Wrap - Put The Glasses Down

1. NRL. The Melbourne Storm get written off every year. They looked sharp again and I can't see them missing the top eight. Bellamy is the best in the business. Souths were pretty robust as well. Bennett doesn't miss out much either. The Warriors at home looked good, but they had an opposition who were pretty poor. The Bulldogs were awful. Manly were ordinary too. The Tigers might sneak over the line for the eight as they at least have tenacity.


Parramatta surprised with a good looking spine as well. Dylan Brown and Rhys Mahoney were refreshing. Early doors. The new stadium may have them a little excited this season!


"Wank Fest" stadium.


The wet weather may have given us a different warped lens, but it also showed poor fitness. Ashley Clown did his best to make it all about him with the send off of Jennings...he will be back to haunt us all again this season.


Is there an NRL team with any blokes without tattoos? Cronk? Hard to find.


2. The Waratahs have fallen over again when they should have won. Maybe they could have taken a leaf out of the book of Scotland who were 0-31 down and clawed it back to a 38-38 draw. The Welsh will be hard to toss at the World Cup. Their effort in Ireland to crush them and win the Six Nations was highly impressive.


3. Australia v India. A cracking series win. Very unexpected and great work by Handscomb and Khawaja. However, no Dohni in the last two games makes it a bit easier. Talk of World Cup wins is a little premature. Jhye Richardson has made a difference with the ball. A bit of pace can bring an error. Afghanistan in our first game will not be easy.


4. Smith and Warner. A team meeting and a time to listen to others...there's a change. Footage of Steve Smith wearing his Yves St Laurent sunglasses at NSW cricket training never looks good. He needs to get a grip and start looking sincere. He has talked a lot, but as a former Australian captain, he needs to fit in and do better. Warner is a time bomb. When he wants to speak eventually, he will be a very wealthy man.


5. Sheffield Shield. How bad is the comp when they start playing at Drummoyne Oval? Honestly. As soon as we get seam, we collapse. The Duke ball kills us. The batting in the last round was awful.


6. AFL. Finally they start playing next week. They need to get the show on the road - and quick.


7. A League. The Wellington Phoenix are killing it at present while Sydney FC stumble. No one gets near the Perth Glory and Tony Popovic this year however. How long is that season? The Wanderers will be keen to get to their stadium as well and finally get some support.


8. Tyson Frizell. Spare a thought for this guy who endured a ruptured testicle. It feels painful just writing it.


9. F1 - Daniel Riccardo. He goes down as the goose of weekend. That dumb manoeuvre at the start was hard to fathom. He needs to start producing and stop whining. Another bloke who could put the sunglasses down and start driving properly. His shoes will be dry for a long time yet on that effort today.

Wrap - Turfed Out

1. NRL. There is something in the rugby league player. A fight, a naivety, a determination. A bad word and they head straight to the courts. I guess if you feel you are innocent, this is what you do. de Belin would be praying for a quick resolution to this matter. His family even moreso. What a sorry mess it is. Bad choices. Fancy the NRL not having this in their contracts up front...or in paperwork in time for court. They are an amateur show too. The game is in deep trouble. I am sure another bad video or courtcase is not far off... they can't escape it.


By the way, the comp starts next week. I will be interested in the crowds. I can't imagine they will be strong.


2. EPL. A cracking finish lies ahead with Man City and Liverpool fighting out first spot. ManU could jag third spot yet if they continue their winning ways. Tottenham have got the stumbles. Huddersfield and Fulham are gone... one other to join them. Get to 40 points or you are toast.


3. Waratahs. That SCG surface was appalling. Too much water. The whole field looked terrible. We have had no rain and they dish that up. It might go back to the old dustbowl of the 1980s this year! Great win by the Tahs. Brad Thorne might be gone sooner than we think. He needs to recruit hard from NZ!


4. Cricket. Finally Finch hits a few, but India over there are something else. Kohli is the best we have seen. Better than Tendulkar for mine. He turns games on their head. Average of 60 in ODI cricket after 226 ODI games. Extraordinary. Averages 54 in 77 Tests and 50 in T20 Internationals after 67 of them! Every time he misses out you are dreading it...a ton beckons. 25 Test tons and 41 ODI tons! Only 30 years old.


5. Tennis. Typical Kgyrios. Gets rolled on Indianwells in the first round this weekend. As predicted. Temperamental and erratic. No champion yet.


6. Central Coast Mariners. Lost 8-2. fair dinkum. Move the portable goal posts, get a trophy each and don't come back.


7. Six Nations. Wales looking good things again in the Six Nations. Dour, traditional rugby... but that is how they love it over there.


8. Sheffield Shield. A huge week for a few batsmen. Harris is on the plane with a score this week. Marnus is on the runway at present. Carpet needs a score as well. Renshaw is no hope. Wade gone too. Pucowski is there with another score as well. Maddinson could surprise with runs.


9. AFL. For a great code, they can't get their pre-season right. They need to rethink the lot. Too many half interested players in games that are meaningless. Five variations of the code and its rules. Stop!
10. The Autumn Sun. What a cracking horse. Beat a runaway Fundamentalist at pace on the weekend. Reminsicent of the great Chataqua!

Wrap - Selected At First Sight

1. West Indies Cricket. Chris Gayle is no more for the West Indies, but what an awesome hitter he is! His ability to slay the opposition fast/ medium pacer is amazing. He is simply awesome, even if there is touch of the clown about him. He will be in international T20 for a long time to come!

 

2. Australian Cricket. Aaron Finch is in some sort of terrible slump. Bumrah simply nails him each time. It really isn’t good enough and his World Cup is on the line. Australia need every run they can. The batting as usual is not up to speed. Smith and Warner if fit, waltz back in with this lot. Can anyone explain why Khawaja is not in Shield cricket and tuning up with the Duke ball?

That pitch at the Gabba is woeful. Carpet Burns had a chance to make his mark, but slipped up. A score here on a tough deck may be an awesome statement. Marcus Harris may yet accompany him with Warner's elbow comeback still to be finalised. Still like some of these seamers with the Duke ball. Copeland is in the frame. Mature, smart and can bat.

The top run scorers in the Shield are interesting:

 

The top wicket takers - and their averages too... have a look at Copeland.

 

3. Roger Federer. 100 ATP titles, second to Jimmy Connors (109). How did Connors get to 109... maybe it was the Custom Credit Open at the Ent Cent! What an amazing athlete Federer is and his longevity is remarkable. He has no truck with fools, but keeps getting better. Incredible.

4. Nick Krygois. Wins the Mexican Open and knocks over some of the biggest of world tennis guns. He could be awesome, but it would not surprise if he retired tomorrow as well! He may also get on Twitter and do some really silly stuff too. Hopefully not. Beating Nadal, Wawrinka and Zverev is not a bad week's work.

5. Australian Women's Cricket. What an incredible team they are. They are so good at winning they keep doing it all the time! Healy-Blackwell-Perry...

6. Super Rugby - Sunwolves. This team is a big improver. Unlucky to lose to the Tahs a couple of weeks back and they then knock over the Chiefs. The New Zealand hoodoo is well and truly over.

7. NRL. Thank goodness the ARL/ NRL/ League have made their move to ban those facing criminal charges. No one is bigger than the game. de Belin will not be missed - nor will any of the others. There is always another person and one law to obey in society. He needs to get his personal choices in order and make amends. Stop playing the victim and ask yourself why you went back to that room. Barry Russell might be asking if he gets a $500K bonus too!

8. NRL Trials. Ho hum...Would you go any worse if you had no trials? They need to break the tradition here. Coaches need to modernise and get over the old way. Surely in our tech age they can seize these opportunities and bend realistic approaches into their preparation. Who will break this mould? Who has the courage?

9. Winx. What a star! Everyone seems to love this horse and marvel at its record. Happy Clapper is going to be made an even better horse because of Winx. Their connections will be desperate to see the back of the mighty mare.

Wrap - Brilliance and Beauty

1. Sri Lanka. How good is it when some team beats South Africa - in anything? Why do we get so much joy from it? Probably because they don't lose much. But to lose to Sri Lanka at home 2-0? We absolutely did much better than we thought beating them 2-0. Have you noticed how big some of their players and coaches are? Some have discovered western food and fats - and have hit the gym!


2. Cricket. A great innings by Bancroft to carry his bat and get to 138no. Some of the others did what we know they do...get starts and fall over. Head 50, Wade 77, Burns ('Carpet') 60, Labuschagne 59. Even Harris who looked like getting a ton fell over at 95. Get the pattern? Young Kurtis Patterson is sitting on 57no overnight and will look to cash in tomorrow. It sounds ridiculous I know but don't be surprised to see Jackson Bird or Trent Copeland on the plane to England. We need a skidding Alderman type who gets bowleds and LBWs.


3. Villains. Do Bancroft, Warner and Smith all return to the Test team at the same time? Can't see it myself. Too many villains in one hit and they need to capture the existing culture first and adapt.


4. NRL. Have these off season incidents and events made the average fan disinterested in the spoilt tattooed ones? The trials is a ho hum time of year with injuries the biggest news. AFLX is yet another chapter in the AFL's laborious pre season nonsense. Where is the NAB Cup?


5. Super Rugby. The Waratahs' defence is non-existent again. Winning by a point this week in Tokyo almost saw them undone by the minnows. Yet again. They need to get serious. The Brumbies were dominant and I get the impression that Brad Thorne needs to produce soon or he will be given a leave pass. I note with interest that Michael O'Connor has returned as a selector for the national team. has he played and selected for both codes now? Fancy suggesting players should play their correct position. Rebel.


6. Afghanistan Cricket. Get set for a major surprise when they play Nabi, Rashid Khan and this young Hazratullah Zazai who hit a big 160no in a T20 game. The hitting of Hetmyer for the Windies was also very impressive in their ODI. Maybe a star of the future. Like this Shai Hope as well.


7. Perth Glory. They have the minor premiership sewn up now, despite a draw with the Wanderers tonight. Popovich seems to know how to coach.


8. EPL. Liverpool v ManU overnight will be an absolute cracker. If ManU win they will dent Liverpool's hopes big time. Huddersfield and Fulham are as good as gone. Terrible seasons. The third drop zone team will be interesting. Some nervous nellies...Leicester punted their coach a few hours ago!


9. How good is Elyse Perry? Another ton overnight. She will become one of Australia's greatest sports stars before too long.


10. Lionel Messi. He scores a hatrick to guide Barcelona again to a win. He is remarkable. A shame he has never travelled to the EPL.


11. Jack de Belin. Surely he sits this week. The brand of rugby league is terrible. They need to draw a line in the sand and make it clear in the bloody contracts that they sign. End of matter. They need education on the types of bad decisions and folk who hang around them.


12. Six Nations. England done by the Welsh. Wales are on fire...boyo!

Wrap - When The Whips Are Cracking

1. BBL. Dan Christian has been amazing for the Renegades in their semi and again in the final today. Melbourne Stars were 0/80 chasing 146 and had one hand on the trophy, then suddenly both hands over their eyes! (Great 2UE commentator quote). Brain explosions by Handscombe, Maxwell, Dunk, Maddison and Bravo... from 0/80 to 5/106 and then 7/132 at the end. A huge choke.

Dan Christian is composed in the key moments and might be the secret weapon in the T20 World Cup. Bowls, hits hard and has a great set of mitts too. His work under pressure for me has been exemplary.

 

2. Sri Lankan Test Victory v South Africa. Test cricket at its best. Chasing with resolve, young Perera hits a 150 no when the whips are cracking against one of the best attacks in recent memory. Perhaps we did better as a national cricket team than we thought in winning 2-0 recently!

 

3. Super Rugby. Rugby at Brookvale seems to be a success in the rugby heartland. Big crowd. However, such a bad surfaced and slow old oval. It will be awful by the end of winter. Low scores loom ahead. A shame Foley missed the last kick. He has usually been ice cool in those circumstances.

 

4. NRL. Stand down players charged by the police with serious offences and defer to the law as the reason. Reinstate if cleared. They need to take the lead from smart and 'clean' players who explain this to other players in the interests of the game. Unfortunately it is the price of disrepute. The whole rugby league brand is on the nose badly and the likelihood of sponsors fleeing en masse is imminent. The NRL would be better setting up their own niteclub and hotel rooms for players to attend. At least that way they would have the CCTV to dismiss them.

 

5. NBL. Andrew Bogut looms as the MVP for the competition, but this sport is going gangbusters in Australia. When codes like rugby league are handing other codes sponsors and crowds, why not?

6. Winx. 30 wins straight. Happy Clapper pinned the ears back until the Ferrari of Winx motored by easily. Incredible. We will never see anything like it again.

7. World Club Challenge. The Roosters v Wigan tomorrow morning. The Roosters have always performed well in this game so they are a big chance to win four and lead the way here with the most wins (equal with Wigan) too. A great club, no matter what people think.

8. On the other hand... Parramatta lose a trial (sure, it is only a trial) after leading by 20 and Blake Ferguson is already doing backflips. Go figure. They are spoon favourites and the most incredible thing is Tim Mannah is still on their roster. He is a top bloke, but the most "losing-est" captain ever to have played the game I suspect.

Wrap - World Cup of Clowns

1. The Australia ODI squad announced last week is simply not good enough to win. How Finch could be skipper is beyond me. His form is awful and he will be lucky to get to the World Cup. Wade surely has to be considered. Zampa is just awful. Khawaja’s fielding is not international class. Why Cummins is going I’ll never know, given how injury prone he is. A nothing tour. Nice to see Glenn Maxwell, Ashton Turner, Marcus Stoinis and the Richardson brothers - Jhye and Kane. Alex Carey will need runs or he perishes for Wade. Fancy making him the vice captain...honestly. D'Arcy Short...he has to be in the team. His bowling is better than Zampa's.

2. New Coaches. They’ll need Ponting to bat - not coach! Good to see Saker go. How he ever survived the sandpaper fiasco this long is beyond me. Our bowling lines and length have been woeful for a long time. Troy Cooley has had success before. Hayden should be around this team too. Work ethic!

3. Field of Dreams. Just when you thought Clive Rose was the worst fieldsman in Australia, along comes Fawad Ahmed. Disgraceful under the high ball. He cannot play international cricket because of this. The general fielding standard in this BBL has hit rock bottom.


4. Socked in the Helmet. Can someone explain why batting helmets are still not permanently changed to protect the key arteries to the brain? This is a staggering disgrace that is not protecting players. No matter how good they think they are... I dread the outcome when the next bloke who is hit.

5. BBL. Bit Bloody Long. Two weeks too long. Dragging on and crowds are dwindling. They need some superstars in future and make inroads into India... get negotiating for Dohni and Others... How bad are some of the imports? Chris Jordan, David Willey, Joe Denley....Devich...(worst of the lot) please! Why would you sign Australian internationals? They cost a lot and don't play! The Afghanistan spinners have been the stars. They may just trouble a few teams travelling there for Tests.


6. Gal v Hoppa. This is how bad the current range of sport is for the viewers. Paul Gallen is a handy boxer. Hoppa is a sad case now after having been a very good player in his day..until brain snap after brain snap. I heard he bet his purse against Gallen too.

7. NRL. Can the code suffer any more misery? Apparently so. 5/13 videos released only. More to come. Dylan Napa is a fool, no matter how old the footage. What do these blokes have in common...Kane Evans, Blake Ferguson, Mitchell Pearce, Dylan Napa...? All moved on from the Roosters. Toxic character and behavioural flaws. Nick Politis doesn't get much wrong.

8. Super Bowl. Simply superb by the New England Patriots. A tight game, but what a record. Phenomenal. Brady and Bellichick... remarkable. Love his grit... "do your job".

9. Soccer. The A League is like the BBL. It goes on and on and loses fans the longer it goes. Amazing how much football is coach related. When players don't like the coach, they don't have a red hot go.

10. ManU have been remarkable since the arrival of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Pretty much undefeated (9/10 wins) since he arrived and on the cusp of a top four result and Champions League work again. Jose who?

Wrap - Training The House Down

1. Ashes Thanks. Nothing like a mediocre Sri Lankan bowler to get you on the plane for the Ashes. A few blokes should be visiting shrines in that country when they retire...Joe (Carpet) Burns, Travis (Jimmy) Head, Kurtis Patterson and even Tim Paine...throw in the modern day Graeme Wood - Usman Khawaja (hands like a sundial) and even Mitchell Starc and the travel agent can get to work.


Put a line through Labaschagne and Marcus Harris might just be too reckless. He needed a big score to consolidate opinion on his merits. He has opened the door now.


2. BBL. How long can a cop go on for? Ridiculous. Just trying too hard to kill the goose which lays the golden egg. The Thunder have no brains. They bat too skinny and a couple of wickets lost early and they are all at sea. How bad has Sangha looked? He needs to head back to the drawing board. Whoever signed Devich from New Zealand to the Thunder needs a pay rise. A terrible acquisition who has basically done nothing for anyone.


3. Super Bowl. The big game is tomorrow morning Sydney time. What a cracking game it will be. The younger LA Rams v the hard headed Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. Sensational strategy and skill at play. It is some sort of event. Minus 20 in New England this weekend just gone so they will be glad they are playing in Atlanta.


4. Western Sydney Wanderers. They are now playing to remove the coach. Pathetic. Losing by 5 goals is abysmal. Popovich got out of there at the right time. They need to develop talent and fast otherwise their new stadium will remain empty.


5. Davis Cup. Great that the team won without Tomic and the other goose. It would be great if everyone ignored the two of them forever more. Tennis is on fire at present following the Australian Open and Djokovic's sensational play.


6. Greg Chappell. What about that? He resigns from the Australian cricket selector role... in six months. He needed to go straight away. Again he holds this strange power over everyone and just continues to get his own way all the time. Odd.


7. Todd Greenberg. Strange days when someone (Ben Barba) gets punted on the strength of a casino CCTV. Clearly Greenberg's embarrassment over a similar matter at the Dogs some years back, has got him hopping this time. Is it too much to put into a contract that casinos and niteclubs are out? Most issues start there. Great they will weed out blokes of ill repute and poor behaviour. Some clubs may lose most of their first grade squad!


8. NRL Pre Season. I've heard that Parramatta has been training the house down and never looked fitter. Just waiting for the photo on the back page of The Advertiser of the new recruits and all the new tats.