand it's own guidelines when working out who has won the World Title.  Surely this is something that they would have sat down and worked out before the tournament in San Francisco.  Slater will most likely go on and win the title but it is no guarantee.

Surfing is a sport I enjoy watching but will never understand the way in which it is judged.  It is said by the association:
"Our rankings system is designed to split tie-breaks based off seed points,'' said Renato Hickel, ASP World Tour manager.
"Kelly and Owen tied at best nine of 11 results, so we went to best eight of 11 results and the system gave it to Kelly based off his higher seed position. We were operating under that assumption and created the ASP world title scenarios based off that. This was a mistake."

Surely if you have a tie between two players the lower seeded player has performed better.  Then again why should seeding come into it.  It is possible to have joint winners. Seeding is only designed to place competitors for a competition, after that it is up to the competitors to rely on their skills.  So on that the advantage of being seeded has served it's purpose and should never be used to decide a World Champion on a years effort.  There is no way that you can honestly tell me that winning an equal amount of heats can be seen as better for one over the other.Admittedly Slater is great so equaling him should be seen as just a great.

Bulls Keep Rolling

The Queensland bulls are now three outright wins from three games and the third was another convincing team performance.    Sent in on a green pitch that almost looked like part of the outfield Queensland put on a handy score (273) and Paulsen was unlucky not to get a century being left unbeaten on 90.

This is where WA found out how hard to bat on this pitch was and never looked like scoring a competitive total with a Queensland attack firing on all cylinders.  Bowled out for a lowly 221 WA were never going to get a chance to get back in the game.  Queensland powered on in the second innings to score 9/341dec with centuries to Borad and Forrest and it was only the chase of quick runs that led to wickets falling.  At this stage it was starting to look like the pitch was evening out and WA would be able to hold on to a draw with only 2 sessions and a bit.  Not to be though as Queensland and mainly Ben Cutting (5-43) tore through the WA lineup and skittled them before tea for 201.

This is another emphatic win for the Bulls and considering that they did not have Harris or Hopes this team can only get better.  What will be interesting this summer is whether any of these players get a mention in the media for National selection.  Broad is turning into a consistant class opener and Cutting is surely on the verge of a call-up.  Maybe a Blue cap on their head and the media talk would be different.

Big Bash is Coming

The Bag Bash is coming and I am not talking about the next WWE wrestling tour.  I am referring to the up coming KFC Twenty20 Big Bash League in Australia.

With cricket on the world news stage for all the wrong reasons it is time to put the game back on the spotlight for the right reasons so here are the squads and my thoughts as well.  (Squad lists courtesy of Foxsports.com.au)


Adelaide Strikers
Aiden Blizzard, Cameron Borgas, Lee Carseldine, Tom Cooper, Adam Crosthwaite, Theo Doropoulos, Brendan Drew, Callum Ferguson, Daniel Harris, Michael Klinger (c), Nathan Lyon, Aaron O'Brien, Gary Putland, Kane Richardson. Overseas players: Kieron Pollard, Alfonso Thomas. Coach: Darren Berry

With Keiron Pollard there is some real firepower but I have a feeling South Australia will not do so well.  They ahve some fine talent in Ferguson & Klinger but I think their attack is light on. Strikers keeps reminding me of Soccer and the Brisbane Strikers.  Not the best name to come up with.


Brisbane Heat
Ryan Broad, Nick Buchanan, Daniel Christian, Ben Cutting, Peter Forrest, Ryan Harris, Chris Hartley, Nathan Hauritz, Matthew Hayden, James Hopes (c), Chris Lynn, Michael Neser, Chris Swan. Overseas players: Brendon McCullum, Daniel Vettori. Coach: Darren Lehmann.

With Queensland undefeated in all forms of cricket this year they are my top to win the tournament.  The masterstroke for Brisbane will be the coach, Lehmann who is proving to be just a good a coach as he was a player.  Add to that the return of Hayden who can blast any team off the park you also have a team with the explosive Hopes who can bowl a team to victory as well.  But they are not to be outdone with the hard hitting McCullum and top class spin bowler Vettori.  Looking at the team there is a lot of talent and should blow most teams away.  And now in Queensland says "How about the heat?" You won't feel like hitting the with your sweaty fist.

Hobart Hurricanes
Travis Birt, Mark Cosgrove, Xavier Doherty, Luke Feldman, Evan Gulbis, Ben Hilfenhaus, Michael Hogan, Phil Jaques, Matt Johnston, Jason Krejza, Nick Kruger, Ben Laughlin, Rhett Lockyear, Tim Paine (c), Ricky Ponting. Overseas players: Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Owais Shah. Coach: Ali de Winter.

Firstly why would you call a team from Tasmania the hurricanes?  Since when did a hurricane ever hit Australia (They are cyclones down here) and a cyclone hitting Brisbane is a rare thing.  A lot of good players in Tasmania but will they all be available.  Could be a chance to be towards the top but their current form is not good.

Melbourne Renegades
Ryan Carters, Aaron Finch, Shane Harwood, Aaron Heal, Jayde Herrick, Michael Hill, Brad Hodge, Glenn Maxwell, Andrew McDonald, Brenton McDonald (c), Dirk Nannes, Nathan Reardon, Will Sheridan, Shaun Tait. Overseas players: Abdul Razzaq, Shahid Afridi. Coach: Simon Helmot.

A team with Brad Hodge is always a threat and with Razzaq and Afridi could put on some very good performances but any team with a Pakistani cricketer in it knows that they do not know which player is turning up.  Definietely a team to avoid in a final.


Melbourne Stars
George Bailey, James Faulkner, John Hastings, Jon Holland, David Hussey, Alex Keath, Clint McKay, James Pattinson, Rob Quiney, Peter Siddle, Chris Simpson, Adam Voges, Matthew Wade, Cameron White (c). Overseas players: Luke Wright. Coach: Greg Shipperd.  Late Mail - Shane Warne

This is the Melbourne team I think will perform better with the likes of Hussey, McKay, Siddle and White there is a lot of top line experience.  Will be interesting to see which Melbourne team gets the support.  With the late addition of Warne this will be the team Melbourne support and should be quite competitive.

Perth Scorchers
Tom Beaton, Michael Beer, Mark Cameron, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Ben Edmondson, Michael Hussey, Simon Katich, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Marcus North (c), Luke Pomersbach, Nathan Rimmington, Luke Ronchi. Overseas players: Paul Collingwood, Herschelle Gibbs. Coach: Mickey Arthur.

Definitely a good team here and with Katich back in WA he will enjoy being as far away from Michael Clarke as he can.  A good mix of experience, talented youth and International experience.


Sydney Sixers
Ed Cowan, Pat Cummins, Brad Haddin (c), Josh Hazlewood, Moises Henriques, Brett Lee, Nic Maddinson, Ian Moran, Peter Nevill, Steve O'Keefe, Ben Rohrer, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc, Dominic Thornely, Shane Watson. Overseas players: Michael Lumb. Coach: Trevor Bayliss.

And yet again another city with two teams for support.  Brett Lee still thinks he can do it at top level is a proven performer but they might be a little light on talent.  Haddin can hit big scores but at every level always seems to throw his wicket away with a catch to mid-on or mid-off. Shane Watson is a proven match winner but with a big summer he could be rested.


Sydney Thunder
Sean Abbott, Tim Armstrong, Nic Bills, Doug Bollinger, Luke Butterworth, Scott Coyte, Tim Cruickshank, Matthew Day, Luke Doran, Ben Dunk, Jason Floros, Phillip Hughes, Usman Khawaja, Craig Philipson, Daniel Smith, David Warner (c). Overseas players: Fidel Edwards, Chris Gayle. Coach: Shane Duff.

Could this be the dominant Sydney team, with Chris Gayle some big scores could be on offer if he fires with Warner and Bollinger will be their main strike bowler, for me this is the pick of the Sydney teams.

Overall Twenty20 cricket is so hard to pick and I always prefer test cricket but it is entertaining and will be enjoyable to watch.  For me this is the first year that Australia has got the concept right.  Queensland to win their first title of the season.

Gambling and Sport

The guilty verdict for Pakistan cricket players Salmann Butt & Mohammad Asif is seen as a victory for the game of cricket but will it stop the blight on the game.?  It is also raises many questions for sport in general but I will use cricket as to why the world of sport is in an uphill battle to stop the problem.

For me finding two players guilty and sending them to jail does send a message but it is akin to taking drug dealer off the streets. Yes it sends a message out but there will always be more desperate people to take their place.  To stop any problem you must stop the source.  And in the case of cricket it is the bookmakers.  Australia has a regulated industry and recently has had to make efforts to stop exotic betting.  But you can only stop things that you have control over.  And world cricket does not have control over the biggest source of betting in cricket, Indian bookmakers.  With an industry of what is said to be in the vicinity of $40 billion dollars a year, it is a monumental task to get to a point where you can say that there is not a problem with your game and gambling.

What is the ICC to do then to stamp out the problem?  They educate the players, the fine or ban the players yet here we are writing and talking about two players about to be sentenced to jail terms.  To stop the problem it needs to be done on a larger, harsher scale.  Pakistan has always had question marks over their team, one never knows which team is going to turn up.  On their day they are unbeatable and the next couldn't be a school team.  There are many games that involve Pakistan and the rumours or allegations of the match being thrown.  And now we know that Pakistan has been involved in practices which control betting outcomes but have no bearing on the result of a game.

Now if Pakistan continue to be a blight on the game then the best thing is to kick them out of the ICC until they are serious about their efforts in eradicating the problem.  This though will only take one of the dealers out of the game.  If you truly want to get rid of the source then India is where the action needs to be taken.  India over the last 10 years have taken over control of the game and are seen to be the financial centre of the game, but India is also the heart of the gambling issue.  If you take India out of the equation then things might start to change.  India rely on Australia, England & South Africa as they are the teams that not only provide consistant top level competition but also huge financial game.

If India will not directly take on bookmakers on, then the rest of the cricket community should not let their game be dragged down by that country.  The ICC as a group will be hard to convince to get anything done on this scale as the sub-continent will always group together and with the lack of wealth in the West Indies they are easy to pay off.  But if Australia, South Africa, England and New Zealand decided that they will no longer play in India or host India until the country starts being proactive in stamping out the problem then you will see things start happening.

India though the IPL would do what they can to create rebel teams like those seen in the days of Apartheid in South Africa but then all you need to do is to give life bans at any level of cricket to those that defect.  A black mark is always hard to remove.

I do not want to see it ever get to this stage but sometimes harsh actions are the only thing that work.

UPDATE:

The Pakistan players in question have all been sentenced to jail.  I agree with the punishment I just don't think that the sentence is adequate.  Former Pakistan Test captain Salman Butt, 27, has received 30 months, fastbowler Mohammad Asif, 28, received one year and 19-year-old Mohammad Aamer has been jailed for six months.  And the agent has been sentenced to two years and eight months.  What I have a problem with is the following statement from Judge Jeremy Cooke "These offences, regardless of pleas, are so serious that only a sentence of imprisonment will suffice. Each of you will serve half the time imposed in custody and then be released on licence."

If the offense is so serious why only make them serve half the sentence.  It is a slap on the wrist and if past experiences in cricket are anything to go by these players will most likely end up playing again too.   The courts really missed a good opportunity to send a message here and soft sentencing will not deter those who wish to continue to have an underground influence on world sport.

YNWA - The beginning - The Kop Blog post - Liverpool FC

YNWA - The beginning - The Kop Blog post - Liverpool FC

This post was so well written that I have to share it with those who follow my blog. It is well known around the world that "You Will Never Walk Alone" is the anthem of all those who call themselves koppites. This is a great tradition and something many clubs around the world should look at in awe. It is one thing for a club to tell it's fans what its team anthem is, it is another for the fans to tell the club.

Dunaden By A Nosehair

Closer inspection needed to make sure it is not a tie.

Dunaden has claimed victory by the closest winning margin.  Thankfully this was my horse of choice along with Americain who just missed out on a placing in a photo finish.

Definitely happy that Dunaden has longer nose hairs.

Unfortunately I was not able to watch the race and had to listen to an online radio broadcast.  Seems not everywhere in the nation stops for this race.  We didn't need to be at work though as the town was dead and not a customer was seen from about an hour before and after the race, the main street in town was also more like a Sunday afternoon.

To be honest going into the straight I did not think Dunaden would get up for the win which is a great compliment for the jockey (Christoph Lemaire) who only got the ride due to the suspension of Craig Williams.  Maybe Williams will learn not to ride like an idiot leading into Melbourne Cup day.


Dunaden is now the third horse in the last three years to win the Geelong Cup / Melbourne Cup double.  I would like to tell you some more about Dunaden but that might give away some of my tipping strategies.  All I can say is the way Australian horses are being developed it might be long time before you see a really good Australian bred winner at this sort of distance.