I’m not the most patriotic chap. I was, but not now. I question why, too. Then Perth reminded me. Punter shouting abuse to the sideline at the departing batter. A captain? Foul. It embarrasses me and is not what I want my son to see.
I recall Neil Harvey criticising the Waugh era Australian team for their attitude. But I don’t hear much else. And he copped flak for it, too.
News readers smirk at the sledging topic, others stay silent, many have no idea what you’re talking about, others don’t care. The CA states restraint of sledging is ‘damaging’ to the Aussies game. This final one is the most disturbing.
What has become of us between Harvey’s innings and the now?
The Aussies claim it as competitiveness. “It’s tough out there,” they say. All those childish protests. Most will bring up examples of others’ poor behaviour quick smart. “They did it so I can too,” they claim.
There’s also, “It’s just a bit of fun.” True, who would deny a bit of a hassle or some verbal tactic, some game, but where is the line? The Australians don’t really know, nor care.
We all still bleed over the body-line mythology. Why? Poor sportsmanship.
Yet the Australians are serial offenders of poor sportsmanship: the under arm ball; Dennis Lillee kicking Javed Miandad; Boof Lehmann’s foul racist slur; Slater in the umpire’s face; Healy running Lara out knowingly without the ball; Steve Waugh’s perpetual mouth.
Then there’s McGrath; the ultimate. Crankiness and spite was his norm, pursed evil lips cursing away constantly, at times physically confronting. One could go on and on.
As a child, I was a pretty bad sport, but it was worked out of me by my parents – I doubt it is by most parents – and watching the behaviour of good sports, mainly the Windies.
On YouTube there is footage of Lillee bowling at Viv Richards and the comparative attitudes are clear. Lillee bowls four bouncers in a row – no problem from me – and after one delivery he does a rather odd aggressive run down the pitch. His inner angst lit up in neon. After every bouncer, Viv, no helmet, just turns, struts away and smiles – his own psychological game on Lillee.
Then Lillee bowls him. Viv immediately turns and walks, not a millisecond of hesitation, takes the defeat with up most grace. It’s beautiful. Lillee runs to the stumps to kick them. Viv’s cool is what I want my son to see. Greats being humble.
Is it now engrained in Aussies? In World War I, an English journalist wrote that Australian soldiers, “Had learned already to look at our men with the curious, half-pitying look of a higher, happier caste at a lower.” Has this grown under our skin, and turned us into loud mouth smart arses?
This is no attack on Australian larrikinism by the way, I like that. However, it’s being replaced by pretentiousness and bitterness, which I don’t like.
In their history, the West Indies faced blatant racism. If ever a reason to be bitter and mouthy, that would have to be the one. Yet somehow, used to the folly of primitive bigotry, they played with dignity, and like the cliché states, “Let their cricket do the talking.” And did it talk. It’s a highly admirable attitude.
I’m not that admirable, nor is Australia’s foul mouthed aggression, and it’s a shame that to show your child an example of how to behave you can’t really point at your own national team – or yourself for that matter – and say, watch.
Param
Guest
Yes mate I agree that majority of our national team who have played the great game of cricket are horrible sportsmen , mcgrath and warne.. Champion bowlers but horrible sportsmanship.... Shane warne threw the ball at pietersens head during the 2006/07 ashes ( he ducked past it thankfully) when the going got tough in the Adelaide test. Mcgrath was ridiculous but so was gilchrist... Always blabbering his mouth behind the stumps whenevr he kept to warne or to any one else... Appealing when he knew that ball had hit the pad or even the shoulder in some cases rather than the bat. Steve Waugh, I remember claimed catches( I remember one against Lara in a test match , but Lara walked to his credit) even when he dropped the ball( an offence for which he shd hve got at least a 5 match ban or more). Then there was slater abusing dravid when the latter refused to walk and rightly so as the tv replays proved that the ball bounced in front of him who immediately claimed it ( surely he shd have been convinced after seeing the replays , but no, he was just that damn arrogant). The way these players intimidated others was pathetic and shamed us. The final straw was when bcci had the balls to stand up during the 2008 Sydney test and the Aussies were told to zip it for good... Clearly that hasn't rubbed onto ponting although this weeks meltdown was probably more due to his own pressures. The only cricketer who I can recall as showing a bit of sportsmans spirit and not overindulging in the so called sledging would probably b mark Taylor . Yet you now look at all of them commentating like gentlemen and u wonder what happened back then and where were these so called gentlemen??
Tui
Guest
totally agree with the article and its great to see these primadonas getting their asses handed to them by the poms
Fisher Price
Guest
Yawn.
Martin
Guest
1/3 of the crowd left before the end of Day 1. No suprises there.
stillmatic1
Guest
i seem to remember being told as a kid the simple rule of "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me". maybe a few of the "adults" on here need to grow up a bit and stop crying over some words. all i can say is that the roarers on here who are complaining about the level of sledging (is there such a thing?) in sport have probably not played a whole lot of it. i find it a bit of a long bow to stretch to call what someone says to someone else "vile,despicable,horrific et al" or claim so and so is racist blah blah blah, when its all just words!! people are so damn precious, but yet claim in the same breath as being modern and progressive. if you think that worrying so much over all the bad things people say is being progressive, then maybe you should take some history lessons and realise that are in a state of regression. hows the 1950's sound? i couldnt care less is someone slagged off my mother or my sister or whoever if there is absolutely no context to what they are saying (ie: if the sledger has never met any of these people). and why should i?
dasilva
Guest
Why? Because majority of people in this country is Australian and we want Australian to behave the best they can be because these cricketers are representative of our country to the world The behaviour of other cricket team are problems of their own respective country.
dasilva
Guest
I'm just using it as an analogy. That this behaviour wouldn't be acceptably at any workplace and I see no reason why sports should be exempted for that. Whilst I understand that playing mind game is also unacceptable in workplace but I believe that sports should be exempted because sport is intrinsically a competition and a test of mental as well as physical and well as technical ability and that mind games can be a test of mental ability especially when there is no ill-will. However I just believe that outright abusing people is just wrong irrespective of the context and that sports is no exception. Hell even the ICC code of conduct agrees Level 1 offence "Using language or a gesture that is obscene, offensive or insulting"
Damm Lies and Propaganda
Guest
Which can be used to sledge.
Brendon
Guest
What a selective memory this writer has, or more likely, a limited knowledge. Where was his beloved Viv Richards and the West Indies when Dean Jones walked off after being bowled by Walsh but not hearing the call of no-ball and being run out when you can't be run out on a no-ball unless you are clearly attempting a run. Afterwards some of the West Indian players said they knew Jones wasn't out but continued with the appeal? Where was your beloved Viv Richards? Thats right, he was cheating and appealing for a run out that wasn't a run out. theroar really needs to stop clowns writing articles that could be eaten for christmas lunch.
Lolly
Guest
I hope there is an article a day about those rotten Aussies and their dreadful, horrid behaviour. I just can't get enough of them. And the linkages to war are so clever. When does the next match start again?
Lolly
Guest
That story goes around on blogs, BigAl connected to Chris Cairns but no-one has ever come up with any actual reports that it happened and it has been attributed to Gilchrist, Steve Waugh and I think possibly Punter.
Mick Gold Coast QLD
Roar Guru
"NOT OK - saying anything about the other player’s mum, sister, wife etc" jamesswm - I've heard stuff from blokes in front rows about my mother, sister, girlfriend and so on who wouldn't even know my name, let alone whether I was an orphan with no known relatives! It never meant a thing to me - half the time you don't know who said it. If you can "mentally disintegrate" a bloke with something as innocuous as that he shouldn't be out there. - "send-offs to batsmen you have dismissed" – redundant and stupid, given the ball you just bowled is more articulate than anything you could say. Nothing wrong with a glare from a distance to reinforce your supremacy, or pointing at the scoreboard if you are in dire need of personal positive reinforcement. Galloping up and screaming into their face (of modern times) is especially stupid - childlike - particularly as their bowlers will soon get to drop a few around your scone to remind you it's a two way street, as they should. A half decent captain would put a stop to that. - "a 12th man running on" ... I agree - should never happen. The captain should publicly kick him up the clacker until his gob snaps shut. - "anything racial" Well, the Symonds incident proved that definition is so thoroughly distorted now that you'd need a separate referral system with barristers at the fence on call to represent the protagonists citing UN Conventions and High Court precedents. With interpreters. To ensure everyone gets an unsatisfactory result. At high cost. And the Board of Control for Cricket in India has a protocol that, well, changes around to maximise the opportunity. My wife (from Asia and very, very dark) reckoned "you white fellas are being twisted like spaghetti" over the Symonds thing, she thought it was hilarious and a waste of time. - "or personal" - struth, that's at the heart of a decent verbal sledge! - "in cricket – initiating any form of physical contact" ... I agree, it will be a dreadful day for cricket if that ever happens. Although if anyone ever deserved to be jobbed it was Miandad. I used to think the same of Ian Botham until I worked out he'd simply shake his head and job the jobber right back, twice!
Mick Gold Coast QLD
Roar Guru
"workplace bullying" Workplace bullying? Someone further on wants to codify what can and cannot be said ... orange safety vests for the feeble? Green vests for the more articulate, chartreuse for more hardy? Ear plugs? Clip-boards for umpires to issue non-conformance reports? Oh dear. We've now achieved parody ... as Graham Chapman (the Colonel) in Monty Python's Full Frontal Nudity. Colonel: Now, I've noticed a tendency for this programme to get rather silly. Now I do my best to keep things moving along, but I'm not having things getting silly. Those two last sketches I did got very silly indeed ... Colonel: No, no this is silly. Dino (Terry Jones): What's silly? Colonel: No, the whole premise is silly and it's very badly written. I'm the senior officer here and I haven't had a funny line yet. So I'm stopping it. Dino: You can't do that! Colonel: I've done it. The sketch is over.
the woodster
Guest
Damn son i literally welled up. Good points to a degree. i agree with the 'spirit of the game' notion
Smokey Robinson
Guest
Briolex, I'm guessing you're a Peter Fitzsimons reader and buy everything he shamelessly peddles to suckers like you.
Seiran
Guest
James, you're probably right on many of those points, but you also need to take into account the manner in which comments are made. The following are crackers which break your first not ok, but was made in jest and both sides (I think) saw the funny side of it. (these quotes are from the Independent website). Eddo Brandes, the chicken farmer who batted at 11 for Zimbabwe, was surviving in entirely haphazard fashion. The exasperated bowler wandered down the pitch and was drolly asked: "Eddo, why are you so fat?" Brandes promptly replied: "Because every time I make love to your wife, she gives me a biscuit." Classic! And the following one involving Ian Botham...probably not so pc these days, but still bloddy funny. Ian Botham could always give as good as he got. When he came to the crease Aussie 'keeper Rod Marsh said cheerfully: 'How's your wife and my kids?' Botham is said to have replied: "The wife's fine. The kids are retarded." And the final one below, in regards to sledging your own team mates. Fast bowling great Fred Truman would have a go at his own team-mates, never mind the other team, if he thought they'd done him wrong. After an outside edge flew through the legs of a slip fielder, the guilty party - Raman Subba Row - trotted up to apologise: "Sorry Fred, I should have kept my legs together." Truman responded, "So should your mother."
AndyS
Guest
I've my own thoughts on sledging, but both sides seem fairly well represented here. However, I think it might be drawing a long bow to link sledging to sportsmanship and on to aggressive attitudes. To my mind, an even greater misstep to link it to the Lillee-Richards incident discussed. For those that might not recall, that was the 1976/1977 Gillette Cup semi where WA were rolled for 77 and then tipped Q'ld over for 62. Accounts by participants basically put that result solely down to Lillee's attitude, with those five deliveries being the pivotal moment of the match. I don't know whether there was any sledging involved, but certainly haven't heard it sugested. The more common interpretation is that Lillee's aggression and attitude saw WA win the match against all odds and ultimately win the final, while Richards' had him fail his team and lead them in losing what should have been the unlosable game. Possibly harsh, but the history books don't play favourites. Definitely the first time I've heard Viv's part held up as the role to emulate.
Redb
Roar Guru
Sledging, aggression Lillee style during battle is fair game to a point. Getting into the head of an opponent is part of the game. After battle is the time for humility and good grace towards the opposition and yes Ponting could do with a few lessons. The Poms do it better than us. The Aussies are usually better at not holding a grudge and having a beer.
dasilva
Guest
There's a different between good humoured banter and just being abusive There's one thing to play mind games such as pointing out real or non-existent technical flaws in the batsman thats coming in. Makng humorous jabs or comments design to destract the players concentration. Then that's fine because sport is a mind game and players have to concentrate through mind games. However where I draw the line is when things become abusive. I'm not exactly a prude I don't have problem with people swearing (such as cursing due to bad luck or a mistake you make) but I do have a problem of people abusing other people. If I see someone going off at another player in a verbal tirade then perhaps call me old fashion but that's just not cricket. It's just nauseating seeing grown adults behaving like school children. It makes them look like uneducated thug I remember Atherton talking about when he was batting, Hughes came up to him and just started swearing with the f and c words constantly at him. Atherton just replied, you are just swearing and you are not saying anything witty, insightful or funny. Merve just thought Atherton was being an upper class twat for saying that but I agree with Athers. Let just say this, if you abuse someone like you do on the cricket field like you do to your own co-workers at work then I'm quite sure you'll be in trouble and be eligible for workplace bullying.
Martin
Guest
Oh and so the "Super Aussie" Legend lives on. Get off it. So what did the Australian Officers do? Were they met with the same disdain or did they all get their hands dirty? Gee mate stick to sport. This is the whole problem here not the sledging or sport it's this massive chip on the shoulder and the need to constantly stroke your own ego. OK England once ruled the waves but for Australia to be so taken aback by it that they continually have to have digs about Englands sporting, wartime, and whatever other abilities we don't have in your eyes is becoming tiresome. Go back to your history books and have a look at the figures, that British officer probably ended up in the mud somewhere in France with a million or so of his mates. Show some respect.