The Wrap - Men's Netball and Clowns

1. State of Origin. Love how Ashley Klein ('Clown' to some), our third best ref, gets the nod. He was the 2006 International Rugby League Referee of the year. That was 16 years ago! Klein loves a get square, so this always helps to keep the game competitive.

The Origin sell-out bodes well for the Western Reds reincarnation! Down 1-0 is tough in Origin, whoever the team. There have only been seven teams in Origin history (out of 35 series) to win after trailing 0-1 in the series. The last time was in 2013. QLD are hot favourites.

Can we start the game any later? Ridiculous.

* POST GAME ADDITION: Well a lot stronger from NSW. Quicker line speed, more pressure on the QLD kickers, faster play the balls. A better, deeper kicking game with Burton in the mix. More experience helped with Jake T and Angus Crichton on the field. They got their bench rotation right too this time. Less fancy ball movement by our forwards and more yardage. Junior Paulo was immense. QLD used Papalli poorly off the bench. 

No room for Sims - or the Fox sadly. Not sure what they will do with Jack Wighton - in for Stephen Crichton? Otherwise, no changes for mine. Murray was good starting. Liam Martin was better with Yeo on the field. Luau started very emotionally and gave away penalties, but he unifies a team and makes players work harder. Clever, incisive ball runner. Cleary spot on tonight.

2. Rugby League. While respect for the talent and courage is always there, is it just me who finds it hard to get too excited about U/19 and women's rugby league instead of regular first grade games on prime time TV? I noticed young Jonah Pezet has joined the Melbourne Storm. Superb signing. Good luck to them and all strength to these players. Some brilliant athletes, but bring back the regular comp. 

Has anyone heard how Netball Australia are progressing with their national men's competition?

3. Test Rugby League. The weekend test matches (NZ v Tonga, Samoa v Cook Islands and PNG v Fiji) really underline how the Pacific Islander body shape and strength is ideally suited to the NRL. Some really powerful players with skill. How they love a flick pass! All those things NRL coaches ban, made the tests a little entertaining. The Fiji fullback surely needs a full NRL gig. They should be splashing the cash his way now.

4. NZ Cricket. Daryl Mitchell, the NZ middle order batsman gets New Zealand off the canvas with three hundreds in a row in England. He is again not out overnight and staring at another loss. Mark Tayloresque! Jonny Bairstow is similarly placed. Both have rescued their sides wonderfully well and repeatedly. Bairstow has played so well (like he did in Australia) and has really turned the results towards his team. 2-0 up and they have the edge now in the third test.

5. Australia v Sri Lanka. Losing an away series of cricket (T20, ODI and Test) is a specialty for us. To lose that ODI series is a disgrace, yet great spirit from the Sri Lankan crowds. Coach Ronald McDonald may need to check his Big Mac recipe fast, or he will be handing out posters in red boots and wearing yellow gloves. Sri Lanka is ranked 8th in the world, teetering on oblivion and we are fifth. A bad loss against a wily and valiant opponent who simply played better. 

Once again, spinning decks are our nemesis. Has Cricket Australia thought of creating a deck or two like this? They are all bouncy drop-in seamers these days... bad news for Australian players wanting to play in the rich (and soon to be richer) IPL too.

6. AFL. Melbourne asserted their dominance again after a few rusty weeks, crushing Brisbane and getting ahead on the ladder again. The form of Essendon in losing to last placed West Coast was appalling. A great pressure win by Geelong over Richmond was a surprise. Carlton also aimed up v Freo. No more surprising than the Swans who finally competed for the full four quarters v St Kilda to win. Port and Collingwood in the winning books too. The eight look almost set.

7. Wimbledon 2022. Tsitsipas looms as the dark horse here, but Djokovic could equal the Sampras record for wins there (7), one behind the great Federer (8). Nadal will compete as well - as usual! 

8. Matildas. A crushing 7-0 loss to Spain overnight. This is one of the worst results on record for a highly successful and stylish football team. Surgery required.

The Wrap - Scheinflug Wiggles

1. The Socceroos. Great tactics by Andrew Redmayne for the extra time win over Peru... time wasting, throwing the Peruvian goalkeeper's instructions on his drink bottle over the fence, arguing with the ref, dancing like the 'grey wiggle' and winning the mind games in handing the ball over to each Australian kicker. 

Out of imminent despair, Graham Arnold remains one of the premier coaches in Australia and has shaped Keith Currie into a handy striker too. It is a great list of famous Socceroos coaching names in our time: Eddie Thomson, Les Scheinflug, Raul Blanco, Terry Venables, Frank Farina, Guus Hiddinck, Pim Verbeek, Holger Osieck, Ange Postocoglou, Bert van Marwiik... and now Graham Arnold. Credit where it is due.

We make the Group Stage of the World Cup again and profit from the national move to the Asian qualifiers once more. An impressive result against the odds.

2. State of Origin. NSW have the panics again. They've chosen a rugby union touring side with a million players. Too many changes for no good reason. No Addo-Carr is a massive mistake. How Gutherson makes it is beyond me... too many mistakes, too slow and not a team man. Throw in Koroisau (life ban last year?), Angus Crichton (busted?), Victor Radley (discipline?), Jordon McLean and Siosifa Talakai... lots of worker bees and perhaps they lacked that. Looks like too many green shoots and no trees. Jake Turbo's return is welcomed however. No idea where you play Nicho Hynes. Dropping two Parramatta forwards may be smart.

3. NRL. Big wins by St George, the Cowboys and Parramatta on the weekend. The Eels were very impressive and kept in step with Brad Arthur's 50% winning edge (one win - one loss - one win - one loss). The offload can kill a team if done well. Playing footy, not robot-ball can work.

The Bulldogs were impressive of course. Potter is firming as the right coach. Amazing how the memory of Trent Barrett can be erased so quickly. Compelling defence and the players look like they enjoy playing!

4. AFL. The Swans are clinging by a thread. Still in the eight, but are losing games they would normally win. They seem to have one diabolical quarter and then don't recover. A young side in many respects, but they need to improve massively. 

The Dogs keep scurrying along and the Richmond Tigers are gaining momentum too. Port Power are suddenly needed more than ever on the East Coast and they are playing like the whole country need them... actually...

5. Nature Strip. Top win by the Chris Waller-James McDonald combo at Ascot in the King's Stand Stakes over 1000m last week. That is the pinnacle for an Australian horse/ trainer/ jockey combo!

6. US Open Golf. Between Rahm and Scheffler for mine. Not a lot of 'LVI' golfers (adding two holes for the a-holes running it) in the mix. It is hard to carry the cash and the guilt that far. However, each to their own.

7. Giants. Mighty netball win. Young Sligar a star of the future. Into the Semi-Final and possibly a GF.

8. Sri Lankan Cricket. 1-1 in the ODI series and Australia's batting looks entirely lost once again on turning decks. Has anyone thought to ask Matt Hayden what work he did in advance of his record breaking series in India all those years ago?

9. English Cricket. Brendan McCullum has brought two wins to England and a mighty chase in the fourth innings to win the last test for a 2-0 series lead. The hitting from Bairstow was something else. Check this out if you missed it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m22QJQZUSag (starts at 7 mins 30 sec. on the clock).

The Wrap - McDill 54

1. NRL. Two coaches gone in a week (Brown and Maguire), added to Trent Barrett's early exit at the Bulldogs. We are certainly becoming like the EPL now! You have to admire those who have been in the top positions for a long time (Bennett, Bellamy, Hasler, Arthur, Stuart, Cleary. It is not everyone's cup of tea. Justin Holbrook (Titans) and Adam O'Brien (Knights) are not far away from the exit door either. 

The Warriors, Knights and Tigers are all terrible and getting worse. The Naden tackle is one of the worst we've seen for a while. Terrible ill discipline, but right at home in the Tigers set up. They need a shredding of such players to improve.

It may need to be said however, that not every team can win the comp each year either.

Roosters look reasonable but keep losing. They are in a bit of strife, but also seem to play top teams every week. The draw is a woeful advantage or disadvantage, depending which team you are.

2. State of Origin - Game 1. Interesting to see how bad Cleary's kicking game was last Wednesday night. We have called for it for a long time, but the NFL protection of their kickers (legs attacked, etc) is surely a step forward in the game as is a rule to protect the player who is actually catching the ball. This is not good enough. Nor was Cleary.

NSW were a tad unlucky. Disallowed tries and a dodgy forward pass for the Cobbo/ Gagai try, but Ashley Klein knows that if he punishes Queensland too much he does not get another gig. How did he get the game by the way? Gerard Sutton or young Grant Atkins are clearly the best referees in the comp. Klein loses control and respect in nearly every game and loves a 'square up' penalty or two to keep his nose dry.

Gagai comes to life in Origin, frustrating Knights fans, but Cotter and Carrigan were superb. Munster could not do a thing wrong and was everywhere. NSW were outplayed. Junior Paulo needed to fall over when held in that scrum as well. The bunker loves to overrule tries.

NSW changes? Matterson needs to be sacked and should not have been there. NSW need speed as well. Tupou out - Fox in. Crichton needs to start too (Staggs out?) as he is not a bench player at all. Sims is not the answer either. Their defence was mild. A jumbled mess where they changed the winning formula unnecessarily (Fox and Jake Turbo). Mitchell and Tommy Turbo were a huge loss, but there was no Ponga last year either. He is a gun.

3. AFL - Bailey Smith from the Western Bulldogs is a superb talent, but arrogance needs to be ironed out. Mystery bags of substances, head butting opponents... he needs to chill - and get a haircut. Cleaning up his act on a few levels might help. He needs to get out of the front passenger seat of the Bon Jovi Maccas advertisements too.

Can't quite work out why we need byes in the AFL season either. Rip in and get on with it. 

4. NBA Finals. 2-2 and going down to the wire with Golden State v the Boston Celtics. Intriguing how a best of seven series can see saw so much with home and away fixtures adding to this tension too.

5. Australia v Sri Lanka. The T20 series has been run and won 2-1 by Australia. Wade did well again and Warner. Finch not disgraced which was a shock based on his miserable IPL form. The last T20 loss was terrible. Sri Lanka needed 59 off 3 overs and got it!

6. England v NZ Test Series. England dropped five catches on Day 1 which killed them. Again, Daryl Mitchell was the star for NZ (190) and their keeper batsmen still keep producing (106). A country that small keeps producing keeper batsmen who do the business in test cricket (Brendan McCullum - 12 tons, Adam Parore - 2 tons and Tom Blundell - 3 tons). Of course James Anderson took 3/62 off 27 overs. Superb. A first innings by NZ of over 500 runs will test England's batting.

7. The Greg Norman LIV Golf Series. The dirty money behind this has been a controversy and Greg Norman's idiotic outbursts too. But many do not know that 'LIV' stands for the roman numerals of '54'...as in 54 holes with a shotgun start (simultaneous starts around the different holes to make for faster play that unfolds simultaneously). With 17 top flight PGA golfers signed up, money clearly talks. The players have been banned from the PGA Tour tournaments but may yet play in the four majors which are not controlled by the PGA. Interesting times for the establishment. Not sure of why golf tournaments like this attract Saudi money... it is not televised in the US at all.

7. F1 - Australians. Behind the great Sir Jack Brabham, Alan Jones sit Mark Webber whose record eclipses Daniel Riccardo. Daniel is clearly the best looking and most popular in the media, but his record is moderate only. His hype and attention is the best ever. Can he improve on his 11 F1 Driver's Championship points this season (11th place)? The leader is Max Verstappen on 125 points! Off the pace.

8. The Socceroos play Peru on Tuesday 14 June at 4.00am at the famous Al Rayyan Stadium in Doha, Qatar. Win and make the World Cup. Lose and provide some sad photos for history!

The Wrap - Fonzie's Peru Trash Talk

1. NRL. Without doubt the Panthers at home are the hardest team to beat - no matter if their stars are all at State of Origin. Matt Burton is definitely one of the best players in the game. I would be pursuing him closely if I was Parramatta. Mitchell Moses may need to move on as Dylan Brown moves to half. In fact, there could be a lot of clubs doing similarly in making salary cap room. His kicking game and the try for Addo-Carr was just superb and he is tough to tackle. Origin material.

A few coaches are starting to get pressured with woeful results - Nathan Brown (Warriors) and Justin Holbrook (Titans) especially. The wagons are circling the Trent Barrett lounge.

The Dragons are quietly progressing, now onto 14 points (the same number as the Rabbits and Roosters). The minor premiership is almost as good as won by the Panthers who are six points ahead of the Storm with their two bye points to come.

2. State of Origin. The usual media hype, but I suspect Billy Slater will have his team primed and ready. Lots more youth in the game from both sides. Addo-Carr unlucky, but the price paid for going to a failing lesser team. Jake Trobjevic will be missed too, but he is getting a little slower. Nothing wrong with his crushing defence. Looks to be a tight game, but QLD might just have the wood on NSW this time.

3. AFL. The Western Bulldogs are amazing to watch when they get going. The Geelong story of course is usually fade and fold after a great start, but Jeremy Cameron did an extraordinary job to keep them focused and lead them to a win.  They have quality right across the park. Bailey Smith snapped at three quarter time with an old fashioned AFL headbutt. Hard to believe in the modern era. He has a holiday planned already.

4. Swans v Melbourne. A towering 50 metre goal at the end by Errol Gulden was just outstanding. His leg size and strength has increased so much in two years. A smart footballer who enjoys a scrap. Max Gawn was tremendous for the Demons, but the swarming defence of the Swans was exceptional. A crushing win, without Buddy Franklin, which positions the Swans really well with a bye coming soon too. Young Amarty is not the answer on the forward line.

Not really a problem for Melbourne, who need to lose and get stronger. Longmire continues to be a hard coach to beat. He often defies the critics and the odds!

Hawthorn have looked so much better this year, winning by 8 (Geelong) and 5 (Brisbane), but losing tight ones by 1 (Carlton), by 10 (Melbourne) and this weekend by 4 (Collingwood). Their current 16 points could have been top eight at present. Skinny margins matter.

5. George Kambosos Jr. Promised a lot, plenty of tough and fast talk before the bout, a failed weigh-in drama, throat cutting gestures, wild eyes and promises about being the undisputed lightweight champion of the world with four belts. However, Devin Haney was brilliant in a foreign land and belted him really. Kambosos is now belt-less, but needs to settle on the hype and trash talk next time. He got distracted, but the cash and media can have an interesting impact. $10 Million for a fight (win, lose or draw) can change anyone.

6. England v NZ Cricket. James Anderson can still move a cricket ball like very few others. Incredible game with a 132 (NZ) and 141 (NZ). Anderson 4/66 and 2/57. England can still lose a game with their poor batting - even at home. New Zealand is one of those teams where the bottom half of the order can often out score the top half! Coach Brendan McCullum is under instant pressure, but Jo Root looks like saving them with 77no and 61 runs required. Intriguing Test match.

7. Rafa Nadal. Seeking his fourteenth French Open tonight at the oldest age of any French Open winner prior. 22 Grand Slam wins beckons! He will surely be stamped as the greatest of all time if he wins here. Federer is effectively retired and Djokovic will never be seen in his class, no matter what comes.

8. Cameron Smith. The half way leader of the Memorial, looking to become the first man since Tiger to win the TPC and the Memorial Tournament in the same season. He has slipped and now needs to power home in the third round to make up five shots from second place. A cracking standard of golf where one error nails you!

9. Socceroos. Big week ahead. A loss and we miss on the World Cup finals for the first time in twenty years. Back to the bad old days possibly, but at least no massive wins over the Solomon Islands again - just Jordan and Vietnam. If we win v the UAE on Wednesday, it gets us a look at Peru for a place in the World Cup. A big 'if'. Fonzie would be proud that Peru is making it big now.

10. Boston Celtics. 1-0 up over Golden State and looking for their first NBA championship... Strange best of seven game series, but it could well go down to the wire.

11. Vale Rocky Laurie. Not an old man at all and Mark his son is one of the best blokes you could meet. Sad times for the family.

12. Waratahs. A much better season is all over now after a weekend loss in NZ to the superior Chiefs 39-15, but pleasing signs and some excellent work from their new coach, Darren Coleman, it must be said.