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Messages - LP

10307
Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Trumpled (Alternative Leading)
Is Bannon boosting Moore a genuine form of support for the democrats, or a clever way to get back at Trump?

It seems quite odd that Bannon is going out of his way to connect the election result to the continuation of the "Trump Miracle".

It's almost like Bannon is trying to mobilise Trump's opposition by reminding them the meaning this election result contains!

PS: Early reports are Moore has lost. Trump's people are blaming sexual misconduct allegations to distract from Trump as the primary cause of a shock result in a "Trump state". I presume it was Trump state during the election because it was more anti-Hilary!
10309
The Sports Desk / Re: The Third Test in the Ashes Series - WACA (14 December)
Not a chance in hell he was better than Martyn.
Martyn averaged 46.40 from 67 tests. 55.50 in India.
He was a seriously good player.

Like most batsmen his average OS was marginally lower than his average at home.

Dean Jones averaged 92 in India!

Most of the time, so few innings are built OS that the averages depend more on the weather, injuries or opportunities than anything else. So I'm not sure we should hang our hats on stats that involve a handful of innings.

Hodge was lambasted by some scribes for batting too slowly when making 203 off 332 balls in Perth, but Steven Smith is a hero scoring 142 of 326!

What are we to think?
10311
The Sports Desk / Re: The Third Test in the Ashes Series - WACA (14 December)
Hmm, gee Martyn was a class player though, average of 46.3.  I don't think he got the credit he deserved because he batted at his best away from Australia.  Averaged almost 46 away from home as well & hit 9 of his 13 hundreds away.....that says to he how valuable he was, particularly on the subcontinent & South Africa.

Not disputing whether he was good or not, just whether he was the best available at the time.
10312
The Sports Desk / Re: The Third Test in the Ashes Series - WACA (14 December)
Hodge? He could undoubtedly play but was he better than Ponting, S Waugh, M Waugh, D Martin, M Hussey? They are the guys he was fighting for a spot with.

Yes for some of them!

Hodge clearly had the runs on the board literally, more so than M Waugh or Martin. Martin is another mystery selection on many occasions.

Back then though, the test and one day teams were one and the same, it was like playing for NSW and Australia. When you got a gig at one the other was an automatic, the old jokes about one cap on your head and the other in a brown paper bag for later don't exist for nothing! ;)

Dean Jones and Elliott had plenty of chances.

Are you saying they failed?

I suspect you'll find Jones got the kibosh because of his mouth, not his performances.

Elliott's problem was that Australia was generally crap at the time he was playing, and he got his last gig to the West Indies with a team playing on pitches that were designed to simulate lunar landing environment. He was an opener forced to bat at three behind Langer and Hayden which seems fair, with Lehman and Martyn clinging to diminishing careers as support. That was a weird time for Australian test cricket, they had Katich batting just above Gilchrist who was captaining, no offense to Gilchrist but seriously? :o
10314
Blah-Blah Bar / Re: SSM Plebiscite
The wedding industry will be rubbing their collective hands together in anticipation of a windfall ... but not just your nuptials  ;)
Not wanting to be a killjoy, but do services create wealth or just move it around?

If all these weddings go on the never never like most weddings, surely it only adds to Australia's credit debt!

One stress removed, another one added! ;D

10316
The Sports Desk / Re: The Third Test in the Ashes Series - WACA (14 December)
I  wish Dean Jones + Brad Hodge ( And now Maxwell ) got the same chances back in the day.

There is a power of players who never got equivalent opportunities.

Clarke made an interesting comment, he described the Marsh's as ripper blokes, the sort you want to have around the team. Hardly a reason for test selection, maybe that can keep them around like Nugget!

I may have told this story before but nepotism in cricket is very real, and not always the way you think. A friends son was blatantly blackmailed three years ago, threatened by a state cricket official, told to leave home and play grade cricket in NSW or he'd never pull on the baggy green even though he had represented his State and Australia multiple times at junior level. He declined and the abuse and interference became so bad, abusive txts and phone calls, hassling his parents, hassling his club and coach, that in the end he gave the game away and chose football!

The NSW official turned out to be a relative of a high ranking Australian and NSW cricket official, it seems they were making the you'll play for us or nobody scenario very real! They were in effect standing over kids in other states to move to NSW grade clubs or else.
10317
The Sports Desk / Re: The Third Test in the Ashes Series - WACA (14 December)
Marsh bowls consistently above 140kmhr and can move it if the Doctor is blowing!

I think that is a wait and see.

If you had written occasionally above 140kph I'd have agreed, but consistently above 140kph I'm not so sure.

A lot of these modern "Average Speeds" are coming out of 20/20, fours overs in one or two over spells isn't really a useful tell!
10318
The Sports Desk / Re: The Third Test in the Ashes Series - WACA (14 December)
It's funny isn't it, years ago blokes like Gilmore or Davidson often bowled the bulk of overs.

I suppose prior to Cummins and Starc we had Johnson. Going back Lindwall wasn't a spud, and Benaud of course.

I don't consider players like Warne and Waugh as true All-Rounders, I think Johnson falls in that category but many rate him an All-Rounder.

Miller was the stand-out, really our only player who came close to Sobers.

It's hard to get a gauge on some of the older players, because of the mix of playing conditions like 6 and 8 ball overs, etc., etc.. Back in the 8 ball over days very few ordinary All-Rounders made it as bowlers, it's amazing the difference two extra deliveries make to part-timers!

By my definition, an All-Rounder should be top order capable in either bowling or batting. Australia has had very few All-Rounders(Excluding some keepers who for some reason are over-looked) that are capable of batting above 5 or opening the bowling.
10319
The Sports Desk / Re: The Third Test in the Ashes Series - WACA (14 December)
Hazlewood didn't bowl like a workhorse bowler in Adelaide.
This bloke is as good as we have. I was in Adelaide all 5 days and he was putting them under more pressure than anyone.
He is a seriously good bowler. Absolute World Class, and I think now with his pace up, they want the All Rounder to use these guys as weapons in short bursts more.

I stated as much, I wrote that Starc was dead lucky he had Hazlewood there at the other end, Starc cleans up tails like Junk-time Eddie kicks goals. ;)

I agree that Hazlewood was under-bowled, I thought it was quite mischievous for Smith to come out post match and claim Hazlewood was not bowling well or under-performing.

Twice during the match you must have been perplexed by Smith's bowling changes. Both Hazlewood and Lyon were in spells and all over the Poms like a rash and Smith removed them from the attack after relatively short spells by their standard.
10320
The Sports Desk / Re: The Third Test in the Ashes Series - WACA (14 December)
I don't know? Maybe they would concentrate on the game they are currently playing, then focus on the next one?
Maybe the series defining game, Adelaide was there to be won?
FFS I thought you said you had played plenty of 3 and 4 game cricket?
Did you read what Warne, Taylor and even now what Smith have said since the game has finished?

As you know I am not a critic of Smith's decision to bat, it was the right decision.

Do you think the selections for the next match are consistent with the various statements given how little Marsh has bowled recently, and given his history of breaking down when bowled heavily? Is it consistent to drop Sayers and bring in Marsh for a game in which they claim they will need an extra front line bowler?

Personally, I think they've brought Marsh in as a batsmen, it will be interesting to see how much he bowls. There is a stench to that decision.

It's fair for me to question the consistency of claims that the decision to bat in Adelaide was unjustified based on bowlers loads, but for the same critics to call for an extra bowler in Perth, a wicket traditionally more favorable to fast bowlers. Especially if the chances are high Lyon retains a spot for a location not know to be a spin bowler favorite.

I think Cummins is a technically better bat than M Marsh.
Marsh has previously planted his front foot to early.

Maybe the selectors think the tail is good enough that they can afford to play M Marsh at 6, or even Paine at 6 and M Marsh at 7.

The Cummins argument is a strong one and one I agree with, which is why I'd bat him higher and bring in another certified front line bowler for Handscomb, Sayers. You still have Paine and Starc batting of a fast flat track that they have a good history on. Once we have Starc, Cummins, Hazlewood, Sayers it's clear Lyon regardless of his form should come out of the team for that one test with Maxwell an option based on batting alone. That would be a hell of a formidable horses for courses squad to play in Perth targeting a fast and large total. The only way to get a result there is rapid scoring, and Maxwell is a clear first choice.

For mine Sayers and Hazlewood are workhorse bowlers, you won;t get the best out of them in short sharp spells, they need overs a plenty to become effective. Cummins and Starc are the sharp spell types.

For subsequent tests you then have two ways to go, firstly Lyon comes back in for Melb and Sydney, but he can come in for Maxwell or Sayers subject to performance.

Is Mitch Marsh going to be an effective batsmen on turning wickets in either Melb or Sydney, does that mean he's coming on for one test with little hope of a second?