SPOTY Time Is Here Again...

Once again the BBC has announced the shortlist for their flagship sports review show, no longer called Sports Review of The Year. It’s an interesting list full of semi-obscure faces that are at least champions or have won something this year. Yet there isn’t really a stand out obvious winner.

The BBC will of course push for Jenson Button to win. They paid out a lot of (questionable) money to capture the rights to Formula 1. In the first season of that contract, long time favourite of the British motorsport press Button won his second Grand Prix. Then kept on winning… and winning until his team suffered a mid season slump, by which time it was probably a question of when he would win the Championship rather than if. Button will get a lot of press, I wouldn’t be surprised if he won.

Andy Murray will do well, but he isn’t the cast iron certainty he would be if he filled that Slam sized hole in his trophy cabinet. The Heavyweight boxer David Haye might do well, especially as he has been promoting himself recently in the mainstream media, with appearances on Jonathan Ross. However if Lewis Hamilton’s tax affairs was an issue for some last year, surely Haye’s tax affairs should be an issue this time around. Ryan Giggs will pick up votes from Manyoo fans, if no-one else. Cavendish, Daley and Tweddle will struggle for votes outside fans of their own sports.

Outside of Button, there are a couple of candidates who might win, especially as Athletics provides more than its fair share of Sports Personality… winners. Jessica Ennis won the Heptathlon at this years World Championships, the first British athlete to win a major Heptathlon since Denise Lewis became Olympic champion in Sydney. Phillips Idowo also struck gold at this year’s World Championships, finally coming out of the shadows of Triple Jumping great Jonathan Edwards. However Button’s main challenger may well be Englands Cricket captain Andrew Strauss.

This time last year, Strauss was preparing to head off to the West Indies as part of a squad led by Coach Peter Moores and captain Kevin Pieterson. Then with days before the tour departed Moores and Pieterson had a spectacular falling out. Moores left his post and Pieterson quit as England captain. Strauss was given the job as England captain. It looked to be a short term affair as England inexplicably lost by an innings at Sabina Park, and continued to lack a cutting edge on the flat pitches across the West Indies. But the reason Strauss is here is because he survived to take England into the Ashes, as things turned out a victorious Ashes series. Strauss’ himself made a vital contribution to the series, he was the leading run scorer of the series, with 474 runs at 52.66, he made 1 century (his 161 helped set up victory at Lords) and 3 50’s.

I think Button will win, Strauss may well finish second. Either Ennis or Idowo might make it into the top three. Haye might well make it into the top three as well. But I suspect that the public relations push for Button will be too strong.

Just Like Lord's

Fifth Test, The Oval: England 332 & 373-9d beat Australia 160 & 348 by 197 runs & win the series 2-1

So in this series of twists and turns, England managed to pull off a huge win to take the series 2-1. Much like at Lords, England posted a modest target first up, many people thought England were at least 25 runs under par when they were bowled out just after the start of the second day. However like at Lords, Australia were destroyed in the Friday Afternoon Session, skittling Australia out for 160 (left).

This time the chief architect was Stuart Broad who continued the form shown in the Headingly test. When he got his chance he went on to take 4 wickets for 8 runs in 3.3 overs. His final analysis for the innings was 5 for 37. I was at a wedding at the time, before the wedding I thought that England would be lucky if Australia were about 270-290 for 6 at the close especially after the start provided by the openers Katich and Watson. I checked my phone when we were on the coach and saw that England had taken 3 quick wickets and thought the match had come back to parity. When I checked again (when we got to the hotel for the reception) Australia were 8 down. Aggers comment was spot on when he tweeted “Tell you what… I reckon they’re coming home”

Watching the highlights on Channel 5 a couple of days later, it was striking and a object lesson to the rest of the England seamers, how often Broad put the ball in the right places, on a good length making the batsman play and letting the ball swing. This had been Siddle and Hilfenhaus tactics all season long and had brought them dividends (Hilfenhaus took 22 wickets @ 27.45, Siddle took 20 wickets @ 30.80, Johnson also took 20 wickets but @32.55) particularly in restricting the England batsmen all summer. Broad’s session where he took 5 wickets saw him stake his claim to be the heir apparent to Flintoff.

Australia could have still got into the game, but couldn’t part Strauss and debutant Trott. They came together on 39 for 3 (England lead of 172) and put together a stand of 117 which effectively sealed the series win. After that the only wobbles came with Ponting and Hussey’s 127 run stand on the fourth day.

The statistics say that Australia dominated this series, 6 Australian batsmen made 100’s, though Strauss top scored with 474 runs (his high score of 161 at Lords is also the series highest score), while Hilfenhaus, Siddle and Johnson topped Broad in terms of taking wickets. However the Ashes were lost because this Australia side have not been ruthless enough, and have not bowled well enough. They were utterly devastating at Headingley but for most of the series the England batsmen seemed to be the architects of their own downfall. Poor shot selection seemed to be the doing of a lot of the English batsmen. The English bowlers produced 3 good quality spells of bowling (at Lords, Edgbaston on the second day and here at the Oval), and dominated the series from getting out of Cardiff with a draw to the first morning at Headingly. England deserved to win the series.

Fourth Test, Headingley: Australia 445 beat England 102 & 263 by an innings and 80 runs

As momentum shifts go, this was as unexpected and unforeseen as is possible as Australia’s pace attack found form… and then some. By exposing the technical deficiancies in the England middle order, the Australian bowlers made it doubtful that Ian Bell or Ravi Bhopara would be picked for the 5th Test a week on Thursday.

The technical deficiencies also extended to the England pace bowlers, who bowled too short and gave too many easy shots to the Australian batsmen. England were in a hole very quickly on day one, finding at 71 for 5 at Lunch. Very quickly they were bowled out for 102. Having only seen the highlights, I suspect that technical deficiencies played a part in the batting collapse, with Bell and Bhopara the main culprits. But I suspect that there is a lack of patience here as well. Its no error that Cook prospered, abet briefly, on the first morning. Strauss looked, well, distracted. Hardly surprising as he had lost Flintoff to injury, and had looked like loosing Prior to injury during the warm-up.

Despite only getting 3 wickets in the match, the inclusion on Stuart Clark in the Australian test team seems to have invigorated the other bowlers. Peter Siddle took five wickets in the first innings, however the real bonus was the return to form of Mitchell Johnson. Johnson had so far wilted under the pressure of being the next great Australian spearhead bowler. His 5 for 69 included 3 wickets on Saturday evening (above, getting the wicket of Alistair Cook late on Day 2) which blew away the England middle order. In sharp contrast, England bowled too short. Broad and (to a certain extent) Onions seemed to be the only bowlers who were prepared to bowl line and length balls, and let the ball swing.

Going into the last test, the series is tied at 1-1. Previous results at the Oval are irrelevant, but for the record Australia have only won there 3 times since the Second World War (1948, 1972 and 2001). England seem to have all the selection problems. It is likely that Anderson will be fit, and will be joined by Flintoff, for his last Test. This however leaves the question of what to do with the middle order. The saving grace for Bell and Bhopara is that there really isn’t an obvious replacement for either of them. Personally, I would maybe look to swap Bhopara and Bell, Bhopara is not a Test Number 3, while maybe a change in position would do Bell some good. Australia hold most of the aces, and a momentum they had before, and lost. England must hope that they lose it again.

What If...

Third Test, Edgbaston: Australia 263 & 375-5 drew with England 376

The biggest question to be posed at the end of this test was what if the rain hadn’t come, how would have panned out. Of course its all ifs and buts, which ignore the interesting shift which occurred in this match.

Before the match, England were on top, and Australia were in apparent disarray. However Australia look to be now working their way back into this series. Their bowling this test is an improvement on Lords, though Johnson is still perhaps leaking too many runs for Australia’s liking. HIlfenhaus though has been excellent, extracting swing. The session either side of lunch on the fourth day put a check on England’s scoring, at one point it was doubtful that England would overhaul the 263 Australia posted.

What is clear is that this is now an incredibly close contest, inconceivable 3 months ago when Australia demolished South Africa. Tomorrow the series moves on to the 4th Test, which will be held in Leeds. Headingley of course has a strong place in Ashes history, from Bradman’s 334 in 1930, 1981 and all that through to Mark Butchers match winning 173 not out in the last Ashes test played at Headingley, in 2001. Weather permitting, another chapter waits.

The Longest Record...

Second Test, Lords: England 425 & 311-6 dec beat Australia 215 & 406 by 115 runs

For all that Ricky Ponting is a fantastic batsman, and the biggest risk to Sachin Tendulkar’s reign as test crickets most successful run’s scorer. He has garnered some unwanted records as Australia’s captain. The first Australian captain in 18 years to relinquish the Ashes, the first Australian captain to lose a test series at home in a similar period and he missed captaining Australia (in 2004) to their first series win in India since 1969/70 through injury, only to lose heavily when he did captain Australia when they toured there last autumn. The latest mark on Ponting’s captaincy came on Monday when his team became the first Australian test side to lose an Ashes test at Lords for the first time in 75 years.

The reasons for Australia’s defeat are familiar ones, as they were trotted out when they inexplicably drew in Cardiff. Bowlers taking longer to adapt to “English” conditions seems to be the chief reason, another reason could be that Australia are actually a bit light in the seam/swing bowler department. This is a more likely reason for Australia’s predicament. Witness the strong start England made, the 196 run 1st wicket stand being the platform which Australia could not overcome.

Not to take anything away from Strauss and Cook, but they did cash in from some poor bowling. Mitchell Johnson has been particularly disappointing on this tour, given that he was the fast bowling star of Australia’s series win in South Africa in the spring. Considering he was touted as Australia’s new main strike bowler, he looks to be the main candidate to make way for Brett Lee once he returns from injury. All of which makes the exclusion of England’s destroyer 30 months ago, Stuart Clark, all the more baffling.

England though were fantastic, though 425 somehow doesn’t do justice to their batting performance. Pieterson was in hindsight struggling with injury and Bhopara needs runs quickly as he looks to be struggling in the number 3 position. There are still too many poor shots made by the England batsmen to say that England are on their way to another Ashes series win. How they replace Pieterson will be key to how they get on.

Starting As The Last One Ended...

First Test, Sophia Gardens: England 435 & 252-9 drew with Australia 674-6 declared
So England escaped with a draw in the first test of the 2009 Ashes Series, despite only winning at best 4 out of the 15 sessions. In fact from day one England were in varying degrees of trouble. And it all stems from the poor batting display on day one.

Apart from Collingwood in the second innings, and Prior and Flintoff, who were dismissed by good deliveries by Siddle late on in the first day, none of the recognised batsmen did themselves any justice. Its more annoying that most of the batsmen got themselves in, and promptly got themselves out. The worst culprit here was Kevin Pieterson.

The guy is a talented batsman, but there are times where his concentration is not really test standard. Thursday was one of those moments where had he kept his head, then England would have been in a much better position and KP would have had another Ashes hundred. Instead he went at a wide delivery from Hauritz, and holed out to Katich. The form of the recognised batsmen, who could only muster 435 first time around on a flat slow pitch, is clearly the most worrying aspect fro the England camp. They were given a showing up by the tail-enders, who added 106 runs first time around and took England from 70 for 5 in the second innings. The form of the bowlers could be slightly excused by the slow flat nature of the pitch, but not that much. England’s bowlers need to sharpen up before Thursdays Second Test as well.

Not that England have all the problems. Despite the efforts of Clarke, North and Haddin in making the Australian middle order look at its most stable since the retirement of Steve Waugh, there must be real concern at their inability to kill a game off from 70 for 5. The sign’s were there on the second morning, when England went from 336/7 to 435. Australia missed Brett Lee, and possibly made a blunder in not picking Stuart Clarke, Metronome 2 as the BBC website text commentators took to calling him during the 2006/07 Ashes series. Ponting struggled at times to juggle his misfiring bowlers. Mitchell Johnson looked wayward, not what we were expecting from the man who took an 8 for 61 (in Perth) against South Africa and 33 wickets in the return series in the past year. Then again the last bowler to be singularly unimpressive on his Ashes bow in England would have been Glen McGrath, who went on to take 8 wickets after his thrashing at Edgbaston.

So its still game on as we head to Lords for the second test, starting on Thursday. England have recalled Harmison, possibly to cover an injured Flintoff. Should Harmison play, it would be a return to the stage where he arguably last performed in an England shirt – when he took 5 wickets on the first day of the 2005 Ashes series. It would also be a huge blow to a side who have not won against Australia at Lords for 75 years. History is against England on Thursday.

The Ausies Are Coming!

"There's one thing on my cricketing resume that hasn't been achieved yet and that's being captain of a winning Ashes series in England. That's something very dear to my heart."

With those words Ricky Ponting announced his intent to lead Australia to victory in this summers Ashes series. The ruthless efficiency which was the hallmark of their 5-0 whitewash 30 months ago looks to be in evidence as the Australian’s squad to defend the ashes was announced in the week.

The squad that was picked includes several form players, instrumental in the series win in South Africa. Chief among these, among the batsmen were Marcus North (Centurion in the 1st Test) and Phillip Hughes (A century in each innings of the 2nd Test). Hughes likely opening partner is Simon Katich. Four years ago Katich, like the rest of the Australian middle order, struggled under a barrage of reverse swing. His comeback after the retirement of Justin Langer, and the injury problems of Phil Jaques, is all the more remarkable in that light.

The Australian middle order is likely to be made up of the tried and trusted, starting with the skipper, looking for the 40 runs to take him past 11000 career test runs, followed by Mike Hussey and Michael Clarke. They need to be. Australia have left out Andrew Symons from the squad, while wicket keeper Brad Haddin is no Adam Gilchrist. Whether Haddin is even in the Ian Healy mould remains to be seen. For so long the Australian middle order was the powerhouse of their batting display, with Pointing, the Waugh twins, Allan Border, David Boon and the Chappell brothers all attaining legendary status occupying those berths in the past. Yet this was the biggest failure for Australia 4 years ago, with only one century coming from that area of the batting line up (Ponting’s 162 at Old Trafford, though Clarke made 93 in the victory at Lords). This area Australia needs to get right.

Symon’s exclusion from the squad has seen the door open for 2 relatively unknown all-rounder’s. Shane Watson was much hyped before the last Ashes series as Australia’s version of Flintoff. In 8 tests, 257 runs at 19.76 and 14 wickets at 36 runs is not good form. His “back-up” Andrew McDonald’s figures are not that much better.

There is strong competition for the bowling bearths. Brett Lee and Stuart Clark are back, but are not certainties to get back into the test team. The performance of both Peter Siddle and particularly Mitchell Johnson on South African soil puts the experienced pair under pressure, with Andrew Hilfenhaus also in contention for a test place. It is likely that Australia will start the majority of the 5 tests with 4 seamers.

The largest hole to be filled from the 5-0 ashes team is in the spinners department. Having said that Shane Warne was more than just a leg spinner, the majority of wickets that he picked up in the last years of his career were earned by his nous, and his experience and ability to deliver the perfect delivery. This time around, Australia have picked just off spinner Nathan Hauritz, though if required both Michael Clarke and Simon Katich could provide slow bowling options. Either option is likely to take the 20+ wickets Warne normally hovered up in an Ashes series. This puts pressure straight away on the quick’s to get the wickets.

This is not the legendary Australian side of 1993 or 2001. But it is not unlike the side which toured England twenty years ago with a mix of experience and hungry inexperience. Ponting’s quote is a statement of intent, the question is though. Is England ready?

Rangers 1 Falkirk 0

Rangers won the 124th Scottish Cup final with a strike from Nacho Novo (below) just after Half time. His strike, a powerful, dipping shot at an angle from out side of the box, was one of the great Hampden goals and lit up a mostly tactical game. This cup win makes it an 18th League and Cup double, and Walter Smith’s 3rd double in his two terms as Rangers manager.

The score however masks the contribution Falkirk made to this game. Falkirk’s possession, and the extra man in midfield, caused serious problems for Rangers. So much so that Falkirk dominated the first half. They created 3 clear cut chances in the first half, however their failure to convert possession into goals cost them dear today.

Firstly Burton O’Brien had a shot from outside of the box go over. With 16 minutes gone Neil McCann, going for his 6th winners medal wriggled free of a challenge and hit the bar with a shot, his next chance was closer. 4 minutes later a cross from Barr probably came at McCann a bit too quickly, and he put the shot wide.

Rangers had to make changes, their central midfield pairing of Barry Ferguson and Lee McCulloch were being over-run. They did finish the half strongly by forcing a series of corners. For the second half, Rangers brought off Kris Boyd, and brought on Novo, and went to a 3-5-2. The difference was immediate as Rangers got their spectacular winner in the 28th second of the second half. Rangers then dominated the next 20 minutes as they then kept the ball. Lafferty was almost in for the second 5 minutes later, but Falkirk kept them out.

It was Falkirk’s time to make changes, and they brought on Higdon, Finnigan and Stewart. This pushed Rangers back into their box, as the chances started to come for Falkirk. Finnigan had a goal disallowed for offside, while with 8 minutes to go, a Lovell shot narrowly hit the post. Rangers were only just still on their feet when the final whistle went.

For Rangers, this was their 33rd Scottish Cup win. They are now one behind Celtic’s record. They can now afford to put this season behind them, with a sense of satisfaction. After last week’s championship win, Rangers go straight into the group stages of the European Cup, manager-less Celtic have to try and get in through the problematic preliminary rounds. There may be some issues still surrounding the Booze-gate 2, and this story might come to a conclusion during the close season. But by and large, this has been a good season for Rangers.

For Falkirk, the game was their season in a microcosm. They played good football, but like several of the teams at the bottom of the SPL, lacked the ability to convert good possession into goals. Their manager John Hughes was under incredible pressure for much of the season, part of the bi-product of there not being an outstandingly bad team in the SPL this season. Hughes has, somewhat unwisely, never hidden his desire to go far in management. After staying up, Hughes maybe contemplating a change in job. After all, after the departure of Mixu Paatelinen from Hibernian last night, there are now 3 vacancies in the upper reaches of the Scottish football hierarchy