Cricket Australia has moved swiftly to replace national selection chairman Rod Marsh after he quit, with immediate effect, last Wednesday.
Former Test skipper Greg Chappell will be the interim replacement, with Trevor Hohns the new chairman.
An excellent choice with Chappell, but an emphatic ‘no’ for Hohns as chairman.
Chappell has twice been a national selector before – in 1984-1988 and 2010-2011 as Cricket Australia’s national talent manager after the infamous Argus Report.
These days the 68-year-old Chappell is right at the grass roots of Australian cricket, he knows more about where tomorrow’s Test and one-day cricketers will come from as the man in charge of the national performance squad.
Mark Waugh should be the new chairman, but in naming Hohns the panel has taken on a new set of dynamics.
Let’s get one part of Hohns’ CV right – he wasn’t responsible as chairman for one of the greatest eras of Australian cricket, the baggy greens picked themselves.
Mark Taylor, Michael Slater, Matt Hayden, Justin Langer, Ricky Ponting, Mark Waugh, Steve Waugh, Damien Martyn, Adam Gilchrist, Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and Brett Lee.
A two-year-old with a pin could have picked those cricketers, and done just as good a job.
Where Hohns was different was his penchant to end careers early.
He had Taylor, Slater, Martyn, and Steve Waugh in his cross-hairs, as if to justify his position.
Hohns did get Martyn after the West Australia scored just six runs off 59 deliveries when Australia was set 117 to win by South Africa at the SCG in 1994.
Australia lost by five runs, Martyn did six years penance.
Hohns did get Slater, eventually got Taylor, but Steve Waugh escaped his darts to retire on his own terms.
Now Hohns is again chairman he has two votes which makes him dangerous in a four-man panel if the original voting is 2-2.
He wouldn’t have earned his nickname of “Hatchet” Hohns if he was a choir boy.
So what about the new selection dynamics?
There’s a pretty safe bet Chappell and Hohns will be in the same direction of recognising youth early, while Waugh and Lehmann will be more about the youth earning their representative way through performances.
That’s where Hohns’ vote will split the panel.
And he has the current situation of five Test losses on the trot on his side to use his hatchet with impunity.
The current NSW-Victoria Sheffield Shield clash at the SCG will answer many questions.
On duty for NSW – Test men Steve Smith, David Warner, Peter Nevill and Nathan Lyon.
Plus Test contenders – batsmen Nic Maddinson and Kurtis Patterson, with all-rounders Moises Henriques and Steve O’Keefe.
The Vics have contenders as well with Peter Handscomb, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron White, and Matt Wade.
Handscomb made the most of his chances on day one with an unbeaten 110 off a very patient 193 with 12 boundaries and a six.
Handscomb and Wade make an interesting comparison – both are keepers who bat.
While Wade was on ODI duty in South Africa, Handscomb kept wickets for the Vics. When Wade returned, he took over the gloves.
What makes it interesting is Handscomb is the better keeper and the better batsman, which means Handscomb is the bigger threat to Nevill as Test keeper than Wade.
Maxwell, White, and Wade will bat today.
With the ball Lyon went wicketless for 88 off 27, while O’Keefe took 1-65 off 25.
The third and final Test against South Africa will be a pink ball day-nighter at Adelaide, starting next Thursday.
The current Shield games will be finished before the new panel names the Adelaide squad.
Hayden
Guest
I believe a separate National Selection Panels for Tests and White Ball Cricket due to different skill sets required in these formats. My National Test Selection Panel Chairman is Ricky Ponting. My National Test Selection Panel Selectors are The Captain, Chris Rogers and Greg Chappell. My National White Ball Selection Panel Chairman is Tom Moody. My National White Ball Selection Panel Selectors are The Captain, Simon Katich and Mark Waugh. The Coach should always be consulted before every selection meeting. Both Chairman of Selectors will report to Executive General Manager of Team Performance.
lilbob
Roar Rookie
Greg Chappell???!!! Seriously??? After what he's done to State Cricket in this this country?? W..T..F???? That's it....I'm switching to that game they play on ice with broomsticks and kettles!
Bfc
Guest
but...you neglect the effect Greg Chappell's obsession with promoting youth ( via the reality series and restricting the number of players over 24 that played in the State Second XIs....).
Sandy B
Guest
Lets see.... 20 lines abt selectors. Then the next 12 abt selections. Perhaps you didnt get past the pretty pictures.
AJ
Guest
How do YOU keep getting a gig David? You must have some strong alliances there, Mate. If only Hohns could cut you from the Roar. You seriously are the most protected species in Australia. Martyn ran down the pitch and played the most ridiculous shot ever, in that time. He had to be dropped for that and then had to force his way into a No.1 team that never lost. Then you only detail the NSW vs Vic game. There are two other games and 4 other states in Australia. Great 'journalism' there, or is that your BIAS hanging out. Seriously ROAR ????How does this gibberish get a run???????
Johnno
Guest
Chappell has a bedside manner to, and has a history of being overbearing on senior players, and an unwelcome figure in the dressing room, senior players he makes them feel stifled and under pressure.
Amrit
Roar Guru
Well he might have thought it was the team half-right now.
Rabbitz
Roar Guru
Really? A story about the selection panel and you give a list of players names. May I ask if you read the story?
The Bush
Roar Guru
Interesting. Do these players go back to their state teams when they're not playing for Australia? When is the squad chosen and for how long is the squad together, as cricket doesn't really have a season? I think the difficulty is still the length of time it takes to watch a cricket game, but you'd like to think if they have a review they'd at least consider this.
rl
Guest
Before we all cream our pants about Chappell, worth considering this piece by Brett Geeves. Chappell was a magnificent player, but his obsession with youth has, in Geeve's not uninformed view, contributed to our current woes. http://www.foxsports.com.au/cricket/australia/brett-geeves-on-the-demise-of-australian-domestic-cricket-and-impact-on-the-test-team/news-story/a1f4fa352d11422d46e933f5663dfa00 In rugby league circles, the legendary Cyril Connell was an amazing talent scout, but stayed well away from selection duties. Chappell's record would suggest that this is where his real strengths lie.
madmonk
Guest
Yeah Bush I understand the arguments but I am not sure its that unique. In my scenario mostly the coach would be working with the main squad. Once he has that squad most of the time he is only thinking about one or two roles for selection. He will have spoken to his scouts and will know the next tier of players that fit his team and style of play. His scouts work for him and look for players that fit the way he wants to play. Its closest comparison is football, although I acknowledge a national team football coach only sees his players a few days each month. I'm not sure how the current model works, for example a selector is at a game and sees player one make runs. A different selector sees the same player bat poorly and fail the following week but saw a different player make runs and so on. Then they have a teleconference and somehow they make a decision.
Chris Love
Roar Guru
Let's face it, Ponting rarely had to show any leadership with that team he was handed, they always picked themselves. I think Waugh on the other hand was a brilliant leader and the recent controversy after Warnie brought up old grudges about Waugh dropping him in the carribean highlight how good Waugh really was as a captain. That call was absolutely correct and must have been a massive call at the time to drop Warne. I'd be happy to see Steve Waugh as chairman of selectors......as long as he picks Handscomb to tour India ;)
The Bush
Roar Guru
Definitely have the same issue you have with selectors having other roles as say commentators etc, but I think the Chairman fronting the media about selections isn't overly different to head coaches fronting the media about their selections before the weekend. The difference is that this is our national code, it's only one team and it's of interest to the whole nation. No other individual team has this level of profile, but the "selector" (coach/manager) still fronts the media about his selections in other sides (i.e. the football codes). That also goes for the publication of the selectors supposed teleconferences - I'm sure the coach of any football team has a conversation of some kind with his assistant coaches before selecting, it's just not high profile enough to be news. I absolutely agree that the captain having the "team they want" is pretty unique to cricket. But then cricket's a pretty unique sport... I actually think the selectors, i.e. their actual substantive role, is discussed. Due to the Argus report the Captain was an official selector at one point. So they have considered the substantive roles. The problem with having a similar system to the football codes is the nature of cricket. If Boof spent his time watching very domestic game so he was up on who to select, he wouldn't have time to analyse the opposition, form appropriate team plans and also "coach" the team (I'm actually unsure how much of that he does, they seem to have a lot of assistant coaches).
Christo the Daddyo
Guest
"What are better credentials than being all time legends of the game that captained their countries?" Maybe someone with significant coaching experience/qualifications who watches the majority of Shield games in person? As far as I'm aware, neither Ponting or Steve Waugh qualify on either point.
Christo the Daddyo
Guest
The fact that you brought their names up would suggest you think they're worthy - at least that's what I assumed. Apologies if I've misinterpreted... But the thinking that so and so was a good player means they would be a good coach/selector/administrator/etc is ludicrous. The only people who should be considered for selector roles are people who keep a close watch on the next level down. Is Steve Waugh doing this? What experience does he have in developing new upcoming talent? I think Greg Chappell's appointment makes a lot of sense - in theory anyway. Names like Ponting/Waugh/et al - I'm not convinced...
madmonk
Guest
Its different because in other sports there is no ambiguity about who makes the call. No chairman of selectors giving press conferences on team selection, no much publicised selectors teleconferences, no selectors whose day job is to be an analyst on a cricket panel shows, no commentary about the captain picking the team. I am not saying it is the answer, it is just interesting that the selection model is never discussed.
Anindya Dutta
Roar Guru
Bush - Totally agree. I actually have an issue with your statement about pontingvhaving played with a few of the guys. Wouldn't that have been a factor even when he was captain when he was choosing his final XI? I would feel you have to trust the judgement and instincts of these two greats who have proved their leadership and selection qualities while captaining the team.
Bakkies
Guest
Slater was picked over Hayden to open in the '93 Ashes Tour. Hayden had stated a fairly strong case. Eventually got his chance against strong attacks but didn't produce. Went back to Shield and County cricket to blunder more runs.
Bakkies
Guest
Hohns should have been banished long ago. He was the bloke who stated publicly that the reason for dropping Phil Jaques from the one day squad was due to his fielding. This is the same bloke who scored 91 on his ODI début against SA. Talk about taking several steps back and the selectors used the same rationale for picking Mennie over Bird. Batting was the reason to drop Bird even though Bird had done his actual job of taking wickets.
The Bush
Roar Guru
Aren't your "scouts" simply the selectors? All you've done is make the coach's call final. Having recently listened to M Waugh confirm that the captain basically gets the team he wants, it seems likely that Boof and Smith already have a huge influence on selections, even if it isn't a strict "final" say.