Almanac Cricket: An Australian WACA XI

Dave Brown looks at the numbers, and some other things, to pick an Australian XI for the WACA test

To trade or not to trade: Shakespeare’s hot take on the Gibbs non-deal

Every man and his Bard has an opinion on the trade period these days

Almanac Season Review: Adelaide – Premiership schmemiership

Dave Brown refuses to get sucked into defining 2016 success by premierships – just as well, really.

Almanac Laws of the Game: the best rule in the book

What’s the most obscure rule you’ve seen an umpire use? The weirdest thing on a footy field? Dave Brown has a couple of favourites

Round 22 – Port Adelaide v Adelaide: Potassium deficiency

An ugly incident overshadows what was a cracking game of footy. Despite that, Dave Brown finds a lot of positives up on Adelaide Oval’s hill

Round 21 – Fremantle v Adelaide: Optimism is for the young… and Hawthorn

Dave Brown comes to terms with the Crows being a red hot chance at a typically frantic family gathering

Umpiring: the consolations of mythology

Dave Brown wonders, then thoroughly understands, why they need to point out umpires are human.

Round 15 – Melbourne v Adelaide: Melbourne by foot, Part 3 (Job done!)

Dave Brown finishes up his weekend of footy as the Crows salute on a big day for the club

Round 15 – Carlton v Collingwood: Melbourne by foot, Part 2 (fathers-sons)

The second instalment in Dave Brown’s big weekend in Melbourne.

Almanac VFL Round 13 – Coburg v Footscray: Melbourne by foot, Part 1

Stranger in a strange land, Dave Brown’s Melbourne travelogue kicks off with an Odd Friday Lunch and a trip to the VFL

Round 11 – Adelaide v St Kilda: lateral thinking

Turns out not every party ends in a hangover. Rock on, Crows!

The Pollie XVIII – when politics and sport do mix

Football has a proud history of providing politicians for the parliaments of Australia. But we need a full forward – can you help?

It’s ok to question the umpiring: when 17-1 is not a date

Crows man, Dave Brown, almost manages a recrimination-free look at the ins and outs of an AFL club seeking clarification on an interesting night’s umpiring

SANFL Round 6 – Central District v Norwood: nothing to Bragg about

Dave Brown mulls over songs taken out of context (and does quite a bit of it himself) on the road to Elizabeth with a Billy Bragg obsessed four year old

Round 5 – Hawthorn v Adelaide: and football and football

Dave Brown cements his place by getting in the first stobie pole reference of 2016 – one more stirring Friday night in Adelaide.

Almanac Cricket – Sheffield Shield: where were you when?

Dave’s guide to South Australia, No. 389: every South Australian of a suitable age can tell you where they were during the final 10 overs of the 1995/96 Sheffield Shield final.   30 March – 3 April 1996 Much like this season, having made top spot with five wins in 10 matches, SA hosted the [Read more]

A ‘grizzled 69’ and the art of sports writing

Dave Brown finds some gems in the local Op-shop and marvels at the myriad ways in which an Allan Border innings can be described

Big deal: A female field umpire and a woman’s place

Somewhat surprisingly, Dave Brown was conflicted by the first appearance of a female field umpire at AFL level. How important was it really?

The Ten Commandments of BBL cricket

Dave Brown leads the BBL05 tabernacle choir as he summarises the season in 10 lessons

Four reasons why South Australians and Tasmanians (and probably Western Australians) were annoyed by the MCG BBL crowd

To great fanfare, Victorian media declared the Stars v Renegades crowd of 80,000 the incontrovertible victory of Big Bash League in the Australian community. Dave Brown on why Sandgropers, Croweater and Taswegians were less than impressed.