The Wrap - Finch and Ducks and Drakes

1. Australian Womens' Cricket. They have delivered once again. World Cup champions. Amazing batting from Alyssa Healy after really struggling for some form leading into the tournament. 170 is handy in any form of the game, let alone a World Cup Final. A classy innings

2. Aaron Finch. He of all the advice for the selection of a new Australian coach. Well, well well, it looks increasingly like he should have shut up and listened because he is about to be dropped. And in good time. His form in the BBL has been absolutely woeful for a few seasons. Two consecutive ducks v Pakistan in the ODIs has sealed it. He needs retirement. One of our most inspiring captains? Langer lives on.

3. Pakistani Pride. The skill of the Pakistani batsmen on their own turf is outstanding. Babar Azam is in scintillating form. He is peeling off tons like stickers off apples. Easy and frequent! Amazing with the series in the line how certain players rise up. Others go quiet and disappear. Top series by McDermott. Abbott and Ellis… not the answer. 

The Shield Final is intriguing. This Aaron Hardie is a phenomenal player for WA. Three wickets and a second innings ton under pressure and suddenly Victoria need 400 to win. A game changer.

4. NRL Coach Sackings. The Broncos started with a couple of lucky wins and it is showing. They were terrible and we now have a race to the end for a few coaches…Walters, Barrett, Payton, Maguire (never do a sports doco as everyone gets sacked eventually). The cantankerous coach has a short life… Ricky is almost finished at the Raiders too. Barrett on thin ice after a 40 point thrashing. Hook not much different.

5. Fledgling. Walters was not helped by Thomas Fledger being put on report four times. Honestly, is there a grade four lunacy rating?

6. Sombrero No More. Interesting to see Payne Haas tipped to join the Roosters. That would be an extraordinary signing. With Brandon Smith and Sam Walker… how good? They have plenty of room still in their cap with so many 2021 retirements.

7. AFL. There are no sides near the Western Bulldogs or Melbourne again. The rest are kidding. Swans were brave… not a lot else. Liking Freo and Geelong early.

8. Netball. You know you have made it when the Wrap gets hold of you. Impressive Giants netballer is young Amy Sligar, Julie and Damian’s daughter. Sporting the ‘Sharon Karen Strzelecki’ WD bib, she played strong, done fine.

9. EPL. A huge finish ahead with Liverpool and Manchester City neck and neck for the title now. They are facing each other next week which should be an amazing contest. Playing for sheep stations now.

10. Ash Barty. A quality golfer from all reports. She is underway with a new career! Talent plus!

The Wrap - Buddy Beauty!

1. AFL. Buddy Franklin is a class act. His lazer-like boot has been an awesome feature of his career, but 1,000 goals later he could just be one of the last to achieve it as the game evolves. Jack Reiwoldt at 716 is next..Josh Kennedy (688), Tom Hawkins (669) and Jez Cameron (468). He is that good.

2. Cricket v Pakistan. A sensational series win really. Coach Ronnie McDonald was deservedly ecstatic! Suddenly no one remembers Justin Langer whose away form was terrible.

Steve Smith will never captain Australia again. His temperament lets him down. He gets fired up and cannot contain his emotions in exiting the field when out, or when a review doesn't go his way. Shakes his head like a mad dog. However, while he has dropped some catches, the slip snare of Babar Azam was awesome and changed the game.

The work of Lyon (426 test wickets) in the second innings was strong. He is within an ace of Richard Hadlee (431) now. He was persistent and creative on a dead track.

One of the great series wins really for Australian cricket and the No. 1 nation in Test cricket again. Hard to know how that system works. Dodgy. Not as dodgy as the English cricket team's batting as they fell in a heap in the West Indies.

3. NRL. The Sharks look sharp. Their backrowers and forwards are superior to most. Jessie Raimen has talent and is tough. The way they are playing they are contenders. Nico Hines and Dale Finucane are top signings. Leaders. When they get back to that Shark Park (Ronson, Caltex, Cleanawy ....Stadium) cauldron, they will be hard to beat. The hooker Brailey is a gun too.

Souths looked sharper, but the Roosters have been up and down too often. The Knights were put to the sword against Penrith. How many legend youngsters does that club own?

Parramatta v Melbourne. Great contest. For all the hype and stern faces, this Parramatta team has woeful defensive lapses out wide (yes Waqar, you are part of that) and the coach does not seem able to correct them. What coaching options do you have? An assistant coach like Cameron Ciraldo at Penrith seems a good option. In the end a neat win. Stone is a great signing by the Dolphins. He is tough and a winner.

Ricky Stuart has some issues with his crew, but how dismal were the Titans? When teams lose by two points regularly, they are in strife. Attitude.

4. Socceroos. What a dismal 0-2 performance v Japan. We are back to the also rans now. Perhaps missing the next World Cup in Qatar is not such a bad thing. Graham Arnold has done his dash. He needs to slide away now. A shame the Western Sydney Wanderers have recently signed their coach, but he would kill it in the A League again. Maybe the Scottish league like Postocoglou. 

We all know that after the 80 executions in Saudi Arabia recently, it is hard to believe we are even hosting this team. Greg Norman though has told us all is well there, so we should be right. 

5. F1. The F1 mob should not be there in Abu Dhabi either this weekend. With Russia's arrogance, we suddenly are running out of destinations worldwide, but surely there are better places.

6. Shark Ping Pong. Poor Greg Norman, his Saudi Arabia golf tournament looks like a boys weekend ambrose event for a handful. Blood money is not enough to persuade others, despite how Greg thinks.

7. Tim Tszyu. Still has it. A famous victory. Thankfully has not been taking lessons from Barry Hall. It may be tough to hear, but Paul Gallen would not match it with SBW. SBW is an incredible athlete. A great weekend for the pugs. A new World Champion in Womens Boxing too - Ebanie Bridges, IBF Bantamweight winner.

The Wrap - Hand Ball

1. NRL. Not much has shifted this year so far. Souths are struggling with the loss of Gagai and Reynolds. Manly look like they did last year at the start, but have Tom Trobjevic this time around. They were smacked by the Roosters. Dragons up and down... Gold Coast struggling. Newcastle the surprise packet. The Eels were dreadful at the key moment again. If they think they are premiership chance, they better get better quickly. No chance.

The Sharks are looking crisp. Liking how Moylan is actually playing the game this year. He is running and using his ability, not being stifled. The Sharks look a happy camp too. Lots of promise there in front of the newest cauldron. Unbelievable how a team on the brink of extinction comes back and is probably one of the strongest financially now.

How bad are the Tigers? They may need to turn into the Magpies and re-badge without Madge!

2. NRL - Bulldogs. It is hard to ever feel sorry for the Bulldogs after all they have achieved as a club. However, they will continue to be unlucky this year. Not sure I like seeing Josh Addo-Carr barking instructions and giving it to team mates. Concentrate on scoring tries and doing your own job might be some good advice. Trent Barrett has those desperate eyes too. A great Assistant Coach, but I doubt his capacity as a Head Coach.

3. AFL. The addition of both McCartins at the back of the defensive line positions the Swans really strongly this year. Top teamwork and intuition, so long as they can stay away from the team doctor and rehab. The comp looks very even this year.

4. SBW v Barry Hall. Surely SBW wins this, but Hall is tough. It would be great to see more top flight Aussie boxing, rather than NRL/ AFL players donning the gloves and reaping profits.

5. Socceroos. A huge week for the Socceroos ahead. Lose and they are near gone. Tough games v Japan this week, then Saudi Arabia (no hand ball there - or hands of offenders) next week. Two wins gets them to glory and quickly. A loss and they are doomed to play a whole raft of extra second chance games.

6. Cricket v Pakistan. What a negative series this has been. Bowling deliberately down the leg side. Hammering 500 plus. Not enforcing the follow on and then watching the name of bat companies dominate our screens. We have been pretty ordinary it must be said. Steve Smith's hands were dreadful - which is very surprising. When three or four blokes throw it away in the nervous 90s, you can tell something is amiss too. We had Carey (93) this last test and Labuschagne (90) and Khawaja (97) in the first test. Never make a habit of getting out in the 90s.

7. Daniel Ricciardo. Excuses 101 to 303. Honestly. Time for Daniel to just keep quiet and perform well. 

8. Celtic. Absolutely on the rampage with success looming. A fabulous effort by Postocoglou regardless. Rangers will need a miracle the way it is going at present, although a few draws can shift the sands quickly.

8. A-League. How many A League players can you rattle off? The comp is in huge trouble for profile, yet on it rolls...

The Wrap - Drawing the Line on Draws

1. Pakistan Cricket Pitches. They have had twenty years to get their pitches right. Rawalpindi was a road and ridiculous. Karachi looks like your son mowed it with the mower level so low it is all scorched. Honestly. Can they get a decent curator on the job? Maybe a little more work here is needed to make the game the showpiece - not the boring draw.

Surely Rawalpindi gets a zero rating for that pitch. How to kill the game and feed the statisticians. It also exposes our attack when times are tough. Nathan Lyon did not impress, but who did?

2. Usman Khawaja. 11 Test tons now and one in the last test gone begging with a silly reverse sweep. Not bad for a bloke who supposedly couldn't play spin. He has been dominant and now. He equals Dean Jones on 11 Tests. 12 tons for Lawry, Morris and Damien Martyn is the next stop. He is starting to become a greater force with a superb legacy. Supremely elegant under fire and 155no at lunch on Day 2. 400 in the first innings? It is hard to lose a test from there. 

3. NRL. Melbourne are in a fair bit of strife with injuries, but they still won and won't look back either. Talk of them snaring Tariq Sims is dangerous. Sims will be dominant for the Storm if he ever arrives. Brandon Smith is a little injury prone at times. He plays a hard game, but may not be in for a long career. Like this Mikaele Ravalawa the St George winger. Hard to stop and a definite on your try scoring multis!

4. EPL. Ronaldo hatricks are a bit rare these days at ManU, but a great game v Tottenham has etched his names into the record books. The most top flight goals ever. Not a bad record.

5. Novax Djokovic. The saga continues, but this time in the USA. No vaccination - no entry into the USA. He misses Indian Wells, one of the great tournaments (fifth major!). Maybe he will change his mind, but like all players in all sports...the sport rolls on with you or without you.

6. Ben Simmons. His ugly spat is over seemingly as he heads to the Brooklyn Nets and his Australian friend Patty Mills. His return to Philadelphia where he refused to play was colourful. Time for him to produce on court.

7. Shane Warne RIP. The sadness of his passing continues. Unexpected and unbelievable. Massages, liquid diets, mystery women, late night airport scenes. So often the media can't control themselves in such moments. The dignity and respect for the family matters above all else. What an unbelievable player. Awesome memories. His commentary was straight and brutal (Starc remembers this), but again a dominant figure who had opinions and was well regarded. He made people listen, even those who did not like him!

8. NRLW. The NRLW is certainly starting to grab the attention. Some pretty skilled players. Some big hits too. Not recommended for everyone however!

9. Jarryd Pain. Can anyone believe that Jarryd Hayne was out at the Albion and not at home thanking his lucky stars? He needs to live, but surely there could not be worse timing and sadly he will always be a target. At least no one shot a gun at him this time. A dangerous stretch of turf is that outside of pubs and nite clubs!

The Wrap - Shane Warne No Longer

1. The great Shane Warne is dead. A jolt of electricity into every 50+ year old and terribly sad for his family and friends. A timely reminder for many that health trumps all other vices, interests, work and passions. Greater in legend than ever before. Some amazing press coverage of someone who was truly great at his craft. 

Very few bowlers would empty the bar at the SCG so you could just watch his art. Warne did that. He had his opponents, but he truly was a world force whose teflon coating was invincible. When on the brink of a test victory at the SCG all those moons ago, he would escort the esky in from the team minibus and summons the team to hurry up and win so they could drink the Crownies sooner.

In 2011, we had this story in The Wrap from Damien Fleming:

"Warnie. Is it true that no matter what Warnie does he is forgiven by the Australian public? Pete tells a yarn from Damien Fleming who was summonsed by Steve Waugh to have a chat to a quiet Warnie in the dressing sheds before a Test when he'd just broken up with the wife. 

Fleming approached him and looked to console him when Warnie said "Do you reckon when I flick the ball from the fourth finger, it spins more vigorously? I've been trying to work it out". Zero distractions".

I recall seeing him at his car inside the SCG behind the MA Noble as he was looking through his boot. "Looking for your whites Shane?". He stopped turned around and looked at me. Pause. He shook his head and laughed, but I reckon he wished he was. A great Australian sportsman.

Absolutely loved how the fans put pizza and cans of VB at his statue outside the MCG.

One of those moments where you may just recall where you were when you first heard it.

2. Deadly Art. There have been a few cricketers pass recently from Australia... Ashley Mallett, Sam Gannon, Alan Davidson, Rod Marsh and Shane Warne. Dangerous craft this cricket. Up there with UFC.  

3. Australia v Pakistan. A dreadful flat pitch. The only hope for Australia (outside of a reverse sweep for your ton) is the bookmakers getting hold of their team in a horrific last inning collapse. They know how to bat these guys and do it in style. A strong batting order indeed.

4. NRL. Kicks off this week and Trent Barrett is under immense pressure. Apparently his off season is like a picnic and he lacks ideas. He could be making way for someone much bigger soon. Michael Maguire is also on the precipice. Kevin Walters is standing next to him. Nathan Brown and The North QLD coach both need a lively start of they are cooked too. Dreadfully negative to mention without a ball kicked, but the truth!

5. Ravi Jadeja. What a test for India v Sri Lanka. 175no and 9 wickets. Dominant and the best all rounder in world cricket.

6. AFL kicks off soon too. An exciting time of the year. Looking forward to seeing the next generation shine.

The Wrap - The Great White Goldfish Dead In The Water

1. Greg Norman. The Great White Goldfish. Greg continues to make his post golf life one drama after another. Does he know Jana? His headlining of the Saudi Cash Golf Tour was flawed. technically a player might play wherever, but in going head to head with the PGA, presumably without doing it well behind closed doors, Greg now looks a little lonely. Helped a little and then ruined by Phil Michelson, who struggles for peer cred at the best of times. There was no shortage of boots in the guts for lumbering Phil from journalists, ex players and other golf types who saw him looking lame.

Between nude shoots, gym photos, odd beach photos, big corporate announcements and a return to Australia, Greg is starting to see that when - as happens in a number of sports where it is all about the individual - you can quickly become arrogant, self centred and not connected to others with sincerity and grace, life can be tough. A great golfer, but not such a great stretch in retirement. This could be an awful rusty nail in his reputation, especially in the US.

The US big business who trade and interact with the Saudis of course have become a bit quiet as the players have fallen into line. The PGA is now in a dangerous position. They have flexed their muscles and won... players are petrified and sadly may be down to their last billion each very soon. Weep, sob...

2. Ukraine v Russia. Arrogance and trouble, death and destruction. Russia have deservedly lost their F1 GP and should be isolated and frozen out of every world sport, including every Olympics upcoming (no lame derivative country names either for drug cheats). It will be interesting to see if their tennis players for example are even admitted into tournaments. Sad, but true. The world cannot tolerate this. I noticed the long time owner of Chelsea FC, Roman Abramovich has retreated as his good mate Putin plays games. Putin was another one for the strange half nude photo on horses and the like. Maybe Greg Norman can resolve that conflict on the world stage for us all instead?

3. Premiership - Parramatta. Call it off. The February Premiers are Parramatta. 36-0 v the Panthers. Sadly they are no chance now that Haze Dumpster is out for the season. St George look a little more lively early too...

4. Kevin Walters. He is my tip to be the first NRL coach sacked, especially now that the "Brad Arthur Curse" has arrived. Chris Anderson played his son Ben, Brad is playing Jacob and now Kevvie is playing Billy. Other players respect Nathan-Ivan Cleary and Martin-John Lang, but if they are fringe and getting the nod, it can destabilise big time. Kevin used to smile and enjoy life. He looks petrified - even in the trials. I am worried for his health. He once owned a sense of humour.

5. Alex Zverev. This bloke is a real problem for world tennis. Fined and banned for hitting the umpire's chair in mexico. He faces DV allegations and he is a great talent under cooked. Like the new generation of tennis players... loud mouths, big on social media, but little grace and honour for the game. He has not beaten a top ten player at a Grand Slam. Time is ticking.

Meanwhile, Nadal wins the tournament for a 3-0 tournament victory strike rate for 2022. Undefeated!

6. Paul Gallen. Can there be a Sunday paper without another new opponent for Paul Gallen to fight? Honestly, tiresome news. Paul was a great footballer and successful in the ring...but retire please and spare us the hype. Memo to self: SBW will not fight you.

7. MLB Lockout. The owners v players. Gotta love this sort of stoush. The fans are ripped off as always, but the conditions and pay for those players outside the top 40 is truly appalling. Multi-million dollar contracts are rare and for the absolute elite.

8. EPL. Manchester City are stopping for no one, not even a blip last week. Lucky late penalty v Everton, who are rushing to the relegation dustbin sadly.

9. Pakistan Cricket Tour. Why is it when you think of Pakistan, an image of the glinting rat cunning of Salim Malik comes to mind? I am certain they have better icons than the disgraced former captain. Their impressive batting will be hard to handle. Their pace bowling surprises too. Our batsmen are about to find out what it takes on the world stage to be the best.

The Wrap - Centres of Un-Excellence

1. NRL Trials. Interested to see some footage over the weekend on Fox sports. It has been quite a while since any of us have seen trials televised. Such has been the miserable cricket season.

Enjoyed seeing Latrell's brother Shaquai carve it! I am troubled re the life of Kevin Walters as a coach. He is so intense, so wanting improvement. Many are seeing similar player attitudes to 2021.

The Tigers continue to disappoint. Hopefully Michael Maguire will have more than five weeks. If no success, predicting Benji Marshall will step in as an interim step and then takeover. I think the Tigers may have the Roosters this week and Melbourne Week 1 of the comp. Tough start. They have players out injured and new ones arrived but it seemed a familiar tune was playing. James Tamou is then in the press speaking like they do not know or have not confirmed the skipper for the new 2022 season.  It sounds like a complete schemozzle.

2. T20. Can someone ask Aaron Finch to concentrate on scoring runs and keeping his position in the team viable. It may allow him to forget about selecting coaches for a future which it increasingly appears may not include him. Josh Inglis has been strong. Ben McDermott had a golden chance squandered. Stoinis is so talented and Wade is a terrier in that middle order. A winner.

3. Parramatta. The option to stay being taken up by Dylan Brown is huge for the Eels. This kid could be one of the greatest players since Kenny in the blue and gold #6. If they could just shuffle Moses out of the way, they would be right. Apparently they also renewed the contracts of Rodwell, Greig, Ogden and Makatoa. Clearly a comp is just around the corner.

4. Indian Cricket. Talk about an embarrassment of riches. Rohit Sharma is next Test captain following Kohli's sidestep. Not sure Rohit has the Test stability required. A genius and a talent, but composure in Test cricket? I would have thought Rahane was the man who did such a great job in Australia last summer.

5. Sheffield Shield. Hardly a batsman in sight in this next layer of Australian cricket. Nic Maddinson? Peter Handscomb? Jason Sangha? We have problems ahead in the batting stakes if there is no change here.

6. EPL. Liverpool slip to 6 points behind Man City with a game in hand and have been handed an unlikely lifeline. The relegation is hotting up: Norwich and Burnley (17 points each) have Watford (18) and Newcastle-Everton (22) and Leeds (23) nearby. A few intriguing battles ahead as games played evens up. An Everton relegation would rock the EPL world to the core!

7. Western Sydney Wanderers. They punt their coach (required) but they don't seem to be making a jot of difference anywhere. They have so many centres of excellence it is ridiculous, but little true excellence on the pitch ...for some years now. Hopefully they don't get the spoon this year.

8. Nature Strip. Poor start, but such a champion. Home Affairs superb of course in winning, but what about William Pike arriving in Sydney town? Lots of super jockeys there at present. Anamoe was strong in the last 100m which is a sign of an excellent horse. More cash and glory ahead there.