By James Dampney
December 4th 2009 @ 5:21am
Get a Roar profile
View The Roar's top writers by sport.
Love new art, fashion, music? Check out Aussie site which unearths all things cool and creative.
Related coverage
Appleby leads the way at the Australian Open
Stuart Appleby laboured through a dreadful year in the United States in 2009, but there was a noticeable skip back in his step as he took a share of the lead after the first round of the $1.5 million Australian Open on Thursday.
Appleby needs to rely on his previous stellar play to remain on the [...]
This article is over 2000 days old and has been trimmed.
Like this content? Buzz it up!
Free Email updates:
Our daily emails are only sent if there is content for the sport or that author. You can subscribe to multiple daily emails; or get the daily Roar email with all our content in it. We value privacy. More...


![My lovely wife, a self-labelled cricket widow (and for another two weeks at least, dear), who doubles as my chief proof-reader, has stated in recent weeks that she was getting a little tired of reading about cricket. I guess that’s fair enough, it has been a long summer.
This meant, as I explained to her at [...] Brett McKay: Super 14 is so much more watchable this season](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/digby-ione-reds-th.jpg)
![Sydney Rovers FC. The name, and colours, of Australia’s newest football club has caused much debate on forums and blogs across the Internet. And while it seems they can’t please everyone with their choice of branding, there are some trends emerging as new clubs are born in this expansion phase.
There appears to be [...] Adrian Musolino: How important are a teams name and colours?](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/how-important-names-colours-schip-a-league-th.jpg)
![With the NRL season kicking off this weekend, here are The Roar’s tips for the seven young players who will make a big impact on the game in 2010.
Blake Ferguson (Cronulla): Finally a reason for Sharks fans to smile. Plenty of pace, a great leap and a good finisher (scored some great tries last year). [...] Steve Kaless: The magnificent seven to watch this NRL season](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/blake-ferguson-cronulla-th.jpg)
![Despite the giant strides made in the game from the Socceroos World Cup showing and the development of the A-League, football continues to fight for attention in the mainstream press, on free to air television and in print. It seems an ingrained ignorance still exists, judging by the pitiful coverage in certain sections of the [...] Adrian Musolino: Why does the mainstream media ignore football?](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/newcastle-jets-grand-final-th.jpg)
![Ricky Ponting did an interview before the Ashes series for the BBC. It covered the usual subjects such as player form, predictions, what the Ashes means etc and near the end of the conversation, Ponting was asked what he thought about the England team’s over the top celebrations following their 2005 series victory.
Ponting didn’t rise [...] Alec Swann: Ponting shouldn’t take the fall for Ashes defeat](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/ashes-loss-th.jpg)
![Over the past few years it has become an all-too-familiar call. They need a key forward, those Western Bulldogs. They need a big-bodied warrior to spearhead their attack. They need their own Nick Riewoldt or Buddy Franklin.
And yet, when the Bulldogs finally went out and recruited that exact type of player – by acquiring Barry [...] Michael DiFabrizio: Barry Hall might be the saviour after all](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/western-bulldogs-th.jpg)
![Since the Wallaby winger Ian Williams moved to Japan to work and play rugby for Kobe Steel in 1991, there has been an influx of players and coaches who have followed to ply their trade and experience the intricate and ancient culture of Japan.
The national team, the Cherry Blossoms, are without doubt the rugby Asian [...] Todd Louden: Japanese rugby: it’s just different!](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/japanese-rugby.jpg)
![It’s about time someone told the AFL’s field umpires to concentrate on their jobs and stop trying to be coaches. With clubs employing as many as 17 coaches, fitness and development people on their staffs, the last thing the players need is to be lectured by another three on game day.
There are far too many [...] Bruce Walkley: Tell the umpires to shut up!](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/umpires-shut-up-shane-crawford-th.jpg)
![It turns out that Michael Phelps, the man who captured eight incredible gold medals at the Beijing Olympics, can also smoke a bong. Wow, amazing! Thankyou News of the World. I feel so much better about myself now that I know an Olympic champion is on the wacky tobaccy.
Great for Phelps isn’t it? [...] Benjamin Conkey: Why do athletes have to be good role models?](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/phelps-th.jpg)
![Billy Murdoch has never received so much publicity. Everyone is now fully aware of the fact that Ricky Ponting joins Murdoch as the only Australian captains to twice lose the Ashes in England. As a batsman Ponting is peerless, but how is history going to assess him as a leader?
Instead of damning him, the usual [...] David Wiseman: Ponting will be remembered as a very poor captain](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/ponting-only-current-player-th.jpg)
![In some ways, the Melbourne Victory has been too successful, especially for the prospects of a second franchise in the city. With Melbourne certain to have a new franchise in the next round of A-League expansion, how can this new club hope to compete with the team that has united the city and is the [...] Adrian Musolino: Does Melbourne need a second A-League team?](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/2nd-a-league-barbiero.jpg)
![At 6.45am on Tuesday, my phone rang. It was Geoff Mould and he was as mad as hell about the demand by some senior Wallabies for $2,500 to play a trial match before the overseas tour.
Mould is a rugby guru.
He coached and selected the 1978 Australian Schoolboys side which is, arguably, the best rugby [...] Spiro Zavos: Wallaby disgrace! Money comes before the jersey](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/wallaby-disgrace-jersey-robbie-deans-th.jpg)



