MadAsHell

There's also Essendon 1994 when Lyon kicked 7 on Glenn Manton plus 2002 when we beat the Lions at the GABBA.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. The Australian cricket team need to start taking a horses for course approach to playing in the subcontinent. I'm a big fan of Joe Burns, but he's not a great player of spin, especially on low slow wickets. Compare that to say Shaun Marsh who's proved to be a very good player of spin but I never want to see play on Australian, South African or English wickets again. Mitch Marsh is talented, but how many chances do you give a guy. Meanwhile Marcus Stoinis made a century in the Australia A v South Africa A match. He also bats at 3 for Victoria. Plus we need to stop worrying about playing two specialist quicks over on those wickets. There's a reason the Sr Lankan's, Indian's & Pakistani's always play three spinners, time we started doing it also. The sooner Stoinis & Fawad Ahmed are drafted into the squad the better. Although I know it wont happen. XI for the 2nd test should be; Khawaja (promote to open) Warner Stoinis (Bats here for Victoria. Also get him to open the bowling) Smith* Voges S. Marsh +Neville Starc Lyon Holland Ahmed Starc & Stoinis to take the new ball & then an off spinner, leg spinner & left arm orthodox. Warner is even capable of rolling bowling medium pace if you really want a first change bowler, but really isn't required over there.

I know I'm replying to this nearly 7 months after it's initial post. But I do agree with your comment about the test becoming more irrelevant with it always being the last of the whole summer. Reckon they need to go back to having a Perth test in mid January and then the Adelaide test over the Australia Day period. Move the ODI's to November just after the Matador Cup and you can then play a few T20's in early Feb after the Big Bash. Makes a lot more sense to me. Also think it helps interest build over the summer. Let the ODI's work as a build up for the Tests which are always more popular and then have a few junk T20's for the kids at the end of the summer when the threat of AFL pre-season matches straling crowds away comes into the picture.

Anyone catch any of Day 1 yesterday? Rolled the Lankans for 117 and 2/66 at stumps when rain hit. Wickets were shared. I must say I was concerned with Joe Burns dismissal. He didn't look to have any idea against Herath.

Point is they should have been our Dempster, Fisher, Gilbert, Riewoldt etc like the Saints have to guide our young players through the season and make finals a possibility. They haven't done that, for various reasons. As such we find ourselves where we are.

After a loss like yesterday, this thread always helps me look at things in perspective. Melbourne ranked 16th in each filed on the weekend with an average age of 23 years 10 months and games experience of 65.8. Saints were 8th & 9th at 24 years, 11 months and 92.5 games experience. These results will happen. It's annoying, but the inexperience of the teams we're putting out there leaves this open. Dunn & Garland's fall from grace, Lumumba's injury and Dawes inability to get back to some of his 2013/early 2014 form has meant we're playing a lot younger then most of us expected.

He certainly could be. Just not in your traditional mold. He's 188/189cm and can play on talls as well as smalls. I rate him highly and can see him landing a role in a BP or HBF over the next few years.

Think they should do what they did with Jetta and move him to the back line where he could be handy. We need other good small defenders apart from Nev.

We've done it again, youngest and least experienced team of the round. To be fair we played the 2nd youngest & 2nd least experienced team of the round. But still.... Other interesting notes are the fact that GWS fielded the 8th most experienced team of the round which I think would surprise most. Richmond & Freo seem to have made an effort to field younger teams and St Kilda also, however that was more by circumstance then by design. Also worth noting that 6 of the top 8 teams were in the top 8 of oldest & most experienced teams that played. Bulldogs are the only team that bucked that trend on both fronts, GWS on age only (10th oldest). AVERAGE AGE North Melbourne - 28 years flat Geelong - 26 years, 2 months West Coast - 25, 9 Essendon - 25, 9 Carlton - 25, 8 Sydney - 25, 6 Hawthorn - 25, 5 Adelaide - 25, 3 Fremantle - 25, 2 GWS - 25, 1 Richmond - 25 flat Port Adelaide - 24, 8 Gold Coast - 24, 6 St Kilda - 24, 6 Western Bulldogs - 24, 5 Brisbane - 24, 2 Collingwood - 24 flat Melbourne - 23, 5 AVERAGE GAMES EXPERIENCE North Melbourne - 155.9 Geelong - 117.1 West Coast - 114.1 Hawthorn - 111.0 Sydney - 105.9 Essendon - 101.1 Adelaide - 96.0 GWS - 95.2 Richmond - 94.9 Carlton - 91.0 Fremantle - 89.5 Gold Coast - 89.5 Port Adelaide - 87.1 Brisbane - 73.1 Western Bulldogs - 72.7 St Kilda - 72.5 Collingwood - 72.5 Melbourne - 62.3

Was just looking at the stats for this from the weekend, and once more I note that we fielded the youngest and least experienced team against the Hawks who fielded the 3rd oldest & 2nd most experienced team of the round. The stats actually make for some interesting reading. Paints a good picture for us, Bulldogs, Adelaide & of course GWS. And it makes things look pretty grim for the likes of Fremantle, Richmond, St Kilda (given their performance) and it also outs Carlton's efforts into perspective (as well as Bolton has done). AGE: North Melbourne 27 years 11 months Geelong 26 years 4 months Hawthorn 26 years 2 months West Coast 26 years flat Fremantle 25 years 9 months Carlton 25 years 7 months Sydney 25 years 6 months Richmond 25 years 6 months Essendon 25 years 2 months St Kilda 24 years 11 months Collingwood 24 years 8 months Port Adelaide 24 years 8 months Adelaide 24 years 7 months GWS 24 years 5 months Gold Coast 24 years 4 monhts Western Bulldogs 24 years 4 months Brisbane 24 years 4 months Melbourne 23 years 7 months GAMES EXPERIENCE North Melbourne 151.3 Hawthorn 125.6 Geelong 120.8 West Coast 118.4 Sydney 104.9 Richmond 104.1 Fremantle 103.1 St Kilda 93.2 Carlton 90.1 GWS 87.1 Collingwood 86.3 Port Adelaide 86.1 Essendon 84.5 Adelaide 79 flat Gold Coast 79 flat Western Bulldogs 71.6 Brisbane 71.3 Melbourne 64.2 North played a 22 that had more then double the games experience that we fielded. We also fielded a team on average 9 months younger then any other in the comp. Encouraging signs of things to come hopefully!

Would be interesting to see how they do it. Given Richardson i suspect they may initially go 5 & 5 and the relegation and promotion happens after every 2 seasons (allows for home & away series). So as it stands now you'd probably see Australia possibly start doing 7 tests a summer while in top division bringing Manuka Oval in Caberra into the equation. Means one summer they'd probably have 2 tests v NZ & a normal 5 test Ashes series, then the following summer 3 tests v Pakistan & the usual 4 against India. And it would be nice to see them bring in a 3rd division to see if some countries can move up the rankings. As it stands now that group would include Afghanistan, Ireland, UAE, Scotland & PNG. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Cricket_League Whatever ends up happening, i think we all agree, change of some kind is required.

It seems so. Hopefully what's being considered in my above post may help get people's interest in the sport back.

I like the idea of this. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/cricket/icc-keen-to-introduce-two-divisions-in-test-cricket-with-promotion-and-relegation/news-story/2a00386734f3b8f4279fac23019ca636 Ideally I reckon it would be best giving Ireland & Afghanistan test status and having two groups of 6, but I'm sure there's different ways they'll be able to make it work.

Australian test squad for Sri Lanka announced. http://www.espncricinfo.com/sri-lanka-v-australia-2016/content/story/1018833.html I feel like I'm saying this every time, but it really gets to me the armchair ride some NSW players seem to get with selection over the Victorian guys! How Henriques is selected over Stoinis and how O'Keefe is selected over Fawad Ahmed or John Holland is so so farcical I don't know what more needs to be said or done. Henriques (older then Stoinis) has a batting average of 31.91 as compared to Stoinis's 39.05. Henriques does have a betetr bowling average of 30.18 compared to 53.42, but 98 wickets in 62 First Class matches is hardly the figures of someone you expect to bowl you to victory. Stoinis has 21 wickets in 33 matches, so 77 wickets in his next 29 matches (less then 3 a match) is more then achievable for Stoinis to show his bowling is equally as good as Henriques. As for O'Keefe, I don't get what the selectors see in him. He's just a conservative straight arm darter that doesn't threaten the batsmen. He took 17 wickets in 6 first class matches last season @ 24.64 which is impressive for an average, but only because he doesn't go for many runs as he doesn't bowl a lot of hit me balls. Fawad on the other hand was brought up on sub continent pitches, so I would have thought would have been an ideal second spinner to pick. Or if you wanted to go with a left arm spinner, how about John Holland who's been held back by constant injuries over the years. Finally got a couple of games late last season and took 14 wickets in 2 matches @ 20.92 and is still in his mid 20's as opposed to O'Keefe & Fawad who are in their 30's. If it were me, I'd of gone with Stoinis & Holland over Henriques & O'Keefe, but then obviously I'm biased as I actually have some Victorians in my squad. And while I'm at it I'd of had Handscomb in ahead of Shaun Marsh as the reserve batsman also, as if Neville gets injured the morning of a test, I don't know who's going to keep?

And to think, for something that was only 5 & a half years ago, the only players from our 22 that day still on the list are Jones, Watts, Dunn & Garland.

That fateful night against the Dogs in 2010....

Same article actually says that the Herald Sun believe that Hogan wants to stay in Melbourne. The hard copy does anyway for anyone that has a copy of the paper. I note that bit isn't on the online article though.

Exactly right on both fronts. Lazy journalism.

Personally think Neal-Bullen is going to be a very, very good player. I like Tyson and think he'll continue to be a good player also, but have a hunch Neal-Bullen could end up being better. If the question is who's a better player now, Tyson or Neal-Bullen? Well of course Tyson is, he's got three years development on Nibbler who's in his 2nd year.

I'd actually prefer us to trade one of these two then Nibbler. Really think he's going to be something.

Freo are in a similar boat to where we were early in 2007. Went into the season thinking that at worst we were in the finals mix and then it all went horribly wrong after 1/4 time Round 1. Freo are in a little better position in that they still have some good young players like Fyfe, Neale & Bennell (although he could be a cancer). But like us in 2007, they wont be able to fully start their rebuild until the end of the year. Makes for a long season!

Want him to stay. Think he will. Why go to Freo, they could have no spine within 12 months when/if Pavlich, Sandilands, Dawson and Johnson all join McPharlin in retirement....

The reason why what Langdon says sounds like BS is because he says that if Hogan could be playing in Perth now he would be. Fact is Hogan could be playing in Perth if he wanted to, yet he signed a contract extension towards the end of 2014.

Yeah ok Karl that makes perfect sense. 'He would already be back if he could' Then why is he currently into his 2nd conract at Melbourne Karl?

You make some good points Macca, and i think those measures can be introduced while still looking at a two tier system. Ashley Mallett shares a similar view to myself, however is far more scathing on the Windies then myself: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/cricket/australia-v-west-indies-its-time-to-relegate-the-windies-from-top-tests-20151210-gll03b.html Crust of the article is a similar scenario to what i suggested. Difference being top tier of 7 and bottom of 6. He also suggested Canada and Scotland to be promoted with Ireland rather then Afghanistan which i found strange. Lets just hope for a better showing from today on.