We’ve all heard the joke about the good ol’ boy from Bumcrack, Alabama, who likes two kinds of music - country AND western. Well, I am similarly mono-cultural in my appreciation of footy. Being born and bred in Sydney in that golden age before the AFL’s South Melbourne arrived in town to re-brand itself as the Swans (until they won the 2005 grand-final, whereupon coach … [Read more...]
Caitlin Foord – Playing sport for a living in a foreign land.
Fast, strong, courageous, smart and skilful, Caitlin Foord is not only one of the Matilda’s best players she is one of the most valuable soccer players in the world. Having played at the very top level of her profession in forward, mid-field and defensive roles, Foord is no one-trick wonder. Unlike many other footballers she is versatile. A coach can drop her into almost any … [Read more...]
A three-point shot for one million bucks! Easy!
There is a gut-wrenching video sequence on the internet of a young bloke taking a three-point shot (during the half-time of a pro basketball game), with a prize of one million dollars at stake. Mike's foolproof ritual In the clip, the kid, Mike, starts off practicing his wrist-snap by flicking the ball into the air precisely four times. Next, deliberately, almost in a trance, … [Read more...]
A bad day at Palmy – surfies and clubbies at war!
Shane was stoked that Kiddies Corner at South Palm Beach was firing up after days of shitty southerly storm conditions making surfing impossible right up and down the Northern Beaches. It was 8.00 a.m. Sunday, November 1966. Things hadn’t been good in recent weeks for Shane and his mates with the local Warringah Council passing regulations that banned surfing at most of his … [Read more...]
Excruciating jargon – Basketball and soccer at their worst!
Two of the world’s greatest global games are rotten with jargon. Positively stinky with it! Why? I can’t say, for sure, but it has something to do with the fact that while both games crave growth and acknowledgment as the globe’s biggest and best sports they, ironically, seek to exclude outsiders by generating their own exclusive languages. Is basketball and soccer jargon … [Read more...]