The Wrap - Smash Them Like Qatar

1. Test Cricket. The recent form of India is woeful in Test cricket. Gambhir is a cranky snarling coach in the Justin Langer style. Such approaches never last in international cricket. However, when you lose Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and skilled experienced bowlers like Ravi Ashwin, you will struggle. This is despite the ample talent in their squad, but to lose 2-0 to South Africa at home is woeful. They lost at home to NZ last year too!

The Ashes continues and the journalists love it. So many stories and angles. I suspect the words of Usman will haunt him, but the Perth deck was ridiculous.  He was correct!

Not a fan of pink ball Tests in Ashes series. The crowds fill the place regardless. The biggest challenge is whether teams can hang on under lights!

2. NRL. The R360 comp always sounded like a complete farce, so Haas, Papenhuyzen and Lomax will need to do something else now... maybe getting paid before you cancel your NRL contract was wise. However, it seems like none of them care too much. Interesting attitudes. There is seemingly an assumption the money will flow for life.

3. Oscar Piastri. The Qatar GP signals the second last chance which, after the double disqualification of McLaren last week, enables Piastri to get back into calculations with a huge effort this weekend. Taking pole position was handy, so the pressure is now on! A win here will put him well in contention for the final Abu Dhabi GP of the year. A race not finished by Lando Norris would be helpful. A tight season ending ahead, with Verstappen within touch too. A Piastri win (10 in total) takes him to eight wins for the season (beating Mark Webber's total of 9). If successful, he will then sit behind Alan Jones (12) and the great Jack Brabham (14).

4. EPL. Liverpool have hit the wall. Possibly their worst run in history. Won it last year and a rapid decline after a bright start to the season. Man City keep the heat on Arsenal with a late winner (no adding to Harling's 14 goals!). Tottenham are struggling once again despite a bright start, winning 1/7 games in recent times. Losing to Fulham is never a good idea. Sunderland continue winning and are sitting fourth. A dream EPL return to the Stadium of Light and about three wins from not being relegated!

5. Golf. David Puig killed them in the Australian PGA in Brisbane. Leishman (tied third) is always there or thereabouts. Young Daniel Gale (an ex-junior baseball for the Castle Hill Knights) from Castle Hill picked up a new BMW with a hole in one, but made a top ten finish too. The course facilities seemed a little limited. Have we not got a better set up across the nation?

6. AFLW. If only the North Melbourne women could turn out for the men's team. Back to back premiers. Hard to remember the blue and white on the AFL podium.

7. A League. Lacking star power but 21,000 watched the Sydney derby with the Wanderers winning 1-0. Time for some serious investment in the game in Australia or it will never prosper. It has sadly gone backwards over the years.

8. NFL. The Chicago Bears are surging (9-3), beating the Philadelphia Eagles yesterday. The New England Patriots (10-2) are the first team to ten wins too! The Lions, 49ers, Ravens and Chiefs are all needing to lift and quickly. It could be a different range of sides to recent years in the playoffs in 2025-2026.

The Wrap - A Head Stark

1. Ashes - First Test. 1-0 Head Start. After a seeming fiasco of a pitch in Perth, with two shaky batting orders, a spectacular albeit quick end. Chasing 205 for a win was always going to be tough on an interesting pitch which proved to be a little more even. Hard to believe there was a result possible on Day 2! 

Losing 19 wickets on Day 1 probably included ten reckless batting errors to be fair. This test has broken all sorts of records for the quickest and fewest balls bowled. A lack of composure from many players was evident at key times.

However, Travis Head stepped into greatness. Summonsed here last week to produce after a string of disappointments, he rose to any challenge and exceeded it. His tenth Test ton (sixth fastest ever) sees him join Simpson, Katich and Hassett. He turned the game as he has done in India in the IPL and in the ODI World Cup and World Test Championship final v India two years back. A masterpiece ton. Great to see England get whacked. A stunning MOTM effort!

Usman must surely be on his last legs. He is slow and now injured. It has been good for him and us all, but time to go. We need some youth and confidence - or Travis Head to open. Usman will be well placed to play as much golf as he wants now. When calf, hamstring and back injuries arrive... so does retirement. Hazelwood remains injured too. Honestly... he will be back for the IPL.

2. Mitchell Starc - Incredible. Mitchell Starc is a star. The first innings specialist and the first over king - just ask Zak Crawley who picked up a pair. His caught and bowled was something else. He bowls at extreme pace and consistently so. Starc has really improved and was faced with a lot of pressure (10 wickets tells us he delivered!) in the absence of experienced team mates. Boland was better in the second innings, but charging him is not such a bad tactic.

Harry Brook is an unbelievable talent, but he is also helped by our terrible desperately short bowling when it counts. He can be hit and miss, but when he hits, he hits! He is also decidedly chirpy for someone so new...despite his multiple Test tons. He could be in Australia's sights with the short ball.

Marnus looked excellent too. Full credit to him on his re-invention. He looks so much tighter in defence.

3. Awesome Steve Smith. Steve Smith takes another four catches as he closes in (205) on Joe Root's Test catching record (213). He has played thirty fewer Tests, but has magnificent hands. Third most catches ever in Test cricket!

The way that Australia came back - again under Steve Smith's leadership - making a brilliant comeback has added some spice to the series. Smith wins a hell of a lot as captain (A better winning % than Border, Taylor, G Chappell and Clarke with a similar no. of tests in charge for most of them). Only Bradman, Steve Waugh, Ponting and Cummins are ahead of him. 

4. Wallabies v France. In Paris in the cold/ snow. The crushing loss surely puts Joe Schmidt on the instant chopping block. His announcement of a bailout a year ago has brought dreadful results. Yet another combination, another key positional shift...yet a familiar result. This is our worst result on the European tour of all time. Also, ten Test losses/ four wins in a year is a terrible record, especially when two narrow wins over Japan and Argentina count here. The excellent Lions/ Springboks efforts are a distant memory.

5. NRL. Lomax is on the move from yet another Parramatta disaster at the signing table. Maybe weeding out problems is needed too. A one year extension for the Fox doesn't sound too confident either (?). Lomax's exit from St George was dreadful. The game will move on and another Lomax will appear, as it always does.

Jayden Campbell is talented, but paying him $1.2M per season... please. That is ridiculous. The Perth Bears are going to be awful if that is their early level of desperation. An English outside back, Harry Newman and Liam Henry are it so far unfortunately. Proven leaders are needed.

6. EPL. A ripping competition this year. Man City lose and Liverpool's sad decline after the off season death of their star, Diogo Jota, is sad. The impact there must be horrible. Arsenal have it all in their grasp if they want it. They have a habit of tripping over their own feet most years. Nottingham have picked up post Ange and seem destined for more positive results in the weeks ahead. The tight topsy turvey nature of it all brings added excitement. Chelsea could be a smokey.

7. NFL. The Philadelphia Eagles are surging to yet another Super Bowl. The Patriots, Colts, Rams and Broncos are up there, but not in their class. The big game experience will shine when it matters.

8. Las Vegas F1. The Norris v Verstappen and Piastri show is reaching a climax. Needing to win, Piastri gets a respectable fourth, but fourth and fifth places don't win championships. The qualifying rain didn't help either. Verstappen is getting closer and closer. A mighty champion! Norris looks to have it in the bag with Qatar and Abu Dhabi GPs remaining.

9. ATP Tennis Final. Sinner crushed Alcarez. Extraordinary consistency.

The Wrap - Sport Cash is King

1. Test Cricket Injuries. Eric Grothe Senior once tripped over at Parramatta Stadium on his way out to play Canberra and was ruled out. He developed a litany of injuries as he aged from the superstar he once was. 'Eric the Injured' they called him.

And so we lose Cummins, Abbott and Hazelwood...even Renshaw has a dodgy back or hammy. Lyon has had his recent injury moments, but Hazelwood is closest to Eric Grothe (yet curiously he is always fit to play the cash laden IPL). The day was coming when our stalwarts were going to crumble in their mid thirties. Cricket is the preserve of the younger body - especially bowling. We are in strife, but are not really keen to admit it. 

The onus on Starc to remain fit and well will be interesting. He seems to be creaking too. Young Doggett seems poised to play.., yet the 12th men over recent years, Richardson and Morris will be kicking themselves that they too remain injured. Their chance was now. Some hope for the new generation and Boland will need to step up big time. 

Our batting looks fragile. Travis Head is the worst offender. So much promise and talent. He needs a huge series to start to stamp his class as a world class player. Otherwise he risks being the new Graeme Wood (a duck or a hundred man). Too inconsistent.

Meanwhile in India the pitch v South Africa at Eden Gardens is one of the worst we have seen in recent memory. When the top score for the game is 55* into the fourth innings, the game is in trouble!

2. Eli Katoa. What a terrible blight on the game. The concussion and impact on this guy in the recent Pacific series has him in a lot of bother long term. There is talk he will never play again. Devastating for him and his family and a negligence legal case will emerge in time. The Storm are in a jam all of a sudden with no Papenhuyzen (what is going on there with R360?), NAS, Katoa and Pezet. They will have to rebuild a little more quickly than anticipated. Bellamy though is a magician.

It sounds like Zac Lomax has the R360 in sight too. Released from Parramatta. Big dollars, but are the headlines of 'no payment' inevitable? Parramatta continue to make curious recruitment decisions.

3. Wallabies v Ireland. The song sheet is familiar... a sound start, behind on the scoreboard, in it at half time and then a resounding loss (49-16). We are dismal and stand to go without a win on this tour. France next week will not muck around with us. What a fall from grace for that team. Joe Schmidt's record gets worse and worse. It is time to cut him free. They are not improving and nor are Joe's post match explanations. Second half capitulations seem to be the normal now. A winless tour looms - the first since 1958.

The All Blacks lost to England as well. Scott Robertson might be on skinnier ice than Schmidt.

4. Socceroos. A humiliating loss to Venezuela 0-1 on the International weekend (no EPL). Despite all the promise and all the wins in Asia, we are simply not as good as we think. Tony Popovic has had two bad losses most recently and needs to fix it fast against some of the lesser lights in the world game. It could be a quick World Cup experience once again. The incredibly successful days of GUUUUS Hiddink seem a long way away now.

5. NFL. The New England Patriots stretch it to 9-2 after beating the hapless NY Jets. The doubters say they have had an easy draw and are not contenders. The scoreboard says otherwise. A remarkable comeback after beating the Buccaneers last weekend and the Jets on the quick turn around.

Elsewhere, the Eagles... the Colts, Broncos, Seahawks and Rams are emerging from the pack. The Colts are a new name on this stage of success!

6. Tennis - ATP Finals. Sinner v Alcaraz (likely) in the $5M final. Alex de Minaur did well to make the semis ($1M), but he cannot beat the big guns and probably never will. Unfortunately he has reached his peak. He is still high quality and competitive but has no X Factor. Losing relatively simple Davis Cup matches does not endear him to many either. He seems to be developing a good range of reasons/ excuses at present.

7. DP World Tour Championship. Rory well positioned. Ludwig, Rose and Fleetwood all nearby too in a top of the leaderboard jam. $10M purse on offer as well. No shortage of cash in golf.

The Wrap - Flagged for Success

1. NRL - Samoa v New Zealand. What an exceptional game for a Pacific Championship final. Big hits and heavy contact. The flag makers for Samoa have been busy. The Pacific Islander players are so talented. 36-14 with a second half masterclass. So much talent and so much depth. Dylan Brown played better footy for NZ these past three weeks than he ever did at Parramatta. Hopefully Newcastle can see the best of him. Fisher-Harris and Leoto won once again. Their trophy cabinets must be so full!

The Jillaroos are so far ahead of the rest it is not funny. Dominant.

2. Kangaroos v England - Ashes. A crushing 3-0 series win. Cameron Munster was dominant. Not happy with the pile on of Nathan Cleary. His influence is bigger than anyone knows. He rarely loses.

3. T20 Cricket - India v Australia. It was really hard to get excited about this series. A lot of people will not have had not watched a ball. Of course, weather and storms interrupt yet again. Why was this series played? Boring and the poor T20 performances have taken down the ODI brand as well.

The Test selection of Jake Weatherald is an intriguing one. No Renshaw is understandable, but they will need another opener soon. It could be looked at as a response to Bazball, given his aggression. We will need every run from every bat with the tail we look like having...Starc-Lyon-Hazelwood-Boland. Green needs to start taking wickets or he should be banished.

Is George Bailey a little flippant and too loose lipped to be an Australian selector (he loves a Tassie selection... Weatherald, Webster, Khuneman? Watch out for Tim Ward and Gabe Bell soon). His press conference quip about Konstas only needing to fart for publicity, was odd.

4. AFL Wildcard Round from 2026. A good move with 7v10 and 8 v 9 playing each other for the last two finals spots, with the rest of the final 6 having the week off. They only need to look at the kick out on the full now. The advantage needs to go to the opponent, with possession from where it was kicked.

4. Wallabies. As mentioned last week, Joe Schmidt has presided over some of the worst results in the history of the game in our proud country. Yet another humiliating 26-19 loss again to Italy. A mirage earlier this year with the British Lions but all downhill from there, losing 5 of the past 6 tests. Injuries and excuses will flow. The record will show we were losers too regularly in this phase. No combinations and a lack of commitment. It is time for him to get acquainted with the buffet in the Qantas lounge.

5. EPL. Sunderland ('Till I Die') are doing the business. The black cats scored two goals against the league leading Arsenal team for a 2-2 draw. Their 10 game winning streak ends. A sensational result really and firms up their position in the top four of the ladder. ManU-Tottenham 2-2 was an exciting finale. ManU are looking strong in 2025-6.

6. F1 - Piastri and Norris. At least the Brazillian GP at Sao Paulo offers a chance for cars to pass each other. It is always an exciting one. Piastri is on the second line and Norris on the front row. 9 championship points split them.  It has to be now for Max as there are only three GPs left...Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi.

7. Josh Giddey - NBA. He is doing some excellent business at present. Looks like a shortlisted MVP and a dominant figure this season. Incredible progress at the Chicago Bulls.

8. New England Patriots. Sitting at 7-2 unexpectedly in 2025-2026 (a six game winning streak) and take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at their home ground, who are 6-2. Should be a cracking game!

The Wrap - World Beaters 69

1. NRL - The Ashes. Super results for the Kangaroos in a tougher test, winning 14-4. Grant Atkins had a few brain explosion moments. Sin bins everywhere. Penalties were out of control too. Please. That is why he was there - and not Ashley Klein - to keep the play rolling, not the interruptions!

Cameron Munster is so suited to wet weather play and tighter, arm wrestle situations. In sticky conditions he really excels. Not certain that Staggs and Shibasaki are our best centre combination, but they are solid. Imagine if we had a few more of those players who couldn't make this trip!

What about the field? Great, but no line markings across the key points of the game...40/20 (lottery)...10 metres back (lottery)... ridiculous!

Nearly as poor as Jarvo 69 coming onto the field. He is a pest, but it is pretty harmless..the cricket, the Olympics, the NFL, the football, Indian cricket, Japanese rugby,,, now the Kangaroos. A serial pest.

He needs to crash the Tonga v NZ or Samoa game and take the ball up in the first hit of the game! Could be the best decision a judge could make to help him understand things from yet another court case.

2. Cricket - The Ashes. Hard to see Cameron Green adding much value to the team at present... It is looking like our first test team is: Khawaja, Renshaw (?), Labuschagne, Smith, Head, Webster, Carey, Starc, Lyon, Hazelwood, Boland. 

Interested to see Greg Chappell calling for Mitchell Marsh to open the batting...not a bad thought to be honest.

Not sure Renshaw is our answer, but he looks the best performed of the traditional openers. Not sure Webster is a number 6 either. Green not bowling, surely eliminates him from the line up. His batting form is dreadful too. Too easily dismissed LBW. The tail is VERY long with no Cummins and Boland is therefore under threat ... maybe Brendan Doggett (SA) or Fergus O'Neill (VIC) comes in, or Matt Kelly (WA) our current leading Shield wicket taker...even Liam Hatcher (NSW)? O'Neill gets wickets and runs (12 wickets and averaging over 50 in this year's early Shield stakes)!

A shock loss for the Australian womens cricket team, ending an extraordinary run. A shame, but there is always a new gun in the wings!

3. MLB. It went to the seventh and final game after the Blue Jays lost a bad one in the sixth at home (1-3). Facing the might of the LA Dodgers for the title (after a seven game deciding series v the Mariners), the Blue Jays were up into the eighth innings 4-3 and LA's Rojas popped one for a 4-4 score. Their home crowd was screaming them home, but a 5-4 loss! Yamamoto was superb as always, pitching yesterday - and today! Most unusual mama.

It was the first time in a million years that the seventh World Series final game went to extra innings (fifth time ever)! The Dodgers were looking to go back to back and have been the dominant franchise over the past eight seasons (two World Series wins - two losses). The Blue Jays have won twice before, but this was potentially their first since their own back to back 1992-1993 wins. It would also give them political bragging rights too! An epic finale.

The Dodgers took the lead in the eleventh innings to lead 5-4. Will Smith came up clutch at the key time with a HR! Huge pressure play. So from 3-0 up..4-3 up... they lose 5-4. An incredible series and incredible result, with LA winning Game 6 and 7 on the road!

LA Dodgers - 3 wins (2020-2024-2025) and 2 losses (2017-2018) in World Series Finals in the last eight years! Dominant!

4. Wallabies v England. A traditional whacking of the highest order v England. Games upcoming against Italy, Ireland and France are hard to see us winning.

Nothing will ever beat Dave Rennie's poor 33 Test career as Wallabies coach (36% winning). However, Joe Schmidt, as nice and knowledgeable a fellow as he seems to be, has had 25 Tests now (11 wins for 44%). It could end at 11/28 (39%)...right up there with Dave Rennie!

There was hope with the Lions efforts, but we have gone backwards since. Too many new players and new combinations. It is a lottery.

5. Jonah Pezet. A one year deal agreed by the Eels. It could be the worst decision by a club in living memory, especially if there is an injury. A transit lounge contract. Hard to see the benefit for the Eels. Lots of benefit for Jonah and his future at the Broncos. Braith Anasta is hard to take seriously in his dual Player Manager-Foxtel role. He promotes his guys (Ilias has signed with the Titans for two years according to Channel 9!), too heavily. Parramatta have been played for the fools that they sadly have often been. Joash Papalii is suddenly feeling like he is on the out and the young players are either going to learn fast or learn how to sign with other clubs. He is no Cooper Cronk or DCE... yet.

6. EPL. Liverpool have re-joined the winners and Chelsea keep doing the business. Interesting to see some fractures in the Tottenham playing ranks and their attitudes. They are a precious beast the EPL player. Nottingham Forest drew 2-2 with a resurgent ManU, so the players are finally realising their careers are on the line. 

The whinging of EPL club fans is hard to cop. If everyone won each week there would be no comp!

Sam Kerr is back from injury and scoring goals for Chelsea as well.

7. Melbourne Cup. Derby Day brings out some great horses...Tentyris is a horse with extreme pace and one to watch! How impressive was it? Like Autumn Glow. Dominant and Winx-like. The race that stops the nation will be run in the wet by the looks of it. Buckaroo is a live chance. Too many international horses for mine, but it brings them all out that is for sure...Japan, Ireland, USA, Italy...