Crikey Sports

Our balls and all sports blog

There will be blood: Wednesday’s twist

September 23, 2009 – 8:54 am, by Matt Gagger
The SFS - similar to 'any suburban park'

The SFS - similar to 'any suburban park'

If yesterday was round 1 to the ARU (via Grumbles Growden) then today is Demo and the players’ turn to strike back. However, I’m not sure they’ve helped their cause much at all, potentially the reverse.

At the bottom of this post is the RUPA’s official reply to Grumbles’ expose yesterday. It’s goal appears to be to cast the ‘money-grubbing’ spotlight back onto the ARU, saying that the players only wanted paying if the match was to be a commercial venture. On the face of it that would sound ‘fair enough’ to many.

However, there are some important details in the RUPA statement. Read More »

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There will be blood: Wallaby trial scratched

September 22, 2009 – 7:40 pm, by Matt Gagger
Deathmatch 2009 - malafidies

Deathmatch 2009 - malafidies

Heard about the scuppered pre-tour trial match? In short, the ARU and Dingo Deans wanted a Possibles vs Probables trial (under lights at the SFS or North Sydney) to help decide the peggings of who goes on the Grand Slam tour this year.

No doubt it would have also generated more cash and RUPA wanted a slice of it – an extra $2500 for each of the 44 players involved to be precise, on top of what they already earn. The ARU wouldn’t swallow it and when RUPA wouldn’t back down either, the whole idea got canned. (You can read Grumbles Growden’s full exposé here).

At the bottom of this post is a letter from a reader of Green And Gold Rugby.com that I think summarises the sentiment of a lot of Wallabies fans on the issue (if our forum is anything to go by). I’ll confess that with what I had to endure last Saturday, it captures many of my emotions on the subject as well.

But first, some juicy and important background. What everyone should realise is that this situation is no doubt the latest round in one of the most bitter bloodfeuds going in Australian rugby; that between John O’Neil and Tony Dempsey, head honchos of the ARU and RUPA respectively.

JO’N and Demmo have never got along, and it’s personal. Read More »

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Roger Federer: No more nice guy Feddy?

September 17, 2009 – 9:26 am, by Neil Walker

Is Roger Federer the greatest ever tennis player? It’s debatable. And experts have been doing just that both before and after Federer’s record breaking 15th Grand Slam tournament win at Wimbledon this year. While pondering whether the Swiss ace is indeed better than the likes of Bjorn Borg, Pete Sampras and (our) Rod Laver, there is at least one thing everybody can agree on. Roger is so lovely. It just goes to show that nice guys can finish first.

Oh, really?

It’s easy being nice when you’re smashing opponents left, right and straight down the middle of the court so consistently. Winners are grinners, after all. Roger’s certainly not faced many setbacks in his illustrious tennis career to date, but when he has it hasn’t always been pretty.

Federer lost his cool during the US Open final this week (won by Juan Martín del Potro), rudely advising the umpire, “Don’t tell me the  f**king rules”. Close your eyes and you could swear it’s John McEnroe.

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And it’s not the first time Federer’s mongrel streak has been evident recently. Earlier this year he petulantly smashed his racquet while losing to Novak Djokovic at the Miami Masters:

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He also disputed HawkEye system decisions during 2007’s Wimbledon final against Raphael Nadal, being heard swearing during a changeover, claiming the system “is killing me”.

Make no mistake. Federer is ruthless. Anyone who’s been at the top of their sport for so long has to be. He’s admitted he struggled to control his on court temperament early in his career (”I had a very bad temper, I was very aggressive. Always testing the limits, always arguing over calls, but never cheating. Always upset with myself. Angry at the conditions all the time. It got to the point where my parents threatened to stop driving me to tournaments if I carried on like this. They were too embarrassed to be seen with me.”) and this character trait could regularly re-emerge if Federer begins losing more often.

If that were to eventuate, don’t be surprised if Federer decides to retire sooner rather than later, lest he damage his impeccable record as a fantastic sportsman and great champion. It’d be a shame to remember him otherwise.

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Hitler: “Dane Swan is not a HFF”

September 17, 2009 – 8:39 am, by Leigh Josey

Downfall parodies; the gift that keeps on giving.

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WTF sport moment of the week: Shaun Burgoyne’s manager won Big Brother

September 16, 2009 – 2:16 pm, by Leigh Josey

So it’s the silly season for both the AFL and the NRL. The penultimate stages of the season are upon us. Players whose teams have already fallen by the wayside may be looking for a new home. Nothing new with that.

And like most sports junkies I love this stuff. Hissyfits, claims on disloyalty, home sickness etc.

So anyway, Port Adelaide star (a term often overused but in this case very much warranted) Shaun Burgoyne has requested to leave Alberton and go to a Melbourne team. There’s probably a million reasons for this. Apparently Hawthorn have been talking to Shaun since June and Port fans are bitchin’ (and rightly so).

So I was reading a few things today and came across Ashley Browne’s yarn in today’s Toy Department and found out, much to my surprise, that Shaun’s manager was Ben Williams — the winner of the inaugural Big Brother (you know, the god awful reality TV show). He’s even briefly mentioned in Emma Quayle’s excellent 2008 book The Draft as wanting to “break into player management”.

Not so say that those who appear on Big Brother (and indeed win it) can’t go on to bigger and better things but I just sorta assumed…

It’s time to go … Shaun.

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Reason for football fans to be cheerful

September 15, 2009 – 11:33 am, by Neil Walker

SBS has reportedly already booked $20m worth of advertising for next year’s football World Cup coverage. They deserve it for their long term support of the beautiful game when commercial TV stations weren’t interested.

Gripes about SBS being allowed to have ad breaks aside, Australian football fans should be thankful the station has the TV rights to show the Socceroos’ games in South Africa at the world’s biggest sporting event.

Here’s how the likes of Channel 7 would likely treat the sport if they ever get their hands on the broadcast rights:

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The unlikeable All Australian team

September 14, 2009 – 12:20 am, by Scott Shepherd

The AFL All Australian team will be announced on Monday night. Given the debate that always surrounds the team, I think it is actually a statutory requirement to offer an opinion on where the selectors got it wrong.

In that spirit, I offer up my own version of the All Australian team. To make it more fun, I have drawn entirely from a pool of players that, for one reason or another, I do not like.

Have I missed anyone you love to hate?

B Chris Tarrant, Daniel Merrett, Adam Hunter

HB Adam McPhee, Nathan Bock, Campbell Brown

C Alan Didak, Mark McVeigh, Des Headland

HF Nick Riewoldt, Matthew Pavlich, Colin Sylvia

F Daniel Bradshaw, Cameron Mooney, Stephen Milne

Foll Brent Harvey, Joel Selwood, Brock McLean

IC Adam Selwood, Dayne Beams, Steven Baker, Jake King

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Jockeys striking? Solution: pay peanuts, get monkeys

September 11, 2009 – 10:09 am, by Leigh Josey

So the jockeys are striking.  Melbourne’s iconic Spring Carnival is in crisis mode as the horse people with the small hands put the whip in the rack and refuse to race. You don’t want to mess with a group of jockeys, they have special magical powers.

Stewards, bookies, the average punter need a solution. There’s a quaddie to be done tomorrow for chrissakes.

Here at Crikey we are always, as usual, here to help.

Don’t have jockeys? Get the next best thing.

Monkeys.

God yes. Make this happen. Please.

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How to apply Chris Judd ninja master pressure points

September 10, 2009 – 4:10 pm, by Leigh Josey

I had to find out.

Here’s how.

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RIP Amy S

September 7, 2009 – 9:22 am, by Jarrod Kimber

I am making an assumption that you are not a part of cricket blogging community and that you will not know now of the parting of one of Australia’s best cricket bloggers, Amy S.

Amy was only 26.

Her friend has put up a piece about her passing over at Amy’s site.

I will not go on and on about Amy as a cricket writer, you can visit her site and decide for yourself, but I will say I am sorry that she will not be part of the community any more.

There are very few women who write about cricket, and even fewer who do so in such an enjoyable manner.

Cricket blogging has lost something with her passing.

Condolences to her family and friends, they will have lost so much more.

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