The Silver Fern

yeah he was nominated

boo @booboo

You can sort of excuse Oliver on the pitch in real time etc, but VAR?
Having said that I have read some commentators supporting the red.

I think it reflects a pretty mediocre year overall for test cricket.

There are names there that I thought WTF but when you look at their figures it makes sense. Atkinson took 52 wickets at 22.15 in 9 matches. Henry 48 @ 18 Hazlewood 35 @ 13 but missed 40% of Aussies tests.

Ducket only averages 37 but what opener set the world alight last year. Not any Oz or Saffa.

Jadeja shades Lyon. Smith looks the tidiest keeper with a good batting record. Hazlewood is the only player that looks an obvious omission, but as I said maybe they figure he breaks too easily. Plus Aussie had a really soft programme. Pakistan Windies and India (minus Josh in the main) at home and two tests against us away.

Gauff probably unable to focus what with her TikTok withdrawl

@booboo said in Aussie Open:

Is it just me or are Serbians incredibly over sensitive?

Come from an ultranationalist country so not renowned for their ability to laugh at themselves. Plus it was a lame and deliberately insulting comment. Hiding behind the 'harmless banter' defence as he desperately backpedals.

Spoke to some guys that went to both days. Saturday on a boat yesterday in the stands. They raved about it.

From a sailing purists perspective, it was pretty exciting with lots of incidents but at the same time dull and a bit boring. I think the course is way too narrow which doesn't allow for passing lanes and means passing really relies on capitlising on others mistakes. Of which there were plenty. Aussie made the fewest mistakes and so were deserving winners.

NZ fucked up almost every start. Don't know what was going on. Most un- Burling like

Channeling my inner GOM I have to disagree.

I'm not saying that it all has to cucumber sandwiches and strawberries and cream but there have to be standards and the minority of ferals at the AO have stepped way over that line. I loved the way Danielle Collins gave it back to her hecklers.

I think Kyrgios is part of / symptomatic of the problem. Apparently organizers' love him because he's introduced a younger audience to the tennis. Well, if that audience are those that were chanting out obscenities about a player's mother then personally I'd prefer they stay away.

Throwing your support behind a player is great. Likewise giving it to the 'villain' but if it descends into boorishness it's a very slippery slope.

Tennis goes on for a long time. It's hot and there's plenty of booze but certain standards should be respected old chap.

Fulham says hi

@KiwiPie C'mon you know better than that. Rice and Hadlee were crucial to Notts success in the 80's but any side with Tim Robinson, Broad, Randell, Bruce French could bat a bit. Pace wise the two all rounders were supported by Cooper Andy pick and saxelby. Spin was Eddie Hemmings. You had other decent county batsmen like Newell and Johnson as well

I think he's genuinely retired.

Until he wakes up one morning and thinks Maybe I'll go again

It's not that long ago Moyes said he didn't want to go to a club mired in a relegation battle. The fact that he has done shows the pull of the club. How much they support him will be critical. TBH I don't see a lot of upside for him.

Gotta feel for Dyche. Saved them from relegation - dealt with a points deduction and the club don't even thank him for his efforts in their statement. Crass

@sparky said in 12. 2024 TOTY SECOND FIVE-EIGHTH:

When he played well, the All Blacks looked at their best.

When was that? Not in 2024

According to rumours, half the EPL are looking at a half season loan deal for Evan Ferguson who is seeing little game time at Brighton.

also Fulham are going to sign James McAtee for 40mill and / or Igor Jesus for 30 mill. Can't see either as being realistic. Silva is on records as saying if you buy in January it's because you got your summer spend wrong. Why would we splash a record fee on an attacking midfielder having already set a club record for an attacking midfielder in July? Same with Jesus. Muniz and Jiminez have shared 11 goals as the lone striker in the first half of the season which is far from shabby. Why pay over the odds now?

Player agents and desperate journo's sure make for an interesting speculative landscape.

Plus I see little evidence of Kane being underappreciated so wrong on both counts

@MN5

To reinforce my point. Mains wanted to choose Cully for his last NH tour but Tonks restricted him to 26 players so Cullen should have had a cap before Hart took over.

Then Hart chose Adrian Cashmore ahead of Oz and doubled down by ignoring the evidence that Osborne was the best option at 13 with his Goldie at 15 miracle call. Harts far from the worst AB coach but he'd have to be in the running for most poisonous and over-rated.

Anyway I really hope Robertson comes good next year. We've had seven successive seasons of pretty inconsistent AB performances. More than time to start producing the goods

I fear Robertson is John Hart 2.0. Except Hart inherited a great side and therefore enjoyed two illustrious years despite himself.

I hope NZR don't indulge Razor to the extent Eddie Tonks did Hart or we will see Mounga steering a sinking ship.

I don't know how United could possibly have expected a different result. They have managed to orchestrate the worst possible scenario.

They needed to either get rid of Ten Hag in the summer appoint a new Manager and back him in the transfer window or reappoint Ten Hag and accept that this year might go pear shaped but they would stick with him for the full season.

Instead, they reappoint Ten Hag, let him but the players he wanted to suit his system (whatever that was) then harpoon him a third of the way through and appoint a relatively inexperienced Manager who wants to play a totally different system and saddle him with a squad that are not cut out for his style of play.

Amorim's results are no better than Ten Hag's, but surely United have to stick with him? Club's a complete mess. Ratcliffe's more dope than great hope. Seriously they are making the post Busby years look like a promised land.

Sir Alex left behind a side in serious need of rebuilding - a task beyond all his successors. they (almost) all start off quite brightly and then the politics and toxicity of the place grinds them down. Remember how positive everyone was after Ten Hag's first season, post Ragnick. Got rid of Ronaldo finished third, won the League Cup. Then it all turned and Ten Hag's the worst Manager since Solskjær/Mourinho/Van Gaal/Moyes...

We are also down in midfield hence Silva departing from his normal 4-2-3-1 for the last two games