By Richard Jones The Majak Daw story makes a nice yarn. But how about Maryborough boy, Eddie Prato, taken by the Western Bulldogs with pick No.58 in the AFL rookie draft? Eddie spent most of 2009 playing basketball with the Ballarat Miners in the South East Australian Basketball League. At 6 ft 8 ins in [Read more]
Footy: Prato’s journey to Bulldogs not as exotic as Daw but no less remarkable
December 17, 2009 by 7 Comments
Third Test, Day 1: Gabba grass memories – cheery; WACA prospects – dreary.
December 16, 2009 by 29 Comments
I was reminded by the WACA test today, and I’m not sure why, of December 1979 when the West Indies came to the Darling Downs, to Gold Park, in Toowoomba. I had played quite a few Colts games there. The Windies side included Cuthbert Gordon Greenidge and Desi Haynes, IVA himself, and both Murrays, DA [Read more]
Local Footy: Desert dash fails to deter Falcons
December 16, 2009 by Leave a Comment
By Sheikh Mohammed bin Rocket The Abu Dhabi Falcons footy team made sure they did not stray into the Empty Quarter in Saudi Arabia when they crossed the border on their road trip to Muscat in Oman for last weekend’s fourth-round clash in the Middle East AFL. Despite getting to the ground only 15 minutes [Read more]
Footy: Ablett oversight heads questions from pre-season and rookie drafts
December 16, 2009 by Leave a Comment
There were some very strange selections in the pre-season and rookie drafts. Some of the questions that I wondered about are: 1. Why would Gold Coast pick Danny Stanley ahead of Luke Ablett? Danny has played well for Collingwood seconds but has failed to impress every time (five in total) that he was promoted to [Read more]
Footy: A few sausage rolls from Fev would make this Lions fan roar
December 16, 2009 by Leave a Comment
This piece was originally published on the ABC Grandstand Footy Unleashed website in August 2008. I thought it timely to revisit it given the Kangaroos’ selection of exciting Sudanese prospect Majak Daw in the rookie draft. Will Daw be any good? Who knows. It doesn’t really matter because he is the first Sudanese player at [Read more]
CHRISTMAS QUIZ: Some sporting conundrums
December 16, 2009 by Leave a Comment
1. What the hell do the books The American Way of Death and Love In a Cold Climate have to do with the present-day politics of international Formula 1 car racing? 2. In the history of Test cricket, the names of two players each appear three times in the top-ten list for runs scored in [Read more]
Footy: He missed! No chance of a dry argument after Dons beat Saints
December 16, 2009 by Leave a Comment
August can be a wicked month; however the day dawned cool and clear. Our young boys were to take on the unbeaten Saints, who had played consistently well for 19 rounds and appeared to be invincible. I had arranged to meet Jen at her apartment by the Yarra in Richmond, and once at the ground [Read more]
Cricket: Woods the goods for first-class question
December 15, 2009 by 5 Comments
In a typical pre-Christmas work-avoidance email conversation with some fellow Almanackers, the cricket savvy Tony Roberts offered us (the finest literary, mathematical and anagrammatical minds of the Almanac brigade; his words, not mine), a sporting quiz that was used at the Victorian ASSH Christmas dinner. One question of particular interest to me was the following: [Read more]
Footy: Mighty Mick Conlan continues to stir powerful memories
December 15, 2009 by 3 Comments
Even though I grew up a Shinboner, my recent work sojourn to Sydney brought back memories of a great moment of watching VFL/AFL games that didn’t involve the boys from Arden Street. As I write I can sense the grumblings out Windy Hill way. It was one of those moments that would not be out [Read more]
The Legend of Chicken Man
December 14, 2009 by 5 Comments
Not over the Hill – Issue 1 by Andrew Gigacz I’ve been known by many nicknames over the years. These days most people know me simply as “Gigs”. But at various points in my life, and for various reasons, I’ve also had the monikers Gene, Roy, Bop and, more recently in these tech-dominated times, Gigabyte [Read more]
Footy: Gary Ablett jnr and Joh talk turkey (or is that chooks?)
December 14, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Gary Ablett Jnr: Son of you-know-who. Two time Geelong premiership player, Brownlow medallist and dazzling on-field magician. Sir Johannes Bjelke-Petersen: Former Queensland Premier, plantation paternalist and gerrymander general. Ruled for over 20 years with a unique blend of authoritarian cronyism, faux naivety, homespun ruthlessness and pumpkin scones. Gary jnr is astride the proverbial horns of [Read more]
Music: 27 hours at the Corner Hotel … and loving it
December 14, 2009 by 2 Comments
Thursday, 9pm. Normally nearing bed time for an early next-day start for a visit to the gym (Helen) or a walk around the tan (me). Instead we give the kids a kiss goodnight and head out. The band is Akron/Family (and I don’t know the significance of the oblique either) and they are scheduled to [Read more]
Tassie and WA produce one for the ages
December 12, 2009 by 10 Comments
by Patrick O’Keeffe The Sheffield Shield competition is just grand. Occasionally, the competition turns out an absolute pearler of a game. Take this little blinder of an encounter which finished on Friday afternoon at the beautiful Bellerive Oval. I observed from a distance, receiving updated scores via the internet over the four days. It is [Read more]
Cricket: What if they had a game and nobody came?
December 11, 2009 by Leave a Comment
If you’re asking the above question, there’s a fair chance that you’re at a Sheffield Shield match. Yours truly was moved to venture down to the Big Smoke to watch day one of the Victoria v South Australia Shield clash. This decision was mainly prompted by a desire to see Brad Hodge’s MCG Shield swansong. [Read more]
A thoroughly Australian few days
December 11, 2009 by 10 Comments
by John Harms I have always had a sense of being Australian. Not in a flag-waving, Aussie-Aussie-Aussie sense. It’s more a feeling of being connected to the place I come from. The land. The people. The way of life. A job if you can find one. A beer and a bet. My first overseas trip [Read more]
Sports Science: Too much technology is bunk; coaches should rely more on instinct
December 9, 2009 by 4 Comments
By Clint Youlden I’m all for technology when it comes to sport, but I do see an alarming trend towards over-analysis. Isn’t the whole idea of sport to compete against others on an even playing field? Shouldn’t it be the cast that coaching and winning instinct make the difference between victory and loss? I’m wondering [Read more]
Cricket: Country boys take block for a good cause
December 9, 2009 by Leave a Comment
By Kara Bell Late afternoon, 17 January 2009. Farmers v Graziers in the annual Colombo Creek Classic at the Whiteheads’ Colombo Creek property outside Jerilderie in the Riverina. Farmer Ed Ryan is at the crease and has only two balls remaining to rein in the Graziers’ target of 198. The crowd is silent and the [Read more]
Soccer: A-League gets early pass mark
December 9, 2009 by 3 Comments
By Stephen George In 2003, Australian football was struggling to make an impact on the national sporting stage. In April, the Independent Soccer Review Committee chaired by Mr David Crawford concluded “that the current structure of soccer in Australia is ineffective, does not work and needs changing”. The output on the field was viewed by [Read more]
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