Wednesday Snapshot

NRL: The decade couldn't end without yet another typical media beat up, a journalist flat out reporting false news before being shot down. And again it is Mason in the headlines. The Sydney Morning Herald today reported "WILLIE MASON is set to resurrect his NRL playing career with Melbourne next season after agreeing to a two-year deal with the premiers yesterday" but then followed up this statement with the follow quote "I personally communicated to Willie Mason over a fortnight ago that we were not and would not be in a position to offer him a contract for 2010" from Storm chief executive Brian Waldron. That sounds pretty promising for Willie.

Cricket: New South Wales continue superb Twenty20 form beating Tasmania by 30 runs. The ball was flying everywhere at Bellerive, Warner broke the fastest Big Bash 50 record (18 balls) before Tim Paine sent a 6 out of the stadium and into orbit. Promising all rounder Steve Smith closed out the game with a 4 fa.

F1: Michael Schumacher decides his back isn't stuffed enough and his race start to win ratio is too high and so returns to the sport. Ralf tries to tag along.

Have a Happy New Year from TC Ink.

Wednesday Snapshot

Again a late one, but it is here never the less.

Cricket: Shane breaks Bond with test cricket... Again.

NRL Crook Watch: Dave Shillington arrested for drink driving. Only coal for you for Chrissy.

NRL: Gallen switch of clubs news all just a big media beat up. How suprising.

Winter Olympics: Fox to show four channels to really ask the most important question: Who gives a $&!%?

A very Merry Christmas to all!

The Definition of a Good Pitch

I just read quite a good article on Cricinfo outlining aspects of cricket that we lost through the 2000's.

It comes to a section entitled "The definition of a good pitch".

Give them a road, and they all - without giving it a second thought - call it a "good wicket". Give the bowler some uneven bounce or some seam movement and there are calls for the venue to be banned. "Last time we came here, the bowlers got false confidence and the batters were looking for technical problems that didn't exist," Sachin Tendulkar said during the ODI leg of India's tour of New Zealand earlier this year. Fair enough about the previous tour, but what did we have this time around? Flat tracks, small fields where edges and dabs went for sixes and fours, and consequently, big totals. Entertainment for everybody. Didn't the statistics give some of the batsmen false confidence this time around? Isn't all this boundary-hitting a bit nauseating? Shouldn't administrators give the spectators more credit? A 414 v 411 ODI is one played on a "good pitch". We have forgotten the language of cricket.

This is 100% spot on. When someone describes a pitch as a "cracker", it doesn't actually mean a good pitch. It means a pitch that will produce a billion runs.

You may have noticed that lately I have had a go at pitches (Indian ones in particular) that are simply roads and pretty much hand you runs on a platter. These pitches are described as good, but really they are boring and one dimensional. I would describe them as "bad".

A good pitch is a pitch that rewards both good bowling and good batting and gives equal chances to both. Too many pitches these days make batting too easy.

Wednesday Snapshot

Is it too late? Have they forgotten? Absolutely not!

We will not break our recent streak of Wednesday Snapshots, no matter how thin the sports news has been!

Cricket: Sri Lanka fall 3 runs short in their chase of an over 400 total set by India. Some question whether game was best ever, bowlers question the legal amount of concrete allowed in a pitch.

Meanwhile Roach finds some bounce in the WACA wicket to injure-out Ponting, but can't do enough to take a bag full of real wickets as Australia finish well in control.

NRL Crook Watch: Wicks' career put on ice.

Gallen pisses away another $10 k.

Friend no friend of the law.


Ok so not the busiest of Snapshots, but it will have to do! Hey, how about:

TC Ink: Technical difficulties and general business prevent gold new material from hitting the shores of TCInk.info. TC Ink boss TC Ink says pirating software is probably not the most reliable direction for progress.

Sydney 500 Review

The first ever Sydney street race, the Sydney 500 at Homebush, attracted over 160 000 fans last weekend.

The track itself is quite exciting, unlike a lot of street circuits there are decent passing opportunities. Turn 8 in particular which Alex Davison found out and used to his advantage and our entertainment as he shot passed car after car. The funny thing was, whenever a driver was passed on that turn, they were forced wide and due to the lack of grip they struggled to pull the car up and went spearing into the fence or up the run off area. This happened every second or this pass.

Olympic Park is a great area for a street race. Simply because of the amount of space there is out there. While at a place like Surfers (Indy) you constantly feel crowded on the paths of the city, there are thousands of people everywhere. Out at Homebush there is plenty of room midfield, the wide expanse around the Olympic Stadium, and there is plenty of breathing space.

We were perched on the fence near the previously mentioned turn 8. We had a decent view of proceedings and a big screen to help us keep on top of what was happening in the race. We walked around pretty much the entire circuit before the V8 race, checking out possible spots to watch and decided to return to turn 8. It was a good decision. Another good spot would have been the final few turns before pit straight, where we watched qualifying. That was good as well. But I think to get the most out of it you really need to get into a grandstand. We had to move around a bit and stretch our necks to see up the road or to the screen, but having a grandstand pass would have made things much easier and more relaxed. However we never planned to that this year, it was more of an exploration day. Now we know for next time.

The race itself was quite good. James Courtney produced a brilliant drive, showing intent early in the race to get himself into the lead. Jason Bright did a brilliant job to grab the lead at one stage, I was quite excited for them as it would be a great way to see the team leave after all the troubles they have been through. However a drive through resulting from an unsafe release from the pits put an unfortunate end to that. Courtney was unfazed and took the Jim Beam car to victory. Hopefully a seen of things to come next year.

Idiots of the day include a guy fuming up pit straight whinging about the amount of people. "You cant see anything this is bull%#$@". And also when we got off the bus some lady: "Look at that. Holy %#$@, it's massive!". Must be from out town, or never been to the races before.
Legend of the day was some guy and his mate on the bus home. They were absolutely hammered, apparently they managed to break into a corporate marquee. Free booze all day.

Wednesday Snapshot

V8 Supercars: Sydney 500 a raging success. 160k fans over 3 days turned up to watch the motor racing event (and those guys playing music). In the final race of the season, champion Jamie Whincup got accustomed to how driving a Holden will be for him next year by crashing into a wall and pitting on numerous occasions, while James Courtney showed that he could be the one to step up for Ford next year.

AFL: The Western Sydney AFL marquee at the V8 event on the weekend was nearly as popular as a Gold Coast A League game.

Cricket: Vastly overrated Australian cricketer Michael Clarke has pushed his average over 50 after the in form batsman hit 61 not out to force a draw in Adelaide.

NRL: Bird flies to the Gold Coast and adds to the NRL crook watch list for next year.

Wednesday Snapshot

Weather: Summer greets Sydney with showers and shivers.

Cricket: Star bowler Ben Hilfenhaus ruled out of 2nd test against Windies. Windies rule out any chance of an improved performance.
Sri Lanka have won the toss and chosen to drive - I mean bat first in their 2nd test against India in Mumbai.

NRL: Roosters consider name change to Bondi, which they claim is a well recognised area of Australia. Of course, Sydney definitely isn't. Such a change would immediately improve their on and off field performances and also uphold traditional aspects of the club. End sarcasm.

Golf: Tiger Woods speculated to have hit more than just a hole in one.

Music: Them Crooked Vultures announce 2nd Sydney show, on sale this week. Woohoo!

Sydney to Finally Quench V8 Thirst

It has been a year since we said goodbye to Oran Park, and what a long year it has been. We have sat through every other city's V8 event waiting and waiting for our turn to arrive. But at long last the Sydney 500 has arrived and the V8 fans of Sydney finally get a taste of the 2009 action.

The Homebush Street race may be shaping up to be one of the biggest events on not only the V8 Calender, but the national sporting calender. First class Aussie bands and artists have been brought in to perform and from there the 3 day carnival has been promoted to death. Honestly, I have never seen a V8 weekend advertised as much as Homebush, except for maybe Indy.

Great entertainment on and off the track is guaranteed for a great value ticket price. Whincup will be crowned as the 2009 champion, while every other driver goes nuts trying to claim the first ever victories at the circuit and also the final races of the season. The track is set to be packed out. What could one possibly worry about?

See this is where things get frustrating for the dead set motor sport fans of Sydney. Real fans would much prefer to go to watch the V8s at our wasted Eastern Creek Raceway or our lost Oran Park. These are proper tracks, where you can see a lot of the circuit from most vantage points. The day becomes a picnic, you set up your spot and enjoy the day at the races. Street circuits are completely different. You may see the cars fly down the straight, then they disappear out of sight. At some points you may only see them come around a corner, then they are gone around another. You end up spending a lot of the time watching the big screen, if you are lucky enough to be positioned near one, to know what is happening in the race, what is going on at other parts of the circuit. There are no hills to sit on and spread yourself out, its either all concrete and/or too packed with people. To get a grandstand spot you have to pay a packet for.

Therefore these rounds attract more of the people who go for the party, and don't care too much for the racing. It is not ideal for the hard core racing fan.

But all this stuff wouldn't normally bother me, it is part and parcel of a street race event. We had our two rounds at our much loved permanent tracks, which I always looked forward too, and if I went to Indy I would enjoy the different environment.

Now we don't have those other two rounds. Thanks to the short sightedness of V8SCA a street race is all we have. Obviously not much could be done about losing Oran Park. But we have a world class facility at Eastern Creek that is not used, simply because two organisations don't get along too well. The fact is that the V8 fans of Sydney love going out to watch them go round at Eastern Creek. But unfortunately Tony Cochrane and his colleagues have killed it off.

This article caught my attention today.

"When he announced last week that nearly 140,000 tickets had been presold for Olympic Park, he pointed out that was about three times the usual attendance at Eastern Creek. 'Eastern Creek was unfortunately originally built as a bike track,' Cochrane said. 'It's not a very popular track for motor racing fans.'"

Wrong Cochrane, wrong. You think motor racing fans would prefer to watch at a street circuit? You have deliberately killed off Eastern Creek, you held it on abnormal dates, long weekends, Monday public holidays and didn't advertise to a single household. The rounds slipped by without a lot of people realising. Before you started doing this, when it was promoted properly, the Eastern Creek weekend was hugely popular, it got packed. Geoff Arnold is pretty much 100% spot on with his comments. Unfortunately what you don't see that you are doing, Mr Cochrane, is that you are slowly decaying interest in V8s amongst Sydney siders. My interest this year was at an all time low and I put some of the blame on the fact that I haven't had Eastern Creek or Oran Park to look forward to.

Next year we start with 2 rounds in the Middle East. Good one genius I'm sure the waves of heat and their tumbleweed mates will really enjoy the spectacle. Meanwhile back in Sydney, the fans forget for another year and interest wavers even more, with nothing to grab the imagination of fans.

I can't wait for Sunday, when we head out to Homebush for the first ever Sydney street race. It will be a great day I'm sure. But it will never match the excitement of heading off early in the morning to get a spot on the fence at Eastern Creek. And as for reigniting my enthusiasm for V8 Supercars? Well I'll have to wait and see.

TC Ink Summer

Well this sites been up for a little while now, but all along we have been sporting "TC Ink Summer".

And tomorrow, Summer finally arrives.

Although the weather doesn't seem to want to oblige, Max 20 with showers (Sydney), TC Ink will be heating up to fulfill what we have been advertising, a TC Ink Summer.

Today we complete our most active month ever, this being the 12th article written for the main news feed, plus much more on TC Ink Cricket. We hope you have enjoyed reading our articles lately, from the angry rants to the humorous comments.

The Summer is going to be full of interesting TC Ink material. The closing of the decade is near and we will look at some of the best music that the 2000's has given us. If you want an alternative form of cricket to watch, check out the TC Ink Backyard Cricket Series for some quality backyard cricket.

There will be much much more, stay tuned for great coverage of Summer!

Shut Up Telegraph - Clarke is NOT Overrated

I have been a bit slow in addressing this, the news is a little old now, but the smellograph needs a spray for this.

They conduct this survey simply to try and get a useless story out of it.

14% of the people who filled it out rated Clarke as overrated. For a start, that isn't exactly a HUGE portion anyway. Immediately the telecrap have something to yell about. But wait! If you actually look at all the survey results, you will see that 11% of people rated Clarke as the best Australian cricketer! In 3rd place, behind Ponting and Johnson...

But honestly who would rate Clarke as overrated. In the last 12 months he has averaged just under 60. That is at least 10 more than any other Aussie batsman. Real fans would realise that. Obviously the people who voted for him are mindless idiots, who perhaps are more concerned about his life off the field.

Perhaps the whole problem does rely more on the readers. People actually read this dribble and believe it. People like Ponting shouldn't even dignify the paper with a response.

The sooner we can get them to print REAL news, the better. But that's never going to happen.

Maybe they should have printed something about the fact that a lot of the other results have contradicted other news stories circulating lately, such as interest in the tests.

Wednesday Snapshot

Covell Award: Voting has closed and Hazem El Masri has been crowned the winner of the 2009 Covell Award. "My last year in NRL has been amazing. But receiving this award is the greatest possible way to cap it all off" - El Masri.

Cricket: McGrath shows he has still got it by taking 3 wickets for only 18 runs in the All Star T20 match on Sunday night. It would do the current pace attack no harm to get McGrath in to do some bowling coaching work.

NRL: Indigenous All Stars vs NRL Stars game to include various gimmicks such as the "double try", where a team can elect to have a single play to try and score another try for a further 4 points, rather than kicking a conversion for 2 points. There are also a few other suspiciously NFL like rules that will be trialled.
Coaches and trainers are to be miked up, which means the game will surely have to be delayed to allow for language censoring.

Cricket: Sarwan now in doubt for Windies. Series result still in no doubt.
Daily Telegraph produces article based on fan survey claiming Clarke is over rated. TC Ink vows to give a spray to this poor excuse for a newspaper.
Ed Cowan blasts 225 for Tasmania out of a total of only 389, while South Australian quick Peter George took 8 of the Tassy wickets, including Cowan. Now that's a game of outstanding performances.

Them Sneaking Up

It's like a new Queens of the Stone Age album - but different.

In my earlier music post about TC Ink's Album of the Year this super group's upcoming album slipped beneath my radar.

Queens of the Stone Age may not have got around to another album - but this is just as good.

QotSA front man Josh Homme, David Grohl and Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones have united to produce a great record of music.

Them Crooked Vultures' self titled album has that awesome QotSA sound, with just an element of difference brought to the band by JPJ.

They may have snuck themselves into a leading position to take out this the Album of the Year.

I'm just devastated that their January show in Sydney is already sold out.

Wolfmother's new album is also quite good. It's a bit of a change in sound since the first album and the lack of keyboard led tracks and solos disapointed me, but there are some great songs on the album. Back Round is great fun to play on GH5!

Lame Journalism Re Test Ticket Sales

Yesterday I noticed THIS article on the Sydney Morning Herald website. It claims that Australia is losing interest in tests, which is shown by the decrease in ticket sales this year.

"Early ticket sales for the Tests against Pakistan at the SCG and MCG are 20 per cent weaker than a year ago..."
Come on you dim witted fools, last year was a hyped up series against South Africa, a rare nation threatening us with defeat and therefore public interest was quite high. This time it is Pakistan. While they aren't a half bad team, they don't pose nearly the threat of South Africa last year, so simply the interest isn't as high so OF COURSE ticket sales are down.

But somehow these poor excuses for journos decide to use these invalid stats to try and death ride test cricket. It seemed to be a bit of a theme this week after Roebuck's article earlier on.

"The first Test against the West Indies in Brisbane next week is expected to draw 12,000 fewer spectators than Australia's corresponding clash with the Windies on their 2005 tour here."
That's because they are twice as crap now then they were 4 years ago! Plus their captain has gone home now. Interest lowers when there is a guarantee of a walk over.

I've also noticed that there has been a lack of promotion for the tests this year. I don't think I have seen one TV ad for the up coming tests. That also doesn't help.

It does not mean that our love of test cricket is in dire straits. These guys should focus more on positive articles, analyse aspects that perhaps should be improved such as this article, which is 100% correct. How about talking up the prospect of seeing our next generation pace attack grow and improve on home soil or the heated battled for batting spots. Can Hughes force his way back in? Can Hussey continue his form and hold his spot?

But no, they waste their time with those ridiculous articles. Test cricket will only die if you help undermine and destroy it.

People, grab a ticket to your local test match, watch the Aussies go round.

Wednesday Snapshot

V8 Supercars: SBR (Stone Brothers Racing) are set to add another talentless driver to their ranks, the word is that Tim Slade will drive a 3rd SBR car next year. The days of unearthing talent such as Ambrose seem to be long behind the Stones, as they stick with average drivers who honestly are not going to deliver them their next title.

Cricket: Star Blues team pile on 420 runs against Tassy, Michael Clarke returned with a century. Star Victoria team falters at 5/178 to the hands of promising debutant Michael Hogan (3/24). As of tea break.

NRL: News broke today about the Eels having to pay $1500 out of their salary cap for flying Fui Fui Moi Moi's son over from New Zealand. The NRL obviously have rules in place covering these sort of acts, and albeit a kind act and a nice moment, it was still an incentive to Moi Moi. A question posed by the media was how a less than $200 plan ticket turned into a $1500 salary chunk. There must be other expenses they aren't talking about, to make their stories seem more valid.

Matt Orford has been forced out of Manly and is heading to Bradford. The ESL team were able to lure the ex Sea Eagles over using the money gained from releasing Sam Burgess to Souths. The moves are a huge credit to the Rabbitohs, as they appear to be dictating terms on the transfer market.

Awesome: Sheffield Shield Live!

I just discovered a great new feature on the Cricket Australia website.

They are streaming the Sheffield Shield match between Victoria and Western Australia live!

I just watched Marcus North throw his wicket away to Bryce McGain's second ball. Voges is at the crease now and it should be good to watch him bat.

This is a fantastic initiative from CA. It isn't on telly, so if the technology is available get it going over the net!

And it isn't like its a dingy, pixelated picture either, it is quite good quality.

My only complaint is that they haven't got the New South Wales game going as well!

Thank you Cricket Australia, my working day has become more interesting!

Here is the link: http://www.cricket.com.au/default.aspx?s=weet-bixsheffieldshieldlivestream

The Silent Spinner

As the focus has turned to Australia's fast bowlers, the injuries, performances and selections, the spotlight has finally gone away from our spinner dilemma.

And in the shadows, one man has quietly gone about his business and made the spinner spot his very own.

Throughout the year so far, we have seen Nathan Hauritz undertake a journey of vast improvement. He was good in the Ashes and his performances in the shorter form of the game after that have been outstanding. He has transformed from someone who Ponting would be reluctant to turn to, to a crucial part of keeping it tight mid innings.

He has done enough to make himself a permanent name in the Aussie squad. I feel that he is starting to become somewhat of a Brad Hogg in one dayers - probably even better than he was, and a more than capable permanent spinner in the test team.

After spending a lot of my time ripping into the selectors, for deciding on Hauritz and sticking with him I have to commend them, as it appears to have been the correct choice.

Reflecting on his performances since the Ashes, we see 9 wickets taken in the ODI series against England. Averaging 29 and bowling at a tight 4.46 runs an over.

He was spectacular in the Champions Trophy taking 5 wickets at 23.20 and crucially only going for 3.76 an over. He was instrumental in New South Wales' triumph in the Champions League Twenty20 (not international and below standard but he was still really good) taking 7 wickets at the superb average of 14 and more importantly his economy was 6.25.

And finally in the recent demolishing of India, he took another 4 wickets and only went for 4.4 an over.

All the hype has been over our batsmen and fast bowlers, but I would put a large part of our recent one day success down to Nathan Hauritz. I can't wait to see him in action in Oz over the summer.

Don't Even Speculate Over Breaking this Tradition

An article popped up on Cricinfo today detailing the possibility of the Sydney Test being moved from the SCG to Stadium Australia (Homebush).

That's right, after 127 years of test cricket at the SCG there is speculation that Cricket NSW will throw it all away to move to the cashed up ANZ Stadium. It would mark another wrong decision of complete stupidity made by today's sports governing bodies. It would break the hearts of all REAL cricket fans in Sydney and New South Wales. We don't want to watch our at a cavernous, characterless ground (I already have to do that for my footy team). We don't want to leave all that history behind.

Besides, Homebush isn't fit to be test cricket venue, the boundaries and far too short and the pitch would be a drop in. It honestly wouldn't work.

Take a look at some of the dribble coming out of the mouth of the Cricket NSW CEO.

"If you're a 15-year-old kid, you've only ever known big sport events to be played at ANZ Stadium - that's not meant to be an inflammatory comment, it's a fact."

What a load of rubbish. This is about CRICKET, and you ask any 15 year old cricketer of where they dream to score a test ton and they would answer the SCG. Is the SCG Test not a big sporting event? His comment is invalid.

Take a One Dayer or two, have all the Twenty20s you want. But leave the test alone.

Anyway, to put your minds at rest I can guarantee that the test will not move. The SCG Trust would have to really balls something up to lose it. A spokesperson from ANZ Stadium even said they weren't focused on getting the test. This was just a tiny bit of speculation that has sparked a story in the media and it gave me something good to rant about.

Wednesday Snapshot

V8 Supercars: V8 Supercars Australia accused of false advertising after their Safety Car, branded 'Know When to Slow Down', clearly did not show use of this knowledge in debacle on Sunday.

Cricket: Harby says at least he will get one thing right in his prediction of the series being 5-2 to India. And it isn't the India part.

Cricket: England say they have already out performed expectations after winning 2 warm up games on tour of South Africa.

NRL: Big Willie continues good form by being in Japan looking for a lucrative contract instead of training and then bad mouthing a few club directors at Fitzgibbon's farewell. Maybe the Roosters should organise a night in Willie's honour, where all fans are invited to come and bad mouth HIM.

Facebook: TC Ink has become a fan of Wednesday Snapshot. TC Ink has joined the group I read Wednesday Snapshot on Wednesdays. TC Ink has joined the group I thought I was weird because I read Wednesday Snapshot on Wednesdays Until I saw a group about it and realised that other people do as well!!!. TC Ink has joined the group Petition to get TC Ink to do a Wednesday Snapshot on Saturday. TC Ink has become a fan of Not Reading Wednesday Snapshot. TC Ink has become a fan of Not Joining Groups about Wednesday Snapshot. TC Ink has become a fan of BEING A HUGE HYPOCRITE. Rant over, %$#@ Facebook.

Wednesday Snapshot

Welcome back Wednesday Snapshot!

Cricket: Aussie bowler sniper guns down another victim, Siddle has been sent home. Who will win the next ticket to India raffle?

Horse Racing: Shocking wins Melbourne Cup. TC Ink very first to not use a stupid and obvious pun.

A-League: Gold Coast united furious after a goal was scored from a shot deflecting off a tumbleweed.

V8 Supercars: Jamie Whincup opts out of Race of Champions in order to focus on actually remaining a champion.

Mr. CantMakeTheAussieOneDaySquad Clark Update

I'm going to run with my latest rant for this post, mainly because there have been developments in my opinions favour.

Again the Aussie attack was belted on Saturday night. Henriques did in fact play, which was quite surprising. And what did he do? Got tonked.

Now you may think I'm being a bit harsh on a young bloke making his debut for Australia, so I want you to understand that my problem here is with the selectors for even picking him in the first place.

Meanwhile, Stuart Clark played for New South Wales at North Sydney yesterday. He didn't take a wicket, but his figures were amazing, 8 overs for 15 runs. That is less than 2 runs an over, in a one day match, at North Sydney Oval! (Which must nearly have the shortest boundaries of the competition). Clearly Stuey is not a one day bowler.

Anyway, Lee is gone for the series, so its time for the selectors to pick up the phone again. The call goes out and who picks up? Its Clint McKay from Victoria! He has been in good form but honestly, how does he go to the front of the queue? Can we get some freaking experience over there? And besides, he can't leave until Tuesday because he has a Sheffield Shield match to finish.

It really seems as though the selectors have decided "Stuff it, we'll use this series as a development program. Get a look at a few fringe players, doesn't matter if India thrash us." Which is the wrong attitude. We should be trying to win every game of every series, that is the attitude that made us nearly unbeatable for so long.

Also, check out the NSW batting line up. It is world class, 5 have played for Australia. If Haddin is 100% he should be flying back over to India. Hughes would also be a sensible addition to the Aussie batting lineup. Just watch as they absolutely destroy WA in this weeks Shield match.

Where the Hell is Stuey?

In my last post I rattled off a list of quicks who could potentially join the Aussie squad. I realised last night as the Indians took apart our attack that I had completely forgotten about someone I have campaigned for in the past.

For some reason I just thought he was already over there, perhaps the idea that he is not in the Aussie squad just seems ridiculous to me. In fact it is ridiculous, with Lee injured Clark should be the next in line to make the Aussie squad. I feel like I am on repeat, I am sure I've said this before, but having someone with a record like Stuart Clark not even sitting on the sidelines, but in fact in a different country, is a joke.

I'd like to think that we would want to win every ODI we play in, but some times it seems as though its more about giving guys experience, like Hilfenhaus (who will probably never make it in ODI's, especially in India) and Bollinger (who's career is probably being hurt by being part of a squad and not playing rather than being at home playing domestic matches).

Get Stuey back in there!

Selectors at it Again, Decisions made on T20 Form

Johnson, Lee and Hopes have all hit the deck and rightfully so the Aussies have shipped over a backup to bolster to the injury hit squad.

2 specialist bowlers down, you would think that the selectors would bring over another to cover, perhaps a Brett Geeves, a Dirk Nannes or a Shane Harwood. All of them have good records for the respective states in Domestic One Dayers.

But instead the selectors have decided to pull the wild card and 22 year old Moises Henriques has found himself on a plane back to India after just returning.

So perhaps some of the reasons the selectors chose Henriques are: he's young and promising and time with the Aussie squad could do him wonders and he's an all rounder to cover for Hopes.

Now if they don't expect him to play, that sits fine with me. But what gets me, is when they say that he was picked off the back of a successful Champions League Twenty20. Domestic Twenty20 matches count NOTHING towards being picked for your country to play ODIs.

What matters is that Moises' One Day record isn't that good. He's never hit a 50 and his average is under 20. His bowling average is approaching 40 and his economy is 5 and a half. He may be a young player with potential, but he has done nothing to warrant getting selected for Australia.

Andrew McDonald must be a bit confused at the moment. Selectors stuck with him last summer despite heavy criticism and now the team needs to call up an all rounder and he's forgotten. And on a side note, his Champions League Twenty20 stats were better than Henriques'! (Not that it should matter anyway).

So my message to the selectors is simple. Do not ever pick players on Twenty20 form unless it is actually for a Twenty20 side, and if Henriques is over there simply to get experience amongst the Aussie squad, then they so!

Oh wait I just figured out the real reason he got picked... Guess which state he's from.

Covell Award '09 Finale

What you have all been waiting for has arrived, you chance to elect this years Covell Award recipient!

Will it be the best kicker in the world? Could it be a young star? Or perhaps it will be the man himself!

If you need a recap, here is a video of all the nominees!



So now, get voting! Who will be the Covell Award winner for 2009???

NRL Remove TC Ink Video From YouTube

Yesterday morning we received an e-mail from YouTube entitled "Video Removed: Copyright Infringement‏". Great, I thought, it could be any of my videos, pretty much all of them rip off channel 9 or Fox coverage.

But rather than ridding the video world of Gus Gould's voice or entertaining bad kicks they decided to ping me on the serious video backing up the article on the stupid kick into the ref rule.

Why, I thought, did the get that one. After I thought about it, it could have been because of a few reasons. Notably that video had over 5k views and also, I think the main reason, was because it had "NRL" in the title.

There are THAT many clips on YouTube stealing Channel 9 or Fox coverage of footy, some have tonnes of views and have been around for ages. It seems weird that they got rid of ours.

Anyway, perhaps it was because it was making obvious a, well, obvious flaw in the League rule book. We can only hope that when they noticed that video that they took notice, and read the comments supporting the changing of such a stupid rule.

So I've been taught a lesson here at least, don't put NRL in the video name. And everyone can rest easy, the Covell award will have a finale!

Race to Album '09 Heats Up

2009 has been a slow year for new music. U2 got the ball rolling early on with their 12th studio album 'No Line on the Horizon', which was following in June by Dream Theater's 'Black Clouds and Silver Linings'. Since then we have looked to a trio of bands releasing their albums at this time of the year to stake a big claim for TC Ink album of the year. We have heard Jet's Shaka Rock and Pearl Jam's Backspacer but there is still no clear leader. Will Wolfmother surprise us with a ripper second album in a months time? Queens of the Stone Age were meant to record another album this year, but that now looks unlikely.

So what has been the stand out so far this year? It is heard to tell.

U2 - No Line on the Horizon

U2's early '09 release probably stands as an unlikely favourite at the moment. The first single of the album 'Get on Your Boots' was a bit of a disappointment, but the remainder of the album delivered some good tunes. While it has some low, boring points it is made up for with great songs like Magnificent, Stand Up Comedy and Breathe. If U2 were to pull of TC Ink album of the year it would be a notable achievement considering TC Ink's focus on heavier styles of rock.

Dream Theater - Black Clouds and Silver Linings

2009 has been the year of Dream Theater on TC Ink and if one award is pretty much for certain its these guys taking out Best New Addition, they are also definitely in the running for artist of the year. This years released featured only 6 songs with a few long epics. 'A Rite of Passage' was the first single and rightfully so. With a while still to decide, 'Black Clouds and Silver Linings' could easily end up at No. 1 for album of the year.

Jet - Shaka Rock

Aussie rock always goes down well at TC Ink. We weren't exactly on the edge of our seat for this new Jet album, but it was entertaining when it came and provided us with some catchy songs. The first single 'She's a Genius' set a good platform, and the lead track 'KIA' sends the album off to a flying start. From there the album is typical Jet and the lack of imagination in the album is what could be its downfall.

Pearl Jam - Backspacer

Pre-release, 'Backspacer' was clear favourite to snatch album of the year. 'The Fixer' was released early and immediately became a hit. It stands as favourite for Song of the Year and it created immense anticipation towards the album. Unfortunately, it is nothing special. Yes it is a decent Pearl Jam record, but it doesn't deliver on the hype that surrounded it. There are few memorable songs, 'Got Some' and 'Johnny Guitar' stood out. 'Backspacer' is now unlikely to take Album of the Year.

So there is our current take on the contenders so far. We know for sure that Wolfmother will have a go with 'Cosmic Egg', but other than that its a pretty quiet list for '09 compared to '08 which saw a heavyweight battle between The Living End, Metallica and Kings of Leon and that's not even mentioning Coldplay and the Offspring, who would have definitely been at the fore front had they released this year.

Wednesday Snapshot

NRL: Eels to win Premiership. That would make 9 seasons without a repeat Premier. Seriously though, it could be anyone. Well, except Brisbane that is. A bit of unease in the camp with Wallace out and Melbourne running out fresh, the Storm should win well. Bulldogs vs Eels on Friday will be an absolute cracker, more than 55k tickets have been sold already, that is massive.

All stars game announced to kick off 2010 season. On February 13 an all Indigenous team will play a rest of the NRL team. The NRL team will contain a player from every club.

Weather (Sydney): Swine flu paranoids rejoice as they are given another use for their white masks.

England Should Consider Trotting Into Form

It has been a walkover. An Australian side furious over losing the Ashes has unleashed hell in the ODI series to get as much revenge as possible and England's sub standard side has been demolished.

What is baffling is that there is talent sitting on the sideline... Wait a minute, not on the sideline, he isn't even in the squad!

Jonathan Trott hit the English test team with a bang debuting with a 41 then following it up with a glorious 119 in England's ashes winning test at The Oval. Scores are one thing, how convincing you look when you get them is another. And I can tell you Trott has the goods. After only a couple of overs of watching his debut innings I could tell he was quality. Compared to some of the English bunnies he looked confident, solid, classy -- like an Australian? (Well... He is South African. I suppose that explains it.) I said straight away - he is going to get a score. 41 proved me right - and his mode of dismissal was unlucky. Then we all know what happened in the second innings.

This bloke, who averages 42 in List A (Domestic One Dayers) matches, who replaced a hopeless Bopara in the test team, now sits behind him again in the ODI squad. For the record, Bopara averages 34 in List A games. And what about some of the other mugs in the English batting line up? Denly's List A average is 32. Shah 35. Morgan 35. Fair dinkum not only do these guys' stats not stand up, but they just look hopeless! Dead set bunnies! What are the selectors thinking, what are they on?

With their current team, England are going to Trott on towards a 7-0 embarrasment (which I won't complain about at all considering the 11.50 odds I got for that result!). Trott has a huge future and why they are delaying him is a mystery.

Wednesday Snapshot

Cricket: Tune in tonight to watch Australia make it 3-0. Team likely to remain the same, England a shambles. 11.50 for 7-0 worth a couple of bob? All odds favouring Callum Ferguson look good.

NRL: Hayne wins Dally M, but fans on edge of their seat to begin voting for Covell Award. We still have a finals series to go yet! Reports have been released that 14 punters died of laughter after seeing Fitzgibbon nominated for lock of the year. Souths fans begin naming next coach possibilities.
Thursday Update: Jason Taylor looks like surviving and staying on as Souths coach.

V8 Supercars: Castrol to leave FPR at seasons end. DJR a good outsiders shot for Enduros.

NASCAR: Ambrose 23rd (Monday morning), drops out of 'the bubble'... Whatever that is.

NRL State of the Game Document 2009

The NRL have released their annual State of the Game document for 2009. The document contains information on crowds, ratings, refereeing and much more for the 09 season. Why it is released before the end of the regular season is beyond me, but I'm sure they have their reasons...

For those who would like the read the whole think, click here.

For those who don't, I will pick out the interesting parts and report.

The summary page picks out the best bits. An impressive stat is that this years comp will set the highest attendance record except for when there were 20 teams. This along with the fact that average crowds are up by 2.12% on last year are a testament to the work clubs and the NRL has done in driving membership numbers (which rose by a massive 27% to about 110 000), promoting games as well as special events for certain days for example family fun day. This is all a step in the right direction.

Overall, channel 9 ratings have increased. It is a bit hard to take any facts out of this as the accuracy of ratings are questionable, but I suppose the increase in viewers is a good sign.

Similar to last year, NRL has 60 of the top 100 rating shows on Pay TV.

One of the most encouraging points for me, was that club player registrations rose by 6.8% from last year to take it to an all time high. A new junior participation record of 124 319 was set. This is great news for the future of the game as it shows that grassroots are stable.

The NRL donated nearly $2 million to charity this season.

The top 3 clubs with the greatest increase in average crowds were the Bulldogs, up 45%, the Warriors, up 36%, and the Panthers, up 26%. The Bulldogs are in fact sitting 2nd behind the Broncos is average crowds, which is a great effort. I imagine that they are the first Sydney team to finish with an average of over 20 000 for a long time. The Tigers broke their home ground record against the Eels at the SFS (34 272) and so did the Bulldogs against the Warriors last weekend (41 835), which was also the highest crowd for a stand alone regular season game in Sydney in 35 years.

The is a 'research' section, which displays some strange figures. I don't know how they got these figures, I suppose a survey went around at some point. But apparently supporter's passion has increased from 5.9 out of 1o to 6.5. Seems like a bit of a gimmick to me. It also says that 36% of people interested in League attended a game, up from 27% last year. That is a positive sign and one that needs to keep increasing. The Toyota Cup is also growing in popularity. Also in this section is says that fans seem to think that:
-Game play is improving.
-Off field behaviour has gotten worse (Surprise, surprise).
-They are more likely to attend games.

Here are some stats that I found quite interesting. In '08 340 tries were scored from kicks. This is down to 272 in '09 (with 1 round remaining). Dummy half runs have also dropped. This could be due to the 2 ref system, it is good never the less. Total penalties have also slightly dropped, video ref decision have also had a significant decrease.

So there you have it, some interesting information there from the 2009 State of the Game document. It seems as though the game is strengthening and I can only see things improving once again next season.

Wednesday Snapshot

V8 Supercars: V8SCA announce that 8 V8s will feature in the upcoming Xbox 360 game Forza Motorsport 3. This will be the first time V8s have featured in an official game for nearly 4 years, but it is not welcome news for fans who will have to stick to V8 Supercars 3 if they want to race against a larger field of cars on Aussie tracks.

Cricket: Weather can only delay an imminent flogging of England for so long...

Rugby League: Bookies unfortunately predict a turnaround in form for the Dragons, installing them as favourites for this Fridays clash with the Eels. Unfortunate because TC Ink also predicts this and expected better odds. The Sharks have also been listed as surprise favourites against Souths. I would steer clear of this game, it would be typical for Souths to lose a game like this after a big win and the Sharks will be fired up after last weeks events (and they have a spoon to avoid!).

Rugby League: The NRL have released the 2009 State of the Game document. TC Ink will review shortly.

Weather: Still no Spring spike in temperature predicted. TC's pool to remain dirty. There is also a bad drought developing, there have been no Covell award nominees in weeks.

Thats Gould Episode 2

It is finally here, what you have all been waiting for...

Thats Gould returns in another hilarious episode. We witness Gus 'Wow' home a Tigers try (Which mind you, was clearly no try) as Rabs and Joey giggle their heads off in the background.

Including a benefit of brilliance from special guest Mark Geyer.

Wow? BenjiWow.

Selectors Mad to Drop Clark

Well, they were mad to wait for the 4th test to bring him back.

But to drop him for the 5th test would be the final straw in showing the stupidity of the Australian selectors.

They have been left with a dilemma ahead of the Ashes deciding test match at The Oval. Hauritz will be brought in for a paceman to accommodate the conditions at The Oval or the side will be left as is on a form policy, depending on Clarke, North and Katich to play the spin role.

If the first option is taken, the selectors will have the headache of deciding which paceman to drop. Leading wicket taker Ben Hilfenhaus is an automatic selection as the bowler of the series so far. They wont drop Johnson just when he has returned to form considering they held onto him after an ordinary first 3 tests. So it appears to be between Siddle and Clark. Siddle has bowled pretty well in the Ashes series, but unfortunately for him Stuart Clark is simply a better and more experienced bowler. Siddle may have got a 5 for in the first innings at Headingley but it was Clark who was the bowler of that innings, his crucial early wickets and tight bowling set up England to be rolled. Then don't be fooled by Clark's poor figures in the second innings, Hilfenhaus and Johnson had already done the damage and Clark was just unlucky in that some tail enders threw caution to the wind against him.

The Australian pace attack is simply not good enough to have a quality bowler like Stuart Clark running the drinks. He could have won us an earlier test match, we could have had the Ashes wrapped up by now, but the selectors chose to leave out our best and most experienced bowler. Now I am confident they wont make that mistake again by dropping him for the final test but if they do... That'll do me.

Strange Things can Happen in a Month

What the hell. You leave the country for a month then all of a sudden all hell breaks lose. I come back to learn that Karmichael Hunt is switching codes - to AFL - and that my beloved Triple 8 Race Engineering, better known as Team Vodafone, is doing the unthinkable by switching to Holden.

Both moves will see less success enjoyed by each. AFL is a very different game to Rugby League and regardless of whether he has played before or has the right skills to join the code, there is no way Hunt will be a top player for the new Gold Coast club. He can't just expect to jump raw into another sport and expect to compete with the professionals that have been sharpening their skills for years. In fact I wouldn't be surprised if he disappeared from the top team quite quickly (if starting there at all). 2011 is a long way away anyway.

Now to my biggest surprise on return to Australia. Triple 8 have gone to Holden. The team I have supported through their rise to what they are now are gone. 1 (morally 2) championships and 3 consecutive Bathurst victories in a Ford and now they are throwing it away. Now, don't think I'm ripping on Holden here and saying that they are going to fail from now simply because they are apart of the side I don't support. I just don't think they can jump straight into a Commodore and be successful straight away - definitely not to the extent of where they are now. In my opinion HRT are being handed next years championship on a platter. Honestly, Triple 8 are not going to be competitive with Holden's top team straight away.

But gee, don't Ford have egg on their face currently. They choose not to elect Triple 8 as one of their factory teams and it has caused them to bail out. The teams they did choose have their drivers sitting in 7th, 16th, 17th and 18th spot. Whatever happened to SBR (Stone Brothers Racing)? So successful with drivers like Ambrose and Bright but now they settle for (with all due respect to them) Van Gisbergen, who seems to only come alight when it rains, and Alex Davison, who, lets face it, will never be championship material. There are plenty of better young drivers floating around, SBR need to lift their recruitment game if they are going to step up next year.

So Ford, tell us the fans, who will be stepping up next year? Will this SBR/FPR hybrid engine lift them to the top? Will DJR keep improving and show up the factory teams?

Back to Triple 8. Lets have a think about fans. They are the 2nd most supported team behind HRT at the moment but this is going to change. Yes there are those non-manufacturer based fans that will follow them across. But mostly their fans would be Ford fans, and they will move on. Holden already have a pretty solid supporter base to their various teams and there are also a lot of fans who despise Craig Lowndes for walking out on Holden years back. Especially when they don't turn up and win, Triple 8's supporter base will decline significantly.

Maybe this is what the sport needs. To be honest watching Triple 8 dominate has become a bit boring. Perhaps the field will be really evened up for next year. I just hope it doesn't mean that HRT will dominate.

Perhaps my views are corrupted by a bit of bias, but this is way I see it. Only time will tell.

Cricket in England

England. The country where the Government and local councils actually care about all cricket clubs. While here on the beautiful Northern Beaches of Sydney we are lucky to get a ground without an annoying problem, the English sit in their clubhouses drinking tap beer as they look out over their perfectly grassed outfields and classy turf wickets.

Their system may not produce a world leading cricket side, but to play in England, as many people stated on my recent tour, is cricket heaven. Every village club has their own home ground, usually owned or leased by the actual club. If a club doesn't have a ground, councils do their best to sort one out for them and then often builds them a clubhouse. Out of the 17 clubs we played on tour 17 had their own turf wicket, 17 had a clubhouse and 16 had tap beer.

What a contrast to cricket hell on the Northern Beaches. Terrible astro pitches, dead and/or weedy outfields (or perhaps just dirt) and what is this clubhouse thing you speak of? Here we have to fight for the council for the upkeep of facilities. In England they would laugh at us. Our local authorities have no time for sport.

But here's where they lose out over there. Here if you want to play cricket, you sign up and get put into a team. Their clubs have 2, sometimes 3 teams at most plus junior sides. If you aren't good enough to make a team, you don't play. Then their whole system in getting through levels of cricket is much different. From village cricket you go straight to county and you need to be scooped up young or you miss out. In Sydney there is the grade competition in between and your age is not a restricting factor in moving up.

Could our method of bringing players up be far superior to England's? I'm guessing this plays a big role. Players who could be the next superstar could develop late, but if they didn't get noticed early they are lost. They also don't play a lot of the longer form of the game. Club games are one dayers, 40 over each. This doesn't provide a good breading ground for quality test players.

England Bound

Bright and early on Thursday morning TC leaves our shores for the first time to begin his Cricket tour of Singapore, England and Amsterdam. This will mean that there will probably be little to no activity here until he returns from Germany on the 6th of August. You can follow TC's tour HERE.

However, if time is found and an interesting story beckons we may produce some material from the other side of the globe.

While we are absent there is a good chance that we could miss Covell attempt a conversion and successfully send it through the wrong goal posts, so if you see any Covell Award gems or classic Gus Gould moments it would be great if you could let us know by commenting or e-mailing us at tcink@ymail.com

So enjoy a TC Ink free July, we'll be back with a bang in August!

Covell for Covell Award

The man that inspired the creation of this award has finally booked himself a nomination. Luke Covell decided to send this easy kick from just to the side of the posts wide, sacrificing a lead for Cronulla. Just for fun, I added in another similar miss that occurred at the end of the game. Superb effort Mr Covell, a goal kicker of your quality should come up with this brilliance more often!

Even the Best Can Covell

Another Covell Award nominee has been a while coming but it has finally arrived. He was probably the least expected candidate, being the best goal kicker in the world, but even the best have their moments of Covell madness. Hazem El Masri "duffed" this kick on Friday night to the shock of all on lookers. Perhaps he was just keen to be in with a chance at the award?

YouTube Milestone

Surprisingly, our video on the ridiculous "Kick into the Ref" rule has become our first video to reach 1,000 views. Hopefully the NRL was one of them!

We have been very busy lately, so things are pretty slow on TC Ink at the moment.

But we hope to be getting back into the swing of things soon.

Also I would like to take this opportunity to thank Jason Akermanis for giving the most accurate description of Swine Flu in the press to date.

"You have it for three days and you're fine."

Unfortunately the journo put an untruthful spin on it by saying "he joked".

If It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix it

Something that particularly bugs me about the governing bodies of various sports is when they decide to make a change to a certain facet of the rules or system that there is seemingly no problem with. These changes are often unpopular with the fan base, making them seem pointless, especially when time and thought could be better invested into aspects that perhaps do need fixing.

One of these instances was in V8 Supercars. A few years back the general qualifying system was a certain time period where all cars were allowed to go out and post the fastest lap they could, followed by a "Top 10 Shootout" which was very exciting and everyone loved it. However a couple of years ago they decided to oust this system and implement an F1 style structure that was much less popular. Unsurprisingly, the shootout made it's return this season.

Another instance of this in V8s was a change this year which sees a qualifying session before every race, where previously the grid for races after race 1 on a weekend would be decided by the finishing order of the previous race. Nobody had a problem with the system while this new procedure seems to have disadvantages such as good battles that occurred in race 1 being unable to continue due to the drivers being separated by a new grid.

A big example is about to hit us in cricket. After being trialled in a number of Test Matches, the 'referral' system will become apart of the game later this year. Cricket umpires are quite good and are considered to make the correct decision at least 90% of the time. There have been no great outcries over umpiring in cricket, it is one of the smoothest officiating systems out of all sports. So why unnecessarily introduce challenges? Especially after the trial was far from flawless. I witnessed a number of decisions reversed by the 3rd Umpire due to a challenge that left me scratching my head.

And I couldn't go without having a dig at the NRL in this article. Golden Point. Why the hell was this introduced? When two teams are equal at the end of a contest, the fair result is a draw, one point each yes? But no, the NRL decided to bring in a way to artificially get a winner.

Honestly, I could bring up numerous rules changes or "new interpretations" that the NRL have come up with that have been inappropriate, the grounding of the ball for a try for one while actual issues go unpoliced such as playing the ball with your foot and walking off the mark.

The message is quite simple, don't change a good thing. Its one way to frustrate the fans and turn them against you.

TC's Ratings (NRL)

In my opinion anyway, this season is shaping up as one of the most interesting ever. Whoever ends up winning this competition is going to have to work extremely hard. This is simply because there are so many premiership chances. There are teams like the Bulldogs who have flown out of the blocks and top the competition and there are also those such as Manly who have stumbled early but are slowly creeping their way back.

Lets take a look at how I currently rate the 16 teams.

1. Bulldogs
You can't pick any team ahead of them at the moment. They officially lost to the Dragons, but really, they beat them. Perhaps swap this loss with the game they should have lost, but ended up winning (of course, the 14 man incident, losing them 2 points) against the Panthers. Their other loss, which is more concerning, was against the Titans - without Scott Prince. This shows there are weaknesses for the team and could easily encounter a rough patch soon, but they will be there come finals.

2. Dragons
Just beat the competition leaders, but should have lost. If not for their loss against the Cowboys, however, I would have rated them as number 1. Wayne Bennett has taken no time to get this team performing and come finals they will take a lot of stopping.

3. Panthers
Penrith have easily been the surprise of 2009. Sitting in 4th on the table when everybody expected them to challenge for the spoon. They have plenty of young players coming of age as well as a wealth of experience in players such as Luke Lewis and Civoniceva. They have what it takes to give the comp a shake. It is a real shame that they play the Dragons this week. Both sides will be without some of their big players and no indication of where both sides are at should be taken out of it.

4. Knights
The Knights have looked a well structured, well coached outfit. They just need to iron out their inconsistency. They will also be a big player come finals. The Knights are another team facing a big opponent this week, comp leaders Bulldogs. Another game ruined by Origin absentees.

5. Storm
As we go down, it gets harder for me to separate these teams. The Storm haven't been the amazing force of recent years but they are still a very, very good side. Losing comfortably to the Dogs on the weekend was a big blow and Origin may also hurt them. But they will 'Storm' home in the latter stages of the season and are certainly an outside chance at the title.

6. Sea Eagles
Don't forget the premiers. They are by no means out of it yet. After a horror start to the season, on and off the field, they are slowly creeping back up the table. They will probably rack up some good wins over the next month or so and shoot themselves into the 8. If Brett Stewart returns later in the season, they just may be able to find that Premiership winning form at the right time.

7. Broncos
It was a tough decision to slide the Broncos all the way down here. But I honestly think they are lucky to be third on the table at the moment. They have had a relatively easy draw and have not been outstanding in most of those games. The origin period will hurt them. The Broncos are not a chance for Grand Final 09.

8. Titans
The final couple of top 8 spots will be hotly contested and I have no idea who will jag the final spot. I'm going to say the Titans sit here currently, they have looked on and off throughout the season. I would be not at all surprised if they have another 2nd half of season downturn and end up missing the 8. They have beaten some big teams, but something just doesn't seem right to me. In saying that, they have a relatively easy draw...

9. Cowboys
North Queensland have had a funny season. They started off shockingly, winning 1 from their first 5. After putting away the Sharks and Manly, they seemed to be gathering steam - only to go down to the lowly Eels. From there they then knocked off the Dragons and then yesterday the Knights. Perhaps a finals team, but they have a pretty hard draw and will do well to make it.

10. Rabbitohs
Would the real South Sydney please stand up? They look a great team but they are just not performing. They should have dealt with the Eels easily, but Parramatta outplayed them. They got close to the leaders the Bulldogs, they got close to the Titans and they beat the Knights. They definitely have something there and they need to find "it" soon (consistently), otherwise they will miss out.

11. Tigers
Another team with potential. The Tigers have turned in some good performances and had some back luck, losing their last 3 games by 2 points or less. They have some tough games approaching and will be hard pressed making the finals. However with Benji at his best, anything could happen...

12. Raiders
Canberra will be disapointed with their teams performance. After such an exciting finish to last year they came out in 09 really flat and now they are a very outside chance at making the finals. Campese the key.

13. Eels
No improvement from the Eels this year. Hayne at fullback is their shining light. They are going to remain low for the remainder of the season.

14. Warriors
What happened to the Warriors. They looked a top 8 certainty pre-season. They are playing crap at present but they could turn it around. The next few games could spell the end for the Warriors.

15. Roosters
It won't be long before the Roosters drop below the Sharks I feel. Fittler is messing around with the team and his incompetence is showing as he feels the pinch. Bye bye Fittler, bye bye Roosters 09.

16. Sharks
Turmoil. No money, no sponsors, no wins. Off field drama and an under performing team. What a fall, they were marked by many as a strong chance for the premiership in the beginning. Now all they can do is try and salvage some pride and they do have the potential to do a bit of that.

Challenges the Way to go for NRL

Something must be done quickly to stop the rot that is NRL refereeing at the moment. Good games are being ruined and unfairly decided by poor officiating. Fans hate it, players hate it, coaches hate it, clubs hate it, punters hate it: it is making our game look like a farce.

The latest edition in the recent series of unfortunate events was a penalty against Manly half back Matt Orford after he dived on a loose ball kicked through by Preston Campbell. He was ruled to have taken Campbell out, even though he was clearly contesting the ball and even landed on top of the footy. Many people have been left bewildered, wondering what referee Matt Cecchin could have possibly seen to make his decision. Even with two referees, two touch judges and one video referee an incorrect game defining decision was made. Inexperience? A bad mistake? Whatever the reason, it is now clear that we cannot fix up the officiating in our game by adding more refs, neither can we magically improve the quality of our refs.

Last year the NRL got it wrong when they introduced video ref checking on nearly every knock on or penalty. It dramatically slowed the game down and they often made wrong decisions anyway.

There is a simple solution that has not yet been discussed as an option for Rugby League and it is one that has been introduced into other sports with success. The challenge system could resolve the issues we are currently encountering. It has worked in tennis, is (controversially) about to be introduced into cricket and has been a part of NFL for years. The NRL need to look at this option quickly and introduce a good system.

To prevent many stoppages and a challenge on every call, they should be made scarce, perhaps two incorrect challenges for each team in the game and then they get no more. That way they would only be used for obvious mistakes or crucial decisions. The captain must notify the ref of a challenge immediately. And if the video ref cannot definitely say that the ref has made a mistake after two looks, the decision stands.

A challenge system with these rules could really clean up the mistakes made by refs in the game and would also not slow the game down too much. If the NRL decides on a challenge system they must get it right.

As for video ref mistakes, Gus Gould has made a good point many times, that there should be an ex player in the box aiding with decisions.

The Most Ridiculous Rule in the NRL

It is rarely needed, but the most ludicrous rule in the NRL rule book has reared its ugly head in the same game two years in a row. If the ball hits a referee, he is deemed to have interfered with play and a scrum shall be packed with the feed going to the team who is in attack, which is determined by which half the ball is in.

In last years heritage round match between the Wests Tigers and the South Sydney Rabbitohs at the SCG, the Tigers were on the attack with the score 10-6 in favour of Souths who were searching for their first win of the season. The Bunnies managed to defend well and on a 4th tackle play, the ball was grubbered straight into referee Ben Cummins. Rabbitohs fans were disgusted when a scrum was awarded to the Tigers, who got another full set and scored. They hit the lead and from there the whole complexion of the game had changed. In a tight, perhaps crucial point in the game, the Tigers were handed an unfair advantage and there was nothing the Rabbits could do from preventing this turning point.

Coincidentally, last weekend in the heritage round match between the Wests Tigers and the South Sydney Rabbitohs at the SCG, the same event happened. The Tigers had just made in into the "attacking half" when on the last play, Farrah planted his kick right into referee Ashley Klein. A Tigers scrum feed followed as the Souths fans chant of "Bull$h*t" rang throughout the ground. Luckily for Souths the Tigers did not managed to score off the back of it, and the rest of that game is history.

It is amazing that such an archaic, unfair rule still exists in the game. The defending team is penalised for doing nothing wrong, for something they have no control over. You could even argue that they pay for a mistake made by the opposition. The NRL need to change this rule now, although it very rarely happens there is a chance it could occur in a big game, an Origin or a Grand Final, and unfairly change the course of that game.

There are many fairer options the NRL could consider when changing the rule. A simple turnover could be ruled, the same as when a team makes a mistake on the last play, the team could be told to go back and play the ball again or a scrum or play the ball could be awarded to kicking team but the tackle count does not restart.

Is it possible that players could start aiming at the ref more often as an option to get a repeat set? Effectively a player could turn around, chase the ref patrolling the ruck and kick the ball into them to get a scrum feed.

The NRL has enough unclear or unpopular rules, simple anomalies like this should be eliminated. All it does is unnecessarily add to the problem.

Below are the two incidents.

Wallace Earns Covell Award Nomination

We have ourselves another new name on the list of Covell award nominations. Peter Wallace sent this kick from the sideline to "Bathurst" (Thanks Vossy!). He is our first nominee from a rep game, this coming from the City Country match on Friday night. At the time, this was to tie up the game.

It looks like Benji Marshall's effort from the last batch will not make the final cut of potential award winners at the end of the season.

Watson Wins, Australia Loses

Despite a patient century from Aussie opener Shane Watson, Pakistan have won the final game of the 5 match series in Abu Dhabi.

The match may have been a dead rubber, but Australia's chances of clinching another victory were dealt a blow by the man who on paper played a superb innings.

Shane Watson notched up his 2nd one day international century and in doing so halted his team's charge to a big score on what was a fairly flat pitch. For the most part of his innings Watson was going at a run a ball, but as soon as his hundred seemed in reach he slowed right down and took no risks. His 116 came off 146 balls - way too slow in the circumstances. Compare that to Pakistani keeper Kamran Akmal's knock of the same score which came off only 115 balls and it could be inferred that the difference in these two innings made the difference in the end result.

It is obvious that Watson thought he needed to make a huge statement to the selectors while he had the chance in order to retain his spot in the team, it is why he showed such caution and determination to get that 100th run. But would the selectors have been more impressed by an attempt to get the Aussie total moving along to a more competitive score?

The batting power play was called at 35 overs. The field was brought in and the spinners came into the attack from both ends. They kept it tight and Watson failed to hit through the field while he refused to risk going over the top. The power play was wasted.

I am a big Shane Watson fan. I think his batting alone is enough for a place in the Australian ODI team and possibly even the test team. His bowling is also valuable and if he's fit enough its a huge bonus. Watson would have gained a lot from this innings. He got the century he wanted and when he fronts up in England for the next ODI there will be less pressure on him to retain his spot. There are big things to come from him and although he blindly hampered Australia in this game for his own good he will be back, and will set up or win many games for Australia over the next couple of years.

Gallen Let off After NRL Judiciary Farce

Cronulla Sharks lock Paul Gallen has escaped his one match ban after successfully pleading not guilty for a grade 1 careless high tackle.

Gallen was charged after he clearly hit Craig Wing high with a stiff, swinging arm last Friday night. The tackle forced Wing off the field where he spent half an hour recovering from a dizzy state before retaking the field. The incident did not even get penalised during the game, a ridiculous miss by two referees who have lately been intent on finding anything to penalise. The high shot was referred to the judiciary after the game.

After the Sharks learnt that Gallen faced a one match suspension, and that if they fought the charge and lost that there would be no further penalty, they of course decided to plead not guilty. Most logical people thought this decision pointless as they saw the tackle as a more than legitimate offense to be charged and in fact didn't worry to much about just presuming that Gallen would be suspended. But they let him off.

Reportedly Ricky Stuart delivered a passionate plea to the judiciary which was aided by him giving a physical demonstration of the tackle on Gallen himself. He explained how his arm bounced off his chest, and contact with the head was unavoidable. What a load of rubbish, look at the image below and tell yourself honestly that there wasn't large contact with Wings chin. What are the judiciary doing, watching Ricky or watching the tape?



Ricky also stated "He did not react as though 'I'm stuffed here'... There was no reaction". OK Ricky, so if Gallen went onto the field with a knife and lopped somebodies leg off and then looked one hundred percent innocent afterwards, he should be let off right? He couldn't have done it.

The Sharks skipper is a common face around the judiciary and is well known as an aggressive and particular dirty player, particularly after it was revealed a while ago that he ripped out the stitches from beneath an opposing players bandage during a tackle. Now they have let him off for a blatant high tackle, what is this showing to him and other players? This is not going to help Gallen clean up these blemishes in his game.

Last Sunday on the Footy Show, Mark Geyer remarked that the incident had only been sighted because of his reputation. Wrong. Incidents like this build his reputation.

Players have conducted tackles much more harmless than this in the past and have been suspended for it. Perhaps the panel just felt sorry for the hapless Sharks or perhaps they pitied Ricky after he was blasted by Phil Gould in the paper. Whatever the reason, they have gone mad.

The boys over at the judiciary have set a new precedent: its open slather on high tackles this week in the NRL! Go get 'em fellas!

Covell Award Special: Round 7

After a long dry spell, the Covell Award is back in full force! 5 of our goal kickers decided to entertain us last weekend with spectacular misses.

First off, on Friday night Rabbitohs halfback Chris Sandow got the ball rolling with this poor attempt from the sideline.



In hindsight this kick probably isn't even that bad after seeing some of what is still to come!

From the sideline again, this time is was Cameron Smith's turn to butcher a kick. He completes an amazing feat as he manages stuff up his goal kick so bad that the ball makes it all the way from one sideline to the other.



Isn't it great how the commentators talk him up before he kicks it?! In the same game, we move to extra time. Our first field goal attempt is added to the collection. Stacey Jones' addition is extra special: he was right in front, had plenty of time and... It would have won them the game!!!



A man with one leg could have knocked that one over! To Sunday, and a relatively new name in the league stuffed up this goal kick from nearly right in front.



Well done Josh Dugan. And finally our last edition for this massive weekend. Benji Marshall, who was instrumental in the Tigers comeback victory over the Knights, also managed to get himself a nomination. Take note of the great build up commentary by our friend Gus Gould.



Damnit Benji!

Anyway, that completes our collection from Round 7. In the end we think we may have chosen too many, so if you believe that any of those kicks aren't good (or bad) enough to be a final nomination, then you can cast a vote for that kick to be excluded in the poll located in the right column at the top (Go to the blog homepage if you are viewed this as a feed). Hopefully you can help us out there.

That wraps up last weekend horrible kicking showcase. We hope you enjoyed this special presentation of the Covell award and heres to there being more stuff ups in the weeks to come!

Footy Theory Rounds 7-8

After a dismal showing from the theory in round 7, it hopes to bounce back in round 8. The theory stated last week that Broncos and the Bulldogs would lose or at least struggle. Well, that didn't exactly happen. In fact the Broncos delivered another crushing defeat, 40-8 over Parramatta.

Next week the Broncos come up against the Knights, in Newcastle. The Knights have been looking good lately and will be looking to bounce back after giving up a big lead against the Tigers last weekend. The Broncos have been in hot form and surely they are about to burn out, well that's what the theory says.

Another form team, the Dragons, flogged that Roosters 29-0 on Anzac Day. The Dragons are at home at Win Stadium to the Warriors this week and it is shaping up to be a cracker of a game. The Warriors squandered opportunities to win their game against the Storm last week in extra time, which ended in a 14 all draw, and will be looking to make up for it. The theory says the Dragons wont be convincing in this game, but it looks like it will be very close and could go either way.

I'm also going to class the Panthers win over the Titans as a big win. They travel to Canberra who put up a decent showing against the Dogs last weekend. Some may say that the Raiders are due for a victory and that the Panthers are due for a loss so the theory might be in business here.

So in summary TC's Footy Theory for this week says:
- Knights over the Broncos
- Warriors over the Dragons
- Raiders over the Panthers


Coming soon on TC Ink: The Covell award. We are still sifting through the many bad kicks and preparing the special presentation!

England Tour Blog

TC has launched his blog for his much anticipated Cricket tour of England.

He will be updating it frequently, reporting on his progress.

To follow TC check out the blog here.

Also coming up this week:
- Special edition of the Covell award
- Footy theory
- And more

Coming up on TC Ink...

We have a packed out lineup for this week after an eventful round of footy amongst other things.

TC will be launching a personal blog, more of a journal in which he will track his much anticipated tour of England with Collaroy Plateau Cricket Club. He will cover all the build up events as he prepares to make his mark on the other side of the world.

The Covell award is back with a very special edition. This weekend provided us with plenty of disgraceful kicking efforts, we have a lot to cover and there is still one game to go!

We take a look at failings of our Footy Theory.

And after all that if we still have time, some referee analysis/discussion could be thrown in, because... well there has been some dodgy stuff going on lately. We'll also talk some cricket and perhaps F1.

Stay tuned!

TC's Footy Theory: Round 6-7

No, we haven't gone and hidden this under a rock because it was a total flop. In fact, if you look at the first installment and then check the results, you will find that TC's Footy Theory delivered some predictive genius. Since then there has been some close scores, so there wasn't really a need to push the theory on inapplicable results.

Anyway, round 6 saw a return to comprehensive victories. We'll drag out the theory and see how it goes for round 7. First off last Friday night the Broncos ran in a 20 point victory over the Panthers. This weekend Brisbane come up against the more-than-struggling Eels. To be honest, the theory is going to be standing on shaky ground for this game, in fact it probably would be wise to just forget it. Tipping the Eels to win in Brisbane would be far too risky. Lets move on.

This coming round the Cowboys are up against a resurgent Sea Eagles side. Now, the Cowboys had a big win last round - as did the Eagles. The big wins cancel each other out, and means the theory does not apply here. However, despite the loss of Brett Stewart, the Eagles are looking good for this game.

Finally, the Bulldogs belted the Eels 48-18 on Sunday. The Dogs come up against the hot and cold Raiders this Sunday, in Canberra. The theory says the Dogs will struggle in this game. They are due for a off game and the Raiders have looked good over the past couple of weeks. This is a potential special for the theory. Perhaps the bookies have stolen the theory, that would explain why they have installed the high flying Bulldogs as underdogs in the game!

Stand and Deliver, You Mugs!

THE Aussie cricket team have lost the plot. While the Saffers are belting us to all ends of the park, we are struggling to find the boundary at crucial times. What has happened to the Aussies that has sapped us of our ability to tonk?

Well guess what folks, the problem may be more obvious than you think. Whip out the highlights from the 4th ODI (Port Elizabeth) and compare Gibbs' slogs out of the park to Michael Clarke's pathetic attempts to score quickly. There is a bleedingly obvious defect in the Aussies attempts at belting and it has been apparent for quite a while now, it may have crept in somewhere in the Aussie Summer, or it could have been even earlier. If another Aussie tries BACKING AWAY again, the television will be switched off until that batsman gets out - which in the current climate wouldn't be long. Stay in front of your damn stumps and stand and deliver!

Michael Clarke has been a serial offender. In looking for a big shot he backs off to leg side and ends up having one fired at his body which he fails to play, or he suceeds in punching one through the off side for a single. His available scoring shots are severely limited after backing away. It gets even worse against spin. Everyone knows how good Clarke is at playing spin, and how well he uses his feet. He has completely left this behind, backing away to leg side is not using your feet well. Watch how Clarke got out in the last match. Bowled by van der Merwe after the ball beat the outside edge. He was all at sea because his body somewhere outside leg stump. Clarke isn't the only one, most of them are doing it.

Two that aren't (or didn't last time I checked at least) are Haddin and Johnson. Haddin scored a fashionable and fast 78 at Port Elizabeth and we all know what Johnson has been doing lately. Perhaps it would be a bit harsh on Ponting as well, but thats probably it.

Its ugly to watch, its losing us games and its easy to stop. Watch as Gibbs stays in front of his stumps, clears his front leg and belts one over cow corner. Phil Hughes is a specialist at that, he displayed it to us in the test series. Maybe its time to throw him into the One Day team. But I think perhaps all that could be needed to is a good drilling of the team: Stand and Deliver, You Mugs!

Lyon to be Forced to Stand up for Origin

Manly centre Jamie Lyon has failed in an application to be exempt from playing representative football, meaning that if he gets selected for the New South Wales Blues, he must play for the New South Wales Blues - or be stood down from Manly.

What right do the NRL have to decide this? It seems a bit rough, to be forcing someone into representative football, if they would just prefer to focus on their club. It's ridiculous that the NRL can do this, in fact, it seems a breach of freedom, or something along those lines, to actually force a player to play Origin.

On the other hand, what is Lyon thinking? Who would turn down an opportunity to play in the biggest Rugby League clashes of all? It is understandable for older players to hang up the Origin boots, if they feel they are just not up to the toughness of the series anymore. But Lyon still has years left in him and is still playing great football - after playing seven origin games in the past, why give it up now? His state may need him for that centre position, Lyon is state of origin material. He is letting the Blues down. Could you imagine Mitchell Johnson refusing to be picked for Australia? Playing for New South Wales is what kids dream about, some players would give anything to play it, but Lyon wants to give it away at 27.

But now that this has all unfolded, would the selectors be insane enough to pick him? He has declared his clear intentions of not wanting to play origin, surely the selectors wont pick a player who wont want to be on the field. It could have a terrible influence and effect on the rest of the team. If the bloke doesn't want to be there, then don't pick him, let him have it his way. Pick another player who would be dieing for the spot and would give their all.

Let Lyon put his full concentration into the bottom placed team.

Thats Gould

We can't have footy players stuffing up goal kicks every week, so it's about time we added a new little segment here to TC Ink. And it will be giving due recognition to a commentator we either love, or love to hate.

While many people out there can't stand Phil Gould, I personally enjoy listening to his commentary, comments and ideas. He has a fantastic footy brain and can often read situations in games perfectly, giving viewers a good insight into the game. Gus is also not afraid to speak his mind on issues he has with the game of rugby league, such as News Limited ownership and dodgy rules, despite working for channel 9.

Unfortunately for Gus, he doesn't think before he talks and often comes out with rediculous statements that are stupid and wrong. He also can't admit when he's wrong.

But beside all this, Gus entertains us week in week out with expert, extravagant commentary which, basically, can be just plain funny. His trademarks include "No no no no no" and "Dear oh dear oh dear". Anyway this segment is a tribute to Gus Gould's corkers in commentary, we present to you: Thats Gould!

Watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3f3Dj5W4zgM