Smith's Crew in SA

[LP]

The word I have is this, among other rumours.

After the recent controversy Warner had decided to pull the pin on his test career, to concentrate on the IPL probably, but the word is he described it to team-mates as he's just had enough of the bullcrap and the decision was made when they started targeting his missus!

So he's raised his hand to take the heat for everyone involved, to be the scapegoat that stops half the team being sanctioned, and to save Smith's career!

This is so bizarre, it almost sounds plausible!

[Professer E]

Weak as p!ss Sutherland....  how Lehman survived beggars belief.  Who ran the investigation...Inspector Clouseau?

[sandsmere]

The word I have is this, among other rumours.

After the recent controversy Warner had decided to pull the pin on his test career, to concentrate on the IPL probably, but the word is he described it to team-mates as he's just had enough of the bullcrap and the decision was made when they started targeting his missus!

So he's raised his hand to take the heat for everyone involved, to be the scapegoat that stops half the team being sanctioned, and to save Smith's career!

This is so bizarre, it almost sounds plausible!

Too many rumours in this thread. Lets stick to facts.

[malo]

Agree. Cricket is the real loser. It seems to have become just another sad reflection of the screwed up values our world is currently struggling with. Remember "Whatever it takes"?

I've not commented on this up to now & have just been going through the forum reading up......this post nails it in one sentence.  Not one minute excusing what they did, but the drive for success (media & public driven) in all sports has become so over-emphasised that the health & enjoyment of the sport has become obliterated.  And yes, this is an extension of the erosion of values such as respect, honesty, humility & integrity in our society.

I'm currently re-reading (I've read it many time since I was a boy) the autobiography of Ray Lindwall "Flying Stumps".......and I ache for the return to that era of cricket, and a return of such gems of blokes such as Lindwall playing our game today & providing examples to our kids that we can be proud of.  However, it may well be a forlorn hope.

[JonHenry]

When you consider the position Steve Smith was thrown into as a 25 year old, it is hardly any wonder this has happened.
I don't want to excuse his actions in anyway, but....

Cricket is obviously a very different game to AFL and the responsibility placed on the national captain is enormous.
It is greater than that of AFL coach.
He is under scrutiny from everyone around the world for his own performances, his tactical ability and his statesmanship off the field.
What training do you think he had for this?
Who did CA put their to guide him and support him?

All the answers point to the top. CEO Sutherland had a duty of care to provide much better support and leadership in and around the team other than Boof head.

Time for a serious re-think on a sport that is looking for $1B TV rights

[sandsmere]

I've not commented on this up to now & have just been going through the forum reading up......this post nails it in one sentence.  Not one minute excusing what they did, but the drive for success (media & public driven) in all sports has become so over-emphasised that the health & enjoyment of the sport has become obliterated.  And yes, this is an extension of the erosion of values such as respect, honesty, humility & integrity in our society.

I'm currently re-reading (I've read it many time since I was a boy) the autobiography of Ray Lindwall "Flying Stumps".......and I ache for the return to that era of cricket, and a return of such gems of blokes such as Lindwall playing our game today & providing examples to our kids that we can be proud of.  However, it may well be a forlorn hope.

Good post malo.

The Lindwall, Miller, Harvey days were great.
Too much money in sport these days. We are not talking dollars anymore, it's millions these days.
The amounts of money available in sport today encourages cheating.

[LP]

Too many rumours in this thread. Lets stick to facts.

I realise it's a rumor, but I think this is the correct and relevant thread for it.

[LP]

I've not commented on this up to now & have just been going through the forum reading up......this post nails it in one sentence.  Not one minute excusing what they did, but the drive for success (media & public driven) in all sports has become so over-emphasised that the health & enjoyment of the sport has become obliterated.  And yes, this is an extension of the erosion of values such as respect, honesty, humility & integrity in our society.

I'm currently re-reading (I've read it many time since I was a boy) the autobiography of Ray Lindwall "Flying Stumps".......and I ache for the return to that era of cricket, and a return of such gems of blokes such as Lindwall playing our game today & providing examples to our kids that we can be proud of.  However, it may well be a forlorn hope.

Are we being a bit precious here, it's not like it was the glory days!

Forgive me if I am wrong, but back in Lindwall's day you could legally scrub the ball on the pitch. There was no rule saying you had to scrub it evenly all over the surface, you could scrub one side if you so choose.

For modern ball tampering, somewhat ironically cricket historians will say it was TV that forced the change, after TV was able to deliver higher quality slow motion replays "ball tampering" incidents became widely exposed. The broadcast medium that complains about slow games and non-results helped contribute to slow games and non-results! Should we listen to them now?

Now the whole game is over officiated. The umpires even interject if teams are not throwing the ball back on the full, like the thrower from the outfield has any real control over which side of the ball hits the ground! If they don't control the side that hits they are actually benefiting the batsmen! In any case, most 1st class grounds are like playing on a bowling green and the grass has almost no effect on the condition of the ball! It's a moronic over legislation and interjection that the game does not need, rules built on flaky theories not on facts, and initiated by batsmen who have moved into administration roles. Those poor unfairly treated batsmen who are victims of the big bad bowlers no doubt! :o

Unfortunately for the bowlers, cricket is a game of asymmetry, there are too many batsmen relative to bowlers and batsmen now govern the game!

[cookie2]

I guess that if not wanting to see our national cricket team humiliated in front of the world after being caught cheating whilst on tour is "precious", then I guess some of us are guilty of that.

[LP]

I guess that if not wanting to see our national cricket team humiliated in front of the world after being caught cheating whilst on tour is "precious", then I guess some of us are guilty of that.

In context of Malo's post about the Lindwall era, it's dead easy to think things were more gentile and honest in the past. But in that era pitches were left uncovered, they were frequently watered or otherwise doctored, bats were weighted or corked, you could scrub away at the ball on the pitch, bodyline was legal, etc., etc.. For which any number of rules have since been authored to address those issues.

As an analogy, what would a modern day AFL player think about lining up on Ted Whitten, Kevin "Cowboy" Neale, Captain Blood Jack Dyer or even a more recent Neil Balme! You know, back in the good old days!

Cricket was/is no different!

It's too easy to look at the distant past with rose coloured glasses.

I heard a discussion once were Bill Lawry described a past batsmen of great skill, who when the opportunity arose would jam the cricket ball in between his front foot spikes and the bat as part of a forward defensive stroke. Yet a bowler from the same era using a fingernail on the seam was illegal.