Roar Guru
Joined May 2014
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Forgiveness is far easier to achieve than permission.
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In response to Mary Konstantopoulos’s article ‘In defence of referees’, I’m sorry but I have to disagree. The NRL’s lack of spectacle this season is 100 per cent referees’ fault.
Every year us loyal fans look at the new NRL season, consider the year before, consider the news signings of every club and rank them on where they should end up at the end of the season.
I was critical of the selectors during their kneejerk reactions to Australia’s disaster of a series against South Africa last summer and more recently in Asia. Dropping Peter Nevill in the South African series was their biggest mistake.
There is plenty of talk about crowd numbers being dismal for an NRL finals series and loads of reasons are put out there as to why.
Well here it is again back all over the media. Who would have thought after the last umpteen NRL stars ruined their careers over recreational drug use that we would see this back in the headlines?
The revelations that all charges had been dropped on Semi Radradra this week I am sure are welcome news to the man, and Parramatta fans.
It seems only yesterday a few cricket ‘Johhny come latelys’ were jumping all over the debutant Matt Renshaw as he made his debut at the Adelaide Oval pink ball Test for his slow batting.
Do we have a cap or don’t we? How this third party arrangement is supposed to work really baffles me and I hope the punters can help me out on this.
While Boxing Day and the MCG hold a special, traditional meaning in Australia, the SCG holds sway for me.
Throughout the Ashes I have noticed a number of technical quirks by the batsmen but there is one in particular that seems to have been adopted by all of the Australian batsmen.
The vultures are circling in another case of deja vu for the Australian captain. From Mark Taylor to Steve Waugh to Ricky Ponting, all who preceded Michael Clarke had runs of poor form which saw the pressure piled on their already weighty position. Now it’s the incumbent’s turn.
South Sydney’s premiership credentials were put into serious question in losing to an under strength Titans outfit in Sydney.
Wow just wow! What a difference less than 24 hours makes in rugby league.
While the ICC have their official International Test Rankings, it takes a deeper look at the game to really see where the game and Test nations are.
Two weeks before the historic series victory to NSW, NRL CEO Dave Smith declared that banning the biff had been an emphatic success.
Following Tim Gore’s excellent piece on the Raiders, I thought I’d weigh in on the state of affairs in the NRL.
I’ve been noticing it all year in Melbourne Storm’s NRL games. I guess fear of reprisal has held me from writing about it until now.
When I first started watching rugby league in the 1980s it was the hard men of the game that got me addicted to the sport as a kid.
With all the debate over the NSW side finally over and done with, a quick look at the two sides on paper shows that it’s clear Jarryd Hayne could be the difference.
With poor old Newcastle Knights finding themselves in a financial mess, Brisbane’s original super coach could soon find himself back on the open market.
Once the Indian innings was over, that all became mute. Australia had a hefty target to chase and went about it all wrong. Warner needed to pick up the scoring rate way before he holed out. 48 dot balls for an opener of Warner’s hitting ability whilst chasing 353 was Cricket criminality.
Australia's baffling batting ensures failure in record run chase against India
This exact scenario is why I was critical of the selection of the team. They basically have no flexibility now to bring in more pinch hitter type players. Handscomb and Turner should have come into consideration for this one. The team may chase a big score here successfully but I don’t think the top 7 is the right one to be relying on going 350+ against quality bowling.
Australia vs India: 2019 Cricket World Cup preview and prediction
Played pretty good I thought.
Wayne Bennett lied to us, signed James Roberts and then got pants'd by the Eels on Friday night
You are joking insider aren’t you? You are way under valuing Cook and Murray.
Wayne Bennett lied to us, signed James Roberts and then got pants'd by the Eels on Friday night
That’s Bennett’s problem with Journo’s though. And sometime’s I think he’s justified. If Bennett had just given a “No Comment”, what do you think the chances, every journo in the room would say to themselves “Oh he doesn’t want to talk about that, I won’t ask him another seriously annoying question on the same subject”. The answer is zero. He’s had enough crap written about him by journos over the last 50 years, that I’m not surprised he has little respect for them..
Wayne Bennett lied to us, signed James Roberts and then got pants'd by the Eels on Friday night
I agree with everything you’ve said there Chris. Where I am worried is that Australia were competitive in those games recently with an in-form Peter Handscomb who was easily our best bat in a number of those games. The picked Cup side doesn’t leave a lot of flexibility in the batting order if we are on a road. I would have loved for them to pick Handscomb as a back up and then if the road comes he can replace Carey. The top order wouldn’t have to worry as much about their wickets and swing for the fences if they had him possibly coming in anywhere between 5 and 7.
Uber-flat English pitches would mar World Cup
Gee how good are the bunnies going without him. Can you imagine if they were able to snare Latrell Mitchell with those dollars? I suppose there’s a few backs at Souths that have earned an upgrade also.
A sensible conclusion to the Greg Inglis salary cap situation
I agree and I have an inkling that it will be a wrist spinner we are talking about at the end of the tournament.
Jos Buttler is the new MVP of ODI cricket
I think this article highlights why so many are complaining about scrums taking up so much time In rugby. The “dark arts” these days are all about gaining some advantage before forcing a scrum to the ground to gain your team a penalty. Maybe this has always been the case at the highest levels, but it used to be referees looking for any intentional action that forced a scrum to collapse was penalised regardless of who had the advantage when the scrum collapsed. Sure it takes some serious skill and power to achieve these dark arts but every time a scrum collapses, there is a risk of serious injury to front row players. To do so intentionally is dangerous.
We need to go back to watching scrums where one team pushes the other off the ball or get rid of them all-together.
Why the Wallabies' props are no longer in a bind
Cracking article and well argued. I have to agree with you. With all these injuries going around I would love to see this team run out for game 1.
1. James Tedesco
2. Blake Ferguson
3. Latrell Mitchell
4. Josh Morris
5. Josh Addo-Carr
6. Cody Walker
7. Luke Keary
8. Payne Haas
9. Damien Cook
10. David Klemmer
11. Boyd Cordner
12. Tyson Frizell
13. Jake Turbo
14. Ryan Matterson
15. Cameron Murray
16. Tevita Pangai
17. Paul Vaughan.
Matterson and Murray in Blue? The perfect one, two
I thought Gus had explained that perfectly.
Where has it gone wrong for the Penrith Panthers?
To be fair Griffin wasn’t going well at Brisbane. He did much better at Penrith but was always going to get the sack at Brisbane regardless of if Bennet became available.
Where has it gone wrong for the Penrith Panthers?
I think that if these muppets in the selection seat give Joe Burns a decent crack, he will end this Ashes series still averaging over 40 with that 20 test Barrier passed.
England will unleash two 150km/h quicks in The Ashes
Wasn’t Izzy simply quoting directly from the “Good Book”? I’m no religious scholar but I figure the bloke had his research done before he repeated the words. Then isn’t anyone quoting from the book using “extreme language”? I think the greens will have a field day if we go down this path and it becomes the norm.
We are (IMO) deviating too far from the issue at heart here. Wether his language was “extreme” “fanatical” or “fundamentalist” is COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT.
What matters is what is in his contract. It is the first second and only point here. If he has signed something that says he can’t preach this stuff then he’s done. If there is no such clause, then who ever at RA that prepared/approved the contract (especially after last year), needs to walk away from the game without pay right now.
Folau confirms he knocked back RA's peace offering
My thoughts exactly. Also the reason I think it’s madness that Handscomb isn’t at least touring to give them that option if they need it.
The Aussie team’s biggest weakness
Yes wind assisted but to be doing that, at his age no mater the race or genetics would raise eyebrows. The fact that he’s white makes it that little extra-ordinary.
Caster Semenya loses landmark case – possibly ending her career
Spruce, google Mathew Boling. That may be about the change.
Caster Semenya loses landmark case – possibly ending her career
I think David is right. Finch, in spite of that amazing return to form, hasn’t made me confident that he’s not vulnerable to quality swing bowling early in the innings. Similarly, Khawaja more often than not struggles straight up against spin. Warner and Khawaja to open with finch at 3 I think is the best combination.
David Warner ends his IPL campaign on another high
Mary, I’m someone who has been critical of your opinion in the past (aka JDB&Semi Radradra) but you’ve nailed this one! While I have your attention. Which halfback will score the most SuperCoach points between now-round 8 and the end of round 12?
The Cowboys need to start planning for 2020
The thing is, with Walker they offer as much in attack as any team in the comp. Braidon Burns getting injured along with the G.I. Retirement has slowed down that edge attack somewhat. I think the only thing stopping a Rabbittoh top 4 would be the selections of Murray, Walker, and or Reynolds in origin this year.
Sadly, after just six rounds it’s already a two-horse race in the NRL
I don’t really care what his record was @6. He managed 4 hundreds for 109 innings with the vast majority of those innings opening. A whole lot of spin required to suggest those figures equal an opening test bat. Jesus, poor Joe Burns has 4 test tons and only been given 28 opportunities.
The joyous autumn of Shane Watson
If only he was happy to be playing @ 6 for the test team he probably wouldn’t have been criticised at all. He simply wasn’t a test opening bat.
The joyous autumn of Shane Watson
I think your assessment is probably right. But I think Manly will make the 8 if Tommy Turbo gets back sooner rather than later and they get some luck injury wise. Same with the Bunnies, though I think they can push the top two deep into September if they get their act together.
Sadly, after just six rounds it’s already a two-horse race in the NRL
It’s been a while since centres had “combinations” with one another.
Has Freddy gone a little bonkers?