The greatest runners-up in Australian sporting history

Over the weekend, Australia celebrated their inexplicable presence at The Eurovision Song Contest with a noble second place finish.

An outstanding effort indeed, trumped only by the palindrome-loving programmer at SBS who, after the second Eurovision semi-final, put the following to air: ABBA, Dami Im ad, ABBA.

Given the Eurovision effort, it’s surely time to reminisce about some of the great runners up in Australian sporting history.

Australia, cricket (1998)
As easy as it is to make jokes that the Australian Ashes squad deserves to be on this list for their splendid second place finishes on each of their last four tours to England, I’ll resist that temptation. Instead, I’ll highlight the 1998 Commonwealth Games where Steve Waugh’s men finished as silver medallists on the only occasion that cricket was played at the Commonwealth Games.

Hard to believe? What makes it even harder is that the powerful Australian team was defeated in the Commonwealth Games ODI Final by perennial final non-winners, South Africa. Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.

Still, Michael Kasprowicz is a Commonwealth Games silver medallist. That’s a good feeling.

New South Wales, rugby league (2006-2013)
Truly one of the great second place efforts in the history of any football code, the magnificent New South Wales State of Origin team used all their guile and skill to find a way to finish second to Queensland in eight consecutive series.

Showing off more halves combinations than is, in fact, mathematically possible in a mere 24 games, the Blues flaunted their second place prowess. On four of those eight occasions, the series went to a decider, but each time, NSW dug deeper than their Maroon counterparts to find a way to finish second.

A runner-up record that may never again be matched in State of Origin history.

Cathy Freeman, athletics (1996)
While most people tend to focus on Cathy Freeman’s famous gold medal 400m victory in the 2000 Olympics, ponder this. If Freeman had not risen from the disappointment of a silver medal in Atlanta, pipped by Marie-Jose Perec, would that Sydney victory have tasted quite so sweet?

Answer: Yes, of course it would. Silly question. Next.

Red Cadeaux, horse racing (2011, 2013-14)
Technically both non-Australian and also a horse, Red Cadeaux makes the list for his performances in Australia’s greatest horse race, the Melbourne Cup, where he finished second in 2011, 2013 and 2014.

After his 2014 result, Red Cadeaux retired and went to live happily ever after at a farm where he spends his days eating apples, being brushed and receiving equine massages three times a day. Yep. That’s totally what happened to him all right. Please don’t Google his name to check.

Men’s 4x100m freestyle relay, swimming (2000)
One of Australia’s most heart-breaking second place finishes came during the Sydney Olympics when the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay team failed to defeat the all-powerful US team.

In many ways, the result was to be expected, with the USA having won the event in every Olympics since it was introduced. But after Michael Klim unleashed a world record-breaking first leg, the Australians led their American rivals all the way until Ian Thorpe lost the lead with just fifty metres remaining in the race.

Gary Hall Jr then powered the US home, fulfilling his pre-race prediction that he would smash the Australians ‘like guitars’. A great effort from the Aussies, but just not good enough on the day.

Hmmm? Oh, yes, that’s right. In fact, Thorpe rallied and kicked past the American to win the gold for Australia amid scenes of celebratory pandemonium. Scrap this one.

Adam Voges, cricket, (2015-16)
While his career is still ongoing, Adam Voges currently sits second to Don Bradman with a Test batting average of 95.50.

Can Voges lift to overtake The Don again, and, in the process, annoy cricket statisticians worldwide by forcing them to redefine all their various minimum requirements to ensure that Bradman remains unconquered?

Let’s hope so.

Rene Kink, Australian rules football (1977, 1979-81, 1983)
Rene Kink, nicknamed The Incredible Hulk in an era where such blatant disregard for Marvel Comics’ intellectual property was commonplace, played in four losing VFL grand finals for Collingwood in 1977, 1979, 1980 and 1981.

The first of those grand final defeats was actually a replay, after Collingwood and North Melbourne drew on the first attempt, which, from a certain point of view, means Kink had a double-length grand final loss to kick off the run. He then moved to Essendon, where he lost another grand final in 1983. And while Essendon won the flag in 1984, Kink missed out, having suffered a decidedly Bruce Banneresque knee injury.

Kudos to Rene Kink, the clear-cut second place champion of Australian rules football.

Greg Norman, Golf (1984-1996)
No list of great Australian second place performances would be complete without Greg Norman. So here he is.

So, readers, what’s your favourite Australian second-place finish? Or, more to the point, what’s your second-favourite Australian second-place finish?