Down the wicket

HOWZAT! Run out? No, just retiring.

2012-01-30T12:51:00.001+11:00

Well, after 355 posts (including this one), 2 T-shirts, kilts, kilometers, 20528 views from all parts of the globe a couple of road trips -and flights by Lefty- many beers, even more overs and innings, team changes, legends leaving, mentions in the Vic Pol newsletter,4 changes in page layout, hundreds of posts in other blogs/forums/sites to gain interest in DTW, and laughs; great belly laughs, i've decided it is time for me to pull the pin on DTW. Well, my involvement with DTW that is; if anybody is interested in taking over control please let me know and i'll arrange access.

I'm not taking this course without a lot of reflection and consideration- it has certainly been a lot of fun. At times (behind the scenes an incredable lot of work too!), but i've arrived at this descision based on my passion dwindling away to the point that i think what i had as a vision for the blog has now become redundant and unworkable; it is certainly not motivating me.

I still remember the day i set it up, i was sick in bed and i was sick to death of forum keyboard warriors flexing their enter key in everyones faces, safely tucked away behind a monitor. The common theme was attack everybody and every thing, never give a reason and never make a consession... very boring and pointless. i decided that there must be a more fulfilling way and so looked around for something.

The hours it took me to put together the first format were frustrating but to see it up and running left me totally rapt!
Then as you blokes joined in and shared your passion for this game that we love it all seemed so worth it as i posted comment and copy in every format i could find on the net so as to try and build interest and a following.

Now that i have asked you all your thoughts on the direction of DTW, it seems it can not be all things to all people and at this time now it is nothing to me.
I no longer have the time to pursue this with the passion i conceived it deserved, and quite frankly, i have other interests that i am wishing to advance and are engrossed in.

It is not that i'm no longer keen on all things cricket, but i just don't think i have steered this to a place i originally thought it could have gone.

thanks once again Sledgey, Nos, Lefty and Lango for all of your contributions, encouragement and comment. It's been... ongoing!

stoph

DTW 2012, the Next Frontier!

2012-01-29T13:18:00.002+11:00

Another Test summer has come and gone and am feeling a little empty now...nothing on TV, the grandstand team are talking about our individual women's synchronised swimming prospects at the Olympics......I nearly watched tennis!

So thought I would bring our next trip into some sort of focus.

Seth Efrika are touring for 3 tests from the start of November, I am guessing Perth, then Brisbane then Adelaide?

Then we have the Lankans for Three tests as well as other shenanigans...Melbourne, Sydney and Hobart (again guessing) I have not been able to find any fixed venues or dates, although that far from means that they don't exist.

So, since it will be a flight to the next venue and more time would need to be taken off work, it might be best to get some half baked ideas at least...where do we want to go?

We have Engerland again in 2013 for 5 Tests so that may mean Hobart is off the menu for watching the soap dodgers down there.

I am easy, but then again you knew that.

DTW Sydney Tour 2012

2012-01-20T10:17:00.004+11:00

Welcome everybody to the third installment, and second interstate trip for the DTW crew.

This time we venture to picturesque Sydney as we take in the sights of lovely uptown Oxford Street and the quaint SCG facilities.

The boys arrived at my place in Greensborough right on time for a 7 o'clock departure and I took the first driving post. Selfish I know but it's my car so go suck a slips cordon.

Lefty was good enough to provide the box set of Twelfth Man so we laughed our way to Sydney. Who will ever forget the Hansie Cronje segment, which I am sure, is our favourite.

Our arrival in Sydney was seamless as was the hotel check in and we were greeted by the sight of beautiful Hyde Park and the War Memorial. We unpacked our bags and decided to pay our respects and also venture through the surroundings.

Hunger struck and it was off to Oxford Street to se what was on offer. Apart from strip clubs and closed pubs it was starting to look a bit hopeless but we found a lovely little Brazilian place, with an even lovelier waitress so we stayed to sample the culinary delights of the Latino people.

My run in with the insecticide the day before was starting to really punish me so I darted to the latrine for a salute to Huey. Someone else entered but my care was almost zero as I vomited what amounted to only bile to loud dry reach sounds. Luckily it was only Lefty.

Thankfully I was able to hold down to the food but drinking was definitely off the menu.

Back to the hotel and it was time to utilise the facilities on the roof. Pool, spa and sauna and then I was feeling much better. Laughs were had as we lounged in luxury to a spectacular view of Sydney's nighttime skyline twenty-three floors up. Magnificent.

I plummeted again as I lay in bed later and watched as the boys got well and truly lubricated. It was then time to share the bed with a very amorous Lefty. Not much sleep was had but excitement about the coming day's cricket may have had more to do with it than Lefty's hands...but they were everywhere.

And so it was up the next morning for a quick workout and swim and then it was off to the real stuff. The walk up Oxford Street punctuated by the sounds of Ghost Chips and Twelfth Man impersonations. Stoph grabbed some sly booze and we eyed the SCG for the first time. A truly lovely Members Stand the first scene.

As we entered to the news that India had one the toss and would bat all manner of predictions were bandied around and I must admit I thought we were in for a long day of watching them pile on the runs. If not for the surroundings, company and the thought of a Sachin master class I may have felt a little down.

What followed was a great day of Aussie bowling. It was so good to see the young fellas and Victorians serving it up to the seasoned veterans of India's top order. I won't bore you with all the statistics and reviews of the actual cricket, as you know them already.

Some kids behind had obviously been allowed out by their mothers and decided it would be gnarly to annoy the grown ups as they ate their packed lunches. And by kids I mean twenty and very smart mouthed. It was all I could do to not turn around and give them a serve. Not why we were there.

Stoph was on a mission and was doing fine by the time I wandered up to him with about an hour left. I greeted him and was treated to some good old-fashioned drunken gibberish. It sounded important so I smiled and nodded.

Outey decided it might be a good idea to give him a big hug but failed to notice he was nursing a cup of water so it was splashed on everyone in front of us. A member of the local constabulary of the female persuasion was forced to ask if he was drunk, or just a dickhead. Harsh, very harsh. She then proceeded to order him to sit down like she was his mother. Thankfully Outey has testicles and proceeded to ignore her. So many comebacks could have been aimed at her but getting ejected was not what any of us wanted.

And so it was time to leave with the Aussies in a commanding position in the cricket but Stoph in not such a commanding position with his faculties. Outey and I began talking and within minutes had lost Stoph and Lefty. Our hope was they knew how to get back to the hotel.

We eyed some of the finest eye candy known to man as we headed back and Outey eyed a pair of breasts from across the road. Having experienced Oxford Street before I was dubious as to "her" gender position and pointed it out. My fears were confirmed but their was no remorse from Outey. A set of big tits, is a set of big tits.

We ducked into the bottle shop with still no signs of Stoph and Lefty.

Our arrival in the hotel was met with relief as our friends were already preparing for a swim. We still have not confirmed why they felt it necessary to run 1km in order to beat us back to the room, or how Stoph managed to do it in his condition.

How good did the swim feel? Outstanding!!. Soaking up the heat from the day and replacing it with a feeling of relaxation we once again moved to laughter and shenanigans. We really are not right...

Another relaxing swim and it was downstairs to greet my mate Bernd. Introductions in the room were carried out to the sight of Stoph’s landing gear and full frontal nudity. Who doesn’t want to be introduced to a naked man?

Pizza and wine on the rooftop with some more laughs and again it was time to crawl into the bed with Lefty. Earplugs helped a little as the three of them performed a snoring sonata. Outey the rumbling bass, Stoph the rhythm and Lefty carrying the harmony quite well. Eventually fatigue got me but not before I considered sleeping in the bathtub.

Morning arrived to a relaxing swim and it was off to watch Clarke smash them to all parts on his way to a classy 200 not out. The happenings of the day were a little more subdued. Stoph kept his vow to stay off the turps.

I attempted to push through the bloated barrier and tie one on, but crashed not long before tea. The next hours spent strolling around the SCG, up and down levels to finally settle just beside the Channel 9 cameraman to watch Clarke reach his double ton. What a crowd reaction!

The day’s play ended and we settled in for the long stroll back to the hotel which seemed to get longer each time we did it. Eye candy aplenty was accepted with glee. Pashing lesbians greeted us at Taylor Square as all and sundry ogled them. Not uggos neither!

And so back to the room, a swim and then a search for a more suitable place to dine than the cosmopolitan that is Oxford Street. We headed towards George Street instead.

We settled on a counter attack and adjourned to an upstairs table and a view over the passing parade of lovely lasses. Sydney girls truly know how to dress.

I turned my attention to the menu and had the misfortune of raising the topic of a good steak. For our readers I will only say that Lefty should not be questioned on this matter. His rebuke still stings a little even to this day.

So the meal was had and we once again returned to the room. Some more drinks later it was time to venture to the farter only to discover that the maid had taken my earplugs. Whore! What followed was six unbroken hours of torturous insomnia. Jesus boys, see a doctor.

Morning came and breakfast was the idea. I proceeded to get the boys lost in The Rocks looking for a park so we assholed Sydney and headed home. Cheers boys for taking the driving duties. The kip was nice to the sound of Clarke teasing the Indians as 300 cam and went.

And so that was the DTW Sydney trip. Once again a champion adventure with even better blokes. We now look forward to planning our next trek to the greatest game on earth.

As the stocks rise

2012-01-17T14:02:00.004+11:00

With the trophy already in the cabinet Australian cricket can breathe a sigh of relief as the test summer winds down with a dead rubber in Adelaide remaining. This pitch will be the first absolute road from ball 1 for the summer and one can expect India to look forward to batting first should they win the toss. India will be without Dhoni - hopefully someone else can fill in on details with the penalty for slow overs rates. On the surface this looks to be too large a penalty but I haven't found any reports as to exactly what Dhoni has been penalised for. I am also unsure who will be India's keeper. Dravid does the job when Dhoni bowls or is off the field but as Dhoni won't start the answer is unclear.

Before getting into Australia's performance a few comments on India's abject display. Noone could have forseen such a pityful display with the bat. Sehwag is obviously the biggest issue as being 1 for within half an hour every time puts the batting side on the back foot right away. I don't care what anyone says, if your natural game is to waft outside off to a seaming, steeply bouncing ball and you either don't or can't curb that habit when you're continually getting out; you're not doing your job. Dravid has shown signs of resilience but not been able to go with it as he did in England. Tendulkar has sparkled and confused in the same innings while Laxman looks like playing his last test in Adelaide. Gambhir has improved as the tour has worn on and Kohli's stocks have risen. It's easy to assume India will relish on the Adelaide Highway but............

There's every reason to believe Aus will unleash hell with the bat too. Save Marsh every batsman has contributed in this series. Marsh will play so this will provide him a great opportunity to spend hours at the crease and get some confidence back to take to West Indies. Cowan and Warner look solid as an opening pair; Ponting, Clarke and Hussey have made big scores. Then there's Haddin. I don't hide my dislike for the guy; he seems to be an unintelligent human being and with the publicity being an elite sportsperson receives if you are stupid then it's best you don't say much. He does and then backs it up with shoddy glove work and poor batting. I actually gave him a send-off when Zaheer got him out in Perth. Poor form indeed but no poorer then him running toward the Swarmy Army after taking a regulation catch in Sydney. They are supporting their team you idiot; not targeting you! Can Watson keep?

Anyway, since my heart rate has returned to normal, onto the bowlers. It's always a great sign when you have a revolving door of quicks that can go into the side and do a job. Anyone of Cummins, Harris, Pattinson, Starc, Hilfenhaus or Siddle could get a run and you'd back them in to perform. The interesting thing for me is not that noone is saying 'I wish Johnson was available' but has anyone heard Bollinger mentioned? I bet the answer is 'no'. The youth and inexperience of the pace bowlers is no more evident than Siddle being considered the leader with Hilfenhaus and Harris seen as seniors of the attack. There are 59 test appearances between the 3 of them.

Before Perth, pundits claimed there was still big problems with Aus' top order. 2 out of the 3 have then made runs. The big question now is 'how long can Ponting and Hussey play?' They will both tour West Indies and then the next test series is next summer. Will they tour England 2013? Should they? What should be used as a gauge of their worth? There's little doubt Ponting has contributed with more than just the bat, Hussey likely the same. While we're watching the price of carrying dad's army in a test series through India, it's unlikely Aus will experience anything like that. Hussey and Ponting look fit and firing in the field while Laxman and Sehwag look tired. Personally I don't think either Hussey or Ponting should go to England in 2013. This then provides the timeframe for a transition strategy. One gets the feeling with both of these players, however, that a tap on the shoulder will be needed.

Outstanding!!

2011-12-31T11:49:00.000+11:00

Love the new layout Stoph.

Boxing day Test , this punters perspective.

2011-12-30T09:25:00.000+11:00

Well done Aussies!

I didn't know if we had the ticker to deal with a batting line up that deep, particularly given our inability to take 20 last summer, but as it turns out at least that element of the team is working well.

Clearly it was a challenge for all batsmen over the 4 days- only 7 half centuries and no tons, although 17 scores 20 or over shows that a start could be made.

I still find the 'traditional' 2nd dig collapse a concern and hope more 'batting camp' time can be found, although i doubt it is lack of ability and hinges a little more on playing themselves in.

What is left to be said about the Australian bowlers? Not only did they execute their plans perfectly, they improved their length so much so that it gave little respite to the Indian batsman.
I think this "new length" and the ability to hunt in packs, along with Clarke's astute changes has been the big difference. We are still a seamer short though as that workload WILL take its toll, but at least Clarke feels confident to rotate them before they tire and lose their attack or composure.

A bit is being said of Patto being a little too aggressive, but i don't buy into this; a young fast bowler should have a bit of mongrel about them. As long as he knows when and where it is appropriate more power to him! If he cops a few around the ears or into the ribs in Sydney and he acknowledges it with a smile and a nod then it is carte blanche for mine. Of course if he gets upset copping it from bowlers then he shouldn't do it to bowlers in the first place. On the TV Binga said you didn't walk down and stare/get lippy with Sachin because he'd make you pay, well as long as Jimmy P knows this and picks his target he can go for his life for mine.

Unless an injury happens i predict no change to the team; but we all know one that should happen. For all of Haddin's getting out in front of the media as vice captain and speaking well enough, he is still failing on the field. If he isn't dropped going in to this Test (and fails again) a Mickey needs to put his hand on Haddin's shoulder on day 4 and tell him to make the retirement announcement in front of the home crowd.

Lyon must be hoping for a tradition SCG pitch given his meagre returns, and the expectation that he will be more in the match should also hold Christian out of the side a while longer. But if he fails to get a bag, he may see himself left out for Perth and replaced by Christian or a fit Cummins or Watson. Personally i'd love to see in Perth: Siddle, Hilfenhaus, Pattinson, Cummins- that would have some sting to it!

But that thought is for another day- onwards to Sydaney!

Free advice at a great price!

2011-12-29T08:06:00.000+11:00

How often do you hear on the radio or tv a call from the commentators to "Come down to the ground after work..."?

They'll say it because the cricket is interesting or it is a beautiful day. Yesterday it was both so i thought i'd do just that. Now living 19 stops away it is a fair commitment of time and travel to get to the G for just one session but i was captivated listening to the days play and was also under directions to get the youngest out of the house as the boss had an assignment.

Due to the travel time in and out and the game time remaining i needed an 'all day' train ticket for both of us, no biggie, i'll do the right thing. So we got to the ground just after 4pm hoping, but not expecting, the gates to be open- they weren't.
I went to the ticket booth and was told that because it was family day the grommet would get in for free- great! Still with less than a session to play i was expected to cough up for a full days ticket. Realistically, with the gates opening in less than an hour i was being asked to pay $31 for less than an hour!

Now i know the Boxing day Test is CA's and the MCC's big cash cow, 40k yesterday, 50k the day before and 70k on Boxing day, but full price for less than a session is just greedy...and stupid on their behalf! If they want people to "come in after work" how hard would it be to structure the ticketing to allow for a last session reduced cost ticket?

I wouldn't have baulked if it was even half price for 1/3 of the day, but on principle i couldn't wear full price. So i politely told the ticket seller something to that effect and went for a walk around the ground to find a gate away from the direct bee-line to Richmond station open. Does any one else find that practice peculiar?

So, CA, MCC, whoever is in charge of pricing, if you want to maximise potential crowd numbers right through the day, make it reasonable and set a ticket price for the last session, I'd go every day if that was the case!

stoph verismo
down the wicket

Sorry i'm not sorry India, we aren't obliged to give Sachin his 100!

2011-12-28T20:52:00.000+11:00

so after a title such as that i want to say, i love watching S.Tendulkar- and it was great to see him step over the rope late on day 3 to sign as much stuff as he could,, but after reading the papers and the web it appears we (Australia) are just expected to be the receivers of swollen goods and cop a ton from the little master just for the sake of good sport...Well BUGGER THAT!

Tendulkar after signing a LOT of autographs

Well done P.Siddle for raining on the Swami army's (and more so the BCCI)parade and seeing that your home side was in the mix.

I for one am SICK TO FUGGIN DEATH of BCCI (note- i didn't say Indian; i don't care about nationality/race/religion/what-the-funk-ever) they think and act like they own cricket. And the biggest piss off is that if you disagree with them and you are white YOU are called a racist! Well you can't have it both ways BCCI- Racism is a two way street, you don't have to be white.

You bully the ICC to ensure the most favourable conditions for your team. If you so distrust DRS, play without it EVERY time or DON'T play Internationally. You got away with the Symonds thing by bullying and threatening to go home and legal action tour expenses- bizarre, WE (CA) should have threatened to sue for breach of tour commitments- what is going on?

Both teams play under the same rules so i don't care about DRS- even though i believe it is imperative it becomes mandatory; the call that it takes it out of the umpires hands is RUBBISH! It is the accredited umpires that make the final call in the stands so that is one of the stupidest reasons ever.

Anyway, i went to the last session of day 3 this arvo with my youngest- stand by for my tirade against both the MCC and CA regarding tickets!- what an awesome day day 3 has been, as day 3 more than often is! Seeing Hussey hold his own is a Test highlight for mine. Will the first innings lead be the difference? I don't know. The Indian collapse was well counter-pointed by Australia's own, Melbourne can get results, but i would have lost money on a day 4 finish....hope i'm wrong!

more to come from Stoph Verismo!

good start

2011-12-28T11:25:00.000+11:00

WELL, a session can be a long time in Test cricket, and while the start of todays play is how any Aussie would script it, with India's depth it is still a case of needing to continue the grind into this batting line up.

With Sachin, Dravid and VVS all going within less than a 2 hand fulls of runs, hope springs eternal. But with the chase now under a 100...

stoph

That Was The Day That Was - Boxing Day 2011

2011-12-27T15:17:00.000+11:00

One word - OUTSTANDING.

The day began badly with a cancelled train due to the hail storms the night before. A potential wait for a bus and a late arrival was saved by the champions Andrew and Daniel (strangers) whom offered me a lift to the next station. Some great conversation later and I was saying goodbye and good luck with the baby and I was off to greet my friends at the Captain Blood statue.

Hunger struck on the way and I coughed up nine bucks for the worst potato cakes and chips ever. The chips remained on the steps of Richmond FC but I downed the cakes and awaited my pals with a couple of Coopers' finest.

Stoph and family arrived soon after and it was hellos and laughs until Outey finally lobbed at around ten o'clock.

More beers and laughs and it was off to the G for the real stuff. It had been a long year of waiting. Entry went off without a hitch and we were safe and sound in the standing room awaiting the first ball of what would be a great day of test cricket.

Warner and Cowan displayed the two opposite poles of batting, Warner going nuts and lifting the crowd with a rare six and some pure stroke play, Cowan the dead bat of Boycott at the other end. Bill Lawry would have been proud. Stoph's bro decided to pull the pin, which was a shame. Hope the back's a bit better today mate. Stoph alluded to some sly beverage he might have snuck in and uncertainty about it's true nature, or what I might have referred to it as provided yet more laughs.

Some light rain before lunch provided the opportunity to duck off to the bottle O and get some more of Coopers' finest. This time a drop of '62 which I had yet to sample. Not too bad indeed. We ambled through Richmond's back streets and eyed some pretty decent street art on the way back to Sir Jack.

Beers were downed, and wasted on drunken old teachers with even drunker tales that I won't dignify with an airing here. Apologies are in order however, Port Melbourne were never in the old VFL... A couple more beers and we were back to the G for some more of the real stuff.

Another batting collapse seemed a certainty and eventuated, but little did we to know at the ground how much the DRS would have been appreciated by the Aussies rather than the Indians. Two howlers truly ruined what would have been a good day for us.

Attention turned to our current seating arrangements and the possibility of better ones. It was acknowledged that possibly the less fortunate than us may have better seating opportunities. Needless to say it was decided we would be more than looked after next year. Outey's reaction to the plan provided yet more laughs. It will be interesting next year to say the least.

And so the cricket rolled on, Outey left and Stoph and I were treated to an up shorts view that will be remembered for a while. Quite a few heirs suffered because of that sight and will continue to do so. Not long later and we were saying goodbye and looking forward to Sydney.

And so my friends I say thank you for another great Boxing Day. It doesn't matter if we stay till the last ball, or get booted before lunch. It's the company and it was OUTSTANDING once again.

Bashing a way in to the Test team

2011-12-23T08:33:00.001+11:00

ok, so i accept that i'm pretty much in a club of one here at DTW regarding T20. That is fine and a reason why i don't moderate- diversity of opinion is one of the best ways to learn new stuff that a person may not have considered before due to only seeing things from their own perspective.

I've said all along since taking NOS (number one son) to our first Big Bash game 3 seasons ago that i know it to be "junk food cricket" and it best serves a market of kids and adults with ADHA... or those that would rather any form than nothing at all.

I am though, totally on board with the suggestions that the timing of this BBL and the postponing of all (state) multi day cricket is detrimental to that which must always be considered the first priority- the Test team.

Now it seems that while the mainly print (and online print) media have been quick to point out that the crowds have been below expectation at BBL games, this has always been supplimented with the additional statment that TV audiences have been solid. I can't help but wonder what international players would feel playing in a venue as amazing as the G in front of 1,000 ground staff should it come to pass that the format ends up only serving a TV audience?

Anyway, back to the media. What i have noted has been an escalating amount of media refering to the BBL as players opportunities to find form/prove fit/get eperience to ensure a test team berth. Clarke mentioned it several weeks ago regarding Hughes finding form. But he clarified that that was the only opportunity for Hughes due to the lack of Sheild games, it was apparent he felt this to be an unsatisfactory situation.

I think 4 years ago we all would have pencilled in one M.Clarke with his bling, car, model girlfiend, hair and youthful 'i can have the world and all of its rewards' as the leading cadidate to accept a cash v career in the IPL. He has matured into a player that has upheld the value of Test and has not failed to support his stance with actions and words. While he may be considering a spell next IPL season, i am confident he would only do it after much consideration as to how it may affect his other responsibilities- and not to their detriment.

I challenge you readers, check online, papers etc -even on air- every sport section is carrying at least one reference to this disturbing occurance of refering to BBL as a Test entry point. At the moment it is in reference to Marsh and his big knock last night for the Scorchers. Warner was mentioned earlier in the week, but he had cemented his spot anyway. We all know he is going to get out now and agin due to playing big-bash type shots in Test, but if he can regularly show enough capacity to settle and carve out an innings i'll accept that.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

On a completely different subject, i'd like to mention one 300kg S.K.Warne!

I think it proper that on Boxing day after meeting at the Captain, those of us going pilgrimage to gate 2 to pay homage. Although i imagine it will be busy!

2011-12-22T12:29:00.000+11:00

how peculiar is this? The origin of page views to DTW this week.

Australia 103
Russia 50
United States 43
Germany 32
France 10
Estonia 9
Romania 9
Ukraine 9
Thailand 5
Netherlands 4

and origin for the life (so far) of DTW

Australia 5,112
United States 2,038
United Kingdom 925
Russia 923
Germany 862
Iran 511
Ukraine 395
Netherlands 394
France 381
Slovenia 338

Team announcement Boxing day 2011

2011-12-21T10:15:00.000+11:00

A couple of hours to go now befor the announcement of the Boxing day team. A few things have come to pass in the last 48 hours, most notable that Watson hammy looks unlikely to be ready, cap number 427 AND 428 look likely.

any takers on:

Warner.
Cowan.
Kwahaja.
Clarke.
Ponting.
Hussey.
Haddin.
Christian.
Siddle.
Pattinson.
Lyon.
-
-
-

Cowan just keeps offering up reasons why he must be in contention; how long can he be overlooked?

26-12-11 Forecast
min 19 max 25

Melbourne area Cloudy. Areas of rain and the chance of thunderstorms during the morning. Winds northwest to southwesterly averaging up to 25 km/h becoming southwesterly up to 30 km/h during the afternoon.

Of interest was the odds at one of the larger online agencies:
Australia favourites at $2.35, India at $2.50 I trust this is just a reflection of the local punters hopes more than anything else; a draw at $4 looks ok!

Gentleman, start your engines!

T shirts

2011-12-19T12:16:00.002+11:00

no luck with finding suitable T shirts on the weekend gentlemen. Sorry. I made a pest of myself all over Southland but to no avail. i meant to check out the G shop but it was getting late for the young 'uns.

Boxing Day forecast

2011-12-19T08:25:00.004+11:00

Well gentlemen, for the 2nd year running it looks like Melbourne is going to serve up another turd weather wise on this most venerable day.

with temps predicted to be in the low to mid 20's and thunderstorms the ball could arc around all over the place... or not!

I was at the G on Saturday and a week out the pitch to be used was still greener than the tops worn by victorious Sydney Thunder.

talking of which, watching the back to back 100's from Warner in the polar opposite forms of the game it must be said he has a rare talent. Sure his Hobart knock wasn't perfect, but he kept his head and control when all those around him failed.

Watching him belt everybody to all parts on Saturday all i could think was that if he then showed in 9 days time that he could settle back into a Test cricket frame of mind, the cricket world is his oyster!

I'm not going to go into the big step back and swing shots- we know what they are and represent, but many of his orthodox shots looked like he had half an hour to play them. He just looks to have either a great ability to see it out of the hand and project the balls pitch, length, trajectory, or great self belief that he can still get his bat on it if he guesses wrong!
make up your own minds on that one.

that tat aside- 7 days to go, C'MON Huey! clean up ya act!

good name on the bat! thanks Sledgey for this image! now FUNK OFF HUGHES!

2011-12-16T16:52:00.001+11:00

because if i don't say it, you don't know it!

2011-12-12T06:59:00.003+11:00

watching the cricket show i found the Ricky Ponting interview interesting. I've been going for his throat a bit over the last 18 months- although i do recall asking why he can't step down as captain but remain in the team if he is making runs, what is overall a very unAustralian thing given captains retire or are 'not selected' sorry Bill!

in the interview he was very candid about his place in the side, what it meant to step down and his belief in himself to continue contributing. Most interesting were his thoughts regarding players 'knowing' when it was time to retire...and that he hasn't felt that yet, so he continues to train harder than ever.

Much is made about converting good scores into tonnes but i just don't buy into that. I didn't when Watson was making consistent scores over 50 and everyone said he NEEDS to go on. Why? i'll take a batsman that you can pencil in 60 runs -but no more- every innings over an uncertainty. And i feel the same about Ricky. He is nearly always good for 70 odd runs, well THAT is good enough! If the whole top order did that every time without a century you'd win every match! it is THAT simple. the "value" of 3 figures is purely a construct of the imagination and statistician.

so for mine Ponting can stay on in his current form, the bigger question is what we do about being a bowler short?
Clarkes bowling changes have been good, but his options are limited, and i believe will be shown up more against the batting quality of India. Obviously Watsons return is critical, but will that be enough? 3 seamers, and all rounder and Lyon?
Watsons return and the need for him to be able to send down 20 overs an innings MUST see Usi open and Watto in the lower middle order. Otherwise he will continue to spend more time on the physio table than the field and we can't afford that when we need his 60 odd runs an innings too.

so there you go, stoph verismo has spoken, so you are now better edjumacated!

2011-12-09T12:26:00.001+11:00

Bellerive, the belle of the 6 stitch ball

2011-12-09T08:10:00.004+11:00

Ah, Bellerive, how i loved it when i was there last January. How i longed to go to a Test there, and how i hope we (my family)can live there in the not to distant future.

With the 2nd Test starting today all of those thoughts are once again in the forefront of my mind, but so is the cricket!

We (DTW) all seem to be agreeing that Pup is showing considerable cricket acumen and nouse, and this bodes well against the serious test that is India... Pup himself must feel a sense of place and personal importance within that coming series given his critical roll in the last session of the last series. So will he use that as leverage to get under the skins of the Indians? I hope so. With the success of the last Test, i am buoyed by the selectors choice of not changing the line up and allowing those players injured extra time to iron out their niggles.

But that has to wait another 17 days; now is NZ and what of it?
How much can we take from the last Test win? Was it an issue that big D and the Brown-sound stopped the rot and built an innings in the first and for a while our bowlers looked unable to break it? What about if NZ didn't blow soo many chances (i know it goes both ways with dropped catches- i bet Clarke has refused to look at THAT replay!), could the tale of the tape been radically different and the Australias more seriously tested or found wanting? And what about Siddle? He bowled so well for little reward; i won't say "without luck" because i don't feel he was threatening to take wickets, but his pressure from an end was very good. But will that be viewed as enough from him? It clearly is at the moment, but in the future?

great signs that our bowling stocks are building and i tips me hat to Lefty who predicted ALL of the new bowlers a good while ago. Seeing the Dandenong opening bowlers work so well together brought a lump to this parochial Vics throat! As did seeing a greenskeeper show so much faith in his ability to bowl on the spot and to a plan- faith from above does wonders for self belief!

The batting? Well, we all have our thoughts on each key position and i think they don't need me adding to them much more than: Ponting will stay for the summer while he keeps getting scores- regardless of whether they are 3 figured. Hughes: your technique is flawed, give thanks to the location of your residence! If Warner is the run machine, Hughes would do well to realise that he doesn't need to hang his bat out for anything! While the scoreboard rolls over he just needs to stay there; having Warner as a smasher should facilitate Hughes in just this...perhaps he is too stupid to see this opportunity he has.

While the scopes are focussed on targets, Haddin is still doing enough to side step a direct hit and the critics here and across this wide brown land sans NSW will just have

************ *************** **************

Once again the talk is of a 'green top' and the critical choice at the toss, Sth East Aus is hot at the moment but thunderstorms are coming through all weekend- i'd certainly want to bowl first in those conditions, and Clarke has said he is definitely considering it.

Much is made of fortress Gabba and the Gabbatoir, but little has been said that Aus are yet to lose a Test at Hobart- Battlement Bellerive... nah, it is just the best venue in the world for beach cricket; and i long for the day i walk out at Lunch i walk out the gets at the southern end across the foreshore for a swim in the Derwent...BLISS!

Boxing Day 2011

2011-12-06T14:26:00.000+11:00

Well lads, it's approaching one of the greatest days in our sporting calendar.

As many of you know, our outing last year was cut short by extraordinary circumstances and we were forced to watch the carnage from a pub in Richmond.

Perhaps it was a merciful outcome but the question begs, what if any penalty should apply to anyone brave enough to put their hand up and take some amount of responsibility for the shenanigans of the morning?

Some suggestions I can think of are.

1. Remaining sober until the time of the alleged offense.
2. Shouting drinks until the time of the offense.
3. Face down dragging.
4. Some form of sexual release for the DTW crew.

As an aside I think it would be amusing to develop some general rules of decorum and relevant penalties as they apply to each occasion.

1. First spew
2. First piss on a road trip
3. Spilling a beer

etc, etc.

First session- day 1

2011-12-01T14:52:00.002+11:00

Well even though NZ have sold them selves short, i'm liking this effort from our bowling line-up.

Starc/Warner combo works- though Ryder shows that training to flail means training to fail in 5 days.

Lyon is impressing me a lot today (and well done Clarke for mixing it up), good flight and turn. Seeing Vettori v Lyon is cricketing gold, but i have a man crush on big Dan so what can i say!

Let the games begin

2011-11-25T08:29:00.005+11:00

What a big few weeks for Australian cricket!

The 2nd RSA Test showed that we have some ticker and that the 1st Test was an aberration with the result heavily influenced by conditions; not to say that some critical analysis isn't called for when we get routed, but it is fair to assume that 3 innings played in a sauna will be negated by 1 innings played in primo conditions!

As i've said in other posts i was delighted that Cummins had a run, more so that he took his opportunity and capitalised on it. Noted from other posts too is the sad reality that those who played with ? marks over their head have made selectors jobs harder and will ultimately damage the big picture with their just adequate performances. Except maybe Jono- he can not be in the squad to make 80 odd runs with the bat, particularly if his conversion rate is the occasional wicket for a trade off of more runs than he scores.

Neil Harvey has said what everyone knows to be true and called him the most over rated fast bowler around: http://wwos.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=8379519

and called for Ponting to call it it stumps. Is he too old to become a selector?

And what of the appointment of Mickey Arthur? What do you esteemed cricket connoisseurs think of that? We (Australia) have been the last bastion of home grown coaches for so long, what of this change? Does anyone care? Does it make any difference in an age of professional sportspeople? Has Arthur had enough success to merit his appointment?
So many questions!

As we enter the Austral summer with so many changes implemented since the last- a few still needed- Let the games begin!

When it's time to panic

2011-11-15T11:21:00.002+11:00

Start panicking. Australia's test team is littered with seemingly self-entitled egos unwilling to look themselves in the mirror.

Upon reading Haddin's comments about his shot selection and claiming he'll 'continue to play my natural game' I was struck by the lack of contrition. I doubt what 'got him there' in the first place was swiping wildly at 5 for not many. If you can't assess that batting time is demanded then you should not be there.

To those who claim 'this is no time to panic, don't make major changes' I ask 'how can it get any worse?'

47 all out does not demonstrate a new low but it does reflect the unbalanced nature of the team. You have one opener that cannot justify his place in the team and the other batting out of position. The number 4 refuses to retire until his wheelchair prevents his taking guard. The strike bowler actually bowls first change and bowls rubbish at a ratio of 50 to 1 to his good balls. The keeper's skills behind the stumps are deteriorating so who cares how he bats?

Just like the retirements of Chappell, Lillee and Marsh together left gaping wholes in the 3 facets of the game (plus captaincy), we can expect letting Ponting, Hughes, Haddin and Johnson to require some adjustment. Of course, not all 4 of these players have been 'greats' of the game and in that way are more easily replaced.

Watson filled the opener's gap in England in 2009 but his remaining there has been an avoidance of a problem rather than a solution to one. He has two hundreds to his name and several 50s; openers go on from these positions. He bats like a middle-order player and is currently required to find a wicket because Johnson doesn't know where they are. Admittedly dropping Johnson and getting a consistent bowler may ease Watson's load but it's difficult to see him not being required with the ball.

As much as I'd like Hughes to make the opening spot his own the work he's done on his technique is not enough to secure a place. Perhaps this work will translate into big shield scores and weight of runs will get him back in. This is what should have been the case to begin with. With 3 out of the top 6 shield scorers this season being openers it's not like there's few choices as replacements.

Ponting has been an incredible batsman but his stubbornness is only hurting his legacy, not enhancing it. It's difficult to understand what exactly he's trying to prove by hanging around ungainly. While Dravid peels off runs on different surfaces Ponting looks ill-equipped on every surface. Now his exit will be a sad one but this was always likely with Aus in a far from dominant position. Not every player can have the send off Waugh had.

Johnson is the most infuriating bowler I've seen for a long time. One quote from a punter sums it up 'if Johnson could bowl he'd be an allrounder'. Too true for too long. Match-winners at worst win you matches once in a while. Between the Ashes in 2009 and now he's done it once in Perth. With so many young quicks (and old - think Bollinger) available how can CA seriously keep giving this guy a game? If he goes back to shield cricket and takes bags on Adelaide Oval then fine, pick him. But the fact is others already are so in the mean time pick them!

Of course Marsh's (recurrent) injury is terrible timing but my ideal 11 would be as follows:

Liam Davis/Rob Quiney/Chris Rogers
Marsh
Khawaja
Clarke
Hussey
Watson
Wade/Paine
Harris
Lyon
Pattinson
George

An esteemed writer commented that Voges is as unlucky as anybody not to have featured in the test set up. I scoffed at this at the time. Voges is 2nd on the runs list in this season's sheffield shield. Perhaps Khawaja is occupying his spot?

Peter & Me

2011-11-14T09:00:00.001+11:00

With apologies for not reproducing the article here but perhaps the intense personal nature of it make it inappropriate on a site which is not my own. The link provides you with my reflections on Peter Roebuck's death and in providing it, I'm giving you a choice of whether you wish to read it.

Peter & Me - thecricketragics

DTW@SCG

2011-11-07T12:44:00.003+11:00

Wednesday, 6 April 2011DTW Sydney Tour 2012
Alright guys, with the demise of the Australian World Cup bid and the lull in any real cricket for quite a while I thought it pertinent that we begin to discuss the possibility of a DTW Sydney Tour.
I have already secured accommodation in Sydney with another cricket nut so we are sorted there. What we should aim for is to better the outstanding Adelaide weekend, which I know will be a tall order but I think we can get there.
What we need now is dedication to the task. We need able bodies to make the trek, drink the drink and walk the walk to the SCG. This is no trip for nancies. Sydney is no drinkwater town halfway to the Indian Ocean and will chew you up and spit you out in a second.
Who among you will volunteer. It will be tough. Beer and steak don't drink and eat themselves.
WE WANT YOU!

Well i was inclined to review this post from Nos in April after a txt msg from him. Well, are we away? i have ticket of leave from the Leader of the opposition, so i'd like to get the tix organised... the SCG isn't very big! I'm happy to put my hands up to buy the tix so i just need confirmation. Let's get this sorted now.

Lessons Learnt From A Good Man

2011-11-03T10:45:00.000+11:00

We buried a mate yesterday.

I got to thinking how some of us have lost sight of the real purpose of the game and allowed ourselves to be sucked along by the maelstrom of result oriented, keep the punters happy forms of the game and how that has provided the opportunity for the bastards of the world to corrupt the great game.

This is the piece I wrote on thecricketragics about that Lessons Learnt From A Good Man

Grab that new ball Tills before Lillee gets up there.

The mini-series awaits

2011-11-01T11:06:00.004+11:00

I've lamented enough that the upcoming test series between South Africa and Australia is only two fixtures. What I will say, though, is that in a few months time noone will bother to recall the ODIs or 20/20s; this illustrates the real importance and lasting impact of limited overs cricket outside World Cups and Champions trophies. In this way the scheduling (and maintaining of) was only ever about money.

Like Ashes series, battles against South Africa have been weighted as incredibly important ever since South Africa's readmission to sport. In more recent times series against India have risen in importance too (perhaps due in part to acrimony between the teams) but there is something else to the cricket between these two sides. The last two test series produced phenomenal cricket and an overall scoreline of 3 apiece accurately reflected the closeness of the two teams. This time around Australia is more of an unknown quantity. The bowling spots are not certain (well, one of them) and there is an air of confidence back after comprehensively beating Sri Lanka away. Looking at how Sri Lanka are going against Pakistan, however, should be a reminder that they are far from world beaters at the moment.

If De Villiers plays South Africa have their best batting lineup and even without him it is very strong. Steyn and Morkel are the best opening bowling team at present and Lotsobe is no shrinking violet. Watch out for Tahir, too, who should feature. This team on paper should beat Aus comprehensively. Duminy, who arrived in test cricket when SA toured last, is battling to make the first 11 and while he has been inconsistent of late he is obviously talented. His absence shows SA is now picking a side rather than filling it out which, in my view, they were doing with guys like McKenzie.

Aus will play Hughes, Watson, Marsh, Ponting, Clarke and Hussey. I'd love Ponting to 'do a Lehmann' and allow Khawaja to prove his worth but selfishness is part of his character. He better make runs on this tour. Haddin is on borrowed time and if Paine were 100% fit he'd be lucky to keep his place. Runs from him might hide his declining keeping but not for long.

The bowling is a little more complicated. Harris is the best bowler in the country at the moment. He's also a little Bruce Reid like in that injury dogs him but he's that good that you pick him whenever you can. Lyon will be severely tested; maybe not to the extent McGain was (or, more appropriately speaking 'thrown to the wolves') but he deserves it now and it should be his spot to lose. Beer couldn't get numbers 10 and 11 out on a 4th day Adelaide Oval wicket last week so he's not exactly knocking the door down.

Johnson, the perenial problem, will get picked. So there's Harris, Johnson and Lyon. Siddle, Cummins and Copeland vie for the third spot. I'll leave it there people.....

Australia's Best 25 Cricketers

2011-10-25T08:29:00.006+11:00

Its easy to go bonkers on such a task but in a new book, Australia: Story of a Cricket Country, editor Christian Ryan has provided what he calls a once in a life time poll to determine Australia's top five cricketers. In compiling the top five, he has ended up with a list of the 25 best, now being serialised in the Sydney Morning Herald.

There are many who dismiss such lists as being impossible to formulate with any degree of accuracy because choosing the criteria for selection becomes more important than the eventual list itself. There is the old chestnut of comparing players across generations and that inevitably, the longer the selection period, the more likely the players at the earlier stages of the period are not considered as favourably because those choosing are unlikely to have seen the players perform. Those who pooh-pooh the exercise are generally those too timid to engage in the task. In the end, there are no wrong answers, although my list will be better than yours but only because in completing the task, I have been filled with a warm flood of memories of hot Saturdays at the SCG and towelling hats and my heroes acting heroically. Debating our selections is part of that same thrill. We get off the fence and onto the playing arena with every quoted stat, every retold anecdote. What a gift these men have left with us.

All that taken into account, Ryan has at least chosen a selection panel which has some credibility, inviting returns from 121 former Test players as the sole voting sample. The result is as interesting as it is likely to be controversial - all such lists are.

It will undoubtedly rake up discussion and argument among workmates, travelling companions in the rush hour, overs beers at BBQ's and certainly between overs on suburban and country grounds for the next few Saturdays. The greatest of all discussion grounds of the game, that between grandfather, father and sons is likely to be where this list will most hotly be debated and if the youngest of the generations watches quietly from the bowlers end, they'll learn more than they can offer to the discussion and be the richer for it. Cricket has always only been as strong as the next generation taking it forward but that strength depends on carrying with them the best of the past to be cherished and remembered.

This list will help that process.

The SMH has rather cheekily held back the final five, although revealed almost by accident or teaser that Keith Miller will be the first of the final five. If we pencil in Bradman, Warne and Lillee as safe bets, that leaves only one spot. Who? So far, no Grimmett, no Armstrong, no Morris, no Hill, no Taylor, all of whom are Hall of Fame members and only one keeper in the first 20 named. I'll give my final guess to Adam Gilchrist.

As a custodian myself, such events brighten my day: there can never be too much cricket talk.

For more details and a look at players 6 to 25, go to Australia's Best Cricketers or the SMH video presentation Australia's Top 25 Cricketers

www.thecricketragics.com

New NEWS, Names & Nathan

2011-10-14T09:21:00.004+11:00

I'm a bit perplexed by Nathan Bracken's actions against CA
For those not in the know, Bracken is suing CA $1m for lost earnings and medical expenses for, 'allowing him to play with a knee injury'.

Now i know places in the squad are always at a premium, but surely it was Nathan's call ultimately as to whether he felt he should play- i highly doubt he was told, "You better play no matter what!"

I for one hope that the residing judge throws this out of court and tells Bracken, "Stop wasting Cricket Australia and tax payers money, and get a bloody haircut!"

***

PCB are to get Pepsi sponsorship for Umpire DRS on the UAE tour against Eng and SLa- does anyone know how this will work, or have any more TLA's?

***

Pat Howard for the new GM of CA... i don't have an opinion on this as i didn't know who he is, nor do i know what administrative skills he brings to the position. I know he has been 'High Performance manager' for Rugby Union Australia as well as a successful coach of Leicester in Union- i didn't know he was 12th man for a county game! Is that enough for the new position?

***

Glen McGrath has come out and publicly praised new quick Pat Cummins, and with last nights T20 debut against RSA confirming his talent, Pidge seems to have called it well. Watto likes what he saw too and announced (earlier) that he thought Cummins is 'equal to any talent seen in the last decade.' Big call! Let's hope he is groomed correctly so that his T20 international debut is just a small stepping stone to the real stuff.

For what it's worth, Australia's 5 wicket win in the last over of the T20 last night (13/10/11) will probably only go further to reinforcing the "crowd pleaser" mentality of the format. Like it or not, non-traditionalists want 3 hours and a result down to the wire.

With that, i read too that White is calling for more games and better scheduling for the T20 format; well, he would given he won't be playing for his country in creams again! But i'm inclined to agree with him on one level: with the format becoming more entrenched into season fixtures and another T20 World cup looming the opportunities for teams to see themselves gel as a unit are very ad hoc. If this World cup is a success, it may be time for the ICC and all national boards to structure their fixtures better than just a game tacked on here and there before the commencement of a series.

***

stoph verismo
Down the Wicket

The BIG Fix

2011-10-11T08:56:00.003+11:00

So Australians were the biggest match fixers! Well, according to Mazhar Majeed the agent and former journalist in the hot seat of the bribery proceedings in a London court.

Well, it wouldn't be the first time Australian players have blotted their coffee book associating with dodgy sub-continental bookies, so if these allegations prove true, when will our blokes learn?

Of course coming from a Pakistani agent it sounds a little suss to start with... not implausible, just dubious for mine. Certainly affecting a game in "brackets" is less glaringly obvious than by other means; any batsman could declare they were "taking their time to get their eye in." And any bowler could claim, "I was bowling to a plan to draw a batsman into a false shot." So as long as no wager has been placed it all sounds a bit hollow; but if one has...

I would hope (call me naive), that in this age where the upper echelon of players CAN make a substantial living and so donn't need to 'chase the big bucks' fixing a game to earn a bit on the side with a bet. It has been touted that Pakistan players are more susceptible to this blight due to lower earnings and this is obviously an issue for the PCB, not me to sort out. More so because i don't see a lot of companies queuing up to get Pakistani cricketers endorsing their products- so there is no coin there for the players!

If this has happened, it is imperative that CA show they have ZERO tolerance and rip up players contracts and suspend them from every level of the game for LIFE!

With all and sundry speaking up about this in the media this morning- AB flatly denying its possibility, proof is now required from Majeed if he is to stand by his statement.

And THAT is what i think!

The future of Australian cricket

2011-09-04T12:42:00.004+10:00

More than just a wrap of the first test this is comment on what will be the next 10 years of Australian cricket. It's tempting to generalise from one test - especially when on the winning side - but perhaps more informative is posing questions which need to be answered along the line.

Clarke commenced his captaincy with a comprehensive win but more importantly is how he went about it. Clarke has demonstrated a desire to attack reflected by his field settings. As a batsman he was aggressive but sensible but time will tell to what extent captaincy affects his other role. In his vice-captain he has a partnership breaker with the ball and a flaying opening bat. You can't help admire how Watson has found his place and continues to impress. Can Watson remain an opener? Should he? It appears the middle order is not in anyone's mind for Watto in the foreseeable future.

This author is critical of Ponting playing at all. If he doesn't make runs in this or the next series, why on Earth would you wait for him to get through a lean patch? His runs could be being made by Marsh or Ferguson and for that reason in this author's view he is being selfish and should get the shoulder tap.

Harris has returned with aplomb and the pace attack seems to be the least of Aus' worries. Copeland is the new Clark and Pattison, Starc and others wait with Bollinger in the wings. The big question is spin and Lyon grabbed a Michelle on debut; on the best day to bowl at Galle. His 2nd innings figures are nothing to write home about but he hopefully has 2 more tests against some quality batsmen to show his diversity and application. Johnson will just always mix brilliance with crap; although he looked to be a bit more consistent in the first test.

Hughes has clearly worked hard and looks to be determined to prove people wrong. Some believe he is simply not test level but few people fluke tons against quality bowling attacks. He and Khawaja deserve time to solidify their spots now they have been given the opportunity. The indicator of change in selection policy will be there for all to see during this and the next 3 series (vs South Africa away - 2 tests - and then the summer at home against NZ and India). If the baggy green door revolves as frequently as it has previously noone has learned a thing and we can expect more hesitant and defensive cricket from players unsure of themselves and their place in the team.

The one guy who should be looking over his shoulder is Haddin. Paine is a better keeper and a polished batsman; also likely to take over captaincy from Clarke in time. I wouldn't be surprised if Paine is behind the stumps this summer. Hussey, enough said. He is the man.

At the end of the day it's just great to have test cricket back.

Leftriteout
Down the Wicket

Big Shout Out

2011-08-27T08:53:00.000+10:00

A big shout out for our good mate Lefty.

I can't pretend to know what you are going through mate but you should know you have some outstanding mates you can lean on.

Sometimes life throws one up that turns a little more than you expect.

Australia vs Sri Lanka - a tale of two sides

2011-08-23T10:47:00.004+10:00

With hit and giggle over the real stuff commences and this author is somewhat buoyed ahead of an important series between Sri Lanka and Australia. Obviously the 20/20s tell little if anything but perhaps the ODIs provide a little information. With regard to batting the top order have significant time to build an innings; with this in mind it appears Watson has carried on and Ponting has found some touch. Clarke has also batted well which bodes well as those who have played in the subcontinent will be pivotal in providing advice on how to handle slow and low pitches. Of course, a factor to consider is the different fields set in ODIs and so gleanings from such games must be made with caution.

In terms of bowling two chief pacers in Bollinger and Lee aren't in the test squad anyway but for mine the most important bowler will be the spinner. If the spinner gets whacked and can't bowl 1/3 of the innings' overs then the quicks will tire and Aus will be in the field for two days at a time chasing leather hit by Sanga, Mahela and Dilshan. I'm picking Lyon as the man Clarke goes to; if for no other reason than because Aus have a habit now of picking the last guy you'd expect.

Aus will no doubt be happy Malinga doesn't play tests anymore but it was always going to be Herath/Mendis who held the key. Samaraweera is a quality batsman and could surprise many by scoring shed loads from 5 or 6. Pattison should have played more than just the 1 ODI but we can expect him to play in the 3 day warm-up game (yes, only one!). Copeland is likely to get a guernesy too with Johnson rested so the pace attack for the first test will be Johnson, Harris and either Pattison or Copeland with Siddle an outsider (of course I could be wrong). Not fair on Sids but he may well be the journey man for his whole career. The problem with having such a different bowling lineup between the ODIs and test squads - coupled with only 1 practice game - is few opportunities for bowlers to get used to conditions. How they bowl is more important than how many wickets they get and Copeland, Siddle, Pattison and Harris have precious little time to understand where you bowl in the subcontinent. India has just learnt the hard way the cost of not acclimatising appropriately. Noone has an excuse after England's preparation leading into the last summer's Ashes and the results were there for all to see.

Sri Lanka are always hard to beat at home and will look forward to putting their tour of England behind them. Aus have many young players starting their career in Kahawaja and the bowlers already mentioned. We can expect at least one draw so gaining the ascendancy is all-important and then driving the advantage home paramount. I'm tipping 1 all with Sri Lanka winning the 2nd and Aus the third. I've barely touched on Hughes/Marsh/Kahwaja but this can be done by others. Hussey? I've stopped talking about him nowadays. He just responds with tons and I don't believe this tour will be any different.

Leftriteout
Down the Wicket

SL squad

2011-07-26T12:09:00.003+10:00

Test squad Shane Watson, Phillip Hughes, Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke (capt), Michael Hussey, Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Brad Haddin (wk), Mitchell Johnson, Ryan Harris, Peter Siddle, Trent Copeland, James Pattinson, Nathan Lyon, Michael Beer.

i for one am ok with this line up; Beer i'm not sure, but why not? With Lyon in as well maybe we'll see a shoot-out for the spin spot... dare they play two on a bunsen?

Obviously i'm chuffed with the inclusion of Pattinson.
Hughes, well... he can't say he isn't getting a fair crack at it now. Ponting at 3 would worry me, but respect to him for having the character to do the right thing stepping down and hopefully re-align his stats and bat without the burden of leadership...at least Lyon won't have him setting a field!

stoph verismo
down the wicket

DTW Open letter to CA

2011-06-28T16:51:00.003+10:00

Guys, we have begrudged CA's inability to hear the common man/fan/player and stated that they will do what they want regardless, as they will not be told by anyone.

I've sooked but i didn't offer an alternative... so here it is.
We at DTW TELL CA what is wrong with their system and plans and we publish it here and endeavour to get further support via a facebook page.

I propose we compose the letter by consensus. Of course with consensus comes concession, so we need to be able to work out our grievances before publishing.

Who's in for having their say?

stoph verismo

Bashing the Big Bash

2011-06-22T13:10:00.004+10:00

I appreciate that the format is of ZERO interest to my very discerning friends here, but, will anyone pay any attention to the new Big Bash format commencing this summer?

I for one will be if for no other reason then continuing the interest of my offspring in cricket, as this fast food version suits the attention span of single digit aged boys.

With Melbourne having to choose between two teams it will be of interest to me to see how much support the Docklands based Renegades get against the G based Stars. It was a no brainer choice for my eldest as i proposed his options... he loves the big stage that the G offers.

For mine it was a big mistake dividing the city when Geelong was a far better option that would have likely got support from regional (western at least) Victoria, more so with Ballarat not too far up the road.

If the format last longer than 5 years i'd be surprised if the Renegades were still there at that point; more so with the Stars having G. Shipperd as coach.

Still, several months out who knows what this heralds for the game and how it will be taken up by the public, i noted that the days the teams were announced the comments on FB were scalding not just because of the T20 format, but more at the structure of the competition, recruitment and the fragmentation of the Bushrangers.

But i'm sure you blokes don't give a rodents rectum for any part of the whole grotty thing, and this i understand.

Stoph Verismo has spoken!

tell it like it is

2011-06-10T22:02:00.002+10:00

well done Kat for your down to earth press con.
I for one thought you might pull the pin, but as a a true champ you are, you have decided to go on... appropriate because we know you have more!

i appreciate that CA are on a "youth mission", but YOU DO NOT DROP AN IN FORM PLAYER!!!!!!

as i've said efore, Simon, i hope you make a bog load this season, and as hard as it is for a Vic to say.... i hope you lead your side to victory. FUCK CA jamie ssiddons and andrew hilditch!

What does 2011 and 2012 hold?

2011-05-25T11:43:00.002+10:00

So, Australia has a new test captain (with the last still playing in the team), young bowling stocks abound and some promising batsmen are kicking around. Looks like Australia will have a bumper season kicking off with a test series in Sri Lanka, then to South Africa and the summer hosting India and New Zealand.
Wait, didn't we just lose an Ashes series? How did we lose that again? That's right, we had no spinner (well, noone that could bowl spin), our quicks couldn't penetrate a cardboard box and our batsmen couldn't fight their way out of a paper bag; save Watson, Hussey and Haddin. England played exceptionally well and no doubt fully deserved the series win and the margin by which they won. So is there any reason to be hopeful?
Yes there is. There are some great quicks doing the rounds in Starc, Copeland and Pattinson with some promising batsmen in Ferguson, Khawaja with Shaun Marsh injury free. Hughes looks to have worked on his technique and developed more patience so he'll be considered a chance for an opening spot before the summer finishes. I think Marsh is a key as he also opens and can be incredible damaging. Unfortunately his summer was ordinary which limited the options CA had. Tim Paine is obviously in the selectors sights as both the national wicket-keeper and a future captain. I fear Haddin may well get a nudge well before he's ready to call it a day. The quick trio are vital to Aus starting the long road back to the top of the test tree. It will be a long time before Aus invokes the fear it did from 1993 to 2004 (perhaps it never will) but you get busy trying or.....
We learnt last summer that Hilfenhaus is indeed mortal, Bollinger has a weaker ticker than we thought, Siddle could excel but rarely will (although he is a good stock bowler), Harris will forever be plagued with injury, Johnson is not 'back' and Aus has no single spinner worth picking. 'What about Hauritz?' I hear you (yes you) ask. If he's fit, I'd concede it's worth giving him a chance; perhaps Clarke will better manage him than Ponting. But if we're brutally honest who would disagree that Beer, Doherty, McGain - the list goes on - just are not up to the standard required for test cricket? A grounds keeper who quietly asked if he could bowl to the redbacks since he had nothing to do may well find himself in a baggy green before too long. Nathan Lyon has impressed all with his control and flight and with the revolving door policy for Aus spinners who knows?
The future may not be sparklingly bright admittedly but hell it looks interesting. The funny thing is that if Aus' middle order can develop more spine; in particularly Ponting and Clarke, some pressure can be taken off the bowlers and they may be able to attack more. When you've got 230 on the board and bowling day 1 it's pretty hard to keep slips in and men around the bat once some runs start to flow. The thing that Clarke can bring to the table is a plan B. When you think about where Cook got his runs in the Ashes, how many shots between cover and mid-off do you remember? Not bloody many I bet because his weakness is supposed to be full on/outside off and that's where Aus thought we'd get him out - but he'd tightened his technique - leaving the ball alone unless it was short enough to cut or straight enough to drive. We had no other idea of how we'd see the back of him and about 25,000 runs later still don't.
While finding a spinner that can at least keep things tight will aid the attack immenesley, our quicks have to be more consistent. The reason greats like Warne and McGrath got results was because they were always at the batsmen. Never giving a batsmen width, half-volleys or long hops builds pressure by limiting the scoring options they have. Even in test cricket batsmen will sooner or later try to release the shackles, thereby taking a risk and potentially offering an opportunity. However, when a batsman knows that he'll 'get at least one every over' all he has to so is wait. Siddle improved greatly over the summer by reducing his bad balls but with Johnson at the other end all this good work is entirely undone. Batsmen get their eye in, build condfidence and before you know it you're getting hit too. Hilfenhaus became too predictable and with no swing he was far less dangerous. Bollinger may well come back but at the same time may not be forgiven for Adelaide. Let's hope Harris can find the form he burst onto the scene with because someone has to mentor the Starcs of this world.
My friends, the outlook is not entirely bleak, but it's bloody far form being bright.

DTW Sydney Tour 2012

2011-04-06T17:51:00.002+10:00

Alright guys, with the demise of the Australian World Cup bid and the lull in any real cricket for quite a while I thought it pertinent that we begin to discuss the possibility of a DTW Sydney Tour.
I have already secured accommodation in Sydney with another cricket nut so we are sorted there. What we should aim for is to better the outstanding Adelaide weekend, which I know will be a tall order but I think we can get there.
What we need now is dedication to the task. We need able bodies to make the trek, drink the drink and walk the walk to the SCG. This is no trip for nancies. Sydney is no drinkwater town halfway to the Indian Ocean and will chew you up and spit you out in a second.
Who among you will volunteer. It will be tough. Beer and steak don't drink and eat themselves.
WE WANT YOU!

Australia's 43rd Captain

2011-03-30T11:59:00.000+11:00

And so it is that Michael Clarke is appointed our 43rd captain. The media make a deal of naming him as the new captain when the truth is they named him captain almost ten years ago.
His form of late has been barely good enough to keep him in the side yet is expected to improve with the added weight of the captaincy.
The question now has to be "How long will we accept poor performances from him with the bat now he has the excuse of captaincy to put up every time he fails?"
The organisation needed a Golden Boy to attract female followers and shimmy through the social pages and now he holds the second most esteemed position in the country.
Why ask current cricketers if they support him when they must tow the company line?
Once again a decision that is not better for Australian cricket but better for Cricket Australia.
Shouldn't they be the same thing?

The Tragics Have Moved - Slightly

2011-03-23T09:54:00.002+11:00

For those Down The Wicket readers who occasionally flip over to The Cricketragics, please note the change of addy
www.thecricketragics.com

Stoph, you might also be so kind as to remove City United Cricket Club emblem from DTW. I'm no longer associated with them.

Batting Woes?

2011-03-20T09:00:00.000+11:00

As Australia's constant batting woes continue at the World Cup, a fact hidden by victories over minnows such as Canada and Kenya, perhaps it is time for Ponting to fall on his sword, go home and send over one of the best one day batsmen in the world.

I refer to one B. Hodge. Surely the ridiculous decision to leave him out of the squad while in such devastating form for the Vics is now becoming downright retarded?

Ponting is G.A.W.N. Clarke is lucky to be getting a game much less next in line for the top spot. When will he step up WHEN WE NEED HIM? Last night he committed the cardinal sin of calling when the ball was hit behind square. Under 12 stuff. White should have stood his ground like Clarke surely would, the selfish git. "My next big score is just around the corner". Yeh so is your stylist and media manager Pup!

World Cup

2011-02-16T15:42:00.002+11:00

Guys, with the World Cup coming up I am leaning towards the prospect of a DTW BBQ at the Nospmas residence on Saturday 5th March as a precursor to watching at least the first innings or perhaps the whole game Australia v Sri Lanka.
Food and drink would be provided by the house and by drink I mean beer and perhaps red wine.

Please indicate your interest in such an endeavour. All members welcome. Interstate guests can be accommodated.

Some Runs For The "L" Man

2011-02-15T16:20:00.000+11:00

Boys it's time to recognise the only one of us that plays competitive cricket amongst us and his breakthrough score on the weekend. As an opener myself who has struggled at times it is nice to finally get into the runs if only 30 odd. But 30 odd becomes 50 odd and so on until you are raising your bat for a triple.

Lukey you looked good at 1 for 90ish and you certainly did your job. As a captain it must have been frustrating to watch the good start slip away.

Anyway mate, well done on putting some in the book. May your next one be a big one!!

2 A's and a B gives Watto 2nd AB

2011-02-08T06:16:00.003+11:00

Surely Shane Watson was an unbackable favourite for last nights AB medal.
The Glams, glitterati and paparazzi were in effect turning up only to honour his terrific consistency, and to see who came 2nd.

Taking top votes in Test and ODI and runner up to D.Hussey in T20 it was too easy for Watto to back up last years win.

I suppose an advantage of being so favored is being able to prepare your acceptance speech. Watson certainly showed he had his achievements in perspective with his acknowledgment that, "...being able to stay on the field was its own reward."

Well done Watto, you were a light in the dark days of the Test summer, and fully deserve this accolade.

Murphy's Law

2011-02-03T20:54:00.002+11:00

WEETBIX CUP
Under 11 cricket SEMI FINAL
DVCA/PLENTY VALLEY 1/82
def WILLIAMSTOWN 9/66cc
and its off to the MCG we go...!

My Nephew Blake Murphy is the captain of his U/11 Rep team and they have won their way into the State finals played on the centre wicket of the MCG this Sunday.
Diamond/Plenty Valley play Oakleigh at 10am.
All are welcome, entry is free and at gate 1. All seating is in the members reserve.

Blake has starred in all of his games especially with the ball, being told by the coach to bat if they won the toss in his first rep game he did what most bowling captains do when they look at the matting on the pitch, won the toss and decided to bowl....then took 3/5.
If you are free on Sunday it would be great to see you there!

The new tactician!

2011-02-02T20:16:00.004+11:00

Sending Johnson in is a very good example as to why Ponting is limited in his ability to be anything other than a reactionary captain; Clarke knows his man and his ability and has created a situation where the game is ON.

Johnson with his head down is a fine batsman with nearly every shot. Coming in at 3 has allowed him to do this, play strokes, keep the run rate up and club the sh!te.
Pup, great tactic!

Bellerive pt4

2011-02-02T18:33:00.003+11:00

Bellerive gates

Part of the D.Boon Sculpture

More time needed here

Bellerive pt3

2011-02-02T18:27:00.003+11:00

How close is this to the beach!

Player shenanigans!

Bellerive pt2

2011-02-02T18:20:00.003+11:00

Out the back of the commentators booth towards the river

View from commentators booth towards the hill

TV commentators view from the seat

Photo's of Bellerive tour

2011-02-02T17:46:00.004+11:00

The weather vane

The view from the hill; square of the wicket with Mt Wellington in the background

This glass is right behind the goal square!

Return of the living dead!

2011-01-31T06:21:00.003+11:00

As SS (or M&M, if you like) said, "I'm back!"
Sorry about my absence in the middle of 'cricket' season, the Apple Isle called and it was grand. Did a tour of Bellerive oval and museum, was able to keep Watto's fast ball out on the bowling speed simulator, and was planning to go to the ODI on the Friday but was informed there were only 1,000 tickets left and just for the hill and could see my boys terrorising the other patrons there worse than me and my animal undies did for Japanese tourists!

We all know Bellerive is right on the river, but what i didn't know was that there is a nice beach just outside the door (i'm talking only meters!); note to self, "Go to a Hobart Test, if it is hot take the opportunity to go for a swim at lunch!" Next test there, look out for interviews from Nicho with the river in the window behind him, it is a spectacular location and i believe the most scenic stadium in the country; not that i'd want to play there, as i'd be caught out daydreaming and looking up at the mountain and river WHILE in the field!

I will post a few pictures of the tour tonight.

Anyway, time for cricket.
So with all of my, "ODI is redundant and should be binned like 80 over old ball," it would seem that many in the cricket world think the sins of the summer can be forgiven with Australia's series win in the ODI and the close nature of most of the games so far. I must admit, i have been sucked into watching a couple of games (2nd innings) and eagerly checking the results when i've missed the matches.

To get result within the last couple of overs certainly makes for better competition so maybe i'm wrong about the 50 over format. What stands out to me is the effect t20 has had on the batting here too, as it has to the batting in Tests. Players stepping back and going WOOSH! Paddles around the corner to fine leg and more swats back over the bowlers head with a horizontal bat than you could...flash a bat at!
If this more gung ho style reinvigorates ODI, then maybe it IS a good thing, but i wonder if the lines across the 3 formats are then getting too blurred... at the detriment of technique.

A tight comp in the world cup could revitalise the format like a zombie on a feast of brains, but for how long? As a 40 something cricket fan, i grew up as the ODI version found its feet and attracted a fun loving following that was accessible for people that wanted a result in a day, but with an ADHD version filling this prescription even more succinctly, it still looks like time to accept the diagnosis.

Rule revamps are a sign of ongoing development and commitment to improvement, or are just another swing of the crop to try and get a few more miles from a flagging nag! Certainly the 'free hit' rule fits this bill; an irony not lost on Binga last night as he set his traps only to get the desired result (a skied catch)on the free hit.

While on Lee, i'd like to add how impressed i've been with him over this series. As the senior bowler he has really led by example and shown he still has most facets of his craft in place... including his consistently blistering pace. Not bad for an 'old bloke', more so because he is obviously a lot more thoughtful about his bowling now instead of forceful. Someone please remind me who is leading the bowling squad in the Test team again please?

stoph verismo
back at the crease

down the wicket

Common Sense

2011-01-18T10:00:00.001+11:00

With the likely unavailability of Mike Hussey for the World Cup the question raises it's head if CA can forget past stupidity, wipe their chin, bow to common sense and select one Bradley Hodge for the 15 man squad to tour India.

Overlooking him now should involve a media release from them that they have no intention of ever picking him for any form of Australian cricket and end the torment of all supporters once and for all. Surely if he is omitted it confirms that he has indeed performed sex acts on one or more spouses of selectors that are illegal in some countries and frowned upon by most.

If I might regress into pointless rhetoric, how many runs must a man score and at what average to force his way into the side?

Twenty 20 Luckfest

2011-01-13T10:17:00.000+11:00

I forced myself to watch some of the T20 game last night in the hope I might find something about the format I could embrace as cricket.

What I saw made me no more in love with the game I can tell you. I watched in abject horror as Ian Bell chanced his arm time after time with shots that although middled flew to nowhere in particular whilst just evading luckless fielders. French cuts and top edges to short boundaries, which had been shortened even further may I add, soon followed.

Kevin Peiterson stepped up and teed of to every single ball he faced until his luck ran out. It was then I decided I had tortured myself enough and I wandered off to masturbate with razor blades.

Is it too radical...

2011-01-10T17:32:00.003+11:00

Is it too radical to pay out and wipe ALL CA test contracts and say to the players: "we are picking the Test team V Sri Lanka on performances in Shield cricket between now and then"?

Is it too radical to insist that all Shield teams field at least 3 players under 21?

Is it too radical to insist that all shield teams can field at maximum 3 31 year olds?

Is it too radical to say to teams that no matter how well they do in the big bash and how much money they make in India in the Champions league that the winnings will be pooled between the competition?

Is it too radical to ask players to pledge allegiance to Shield (and possible) Test cricket in front of T20?

Methinks not.

Couldn't Be Said Better

2011-01-08T08:50:00.002+11:00

Robert Craddock in Herald Sun today.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/the-ashes/future-is-finger-lickin-bleak-for-australian-cricket/story-fn67wltq-1225983856485

I think this article highlights EXACTLY what is wrong with not just Australian cricket, but cricket in general.

Forget number one nations and who is where, this article makes me wonder if the standard of test cricket throughout the world is falling. Not just batting but bowling too.

Tendulkar is feasting on bowling that is not fashioned around the line and length that undid Australia in this series but exactly the opposite in the hope a terrible shot will result in a wicket.

T20, as repugnant as it is to the game of cricket that I love is now also eroding the skills of once great cricketers and limiting the skills of emerging players that need the money and exposure to survive. The saddening prospect of test cricket fading into obscurity is now becoming a genuine reality, not through lack of support but lack of suitably skilled players.

The lopsided nature of the tests in this series should be recognised as a warning to the powers that be that this great game is being torn apart by petulance and impatience from young players that are not being educated properly.

England exploited it this series and as you read this article it becomes clear that it will be much worse by the next series in August.

Six months of T20 and one dayers will erode the memory of what happened here this summer. Sins will be forgiven and mistakes forgotten. How do you pick a test side based on short game form?

From the abyss to the..................

2011-01-07T12:16:00.001+11:00

You could always go for 11 new faces for the next series but that's not realistic. When Clarke has dug in he's looked good but every time he loses concentration he gets out. Trott and Cook never lost concentration and therefore got huge tons.

I haven't heard Skull talk about Hughes but I think the guy can do it, whether his temperament can improve enough I'm not sure. He's worked on his technique but shot selection has brought his downfall - like most of our batsmen - and therefore I don't think you can be harder on him than anyone else. Watson is infuriating; more often than not gets Aus off to a great start but throws it away either by edging or running himself/others out.

My 15 going forward for the next 2 years:

Hughes
Watson
Shaun Marsh
Khawaja
Clarke
Mike Hussey
David Hussey
Haddin/Paine
Hauritz
O'Keefe
Starc
Siddle
Peter George
Mark Cameron
James Pattinson

Hughes is obviously a contentious issue but in my view there isn't many opening options around the country at present. Cosgrove could be one of few others.

I think Haddin is important and Paine has time to make his mark. Keeping some senior players is vital which is why I've included Mike Hussey but fear he'll retire before 2 years is up. David Hussey is 32 and could well do what his brother did upon entering the Aus set up.

Quicks are around - who knows who will stand up and grab some poles? If Johnson wants back in he has to find consistency. Noone is expecting him to bowl like McGrath but bloody hell he can't keep bowling like an uncoordinated under 10!

Spin is a major issue and I fear the main role for a spinner for the next 2 years will be a container rather than a strike bowler. I guess Swann didn't take the game apart during the Ashes but still bowled well as the series wore on and played a part keeping pressure on.

Watson, Khawaja and the Husseys form a group you can plan your batting around. If Marsh can open you can have Watson, Marsh, Khawaja, Hussey and Hussey as your top 5. Not bad in my view. Obviously Clarke would not bat at 6 but if he's not in form anyway...........

As Border did, time to draw a line in the sand and move forward. Honest appraisals and determination to do better. If the bowling is good it may get you out but you just cannot gift it to them. Too often Aus' batsmen have succumbed to the pressure by England's bowlers by fishing outside off when there was no need to play a shot. Our bowlers lacked pressure and innovation, getting into modes of just putting it up there without any consistency. You may not win many test matches against a team like England with the personnel Aus has got but you can fight and 3 innings losses in a 5 test series smacks of folding when it gets hard.

Well done England who deserve the rewards for excellent planning and execution.

new day new post

2011-01-06T15:48:00.003+11:00

no point talking about the England batting, that has been covered.

Ok, the run out. Clearly Australia need a LOT of work in the skill of calling and communication.
Last season i played with guys i'd never met and had barely spoke to prior to the middle, but it is a basic skill, call loud, be decisive. Never involved in a run out, It isn't that hard.

Hughes... I like the idea of giving him a run at it, but to be honest, i doubt he has the temperament. I'm not saying that as a negative thing, but just maybe, Test isn't his thing if he always wants to go after it but can't keep his head down for longer than 15 overs.

Now i'm watching Tremlett (liking his style a lot, aggressive with the ball, the odd look, but no histrionics) just working hard for his teams cause. And Clarke and Khawaja (future cap?) batting. They are looking good and business like, doing what needs to be done. Nothing wrong with Swann's bowling, just good sensible batting from heads that KNOW they must be there at stumps. For once i'm seeing good leaves.

As a final point, i want to say something that is not related to the play on field.
We all acknowledge the atmosphere and sense of fun the Barmy Army add to the game, but it shouldn't be under rated how much their voice adds to the players confidence. What is one of the first things players do when getting a 1/2 or tonne or a match victory...thank the Barmy Army.
The Fanatics have been remiss in their developing a counter punch to the pervasive chants of the Army.
I know Aussie collaboration is harder than herding cats, but the desire is there, the direction is NOT.
BOO FANATICS. YOU SUCK!

stoph verismo
down the wicket

SCG day 2

2011-01-04T12:32:00.002+11:00

Lunch day 2- 8/230

Jono batting well, but you can bet it will be over soon after lunch. But if he can get Australia to 270+ at least Beer can be used for attacking.

With the track flattening out England could still be batting late on day 4!
Here's what HAS to happen.
Smith must get some wickets to justify his inclussion, he has not kept his head down while batting so i hope he can hit the spot.

Jono and Hilf must get wickets too otherwise they'll just have to wear the label of "conditions" bowlers.

I hope the players have a bit of self belief because i think this next session is the one where Australia either lose the Ashes or square the series.

a dry one from me, but that was
stoph verismo
down the wicket

Waiting

2011-01-02T21:57:00.001+11:00

There is drizzle outside and 85% humidity. Its 7:30 on any other Sydney Sunday night and in Bondi Junction my wife is doing a quick shop for food for our first three days - a quick shop which started a bit after six. She waved encouragement from behind the checkouts about ten minutes ago and then disappeared and I'm wondering if aliens perform abductions in Coles and if so, where will I find find a pizza joint. Not my real hunger anyway.

Its not just any Sydney Sunday night because five minutes down Oxford St into Moore Park Road my digs at the Paddington Barracks are waiting to try and console me into sleep because tomorrow isn't just any Sydney Monday morning. Tomorrow, Australia has its last chance to recover pride and respect lost completely to a rampant mob from England. Even their spectators have outperformed us.

Where I'll sleep tonight, British soldiers once marched and polished and paraded and "yes sirred" and earned only two rewards - a small quoter of rum each day and some time off to wander down to the cricket which was being played at their recreation ground only 300m away. They would sit around the Paddington end of the ground and would yell loud encouragement to the cricketers there and often offered disparaging comments to the "colonials" who were attempting to play their game. They became known as the barrackers and so a term was born which has found its way to sporting events world wide.

Its raining slowly and might do so through offs and ons for the next twelve hours but I'll not provide the weather with the satisfaction of altering my anticipation.

For the Australian captain, Michael Clarke, the pup becomes the Big Dog from the toss, with a head full of allegiance to old man Ponting and little desire expressed to make the job his own. Given the rise and rise of the powere of the coach, any chance of Clarke expressing his thoughts or personality in the decision making processes on or off the field seem less than the role of dice, an activity which his selectors have fared poorly at. Then, if you play with marked cards and loaded dice, outcomes are devoid of chance.

Australia enter their fifth encounter with England this summer, with their hands not just behind their backs by tired firmly there like convicts rounded up Red Caps. There is still no Hauritz and the chosen interloper, will be a Beer opened on the ground for the first time. Australia's leading spinner before the series and the second most successful spinner in terms of first class wickets in Australia this season (Swann has only 3 more) was not invited because the selectors are never wrong. Bollinger is back. Do you think they are picking players solely to amuse sub-editors ... "Australia starts with Bollinger before a Beer chaser" ...

Still, a new face is good thing when the old ones have lost their smile, lost the sparkle from their eyes and issue only tired old men's oaths in the heat of the battle. Another is Khawaja, the brightest star to graduate to the Baggy Green heavens in many an evening wondering if the Southern Cross would sparkle like nights of old. He is as Bill O'Reilly would have described, a good 'un and the confidence being invested in him is clear in his immediateelevation to the most important point in a batting order which has moved like it was fresh from a soaking in liquid nitrogen.

England need no introduction with no changes to the side which blew Australia away in Melbourne. Bresnan and Tremlett were superb and along will Anderson will swing the ball far too dangerously for the Australian and talk of a like fear to be felt from Mitchell Johnson has been without foundation, baring on spell in Perth. Such things are not likely to cause tremors to an English batting line up which has pounded everyone who has stared them down from 20 metres. Hilfenhaus has been unlucky and deserves more English wickets than 4 at plenty+ but the truth is, his swing starts from the hand is easily managed by men well used to such red ball tricks.

England's only weakness is Collingwood, who will swap with Bell in Sydney. It says a lot about their domination that his constant craving for runs has gone on unsated and yet it hasn't hurt England. His brilliant catching has played its part in match turning moments and his loyal service through darker years gains its reward this summer as loyalty returned from a grateful Captain Strauss, when Morgan, a better player, could have taken his place after Perth.

Despite new blood, a new captain and new expectations from a result starved Australian public, nothing but an English victory seems likely.

Now, if I can only get to sleep. After all, I have that long 300m trek to make in the morning among the ghosts of the barackers and then the Barmy Army to great me on the concourse.

No, not just another Sydney Monday.

This Just In!!

2010-12-30T13:10:00.002+11:00

Test side announcement to be delayed until 5.30pm.

Something big is brewing.

Ponting injured and won't play?

New captain to be named? That takes a board vote.

If it is Clarke I will lose my guts.

The Trouble With Ponting

2010-12-30T12:56:00.002+11:00

For those who may not have seen it, reprinted here in full from The Cricket Tragics.

''I entered into discussion with the umpires about the detail of the decision, having viewed replays being shown on the big screen,'' Ponting said. ''I accept the discussion went for too long, and I understand the reasons for the dissent charge handed down by the ICC this evening.

''I was simply trying to seek clarification from the umpires regarding how the decision had been made after being referred to the third umpire. However, I would be unhappy if anyone thought I was being disrespectful towards the umpires as this wasn't my intention.''

Ponting's Full Defence on Sky News

The captaincy of Australia, it is said, is the second most important job in Australia. Perhaps it could also be said to be the second most privileged place in Australian society. It comes with expectations and responsibilities too but unfortunately, the incumbent has mostly just talked the talk in their regard.

Leadership is an odd thing. Their are many ways to lead ... by example, for instance. By standing out in harms way and beating one's breast and willing your comrades to stand with you. The examples by which one leads, however, are not chosen .. . yes I'll have that one, no I prefer not to do that ... leadership by example is a focus which never goes fuzzy at the edges and allows the leader to have time off. Perhaps this explains why Ricky Ponting so often fails as a leader and resorts to the ideas of others because he finds the glare in the spotlight too constant, too demanding?

The words and terms which Ponting uses to defend his actions on the second day of the annually most watched cricket match in Australia, are those of a man who refuses to accept failure, despite the obvious evidence that he has failed. Much of it is spin provided by the massagers of truth who know the Australian public wants to forgive their man - has to forgive their man - hence the references to the every man, club captains. It's enough to make those without an emotional sporting reference point dependant on the national team's success puke till bile rises and burns the honesty they hold to. My throat is still stinging.

There's deferral of blame too. So carefully inserted ... if he hadn't seen the replay on the big screen, he wouldn't have been so convinced ... therefore, its not Ponting's fault he went from short fuse to walking bomb. The cleverness here is that it's a claim that rings true.

In the end, Ponting says he's sorry, but he's still right about the Pietersen inside edge, because he saw it on the big screen. Cue The Beach Boys and "Won't Back Down" as fresh coats of Teflon are applied to his image by pleasant ladies and gents with wide smiles and so much to tell him about how wonderful he really is. The ultimate lie is to have the liar believe the new truth.

There is so much wrong with what he did but then so much more wrong with how his reaction was stage managed. It's all about us wanting to let this pass because our boys are under enough attack already from the Poms and its also about plausible deniability. If the media savages the skipper under such circumstance, they are unpatriotic.

Lets deal with a few facts. One player reacted to the ball passing by Pietersen's bat and it wasn't Ponting. Vision showed him being convinced into a referral by Haddin. The players watched replays shown ill advisedly on the big screen as the umpires were deciding Pietersen's fate. The replays showed a clear outcome and Aleem Dar communicated that to the players. The fact that Ponting couldn't allow it to end there is, as he has said, totally his responsibility. What followed was a petulant display which goes against a basic tenant of cricket which media and administrators have been breaking a lot lately, "the umpire is always right".

Why did he react with so little restraint?

The answer is only partly to do with the current state of play in a series in which his exalted position has finally failed to have evidence to support it - he has failed to make significant contributions with the bat in all but one innings and that was after the match was safe in Brisbane; he has dropped crucial catches at second slip where he once caught them as if shelling peas; his captaincy has been questioned as being bland and unimaginative as England have piled on runs.

To be truly derivative in seeking an explanation to to this brain explosion, a wander back over the last five years of Ponting's controversies give a truer reason for the refusal to accept the three umpires' opinion in Melbourne.

Ponting dislikes, even hates the use of technology in cricket and has spoken with passion about the shortfalls of its use. Again before this current series, he called on players to deliver an honest appraisal of catches that are a close call and to leave replays out of the decision making loop. He caused a storm in New Zealand when DRS equipment was unable to be used because of winds over 130k/h. In Bangladesh in 2006, Ponting hurled abuse at umpires Ian Howell and Aleem Dar over a referral involving Aftab Ahmed and lost 25% of his match fee when referee Jeff Crowe found him guilty.In the DLF one day series in 2006, he launched an attack on umpire Mark Benson when he reversed a decision to dismiss Sachin Tendulkar and match referee decided not to proceed to disciplinary action. Even in this series, Ponting became annoyed by a third umpire decision in Brisbane when he felt he had held a fair catch from Alastair Cook and it was overturned.

Technology and its proper application may be a sore point for Ponting but the problem isn't just that. In 2005, Ponting blew up with Dar when he was run out by England substitute Gary Pratt, claiming England had no right to have a fielding specialist acting in the role of "acting" 12th man. His tally of five convictions for dissent against umpires in his six years as Captain can't all be blamed on technology but may have some basis in the personnel involved. It was interesting that he chose to comment on how expert the umpires for this match are, as at least three of the five conduct violations have involved Aleem Dar as the other party.

Ponting has always lacked self-control and despite spin to cover his tracks, his short fuse was apparent well before his ascent to the captaincy. A black eye when his reputation was reduced to annoying pest by a jealous boyfriend at a notorious Sydney nightclub haunt and his penis flopping display in an Indian equivalent are just two of the less delightful examples of warnings which should have seen him confined to the ranks. Unfortunately, we entered an era when performance was everything and Ponting performances were better than any. In return, he has traded on his role as a means of supplying rocket fuel to his batting and becoming easily the most dominant batsman of his generation and likely its most dangerous.

Perhaps the worst example of his aggressive, in your face petulance which owes as much to his immaturity as to the willingness of Cricket Australia to tolerate it, was the home series again the Indians three summers ago. India came to Australia on equal footing with the confident Australians who had squashed England the summer before and were taking a bruising, winner take all approach to Test cricket. Perhaps, in some way, Ponting needed to adopt an approach that might compensate for the hole left by match winners Warne, McGrath and the influential Langer, who despite being the toughest cricketer of his generation, also knew where the line was and kept Ponting from crossing it.

India were crushed in the Boxing Day Test, Hayden making one of three hundreds against them that summer and the bowlers, including a young and inexperienced Mitchell Johnson, easily ran through them. In the second game in Sydney, Ponting two enforcer's, Hayden and Symonds, were a physical presence over the Indians but their off spinner, Harbhajan Singh refused to take a backward step and suddenly the two bully boys were screaming like eight year olds who were about to be found out by the teacher and the match exploded into alleged racial taunts and the sort of bad blood one would expect to find along the Indian/Pakistani border. Then when Michael Clarke took three wickets in an over, deep into the last hour's allotment, Ponting exploded in one of the crassest displays that misfortune would allow. Many observers, were appalled and some, such as Peter Roebuck, called for his head, rightly stating that this was conduct unbecoming.

Cricket Australia sat on its hands and changed its name.

How much is enough? Apparently no amount of regular poor conduct from the Australian Captain will move either the ICC or Cricket Australia or the selectors to make a move against him. Perhaps they should note the spontaneous booing which began after five minutes of the most recent bat-and-ball-go-home stuff in Melbourne and again directed at Aleem Dar. It was no longer just the Balmy Army singing jeers at a man they once admired and feared. Australians in the outer voiced their disapproval at being so poorly represented by the man with the biggest share of little man syndrome in Australian sport. Even Members hissed their contempt.

The ICC, having taken part and whole match payment from him repeatedly, continues to slap his wrist and provide no disincentive. Given the severity of this incident in Melbourne and its repeating nature, a suspension would have been more in order. In soccer, if you stack those yellow cards, it doesn't matter who you are, you watch from the sidelines. Cricket, with all its genteel pretensions can stomach no such thing, having to be forced to take action against obvious cheats only when the media applies pressure. Toothless tigers rarely worry the hunters.

The show is almost over but whilst you and I can hear the Fat Lady warming up, Ricky Ponting still thinks he'll smack England for 100 in Sydney and life will go on. He doesn't like losing but hasn't seemed to notice how often it is happening. His high performance Alzheimer's makes him forgetful of dropped catches and the regularity with which an opener stands, watching him leave for the sheds. He doesn't notice younger players who adore him rushing to his defence. The arbiter of "the line", Justin Langer, needs to move beyond his batting coach role and have a word.

For Ponting's sake and more broadly for Australian cricket, I hope this man whose batting genius has made us all gape at our own inadequacy, will think on the consequences and call it a day in Sydney. As much as I have disliked and critiqued his captaincy and his inability to lead, I'd still like the chance to wave him off at the SCG and reminisce on his behalf on great innings that belong, properly to the past. I hold no malice and would rather hold no regret.

The time is right Skipper. For once, step away from other's plans and suggestions, sniff the breeze and strut your stuff one last time and let us afford you the praise your sumptuous batting and wonderful fielding has well and truly earned.

Ashes Ratings - Australia

2010-12-29T11:30:00.004+11:00

Goodbye (well, a maintained absence) to the urn. Well played England; two innings victories are not just fallen upon, they are earned with consistent pressure and there is no doubt England applied pressure with bat and ball in 3 of the 4 tests (so far) and got the results. Whereas in 2009 the series came down to a few key moments with both teams experiencing innings wins, this series has been won by the best team - who were the best by a stretch. Johnson and Harris gave real hope in Perth that our pace attack was indeed good enough to take 20 wickets. It was only good enough to do it the once. Sydney means nothing now. A level series is fine with England and I doubt they'll be as on task as they have been in Melbourne. I don't really believe much in any perceived importance of 'saving face' when the battle is lost so selectors may as well give youth a chance in my opinion.

With that here is Lefty's analysis of Australia's performance player by player with a view to the future.

Watson:
His conversion rate illustrates his middle order style where his 50s will be more valuable. Put him at 6 and you may see some tons from him. I'm not convinced his bowling is really up to 15 overs when they're badly needed but as long as he's not relied on to be a main part of the attack then he'll be handy. He did make some important runs so, as always seems to be the case, it's hard to be, well, too hard on him. 7.5/10

Katich:
Gritty and determined but his injury should spell the end for the crab man. Great servant upon his return to the test team but it will be hanging onto the past; which has been part of Aus' problem for 4 years, if he is brought back. Not all players get to go out on terms they'd like. 5/10

Hughes:
While everyone wants to see young fellas get a chance and succeed at the highest level his technique is too village. Having a good cut shot is more than helpful for an opener (or any batsman) but if the bowlers know they can bowl short at you or get you out by enticing the drive you have to compensate and he can't. More time for NSW and some big scores and he can be looked at again. 3/10

Ponting:
Great servant of the game. A liked captain, was a brilliant batsman and fielder. This is no longer the case. He may still be a very good batsman but at 76 or however old he is why would you move him to 5 or wait for him to regain form? The Ashes are gone and so should Ponting be. Thank you and goodbye. An unfortunate way to go out but if Healy got treated the way he did while still good enough to keep for his country then Ponting can't complain. 1/10

Clarke:
One of my favourite players who I've learned alot about batting from watching. This series he gave lessons in how not to bat in test cricket. Whether it's form, injury, shot selection or the lack of a girl friend he has looked undisciplined by feeling for the ball outside off. His 80 in Adelaide showed he's not a bad batsman but I'm unsure what the best course of action is with him. If he were to be given time in the seconds I wouldn't be upset. 3/10

Hussey:
My only 'right' call for the series. His style is so simple but effective. I was unsure whether he could bounce back and so thought 2 tests was fair for him to prove himself. I'd make him or Haddin captain and keep him for 2 years as a senior player for youth to learn from. He's always positive, obsessed with cricket and a leader of men I feel. If not for him this summer............ 9/10

North:
Is shit. Is gone. Should stay that way. 0/10

Smith:
Not a spinner but may become one. Not a number 6 but may become one. Worth a try but, like Hughes, technical problems are there for all to see and they are ones that get him out. Give enough outside off and he'll feather one. This is too easy to an international bowler. Back to shield sunshine and prove you're worth another chance. 3.5/10

Haddin:
Whatever selectors do please don't ask him to bat 6. It's a batsman's job and they get to field at point or slip; not be a direct part of 540 deliveries in a day. He may be good enough to bat higher but that shouldn't be how CA deal with the batting problems. England used to move guys around to problem areas and that just left a problem where the batman came from. He, with Hussey, can say 'I did my bit' but being a team game and the selfless nature he's demonstrated in the middle (unlike Trott who is out for team Trott only) this won't be much consolation. He came into a team on the down slide but has consistently delivered. He could captain and would do a good job. 9/10

Johnson:
One blinder of a test and two shite ones. In isolation perhaps not too bad but part of an 18 month pattern that shows he needs to work on consistency. In Perth I don't even think he was bowling to much of a plan as such. It's just that he was getting inswing and able to bowl in the right areas enough for 6 for. Too regularly he doesn't look like getting a wicket and goes for heaps. If he winds up getting 3 then you can say 'that's the way he bowls' but the prospect of getting those 3 is looking dimmer. 6.5/10

Harris:
Workhorse extraordinaire who will not play again for Australia. Bloomed late and deserved a chance in the baggy green and got the most he could out of his bowling. Too little variation around his stock full bowling means he would always be a chance of having an average day against good opposition but rarely a poor one. Worst mistake SACA ever made was to deny him a 2 year contract. Unlucky bloke. 7/10

Bollinger:
Well, unforeseen by me Bolly wasn't up to test cricket. Too much ODI and 20/20? Perhaps. On his day can be very serviceable but not likely to get bags. There's nothing worse to a captain than when a bowler says, 'I can't do it'. We may see him again but it will take some proving of his fitness and memories are short when it comes to being unable to stand up when you're needed. At least with bowlers! 2.5/10

Hilfenhaus:
The other enigma? Unluckiest bowler since Darren Gough? No. Honest outswing bowler with few tricks and not the bounce he needs off a good length to be more effective. He can do a job for you and get 2 poles but if noone else is striking he becomes too redundant. Very tough call but not the future me thinks. There's too many other quicks worth trying to persist with Hilf. Sorry mate, back to Tassie. 6/10

Siddle:
We love you cos you're Victorian. Most words to an Aussie chant which is deservedly directed to the Phar Lap of Australian cricket. Bowled fuller than the other quicks and got results. What a free lesson that others seemed too ignorant to observe. I didn't rate him before the Ashes (I mean ahead of some others) but he's improved - developing some later and also reverse swing and better control where he's asking more questions of the batsmen more often. If Johnson could take Siddle's free lessons Aus's pace attack would look far more damaging and the 3rd quick could then prove the difference. 8/10

Summation: isn't it funny how spin was thought to be a decisive factor ahead of the series and Swann really hasn't grabbed top order poles? One could say Aus badly missed a spinner but really the pace attack, as a group, couldn't do their job so what difference would a spinner have made in the first innings? The other main area where people thought the series would be won or lost was the top orders - England killed Australia here. The thing that could be most focused on though is the depth of the pace attacks. England used 5 out of their 6 quicks and every single one of them performed. In terms of English batting Collingwood is the only guy who didn't really perform his role well but even he took some great catches. England looked well drilled from the time they landed and it is right that they keep the urn. Australia should be looking at India next summer and spend the next 12 months looking at 5, 6 or 7 players they feel are the future of Australian cricket. I think some of these guys are Starc, Kawahja, Marsh (Shaun and Mitchell), Peter George and White (argggghhh, yes I concede - batting 5 for Vic now and undoubtedly the best captain in the country). You'll notice none of these guys open the batting for their state in 4 day cricket. I think this is where Aus will find the most problems for the next 12 months.

Is This Good for Australian Cricket?

2010-12-28T09:11:00.000+11:00

With the impending retention of The Ashes in such devastating fashion in Melbourne we must address the issue of whether it will be good for Australian cricket. Will the selectors finally cede to a real rebuilding phase and make the changes that need to be made?

Will Ponting step down in the interests of his batting form? And if so will the selectors just give it to Clarke who is in worse form?

Will they swing the axe and make wholesale changes for Sydney or will they try to square the series?

The Australian public seem to be the more realistic of all. You only have to talk to the masses for a few minutes to realise they are more accepting of the harsh truth that we simply just don't have the cattle at the moment at any level to challenge the big boys.

The time for small changes in order to win a test here and there or pinch a series are over. We must plan for the medium to long term future and blood the players that can get us to where we need to be.

I am talking about the two main things on the horizon. The return bout against England away and the Test World Cup. Forget what is in between, especially the one day WC which should not involve our test squad at all.

Too many test batsmen are getting too many easy runs on one day decks and are fashioning their game at that level. When the time comes to actually tough out a session or longer the mindset is just not there.

Watson has done well this year but gets out too often when his team still needs him playing one day or T20 shots. Hughes does not have the technique or patience to handle the moving ball. Ponting is past his best and should probably be playing in his last series, as captain at the very least.

Clarke is not right and is guilty of loose shots either too early or to the wrong balls and has failed to deliver when his country has needed him too many times this series. I don't care what anyone says a T0 captain should not be the test captain. They are not even the same sport.

Hussey has been great this series and is no doubt having a purple patch, but for how long? Big scores give way to bad memories even when sustained under performing is involved. Surely everyone remembers he was one innings away from being dropped, probably forever.

Smith is not an allrounder at test level anyway and if the selectors wanted one that could bat they should have chosen White. If even to groom him for the top job if he makes runs.

Haddin I think is not the best gloveman in the country and has kept well this series but I can't help think he stays in the side for his batting more than anything. They are obviously hiding that fact by batting him below Smith but we all know he should be higher.

The bowlers are a whole different thing with pitches and such to take into account. I won't go there just yet.

So the real question is not if this is good for Australian cricket but "Will the selectors take that opportunity?"

here we go!

2010-12-26T06:23:00.003+11:00

What a show we are expecting!
Will it be a world record?
Did England "hiccup" last time?
Can we get that urn back?
Will it rain?
Punters finger? ...and can he get runs?

We're about to find out some of these answers on crickets blue chip day. so strap ya selves in Melbourne, DTW is at the G and the tartan is swinging free!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2010-12-25T10:24:00.001+11:00

But more importantly. Only one more sleep until the real thing I've been waiting for all year.

WHAT DID YOU SAY!!!!!!!??????

2010-12-23T07:45:00.005+11:00

A fair bit is being said about the revamped, tougher talking and walking Aussies at the moment, and why not? Self belief and attitude are such integral parts of a winning performance in sport.

Firstly i'll start that Hey-dids has spoken out in the media saying England should, "Get over it!"
I don't know if he is that correct in doing this. I have read both KP and Cook saying it ok, not out of control, part of the game and basically expected from Australia so they aren't upset. Maybe that is their return of serve, "Doesn't worry me!" to counter any benefit that it seems Australia get from being lippy. But i don't think so.

Many a commentator laments the lack of, 'going into the oppositions change rooms for a beer after the game'. Be that as it may, many were not professional or played the later parts of their careers in the very under-paid professional era. The Ashes is the closest thing to war for our countries and the media and public glare are intense- positive results are paramount and socialising can come after the series or careers.

If England expect Australia to go verbal out of habit, they must have been stunned at the timid attitudes they received in the first 2 Tests. CA's wrist slapping and finger-waving after the heated Indian summer brings into sharp focus how little they understand the needs of their own team.

India were bloody big sooks that tour, prepared to let their players mutter barbs but threatening to take their bat and ball and go home when said player should have been pulled into line. Instead, we have our players dragged over the coals and subsequently their standard MO of playing affected; NOT GOOD ENOUGH CA!

Sure we are renowned as verbally hard when it comes to 'gamesmanship', and i'm not saying stepping onto the turf permits carte blanche remarks, but even professionals normally have a pretty good idea of where the line is, and if India and CA don't like the way we play- TUFF_TITTY!
CA have done SFA of late and India can hold their top ranking (after RSA, do they still) another way, sans pissing and moaning.

To their credit, i have not heard Poms carry on about it in the media (maybe a bit on the field but that just looks like them trying to play the same game) -correct me if i'm wrong- and if it lifts our guys MORE I SAY!

We here so much about other longer established nations "cultures", well this is clearly part of ours. i have experienced it at every level and type of sport i've played, and quite frankly it has no effect on me. i don't dish it out only because i'm slower than a slug on rohypnol and would only embarrase myself and then loose my cool and concentration... but i don't care what anyone else says.

this has been another session of
stoph verismo
for
down the wicket

We have cricket

2010-12-22T09:34:00.004+11:00

is it the right colour 4 days out?

Well after our dodgy and unsure start, we are in the gate!

My apologies to Lefty for causing him the stress of flying over to an uncertain outcome, but now the job is done.
Let's talk cricket.

I didn't do a wash up of the last test, but if i had to sum it up in as few words as possible, i'd say, "Thank you Cameron Sutherland!"
A great test track, that had everyone -including the Poms- say it.
Something for everyone.

Now the issue of the team selection for Melbourne- what a dilema!
With the ball, no one did anything that puts them in the, "please take a seat, mate" catagory.
Hey-Diddle didn't get wickets, but was tight and applied the torniquet, Hilf was much the same, and Jono and Rino were very very good.
So, does the G need a spinner? i like beer at the G, but would be prepared to give up Beer for the test.

Hauritz with another century must be... well, we all know what he thinks his chances are.

Pontings finger must be giving Kwahaja (must learn to spell that!)the drools. Will he, won't he? Punter has a habit of missing the od Boxing day, given i think it is his last chance, i doubt he will miss out this time.

Short and sweet today- there are many more things to be covered, but i need to do that which i'm paid for!

stoph verismo
Down the wicket

ps. who says you can't win a test with only 3 batsman... as long as you can get 20 wickets!

Boxing Day

2010-12-20T11:02:00.000+11:00

Apparently it’s going to be a packed house at the G on Boxing Day. A look on Ticketek has yielded only single seats in the platinum area ($145) which in isolation is not too bad but if you add in the $300 I dropped on Adelaide and drinks it makes for a very unhappy wife.

Obviously standing room will be the option but the view at the G is nowhere near as good as Adelaide from those areas which raises the question. “How early would we need to get there to get the last of the general admission seats?”

I think in retrospect we should have anticipated the popularity of tickets and planned ahead….

Out, Not Out

2010-12-18T15:34:00.004+11:00

The umpire review system has been fully utilised in today's play and has highlighted an issue that will raise it's head more and more until it is addressed. Should technology be used in umpiring?

Run outs, unless by half the pitch are seldom adjudicated by the on field umpires. That transition was almost seamless. As soon as the technology was available it became almost common practise for the call to be made upstairs. The review system was brought into the game to eliminate the howlers but is more and more used to decide the close calls.

For me the decision must be taken away from the players altogether.

The umpire should be the only ones to ask for a review. If he is uncertain if the batsmen hit the ball or it pitched outside leg then he should be able to call upstairs for confirmation. The way it is at the moment is almost a joke. The umpires should not be proven wrong rather they should ask for assistance.

At the moment the umpires confidence is being shot with every wrong call. How difficult must it be to detect a faint edge that Hotspot shows up so glaringly? That is not a mistake. Don't even get me started on Eagle Eye.

The technology should only be there so the umpire can confirm that what he saw was correct. Not for reversals due to a technicality and definitely not so a batsmen can clutch at straws.

Apropos Whoa

2010-12-17T06:09:00.003+11:00

Great 1st day of the Perth Test... for Pom spectators!
10 Aussie wickets and the Aussie bowlers wearing themselves out doing the work the upper order should have done; perfect!

I love the Perth Test, because it starts 1/2 hour before i gt home from work and goes into the evening, TOPS! But on the down side, i tend to watch more of it than listen on the radio so i am subjected to the "commentary" of the ex-caps and uber brats more than the excellent Grandstand call of the game.

So what did i see?
I saw the best "Perth" track I've seen in years. Lively but consist ant, who'd have thought that waving your bat at lifting balls outside of off was going to get you caught by those blokes standing way back there!
Maybe it is because of the mundane nature of our production line pitches that had batsman confused as to how to face up on a pitch that was wished for by our team, but in reality proved too much and just what the 6 foot 20 Poms wanted too!

I'll let you guys comment on Hughes, hmmmmffff!
Watson, good ball.
Ponting- more about you later, great catch- but you take them when you believe in yourself.
Clarke...
Hussey, thank you so much...again.
Smith- what did i say about outside off?
Haddin, as per Hussey.
Johnson, well done! i hope the self beliefs continues with your bowling- the 2 overs looked good, keep it up.
Harris, 3x better than your last 2 knocks!
Siddle, it's not your responsibility, but thank funk you did that.
Hilf, same goes to you.

A bit has been said about the need to get a wicket before the close of play, and about Australia's lack of penetration for not getting one, but over all i think that was a good display of tight and thoughtful bowling, apart from Harris going a bit dearly.

part 2

I've made no effort to watch Warnie, but due to it being straight after the days play i left the box on to see what it was all about and to see if the local lad had to say to Ponting.
Warne was adequate in the roll of interviewer; his 6 spinning questions was quite contrived, and it was obvious that Clarkson knew his craft better than Warne, but the real interest was the dynamic between Warne and Ponting.
For mine it was clear Warne was determined to come across as not just out and out ripping into Ponting, but someone that was prepared to ask the hard question, respectfully. Except it was clear that Punter was uncomfortable, and that Warne was toying with him as he did that hapless South African batsman.

To be fair, i liked several of Ponting answers, namely about nurturing people and being a mate to all- but i liked them only on humanitarian grounds. As a captain, he showed why he is going to lose this 3rd Ashes. You are not there to be a "friend of the people" Punter, you are there to be sporting but ruthless, and WIN!

While Warn stated at th start of the show that he was honoured to be considered viable to play in this series, but that he was bowling double bouncers and that he was not going to play, after his interview with Ponting, i wonder if he could be lured back if he was give the number one cap? It was easy to see who was the boss!

stoph verismo

down the wicket

Whoa!!

2010-12-16T10:06:00.003+11:00

This just in.

SEN - Ponting says captaincy is out of his hands but does admit that he might not see this Ashes series out as skipper...

Lose this test and I tend to agree with you Ricky. Perhaps you should have fallen on your sword before the series?

Put Up, Or Shut Up.

2010-12-14T15:38:00.000+11:00

The time has come gents to put your testes on the line and make a bold prediction for the third test in Perth. My prediction for Brisbane was spot on…..for the first three days then went Down Syndrome. Will Australia pull themselves out of the mire or will the Poms finish it all after three tests? Can Beer take wickets or will he crash and burn. Will Smith get some runs, or Ponting, or Hughes? Step right up and put your reputation on the line. I’m not just after a result, I mean a day by day account. A six pack to the man who is the closest…

Day 1 – England bat – 3/285
Day 2 – England 10/488, Australia 1/84
Day 3 – Australia 7/366
Day 4 – Australia 10/445, England 4/201
Day 5 – England 8/308dec, Australia 6/255

Bell 165, Hussey 155, Swann 2/85 & 4/66

Match drawn. Hopeful yes.

AB for PM!

2010-12-13T06:19:00.005+11:00

There is nothing like a weekend of working on renos with the radio on Grandstand and hearing the around the grounds to get an appreciation of what is going on in this vast land we call home.

Firstly, a big congrats to Strauss and White for endeavouring to make the 3 day tour game a match. With 'sporting declarations' de rigour the stage was set for an exciting run chase on the last day for England... alas Melbourne, i love you, but your fickle weather can be a heart breaker. Hearing the stops due to the rain was all the more frustrating when 25km away i was sweating like a bushy in bright sunshine!

The few headlines i read on line about Victoria belting the Poms should be summarily ignored as Strauss bowled himself and Morgan to the in form McKay and Herrick and gave them a strike rate over 210 and a bowlers economy of over 12 each!

Of greater interest was Beer -obviously!
All eyes were on the new baggy green hat stand as WA bowled everyone else in the side -joking- before the ball was tossed over to Beer so he could tantalise the media for 2 overs before the heavens opened so violently hearing the broadcasters was nigh on impossible.

Beer had batted well enough the afternoon of his call up, and returned the next morning to be not out at the end of the innings, but that's not what he is about, is it. What we wanted to see was how well he kept his head with the ball; by all accounts he was landing it well and only went for one in each of the 2 overs he got.

Beers appointment has stunned many, but it was interesting to hear Mark Ridgeway talk him up after coaching him at St Kilda... still, good bloke or otherwise, to put in a debutant in such a critical test leaves many a hand going on auto-pilot to scratch the head. With the 'ditch admitting it is a gamble, and Chappell adding that due to a shallow talent pool Johnson had to be handled carefully to ensure he would slot straight back in, the greater focus is even more directed on the whole selection panel.

'Ditch's contract is up after the world cup, so with an Ashes loss looming it is now time to scout around and find a solution for the dysfunctional set-up we now have... and i know where to start!

AB for chairman of selectors! Captain Cranky on the field is the only viable choice to ensure the required ruthlessness and focus is applied to the task. We can throw anyone else into the mix to pad it out, but it is imperative that the head honcho be someone with the drive, understanding and respect of the game necessary to pull us up by the boots straps and have a genuine long view.

AB for CoS!
NOW!

stoph verismo
down the wicket

ps. how much fun are the Sub Ed's going to have with Beer? Most likely heading for the Herald Sun should Beer get belted- "Beer Battered!"

Who said this:
"I don't play for them any more."

...and what was he doing when he said it?

R's holes and opinions

2010-12-10T08:10:00.004+11:00

CD (career death) Day today!

every man with a keyboard and his dog with an iphone is writing about the impending Australian team selection today.
for mine the best comments are coming from those associated with the England team and the WA coach.

"If you're chopping and changing a lot, people can play for their individual spots instead of playing for the team," said England keeper Prior.

i have an opinion on this, IT IS ABSOLUTE CRAP! short of deliberately running out a team mate that may be in consideration over you- which is stupid, because you are already in the side- how does this statement even work?. if people are playing their best (for whatever reason) then we are getting what we need from them. So thanks for trying to be helpful Prior, helpful like a hangnail!

Former RSA coach Arthur added something too, "Right now is the time to calm everything down, it's not the time to start putting players under the microscope," said Arthur, now coach of Western Australia. I'd say he doesn't want North back!
What a stupid thing to say, now is EXACTLY the time to be getting the critical eye going.

Ponting too came up with a good one on a radio sound bite, claiming North should still be in the side. Ok Punter, if you really think so, he can have your spot!

As all eyes look towards the SA and NSW match it appears Smith, Ferguson and Hauritz are all doing enough there to go to the head of the class come next week... we'll see!

yeah! i'm PO'd at the moment!
stoph verismo
down the wicket

Something Old...

2010-12-09T18:02:00.003+11:00

I don't know if you guys have been listening to the radio today but there has been a LOT of talk about one S.K Warne making a comeback. Of course it is just conjecture but it does raise the questions....

If Warne did put his hand up could the selectors ignore him?

Should he be picked if he does put his hand up?

Would he perform better than the spinner that would be selected otherwise?

Should he put his hand up?

All interesting questions. Picking him is a very short term solution if it was successful but really who cares? The Poms go back empty handed and we have two more years to develop a team that can keep the urn on foreign soil. How much of a learning experience would it be for the likes of Doherty or Smith to be twelfth man to a side that has Warne. How valuable would he be to Ponting when he is out of ideas after the first hour?
I for one hate the man as a person but I think even retired he remains one of Australia's best bowlers.
The rest might just have energised him enough to go on for a few more years and if we have to throw the captaincy at him to do it I think it is worth it.

how it is.... and how it SHOULD be for CA

2010-12-09T06:16:00.000+11:00

What A Weekend It Was

2010-12-07T18:18:00.002+11:00

And so it is that such an anticipated event is over leaving more then just a tinge of regret and disappointment. Not at the weekend that was the Inaugural DTW Adelaide Pilgrimage but the fact that it had to end.
Friends were confirmed, food and beverages were consumed and legends were made. Not least of all Tony's steak on the second night. I still have some tingling in the toilet area when I think of it.
What began slowly with a somewhat late Stoph Verismo soon turned into a drunken dash for the border as my shift ended at the wheel and Outside Sledge took over the driving duties. We were treated to the hospitality of the lovely citizens of Beaufort and possibly the longest wait ever for a vegetable filo. Our collective parting wish was that Beaufort might wash away in the downpour that Outey was treated to no sooner had he started the engine. He perhaps might have experienced it less had he bothered to put the transmission into drive rather than third so we revved all the way to the border.
Another driving change was in order as we replenished our beer supplies and Stoph pulled on his driving gloves and prepared for what would be countless urination stops on some of South Australia's most mundane roads. I was treated to a tap on the shoulder every five minutes to pass a stubbie by Outey determined to make up for lost time spent sober behind the wheel.
The roads sped by and the hills appeared and we slowly wound our way down to the lovely village of Adelaide. Suburban streets gave way to oceanic views and we were finally greeted with the welcome "C.U.N.T welcomes DTW" and what would be awesome South Australian hospitality.
The beers ensued and the banter quickly flowed into the gutter. The early hours were soon upon us as we retired in readiness for the real stuff.
Dawn greeted us to yet more beer and foulness as we lubricated the psyche for what lay ahead. Donning the kiltage felt somewhat alien for about five seconds but I soon warmed to idea of a breeze between my legs. It was time for the cricket!
Never before have I experienced the willingness of so many to see so much as I did on that walk to the ground. It seemed everyone, old, young, male and female was keen to see what was under our kilts and it was hilarious.
The day panned out the same as the cricket took second row to the boys in kilts. The Barmy Army even delighted in our antics as the heat of the day and shoddy mid strength pus took it's toll. I couldn't have even told you the score as we left the ground and began the trek back to Henley Beach. A welcome swim and some eye candy at the local beach refreshed us for the evening to come.
What followed can only be described as culinary excellence as our senses were treated to the food of the gods...steak. And not just any steak. The juiciest, tenderest Angus you could ever wish for. I actually had some growth and Stoph, a devout vegetarian even had a crack but was not impressed. Red wine was poured and I am sad to say wasted as the day took it's toll on my drunk and ageing body. The last I remember was the comfort of the outdoor couch and a sip of a magnificent Shiraz before I was waking to a dark and lonely backyard. I sauntered inside and abruptly passed out on the bed.
Dawn and a swim and it was time for day two of the yawn fest that was the cricket. My solemn promise of no more XXXX Gold lasted all of five minutes as Stoph set about proving the theory "You can get trashed on the mid stuff?". The cricket followed a similar path but was set apart by the awesome performance of KP as he treated our bowlers with disdain.
Stumps saw a very drunken but very satisfied Stoph as he left the ground wet, but vindicated. We set about the task of getting back to the restaurant and the courtesy of Tony as he graciously gave us a lift home. Food and drinks flowed. It wasn't long before the talk turned to a net session and we trundled off to the nets.
What followed was a mixture of pure genius and hack ability. I won't elaborate except to say each of us added to the mix in both ways. My body is still sore.
Early night brought a sad goodbye to Lefty and Tony but solidified memories that would last until I say we do it all again next year.
Thank you all guys for a truly memorable weekend of all that I love. Good friends, good cricket, good food and drink.

It's A Great Start When You Have To Eat & Run

2010-12-07T15:22:00.002+11:00

Tony Greig must now be considered an honourary Victorian after calling on the selectors to reinstate Brad Hodge to the Test team after Australia's thrashing in Adelaide. While he's at it, maybe he should check to see if Dennis Lillee is available!

The Hodge I admired as a cricketer would laugh in their two faces.

a great day for Australian cricket.

2010-12-07T13:19:00.004+11:00

no, my title isn't sarcasm... it is hope.

i have been saying since first predictions on the Ashes results that we will be done by this confident and supremely organised England team, and while they only have one win on the board... well, you all saw what happened!

So why am i so optimistic? Well, actually at the moment i'm a little flat; maybe it is the result, or the demands i put on my liver over the last 3 days (can't be lack of sleep- sorry about being a full tummied couch kipper Lefty!), but i AM GLAD we have been comprehensively MUNTED!

Everyone can point a finger- and we all will (and should), but the reality is we can take little from the last 2 results and the last one really must force to the fore what the hell is going to change before we get change?

in simple terms it is glaringly obvious: we can't get wickets and the same "repeat offenders" keep offering too little with the bat.

for several seasons now we've asked for(and been told that we are getting) rebuilding of the side, so my positive spin on our shellacking is due to the fact that SOMETHING now must happen.

of course, with Katich's injury we will get an extra change that wasn't desired, but at least there can be no excuses as inepts squirm under the very magnified microscope.

So what would be worse: continuing shuffling around a few positions, or wholesale change as half the bums get kicked and my preferred option of blooding youth with the assurance, "we don't expect you to win, we expect you to learn, get experience and try to win. you won't be pilloried for trying, just show some grit. do you want that?"

Self belief is everything in sport, and some may say that my approach above could damage that in a young'un, maybe, maybe not, it is a bit of a blank card when told the only expectations is to develop from the experience.
And any of the "old guard" that lived through this Adelaide loss and pain will not be there to use it as fuel in the future much like Englands senior players have after Warne's mugging last time.

Roebuck made the point on the radio that he doesn't believe in the "cyclical nature" of sport, and i would partly agree with him on that; but i didn't agree on his explanation why. he said that you didn't win because it was "your turn", you won because you were organised, commit ed, believe and practice, and that part is right.

But i think he missed the point when people use the cyclical term; sides coalesce (which could be used against my performance contracts argument to a degree), as they gel their self belief grows and winning becomes easier, more so as everybody knows every other member better, and this DOES happen in cycles.

A few great players form the nucleus of a side and others find greatness in themselves while around them... but as we know, it can't last.

Obvious comparisons to the great West Indies side that held dominance for so long have been made, and now we compare the demise of the two. But i'm not so pessimistic as to believe we will be in the wilderness indefinitely as the WI side has been. The fact we are a country and they a confederated region makes ALL the difference. Despite state rivalry and state governing bodies jockeying for power/representation/whatever, we will still "Come together..." maybe not "Right now," as Australians.

Now i started this blog to rip into slack, narrow-minded, political and just plain stupid governing bodies and bureaucrats within the game, and i'm not pumping out this rosy message and letting them off the hook. CA must cop a rigorous bollocking over where our team sits (on its arse while CA sits on its hands) in world cricket at the moment, so i encourage everyone to email them and have a say.
But while it is dark days at the moment... you know the rest!

stoph verismo
down the wickt

...and some suss actions!

2010-12-06T19:57:00.000+11:00

the first of many- Adelaide Test

2010-12-06T19:22:00.001+11:00

DTW net session results

2010-12-06T15:07:00.002+11:00

And the results are in from the Adelaide leg of DTW net sessions.

Outside Sledge - 6/215
Stoph - 2/76 (in quickly fading light)
Tony - absent
Nospmas - 4/546
Leftriteout - 9/342 (in 189 overs)

Thanks for making the pilgrimage to our fair village boys. Henley Beach will never be the same again!

20 days til Boxing Day, doo dah, doo dah

DOWN THE WICKET"S OWN

2010-12-02T20:53:00.001+11:00

In a show of acknowledgment and support of Down The Wicket and services to "HIll's" cricket and cricket in general, our very own Lefty has been asked to toss the coin for the 2nd Test. About time too!

BOM- Adelaide forecast! first 3 days of Test

2010-12-02T06:50:00.001+11:00

Friday Mainly fine. Partly cloudy. Min 17 Max 30
Saturday Fine. Mostly sunny. Min 21 Max 35
Sunday Cloudy. Possible shower. Min 23 Max 33

Which Finger Is That Nathan?

2010-12-01T20:05:00.000+11:00

I don't know which finger he spins with but it would seem Nathan Hauritz's middle finger might be the one the Aussie selectors are noticing this evening. Follow the link for the story.
Nathan Hauritz Takes Five

sneak preview of T's back

2010-12-01T16:18:00.005+11:00

and there is the front. the colour strip was not a funky design thing, it was put on because for some reason when i was doing the names they went through and so were backwards on the front...crazy! so it was a bit of a cover up.

just a few more lines to cut out of the front stencil and they will be done- here is a sneak preview of the back.

i'm not an expert, so they are not perfect with a few smudges and the like...but they are unique!

next year, i'm running a pole and only doing one back and one front- this was a CRAZY BIG job!!!
just as well i've been home sick this last week, or i wouldn't have got it done!

stoph verismo
down the wicket

ps. 2 more sleeps ntil the DTW crew hit Adelaide! TOPS!

risk aversion and the end game. or, we don't need to win

2010-11-30T06:47:00.004+11:00

in the wrap up of the first test, heaps of comment will be made about selection, selectors, the pitch and tactics... all valid.

i want to look at something else to be taken from the result- intent.

while i totally concede a captains goal must be to win the series, I'm putting it out that Strauss pea-hearted a chance (admittedly slim on the flattest of flat-tracks) to play for a result, only because England currently hold the Ashes.

Sure it is a captains prerogative to play as he sees fit, and as stated, i know a result was unlikely due to the track, but for mine Strauss turned yesterdays middle session into psychological warfare and an exercise in fatiguing Australia's bowlers before the quick turn-around to Adelaide.

If that is the case, i'm of the belief that Strauss may have done Australia a favour. Clearly Johnson is the weakest link in the bowling line-up, and now the selectors have virtually no option but take him out of the mix... something that may not have happened for Adelaide.

So, for that i thank you AA#2, but for your inability to declare a session earlier and put the onus and challenge back on the Aussie batsman, i award you the "Pisum Sativa Cardio" medal for the first test... if you continue to play out the series for draws just retain the Ashes, a bigger prize awaits!

stoph verismo
down the wicket

Oh Dear - What Can The Matter Be

2010-11-29T13:38:00.003+11:00

One single camera shot from the morning's play sums up where this series is heading. It wasn't the sight of Alastair Cook celebrating his double century or Jonathon Trott his single. It wasn't the sight of Ricky Ponting in endlessly repeated conferences with his bowler and the sound of commentators and crowd alike demanding he stop wasting time. It wasn't even the vision of Michael Clarke flooring the easiest slips catch imaginable.

No, it was a picture of the players area in the stand. In the middle ground, the next two men in - Pietersen and Collingwood - were reclining in apparent ease and comfort in their chairs, grins firmly fixed. In the background, Andrew Strauss and batting coach, English legend and former captain Graham Gooch were laughing loudly over some point or other. In the foreground and to the bottom right of screen, a forlorn, well dressed gentleman sat with his head in his hands, his shaking head wagging an earpiece presumably feeding him commentary. For nearly sixty seconds between overs that scene remained the same until the distressed man sat up and dropped his hands.

Andrew Hilditch has never looked worse.

From The Cricket Tragics

Batting Collapses

2010-11-28T13:21:00.004+11:00

After yesterday's potentially match winning partership between Hussy and Haddin we totted off to bed all warm and safe in the notion that Australia would once again triumph in Brisbane. All manner of sins forgotten amid the elation of twin centuries and damn near a double. What is now becoming more apparent by the minute is how important the failure of most of our line up was as Strauss and Cook eat away at our lead. If only our top order or tail end could have offered some sort of resistance and maybe a hundred or so more runs our total and lead would have at the very least made sure that we could not lose this test. As it is we are faced with the very real possibility of a tricky run chase on the last day.
Let's face it Australia were a bad umpiring call away from being bowled out for two hundred going on the return from our tail end and would almost surely be staring defeat in the face by now. The pitch is still good and England have all their wickets in hand and only a deficit of less than a hundred to navigate. After that the test is square and it becomes a case of how many we chase and how long we have to get them, or hold on.
We need to win this test and take full advantage of the two H's partership otherwise England will take far more from Brisbane than we will. We really needed to bury them yesterday and should have made them bowl out the entire day. As it is we now rely on a catastrophic England batting collapse to regain the ascendancy which doesn't seem likely.

Disappointing to say the least

2010-11-27T09:00:00.002+11:00

Yesterday, as plain as day we were shown why Michael Clarke should never be the captain of Australia. Not only did he let the team down by declaring himself fit to play in the most important test for a long time, he let himself down. Watching him bat on the replays showed me just how selfish a player he is. What sort of captain is he going to make when he will be expected to sacrifice his own game for the team when he can't do it now. It's not like he was carrying a soft tissue injury, the man looked almost like a pensioner trying to play at some of the balls. He must have know he was not right yet put his hand up anyway.
Disappointing Michael, the country expected so much more from you. You better not put your hand up next test.

Tea for (day) 2

2010-11-26T15:59:00.003+11:00

anyone want odds on whether somebody will go into 3 figures this test?

Tea, day 2 and this is shapping up as a very interesting Test- and one that exemplifies everything that is great about Test cricket.

i missed North's dismissal (must have been only just as he was in when i went to school pick up; if he isn't R's before Adelaide i will boo him (but preferably anyone from CA) loudly- although if you are picked, you're obviously going to play! So what filth does he have on Hilditch?

Huss just hit his 50, looking very determined to remove the doubt over his name.

Hey Diddle Diddle!

2010-11-25T21:06:00.002+11:00

How good is Siddle!
An enthralling day of cricket that both sides fought for ascendancy at the end of the day. Egland looked the better at lunch and at tea looked to be in the drivers seat....although without their belt on!
Enter The Woodchopper from Benalla! Siddle was the best bowler all day pitching it up to the batsmen inviting them to play shot all day....but he was far too good for them. I was in the car for the hattrick and had worried motorists all around me as I was leaning on the horn as he took the 2nd and 3rd wicket for his hattrick.
Doherty was fantastic, bowling efficiently and getting some reward at the end of the day.
Hilf did his job. Johnson was Johnson and would be hoping that that is enough for the second test.
Ponting's only mishap for the day was losing the toss, his bowling changes were exemplary and his fields supported well.
Bring on day 2 and a 400 run 1st innings for the Aussies!

Wooooooohoooooooooo

2010-11-25T09:22:00.001+11:00

It's ON, like Donkey Kong.

Go you Aussies!!! Flog the bejeesus out of those no tub, whinging, shirt lifting, pillow biting, tea drinking, yellow bellied soft as shite Poms!

as Gough said, "It's time."

2010-11-25T08:19:00.004+11:00

the Ashes series has started (well, in 2 hours after this posting), but the war of words and tabloid BS is in full swing in Blighty and well, here too.

The centre for "quality" journalism is going flat chat tearing strips off Ponting, with headlines and copy such as: You're once, twice, three times a loser (and we love you for that, Ricky!). Bring on those saggy greens. Strauss invoked the jaw-jutting spirit of Douglas Jardine on the eve of the Ashes battle and welcomed Mitchell Johnson's threat of a bouncer war".

Under the headline "Sick Rick", The Sun said that Ponting heads into the opening Test "looking like a man about to be publicly executed".

"Out of form, ageing and with an unforgiving Australian public loading their bullets, Ponting knows he has a huge target strapped to his chest".

The Mirror was keen to keep the focus largely on the game, expecting the walls of Australia's Gabba fortress to "come crumbling down within a week".

anyway, who cares what they think- for opinion that really counts, here is mine - polemic or otherwise, but totally correct; because i am stoph verismo!

the toss of the coin is exactly that- a toss. so there is no point banging on about ifs and buts; it will be humid on a green top- win the toss BOWL! and get out for a bat in after tea.

Doherty- i don't know. He is there for KP and Trott, apart from that, he better be able to "shut down" runs. i agree with Rod Hogg and think the Rug as opener with Hilf was the way to go as Jono MUST NOT open bowl; he prefers not to, as does his record.

also while on Rodd Hogg- he and Jon Anderson gave Hilditch an honest spray in their column "Chin Music". They were good value last summer, and i predict they will be the biggest hit of the Ashes.

While mentioning Jono, i've got to say, his threats of a bouncer barrage -particularly against African Andy #2- seem pointless to me unless he can find a MUCH better line... and if ALL the quicks learn to bowl a sandshoe-crusher!

Anyway, this is the only ground i'm prepared to give Strauss after he hauled out the standard English shit stirrer response to the actual Ashes not coming here should we win, "It is too fragile and is at the home of cricket for a reason." Sorry AA, what was that reason? the home of TEST CRICKET is the MCG, and the Ashes represents Test cricket between Australia and England, not cricket on the whole! i know you are only saying this to get a rise out of us Andy, but it only makes a fool of you when you are getting the relevance wrong. Learn your history...son!

and to finish up:
my vote for the 2 best bits of media today: we've all heard of the Gabba referred to as Fortress Gabba- but Will Swanton's label of the "Gabbattoir" is the best i've heard in a while.
and as a leggie, i like Robert Craddock's: "In this country, leg spinners are the stars while offies are the road crew, harassed from all quarters, and seen as tradesman of last resort."

this has been brought to you by Stoph Verismo
down the wicket

ps. another ton to Hodge...hmmmmm

Tickets please

2010-11-23T10:04:00.002+11:00

Should we be thinking of buying tickets for Day 2 & 3 in Adelaide?

I heard it could be sold out?

Lefty??

Predictions...

2010-11-23T07:48:00.002+11:00

Ok, after all the media guff and speculation it's time to put on record how we think this Series will pan out.
Categories:
1st Test result
Series result
Most runs
Most wickets
Man of the series
Best dressed fans

Here's mine.

1st Test: Australia wins by 5 wickets
Series result: Australia win 3-1
Most runs: Ponting
Most wickets: Johnson
Man of the Series: Ponting

Time is running out to get your team into the fantasy cricket comp. go to: http://cricketdreamteam.sportal.com.au/?p=team
League code: 259481

I'd like to Purge the people of Earth...

2010-11-18T06:48:00.002+11:00

....I mean urge the people of Perth, and Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne and so on to look in their cupboards, drawers, in the shed...anywhere for some form please. Anyone who finds some form please send it to the Australian XI....sorry I mean XVII.

Yesterdays batting efforts in Shield or tour matches:

P. Hughes: 11
Khawaja: 13
S. Smith: 59
C. Ferguson: 7
M Hussey: 0 (off 18)
M. North: 17
S. Watson: 6
S. Katich: 1
P. Jaques 28
B.Haddin: 10
R. Ponting 7

Hussey and North were the worst considering that WA made 320 runs on the MCG.
The Sydney pitch must be suspect (why did Kat choose to bat??????)
And Hobart was a good call by the Enlish on a bowler friendly day and pitch.

DTW Ashes player profiles in 5 words or less

2010-11-15T14:36:00.002+11:00

A.Srtauss: Captain personality can win!
R.Ponting: just bat, that's all!
A.Cook: Average against Australia- a joke!
M.Clarke: not superman, what's most important?
S.Katich: hope he's fit!
J.Trott: NOT!
S.Watson: still not an opener!
I.Bell: a ring in? surprisingly not!
M.Hussey: hasn't checked the clock yet?
P.Collingwood: "..old Collingwood, forever."
M.North: knows something about someone!
E.Morgan: nick knack Paddy whack!
U.Khwaja: everyone knows it's his time!
K.P: D.O.A
C.Ferguson: what else must he do?
M.Prior: who won the toss?
B.Haddin: solid, but watching over shoulder!
S.Davies: please explain?
S.Smith: define roll please?
J.Anderson: can i bring my own?
M.Johnson: lucky people like his tatts!
T.Bresnan: Where's the tourist info office?
B.Hilfenhaus: keep it in the family!
S.Broad: tall man, short fuse!
P.Siddle: Latrobe valleys finest!
S.Finn: it's a 5 test series!
N.Hauritz: why have you forsaken me?
M.Panesar: staying in Bondi until required.
X.Doherty: Apple Isles forbidden fruit!
G.Swann: not too much pressure
R.Harris: try again!
C.Tremlett: to the glue factory please!

oz-ash-squad

2010-11-15T12:35:00.002+11:00

so here is our (expanded) choices with less than a fortnight to go according to the latest release from CA.

Ricky Ponting (c), Michael Clarke (vc), Doug Bollinger, Xavier Doherty, Callum Ferguson, Brad Haddin, Ryan Harris, Nathan Hauritz, Ben Hilfenhaus, Mike Hussey, Mitchell Johnson, Simon Katich, Usman Khawaja, Marcus North, Peter Siddle, Steve Smith, Shane Watson.

no huge surprises and typically we all at DTW pretty much had it covered!
with tour and SS games this week CA have basically put themselves in a position where if one of the new choices goes well, and if their in place player fails, it is remiss not to include that new player; and quite frankly, if that is the case, no excuse is good enough!

the main 2 "inform" players i see missing are: D. Hussey (maybe thought to be too old, or...)
and Ronnie Mac (maybe too... ok, i'll say it, "TOO VICTORIAN!" back to back tons and tight effective bowling just doesn't cut it anymore it seems!