Ok...we're on the eve of the start of cricket season - the 2nd greatest sport in the world..so we NEED a thread bout this great game.
I have 2 things to start off with:
I've forgotten to make mention of Mark Waugh's retirement - I'm so sad he's gone, he's one of my all time favourite players and I love his attitude! The press conference was so funny! So yeah, wanted to mention Junior's retirement..he's an absolute legend!
And secondly - I have a YAY and a GRR about the same thing. YAY that Bichel's been selected - so glad he's turned his career around, But GRRR that it's at the expense of Brett Lee...grrrr! SO yay for Bic and awwwwwww for Bing....I want them both in!
I think that's it for now...I have to warn you all now - I am a total cricket addict! I love it! So no doubt I'll go on and on and on and on for the next few months. Can't wait for the 2nd test here...love going to Adelaide Oval...so much fun!
So yeah - bring on yet another series where the Aussie kick arse..some people find it boring, but I LOVE it! Bring on centuries by Punter! I'm sooooo excited!
Ricky got a century! LEGEND! And Matty Hayden is kicking arse! How good are we? (Or maybe England aren't that flash...poor guys)
And huge awww for Simon Jones of England who's done his cruciate ligament and is out of cricket for 6 mths. So sad - he's gonna be a superstar....feel so sorry for him. You never see injuries like that in cricket - just awful.
I SO wish I'd read this post before last night....
Mark Waugh was the answer to one of the sports questions at the quiz (see 'yay' thread) and so yeah, if i'd read this then i would have known the answer to that Q. pah.
but awwwwwww, lovely lovely football Smithy was the answer to another Q (which Leeds player got his 8th red card the other day? hehehe, awww, i love smithy) so I wrote the answer and then put "aww i LIKE smithy)" but the side, then spent the rest of the round (about another 10 Q's) randomly decorating that bit of the sheet with smiley faces and "he's a sweetheart really" and stuff. hehehehehe. Awwwwwww. But he is.
ANYHOO - cricket. Yeah, see, I don't get cricket.
Well, I do - LBW, yeah - understand that. 4.... 6.... yeah yeah, understand all that. Innings... overs... ummm, yeah I kinda get that.
What I don't get is how it is ENJOYABLE...... the only good thing about it for moi is
a) we have a really cool commentator who gets bored and so starts talking about other stuff, like the vehicles that drive by, and he has the poshest way of talking and the greatest syntax ever, so yeah he's cool.
and b) the sexy cricket boy at my school. hehehehe.
Was watching the Cricket Show today (I'm sooo addicted to that show!) and they did a profile story on Jason Gillespie - first showing his "mean" attitude on the field, then his life with his little girl, Sapphy. Was sooooo nice - I got teary. He's a sweetie and she's adorable. She was so funny when she said that her Dad's her fave cricketer...LOL! And then when Jason said she doesn't watch it coz it bores her! LOL! The whole interview was just so AWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!
ANd this too: "But scratch away at the surface and you reveal a gentle giant with a heart the size of a manhole cover.
Gillespie was just 19 when he woke up one morning to find he was soon to be a father.
Instantly, his life changed over night.
Now he lives for his five-year-old daughter, Sapphire.
And he admits he loves nothing more than to play the doting father.
"There was an amazing difference in me from before I had a child to after," said Gillespie.
"You just realise that you've got so many responsibilities.
"It was scary but exciting at the same time.
"Obviously, at 19 you don't plan to have a child.
"But it happened and it made me grow up over night. "I was there at her birth, I gave her her first bath, I cut the umbilical cord and I absolutely loved all that.
"And I love her to bits -- she's the best thing that's ever happened to me, that's for sure.
"I certainly don't regret it in any way.
"I've got a beautiful little girl and I look up to her. She's just magnificent.
"She's actually quite sick. She suffers from chronic asthma which means she's in and out of hospital quite a bit.
"But she's my inspiration -- a little legend.
"When I broke my leg I felt a bit sorry for myself and kept asking myself why me?
"But then I'd go to visit my daughter in hospital and quickly realise it's not all bad."
The strain of becoming a teenage father and balancing a flourishing cricket career sadly cost him the chance of happiness with Sapphire's mother.
Gillespie is not a man to lick his wounds, however, and he remains philosophical.
"Relationships end sometimes and it was just one of those things -- we were just two very different people who wanted different things.
"Cricket was a big part of my life and what I wanted to do so that was very important to me.
"And we ended up drifting apart, probably because of it.
"But I still have regular contact with my daughter and I'm on good terms with her mother."
awww and yay at the excellent article bout kids and families of cricketers on tour - little baby Gilly awwww! And the cute pic of the kids....can't believe theat between them, the test team have 20 kids.....that's a lot of little kiddies!
and yay at Glenn McGrath being a "top bloke" and going to help Mrs Waugh and the kids....feckin bushfires!
WOO HOO - Aussie A beat England...kinda feel sorry for them...but YAY anyway. NSW beat them too....should be a really exciting one day series....not...but YAY anyway coz I love the Aussie A team!
ahhh, you aussies ALWAYS beat us at cricket... hang on... EVERYONE beats us at cricket.. lol.. we suck.
BUT in a few years when my friend George and (give you one guess....) Sexy Cricket Boy are both playing for England (coz they will be... I think Dan (Sexy Cricket Boy) already plays for the U19's... soo....) THEN we'll win stuff.
And if we don't at least you'll have the guy with one of the nicest smiles ever (George) and one of the most all-over gorgeous guys ever in our team to look at while you thrash us hehehehe.
Fast to make, fast to eat, and fast to turn into poo.
Ingredients
Brett Lee
Lettuce
black olives
pickled onions
beetroot
French dressing
INSTRUCTIONS:
1 - Take Brett Lee, grate until all skin has been removed. Flesh should come off in flakes. Continue until he stop screaming. Add to base of lettuce.
2 - Arrange flesh in pattern on lettuce base with beetroot and pickled onions. For a bit of adventure, throw in, sorry, hyper-extend in some black olives. Garnish with french dressing and peroxide.
If unhappy with ingredients, replace with Bichel.
Tomorrow: Korean dish by popular demand - Sweet and sour young dogs (featuring hockey cheerleaders marinated in flourescent green zinc cream)
that's WEIRD - and not in a particularly good way. It's kinda like this website - except for this website is funny as hell (we have an obsession with Gloy Glue in my tutor group, so yeah, we love recipe 2)... http://www.teamfishcake.co.uk/psycho/cookery.html
Anyway, YAY COZ WE WON SOME CRICKET TODAY!!! Against Sri Lanka, i think, right?
Hehe, my friend George who loves cricket, he was reading a cricket mag today (I was very tempted to take it off him and read it myself coz Sexy Cricket Boy was sitting across the room from me staring out the window behind me and he'd probs love me if he saw me reading a mag on crickey! hehe) and I asked him what the point of overs was/were. And he goes, every 6 overs the bowling changes ends (i think that's right - he said the right thing, but i think that's what i remember him saying). And i was like, ok.. umm.. WHY?? And he laughed and I was like, is it to add excitement and variety to the game? And he laughed and was like, yup. So i said, so it's the cricketters version of excitement then? great. And he laughed again, then went back to his reading. lol.
I'm sorry, i have nothing against cricket i just don't get the fun of it. Maybe one day I will - eg. when Sexy's playing for England so I watch it the whole time coz then not only can i be like 'phwoar he's gorgeous' but i can be like 'I'VE SPOKEN TO HIM TOO!!' hehehehehehehehe.
ahhh, i wanna show you guys this boy - you'd LOVE him!! LOL.
I can still remember, the back yard with dad
Over the fence was 6 & out, Best time we ever had
I'd run in like Dennis Lillie, bowl straight like I'd been told
And send the wickets fly'n, & dream of green & gold
go aussie go
go aussie go
go aussie go, lets hear it
go aussie go, lets cheer it
go aussie go, lets hear it
go aussie go, lets cheer it
go aussie go, lets hear it
go aussie go, lets cheer it
go aussie go, lets hear it
go aussie go, lets cheer it
Go you gold and greens
Keep the spirirt glowing
Part of all our dreams
The legends Keeps on growing
Go you gold and greens
Keep the spirirt glowing
Part of all our dreams
The legends Keeps on growing
From Don Bradman to the Chappels,
Allan Border to Shane Warne
From the beaches & the parks, the dream keeps burning strong
Go you aussies go, show 'em how we play
From the outback to the sea, yeh we're with you all the way
ALL THE WAY
Go Aussies GO!
Go you gold and greens
Keep the spirit glowing
part of all our Dreams
The legends keeps on growing
Go you gold and greens
Keep the spirit glowing
part of all our Dreams
The legends keeps on growing
Go aussie go, lets hear it
Go Aussie go, lets cheer it
Go aussie go, lets hear it
Go Aussie go, lets cheer it
Go aussie go, lets hear it
Go Aussie go, lets cheer it
Go aussie go, lets hear it
Go Aussie go, lets cheer it
Go aussie go, lets hear it
Go Aussie go, lets cheer it
Go aussie go, lets hear it
Go Aussie go, lets cheer it
And YAY for England winning - I can't stand Sri Lanka after their threatening to walk of when Muralitharan was no-balled for chucking, at Adelaide Oval a few years ago..OMG their captain was a WANKER! It's not the same guy anymore, but I still don't like them!
Well, Sexy Cricket Boy left on 31st December off to your sunny country. There was something about it in the local paper - including a pic of him!! Didn't do him justice though, pah. Plus there was just a little pic of him and a huge pic of this other Yorkshire guy that's going too. Pah pah pah. But still, yay for the piccy of him.
Anyways, dunno when any of their matches are (I think the paper article did say, I'll dig it out and have a look) but yeah, keep an eye out for them!!!!
WE BEAT YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AT LONG LAST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOL!!!!!!
OK, I'm done now
Sorry, I'm sure you won't mind seeming as you beat us in the first 4 ones anyways.... LOL. And I mean, we don't beat you often so you have to let us have a LITTLE bit of joy when we do!!! hehehehehe!
yupperz, Which is why I knew you wouldn't mind if I woohoo-ed for our one little win! lol.
awwww i soooo hope dan's u19's beat the adult team - that would be soooooooo funny!! Plus then they might put it on the news here or something... or a pic of the u19 team in the paper.... and i'd be like YAY!! hehehehe.
I miss him there's no eye-candy now! lol. sob Does he have no thought for my feelings?!!?!? Just waltzing off to Australia like that.... pah!!!
Man - I love the Gilly adds!!! Have you guys seen 'em??? The "orange" ones - the one where his mum calls him and he's "at work"....and then with his ears - aawwww so cute!!!
And then the one with the liddle kids..aawww...yay! Luv Gilly!
and i can't remember but i think they lost their second match... or they're playing it now... (is "match" even the right word??) but dan sat the 2nd one out... or is going to... or is.. or whatever. Hmmmmmmmmmmm...
but he's a bowler dude, and he got lotsa ppl out at one point in the first game, and he got quite a few runs too. I was just reading the article in the local paper today quickly, but i'll check it out in more detail laterz.....
damn, i so wanted us to win (it's OUR game after all... WE invented it... we shouldn't suck! LOL)
so I took a great big pile of photos n stuff to dad's computer to scan this evening (coz i had to get my blair pics online, the rest are still awaiting on a disk to go online) and i.. umm... took along the newspaper pic of dan and scanned that in too.
so i'll show it to you soon, it's just.. err.... he doesn't look anywhere near as damn sexy in the pic as he actually is. I think it's coz he's trying to smile. He soooo does the attitude thing more than the smiling thing. sigh. But yeah, I thought I might as well scan it in anyhoos.
If i remember/get round to it I'll stick it up tonight... if not then tomorrow awaits (that makes no sense, but it sounds good)
YAY for an Aussie victory - but even bigger yay for a great game today! I love Bellerive oval - its so cute - I so want to go there! (It's an ambition in life for my best mate and I to sit in the "wafer stand"..yes, we are totally normal...)
But yeah, yay for great game - and yay for Shane Watson - he gets sooo excited and he's so cute! LOL!
OMG yes I agree Bec! Yay for such a terrific game - even though was watching it on telly and wasn't actually there. I put it on when I got home from work and was like "0/154 - WTF?!?!?!?!"...and proceeded to lie on the couch for the next 3 hours to watch the rest of the match ... and mum was even watching a bit and getting into it! Cept she was clapping when we got our first wicket and I was like "omg shut up! i'm listening to commentators!"
And I was telling her who the players were and stuff ... and she was asking who's voice she could hear (Gilly's) and thought he was saying "good one" to him self - silly girl!
But YAY for us winning! Man, I so thought it was over ... but then the wickets fell ... and YAY! So good!!!
"Australian captain Ricky Ponting was grateful to emerge from the match with a win.
"We probably were out of it, but it says a lot about our side I think that we fought back the way we did and got the run rate up to almost nine an over.
"At 160 for none we had our backs to the wall but we hung in there, took a couple of wickets and when you're chasing and the momentum changes like that it's hard to get going. We hung in there put some pressure on and took some vital wickets.
"Once you get that initial breakthrough, obviously the batsmen had been sitting in the changing room for a long time, the wicket was getting a bit slow and the ball was getting a bit old, and so to come in and start playing shots straight away was always going to be difficult. We put pressure on the incoming batsmen and it worked out well for us."
The win meant more to Ponting as it came on his home ground in Hobart. "It's my first game down here as captain and to walk off as a winning captain is even more special. It's very, very pleasing, it's going to go down as one of the great moments of my career so far."
"Bevan is as adept as anyone in world cricket in these situations. He was ruffled by being hit on the grille by Anderson, but came through to restore Australia to a competitive position. "
YAY! That's me boi! (we won't mention them ..ahh....dro...pped....... catches ....... poor boi)
cough
maybe you might like to click on this link sometime: www.massara.org/damn.jpg cough
ok ok ok, so it's a very big and very un-sexula pic of the boy, but it's all i have ok??? But if ever u get to see him (either by stalking the team or maybe there'll be a pic of them in the local papers when they travel round) then you'll see why I'm always on about him. lol.
Just remember - I have good taste! I love Blair don't I? hehehehehe.
... i mean copy n paste into the address bar OBVIOUSLY.. hehehehehe.
the other thing i was gonna say... wassss... ummm... oh yeah, I had to change my sig coz that pic of des looks quite bizarrely like my big brother and it was freaking me out! LOL
"Daniel Louis Broadbent
Born: 22 January 1985, Leeds, Yorkshire
Major Teams: England Under-15s, England Under-17s, Yorkshire Cricket Board.
Known As: Dan Broadbent
Batting Style: Left Hand Bat
Bowling Style: Right Arm Off Break"
That's him then????? I'm not stalking, but I was at baggygreen.com.au, and they had live score updates of the game (which is currently taking place at St Peters - snobville!!!!) and then I clicked and clicked and clicked some more - and YAY it's dan! LOL! I love the name Dan - so cute! And he's a spin bowler - awwww yay! Ok...I have probs with cricket - I'm obsessed!
Well, there was something about the U19 cricket team in THE TIMES today!!! *collective 'OOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHH'* (dunno if you guys know but The Times is like THE swanky paper.. hehehe... stereotypically all the posh dudes would read the times! hehe. Like my parents, lol. so you know, generally only things worth mentioning are actually mentioned)
So yeah, I read that with interest to find Dan's name, but nooooooooooooooo. It mentioned the "pick of the bowlers" and errr... wasn't my sexy boy. Dammit. It then mentioned "the two Yorkshiremen" and didn't bloody mention dan then either!!! PAH!!!! Just: what the??? Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
So I'm very upset on his behalf. But then I had a cool thought - if they (haha, what are the chances?) start actually WINNING stuff out there not only will.. well... the whole world be in shock (ENGLAND?? WINNING CRICKET?? WITH OUUURR REPUTATION???) but also, they might do something about it on the children's tv news show that I watch everyday before neighbours (coz it's on after whatever i watched at 5pm has finished, and then neighbours starts straight after it at 5:35pm so yeah... it's just a little 5/10 min filler! hehe)
So yup, *here's hoping*
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*an' would you call me your friend?*
Yay for Aussie's winning! And YAY for my boi finishing it off for us!! Yay!!! Huge YAY for him being Player of the Match - wooo hoooo!
But GRRRRRR @ Ch.9 going straight to A Current Affair ... and not remaining for the interview with Ppayer of the Match - like they always do every other time! Jus when it's my boi and i wanna hear him - pfffft!
"yay for aussies winning" - oh c'mon as if THAT'S rare when it comes to cricket!!!! LOL.
Grrrrr, coz there was ANOTHER U19 article in the times today (they were losing less badly than they had been doing the other day! lol) but again, coz this is the one that Dan's not playing in (WHHHHYYYYYYYY????) he didn't get a mention!! GRRRRRRRRRRRRR. They're at St Something College...... ring any bells??
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*an' would you call me your friend?*
U guys may have already read this at BC - but it's something that I've felt strongly about all day, since picking up "The Advertiser" this morning and reading pro Boof stuff all day. I was very fired up when I initially wrote this...
GRRRRR @ the media angle on the Darren Lehmann/racist comment issue. I'm a proud South Aussie, and therefore a Boof fan (we have no choice in this state...he's everywhere! LOL) and I really hope he plays on Sunday, because he adds to the atmosphere BUT that doesn't mean I think he shouldn't be punished over his comment. The whole news story was like "so fingers crossed he gets off in the morning" - but shouldn't he have to deal with what he said?????????? Not only is what he said just WRONG, and should never have thought it, then SAID it in the first place - but he was stupid to say it - coz he knows that it's totally unnacceptable! He was sooo dumb! So I think he should get some kind of punishment - rather than the "ohhhh good old Boof stuffed up" kind of attitude that's been around today. GRRRR! So if he gets in trouble - he should cop that, and if he doesn't then great, 30 000 people and I will get to see him play - but he certainly does have a charge to answer!
Will be interested to see what happens tomorrow morning.
Awwwwwwwww England won! lol against Sri Lanka! YAY! :P
But awwww Lou - I dun think i can go see Dan now! I cant afford to get down to Melb Weds, when i dont get payed till Thurs!! Dammit!!
i soooooooooo wanna talk to him about that Johnny dude! hehehe. Sigh, still AGES till he comes back though.... schools so not the same without him. Actually, in a way it's good coz if I do something really foolish really noticably in the common room (not on purpose of course! lol) then it's ok coz he won't have seen lol. but also if i do something good or say something funny or whatever then he's not there to see that either. and - this is most important - he's NOT THERE FOR ME TO LOOK AT!!
if he was a proper gentleman, he would have left a cardboard cutout of himself for me to look at. lol. lifesize of course. maybe i'll suggest it next time he goes anywhere.
#and all i want you to do was sing this song...#
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*an' would you call me your friend?*
Omg omg omg omg I have never been so bloody hot in my life. But twas brilliant - had a great day and NOT ONE BIT OF SUNBURN!!!! Sat in 47 degree heat (according to ABC radio guys) all day - and not a bit of burn!!! (I'm not usually great at that whole "reapplying sunscreen thing when I'm at the cricket!
But yay coz Oz won!
And YAY coz Brett Lee fielded in front of us for ages and was sooo funny! Had a good old chat to us, whinging about the heat and advertising gatorade - was very funny! He drinks that stuff like hes got some kinda addiction! And YAY coz when Brett bowled we had Carebear Watson fielding and he's a sweetie! YAY!
DANIEL LOUIS GOT A MENTION IN 'THE TIMES'!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And not just ANY old mention, but a GOOOOOODD mention!! YAAYYYYYY!!!
I haven't ripped it out the paper yet, but it said "Tim Bresnan and Dan Broadbent, both from Yorkshire, bowled very well, which is more than can be said for the rest of their team" LOL!!
YAY YAY YAY DANNY!!!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO FOR DAMN!!!!!
He "flamin" rocks hehehehehehehe.
Like Johnny!! I love Johnny! (see 'WEEEE' for a link to a website about him - the adelaide wandering around dude) I think the whole world should know about Johnny coz he is so cool!
Yay for todays match!
LOL at it being over at 8:52 on the MCG scoreboard (there is only one @ the moment and it's the liddler one ...awwww) clock!
Grrrrrr at them giving up with the VB thingy that they stand in front of for man-of-the-match (they couldn't get it to stay up! lol) ... and taking man-of-the-match into the rooms and not even DOING it out on the MCG where EVEYRWHERE was WAITING!!!!!!!!!!!
GRRRRRRRR at the poo-head security guard to tried to shoo the little kids away from getting Lehman's autograph, after they'd called him for about 20 mins asking him to sign stuff when he came out and sat on the bench. Fair enough stand there incase the Sri Lankians get upset at him and attack, but no need to shoo 'em away! he wouldn't have started signing stuff if he didn't want too! PFFFFFFFT! But YAY and LOL at the the kiddies who ran back to the fence after the security dude had cleared them and gone back to his post at the back of the aisle ... LOL!
YAY for ... OMG!!! Nathan Bracken has to have the NICEST smile! Omg it is to die for! SOOOO shitty didn't take camera!!! I so ALWAYS so ... but thought I wouldn't today cos I always take pictures just for the sake of it (i'm obsessed) and then they hardly turn out!!!! GRRRRR cos he was signing auto's at the fence in front of us for ages ... and he was like grinning at the little kids and O M G that smile is to-die-for! OMG YUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! His hair was looking quite nice too! LOL!
YAY for our seats!!! Firstly cos they were on the aisle where the new batsmen came out (we honestly, seriously didn't realise that, until Symonds came walking down it and out onto the field! LOL!)!!! Massive yays (cept grr that only 2 walked down there .. but yay cos we won and ... but grr that Bevo didn't walk past ... but he did come out and hang n the boundary for a bit!) ... mmmmmmm at Ricky's cute butt (*****) lol ... ok I will stop there .. but yay!
And MASSSIVE yay's for Lleyton Hewitt, yes, World #1 Tennis Player, sitting behind us, chatttting away to Gilly after he's gone out! LOL! Hilarious!!!!
~ so hyped up, but need sleep, cos none of u is here to chat ... pffffff
~ ~ more tomoz ... lol
but MASSSSSSIVE YAY's for Lleyton at the cricket!! Yay for Eye con and few words! lol! YAY!
YAY for Ryan McDonough being such a sweeeeeeetttttiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!
YAY for the b'day prezzie my friend Jenny gave me today - it's from the Early Learning Centre (FANTASTIC shop even though it's for like 4 year olds! LOL! Or maybe BECAUSE it's for 4 yr olds??) It's this mini guitar thingy and u press a button and it plays a nursery rhyme song thing at you (twinkle twinkle little star for example) and then there's this thing where strings usually are, and u click it back and forth as u strum and it makes a note every time. So you have to get the ryhthm right and then it plays the song! LOL!! YAAYY!! IT'S SOOOOOOOOOOO COOL!! Kept us all amused for AGES! hehehehehehe. And there's 8 different songs, and a 'riff' button that Charlie had great fun with! LOL! (I knew he'd like it so i showed him! hehehehe. He didn't QUITE do his school-girl giggle but it was close enough!!!)
YAY for my 5th Ave tape (can now sing along to Indigo v easily without having to think too hard about what the words are! lol)
YAY for only having to go to school this afternoon, and for having a lesson and a bit and we didn't really have to actively DO anything so it was good. Ahhhh, school should be 2 hours long EVERY DAY! lol.
YAY for getting time to email trisi bout Rine when i got to school at lunchtime coz i was SOOO hyped up and i told my friends and they thought it was cool but they didn't GET it as much as i knew you guys would.... so yeah, I got to school and spoke to my english teacher (see next yay) and then went straight to the computer room and emailed trisi about it!! hehehehee. I woulda emailed you all (you know that!) but I didn't have time and trisi IS Miss Fifth Avenue. heehehe.
YAY for my English teacher really not caring that I hadn't met the deadline of handing in a draft of my coursework essay yesterday. She said it was fine, she just needed to know what i could hand it in. So I said Monday, and she was like 'yeah sure - if u have any more problems come and talk to me so you're not all stressed by yourself over the weekend'. AWWWWWW she's just TOO nice!!!
YAY for Blair being on Neighbours yesterday and today! OK OK, so Chooka's all hurt n damaged at the moment after the oh-so-amusing out of control campervan, but still... it's Blair and it's on tv and it's good
hey, i'm tired and all excited and emotional and whatever (LOL.... or at least lets just SAY that I am coz it sounds good)...
...and you know i'm sooooo easily confused!! And I'm posting on Mavis at the same time and I can't remember what threads I'm in, so if you could just MENTALLY forget about the above post then I'd be greatly pleased!!!!
I'll go copy-n-paste it into the appropriate thread now.......
Well - They drew!!
England u19s dont suck lou! ANd dan got 17 not out! YAY!
See:
Baggy Green
England Under-19s in Australia, 2002/03
Victoria Institute of Sport v England Under-19s
Junction Oval, Melbourne
21,22 January 2003 (2-day match)
Result: Match drawn
Toss: Victoria Institute of Sport
Umpires: AJ Barrow and G Joshua
Players per side: 12 (11 bat, 11 field)
Close of play:
Day 1: Victoria Institute of Sport 354, England Under-19s 28/1 (Edwards 17*, Bopara 4*, 8 overs)
Victoria Institute of Sport 1st innings R M B 4 6
BD Allan c Broadbent b Cusden 15 48 36 2 0
ML Innes c Hodd b Wright 75 162 123 8 1
*TH Welsford c Gale b Cusden 15 10 12 3 0
AJ Mato c Bopara b Plunkett 36 72 51 5 0
T Lamb c Stiff b Plunkett 63 125 92 4 2
O Webb c Hodd b Wright 4 11 12 0 0
MG Simpson not out 74 169 142 4 0
SM Jones c Hodd b Cusden 6 27 24 0 0
+L Scown c Gale b Wright 15 22 20 1 1
JP Mangan c sub (TT Bresnan) b Wright 3 22 23 0 0
PM Siddle c Gale b Stiff 0 11 5 0 0
Extras (b 4, lb 8, w 7, nb 29) 48
Total (all out, 85.3 overs, 344 mins) 354
England Under-19s 1st innings R M B 4 6
AW Gale lbw b Siddle 2 8 8 0 0
NJ Edwards c Welsford b Siddle 22
*RS Bopara c Scown b Welsford 54
JA Pearson c Mangan b Jones 33
LJ Wright c Innes b Austin 77
+AJ Hodd not out 104 223 177 13 0
LE Plunkett c Austin b Siddle 1
MAK Lawson c Jones b Austin 1
SMJ Cusden lbw b Siddle 0
DL Broadbent not out 17
Extras (b 6, lb 6, w 3, nb 9) 24
Total (8 wickets, 111 overs) 335
Please help me translate from Cricket into English!!!
BD Allan c Broadbent b Cusden 15 48 36 2 0 (that means dan caught him out right??)
Bowling O M R W
Broadbent 16 5 65 0
(16 overs?? 5 m...somethings...? 65 runs? and no... oh, wickets??)
DL Broadbent not out 17
(oh oh oh, "not out" - that's GOOD right??)
And YAY for us drawing!! WOOOOHOOOOOO!! There IS hope for English Cricket! LOL. And it's initials are DLB!! hehehehehehehe.
Sigh, one of the doors into school is locked for some reason, so we have to use a different one that goes through the office and usually we're not allowed to use it (coz it goes through the office, hehe). And yeah, there's this newspaper article stuck on the wall
which has a pic of a group of people and one of them is Dan and ooooohhh myyyyy gaawwwwdd it's SUCH a BAAADDDDDD photograph!! LOL!!! Just like... awful awful awful!! What is WITH this?? I thought the camera never lies and all that??? My GOD please someone take a GOOD photo of this boy!! LOL.
YAY for our boys winning the series! YAY for Brett being man of the match AND man of the series - gee, I guess any "hack" can do that....LOL! YAY for Brett having an awesome summer and shutting up most of the people who have doubted him! YAY!
LOL I couldn't find a pic of Brett last nite (yet) so here's another one...
AND YAY FOR BRI KEEPIN ME UP TO DATE LAST NITE - damn party!
Oooohhh Lou. Your boi is playing at the MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground) today. They had it up on the screen last night towards the end of the match and I was like "oooooohhh" ...
Exciting!!!
... but I guess I'm just being too lazy to get my butt there ... sozzyyyyy
MASSSSIVE Yay's for last nights cricket final!!! Yay for us winning and yay for it being so damn exciting at the end ... thanks Brett!! Gotta just love that bowling!!! I have been dying all day to see the "highlights" on tv, the news, anything! I'll have to wait til 5:30 on ch.10 it looks like. Better have a damn good package for me too enjoy! It was SO exciting!!! Massive massive massive yays!!!
Yay for Brett's final 4 wickets especially. yay for Man of the Match & Man of the Series (as u said bek), but after that performance - tell me he wouldn't!!!!
(it also really stuck it in the mouth of a mate who was going on and on and on and on about it being rigged - feck!)
But poor Bevo. I was so shattered, my boy being stretchere(spl!) off in a cricket match ... now that's just wrong! In a cricket match ... makes it seem so much worse than footy, cos doesn't happen quite as much ... if u get me?!
But awwww, he looked terribly sore when the stretcher came past us ... aaawwww.
And awwww (and grrrr @ Ricky) for not mentioning him afterwards. He limped out onto the field after we'd won for the celebrations ... shaking hands .... and most teammates coming up to him ... he made 10 runs!!! Come on! He added to the total - not his fault he got injured! Then Ricky calls them all up ... and not even a mention of poor Bevo. He was left standing with these 3 Aussie Team offical guys in suit just near the "podium" ... and the suited guy next to him stpped back and was like pointing at his head, as if to say "and bevo! mention bevo" .... but no no no, no one made any mention did they - was NOT HAPPY! Poor boi.
Yay for Warney. It was sad ... but still all the good, he got some wickets (we wont mention his batting), and took him stumps, bat and ball ... nice! He did this little "I luv you" hand signal thingy to his wife while they were standing around waiting for the presentation to begin and was like at the back of the group ... aww so sweet. His wife was getting so nervous at the end, sitting 2 rows in front of us, it was cute. And as for his little daughter ... awww she's cute. Walking back from the fence after Shane's batting, she goes "poor daddy" ... it was so cute. aaaawwwwwww.
All in all, YAY for a great day @ the cricket yesturday (apart from poor Bevo), (oh and except for the heat!), Yay for Brett - magnificent bowling!!!
And Warney - we love ya Warney and sure showed him that last night!!!
"We love you cos you're a Victorian " clap *clap* clap *clap* clap *clap* clap *clap* clap *clap* clap
Well just checked up the scores ... our Aussie bois are winning ... and unless Dan comes in (he's the last batsmen up) and smakcs some around quickly ... looks like us Aussie are going to win.
But anyways.
Dan bowled his 10 overs ... and got 2 wickets - yay for him! He "c & b" one - that wouldda been great to see!
How i wish i'd gone and checked out this boi ... ahh well.
He's still yet to bowl - maybe I'd make it!!!
Adam Gilchrist
Inside Edge - The 50 Greatest Australian Cricketers
Excitement machines like Adam Gilchrist don't come around very often. Perhaps once in a generation do they appear, and when they do, they're to be cherished.
Gilchrist is a batsman who walks to the wicket and sends an electrical charge around an arena before he even hits a ball. He's a 'keeper who flies wide and high after seven hours in the numbing tension of a Test to glove a half-chance. He's a modest, magnificent country kid who has remained humble and cool in the face of records, honours and plaudits only a rare few see.
Yet unlike most of the other men who feature herein, Gilchrist wasn't blooded as a boy. He served a long, hard apprenticeship and first wore his nation's colours in 1996-97, a full five years after his first-class debut (as a batsman) for NSW.
To look at his record today and to see the exhilaration he sparks in cricket lovers across the globe, it is hard to fathom that this is just his fourth season of Test cricket. Already he has scored well over 2000 runs at an average just under 60, and claimed 148 victims behind the stumps. As a one-day dynamo he is equally phenomenal. Little wonder he entered 2002-03 as the world's official No.1.
What makes Gilchrist great is one simple fact - he's a natural.
Bellingen born and raised, Gilchrist is a throwback to more noble and unaffected times just as much as he is a 21st century superstar. Unlike most of the modern megalomaniacs who cavort on today's stage, "Gillie" doesn't really care for self-analysis, preferring to let his blood dictate the play. He is a creature of instinct and impulse and he trusts his gift to guide him. And so far it's worked a charm. Even his bat, the tool of his trade, evokes no special gravitas. In England in 2001, his favourite blade was stolen and he replaced it with a chipped, cracked, taped-up "beach bat" and still hit the ball cleaner and farther than anyone on either side.
Gilchrist's six Test centuries have been blitzkriegs, all of them featuring a multitude of sixes and most coming in even time. Amid the blaze of his batting, it almost seems a footnote to say he is also a wicket-keeper, and a fine and flourishing one at that.
He has captained his country twice already in the Test arena and may do again, although Ricky Ponting's claim now looks the bolder. Even so, Gilchrist will be around a good while yet. Watch, wait and bear witness to the wonderful deeds to come. And be thankful.
I adore Gilly! He's definitely one of my fave's, he's just such a good person, and brilliant player. Ryan Campbell said he's the best bloke in the world...awww!
MICHAEL BEVAN will retain his place in Australia's World Cup squad despite sustaining a low-grade tear of his right groin muscle, the Australian Cricket Board announced today.
National selection panel chairman Trevor Hohns said Bevan, who sustained the injury while batting during Saturday's second tri-series final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, is considered a vital part of the side's World Cup campaign.
"Like Michael, we were all relieved to learn that the extent of his injury was not as serious as first thought," Hohns said.
"Although he will take a few weeks to regain full fitness, the selection panel along with Ricky Ponting unanimously agreed that he should retain his spot in the World Cup squad.
"It goes without saying that Michael is a key component of our World Cup plans and, with the relevant treatment, we are hoping that he will be back sooner rather than later."
Bevan's World Cup prospects were given a boost yesterday after diagnostic scans revealed the injury would only keep him sidelined for two to three weeks.
Bevan said: "Naturally when I first suffered the injury, I feared the worst and thoughts of missing the World Cup went racing through my head.
"But the groin felt considerably better by the morning and after having scans and speaking to Trefor James (ACB medical officer), things seemed a lot brighter," he said.
"It is obviously a big relief, and it's now up to me to do whatever it takes to get the injury right."
The Australian squad will leave for the World Cup on Thursday.
That was just awesome
By James Hooper
January 27, 2003
WHAT a difference three months makes. At the start of the summer Brett Lee was sacked from the Australian Test team and told to take more wickets.
On Saturday night he ended the season in triumph - taking three wickets in seven balls in a devastating spell to destroy an England side on the verge of an unexpected victory to square the VB final series.
Five wickets in all, career best figures of 5-30, man of the match, man of the series.
"It's always been a dream of mine to try and have a game like that," Lee said.
"That was as close to a perfect match as I could have as a fast bowler.
"With two overs to go I was very honoured that [captain Ricky Ponting] threw me the ball.
"I knew I had to sort of step up with the greats [Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie] out injured.
"Hopefully I took that weight upon my shoulders and showed what I can do.
"I enjoy that extra bit of pressure upon myself.
"It's something I've really been looking for, a good challenge, and I certainly got one.
"It's honestly a dream come true; a pretty big crowd down there in Melbourne, the second final, six runs off six balls in the last over, and we win."
To begin his stunning spell, the world's fastest bowler snared the crucial wickets of English openers Marcus Trescothick and Nick Knight before returning in the final two overs to bowl Australia to victory.
With the first ball of his third spell Lee clean bowled allrounder Andrew Flintoff to keep Australia in the match and then three balls later had Ian Blackwell caught at backward point.
England tailenders Andy Caddick and Paul Collingwood then whittled the equation down to six runs off the final over before Lee returned to bowl Caddick with a fierce in-swinging yorker.
His remarkable performance completes one of the great comebacks this summer after he was dumped to the NSW Pura Cup team in November for being out of form.
Upon his return to domestic cricket, he took 21 wickets in two matches at an average of 15.66 to win back his spot in the Australian team for the third Test in Perth.
"I was lucky I had the chance to go back and play some Pura Cup cricket, I think it really helped my bowling," Lee said.
"It also made me realise you should never take anything for granted.
"Playing cricket for Australia is like it's your 21st birthday every day of the week - I really appreciate every time I get to represent my country now."
After two match-winning performances against England Lee is virtually demanding he be allowed to open the bowling when the World Cup begins in South Africa in 13 days.
His figures improved dramatically this summer when he had the new ball in his hands and he admits he revels in the added responsibility.
"Any chance you get to bowl with a brand new ball first for your country is a great honour," Lee said.
"Hopefully I've proven that I can [open the bowling and bowl first change].
"Bowling first you have to get your line spot on straight away because the field is up.
"It would be great [to open the bowling in South Africa] but it's a matter of seeing what happens over there."
While the chances of Lee leading the Australian attack appear slim with regular spearheads McGrath (back) and Gillespie (elbow) expected to be fully recovered for the first match, what he has done is confirm he is next in line.
All summer he and Andy Bichel have been vying for the third fast bowling position in both the Test and one-day arenas but after his stunning finals series there appears to be no doubt about who should be given the job.
Australian one-day captain Ponting yesterday acknowledged the outstanding contributions Lee has made in the past two months since turning his summer around.
"Brett has come on in leaps and bounds right through the summer, probably going back to Kenya and Colombo," he said.
~ I don't know about the "big crowd" Brett - but yeh, we were excited!!!
Ponting advice the key
By James Hooper
January 27, 2003
TELLING Brett Lee to slow down his bowling is akin to asking world champion boxer Kostya Tszyu to take it easy on his next opponent.
But that's exactly what Australian one-day captain Ricky Ponting had to do earlier this summer when Lee was struggling to find his niche in the VB series. "I just had to work out which role I had to play," Lee revealed. "There was a bit of talk about which sort of role people wanted me to play. "[(Steve Waugh] has always just wanted me to run in and bowl fast whereas [Ricky Ponting] at one stage wanted me to pull back." So Lee and Ponting sat down to discuss how the Australian speedster would play for the remainder of the summer. The result was Lee being named man of the match in both finals and man of the series, finishing with career-best figures in his last appearance before the World Cup. His five-wicket haul against England also elevated him to an elite club of nine Australian bowlers who have taken more than 100 wickets in the one-day game. "[Ponting] and I just sat down and agreed on a tactic which works best for me," Lee said. "That's basically just trying to hit the deck and bowl as fast as possible. "That's something I've really worked on because I probably didn't have the right line and length. "But working hard on my fitness and working hard in the nets seems to be really starting to pay off." Ponting was full of praise for Lee following his superb performances in the finals. "Throughout this series his bowling has been outstanding," Ponting said. "He's been bowling first change and opening the bowling so that's good for us to know he can do both of those roles."
Bevan: I'll be fit
By JAMES HOOPER and JON PIERIK
28jan03
BATTING wizard Michael Bevan gave Australia's World Cup stocks a massive lift yesterday by declaring he should be fit for the opening match in South Africa.
The availability of star middle-order batsman Bevan would see Australia field an almost full-strength team for the match against Pakistan on February 11 at Wanderers.
News of Bevan's expected early return follows the successful comebacks of spin king Shane Warne and paceman Jason Gillespie from injury.
And pace spearhead Glenn McGrath believes he could have played had there been a third one-day final against England yesterday.
Despite gloomy forecasts about Australia's ability to field a full-strength team at the World Cup, it now seems likely only batsman Darren Lehmann - still suspended for a racial remark against the Sri Lankans - will be missing from the side for the first match.
Just a fortnight ago Australia's top three bowling strike weapons appeared to be in doubt for the cup.
A confident Bevan said yesterday: "At this stage I'm looking at the two-week mark (for rehabilitation), which would just about mean that I can play the first match.
"I'd like to think that I will play. But I guess that will depend on how the treatment goes in the next week or so."
Bevan was diagnosed with a lower-grade tear of his right groin muscle on Sunday after injuring himself taking a quick single during Australia's innings against England in the VB Series final at the MCG.
He has been given the all-clear to travel to southern Africa with the Australian squad.
"I was a little bit worried the night it happened, considering the pain that I had and how it happened," Bevan said.
"Then I was fairly relieved the next morning when it came up a lot freer. I thought I'd done it pretty badly.
"I just checked to see if it was a cramp and it wasn't."
Bevan will not risk flying to Melbourne for tonight's Allan Border Medal, remaining in Sydney to treat his injury.
He will spend the next two weeks having physiotherapy on his groin up to three times a day while also working on muscle-strengthening exercises.
One-day captain Ricky Ponting said gym junkie Bevan's dedication to fitness would help him recover more quickly than many expected.
"They are saying it's a three-week injury, but Bevo being as fit as he is should heal quite quickly. Hopefully we'll get him on the park for that first game," Ponting said.
National selection chairman Trevor Hohns said he and his panel were relieved to hear the injury was not as serious as first thought.
"Although he will take a few weeks to regain full fitness, the selection panel, along with Ricky Ponting, unanimously agreed that he should retain his spot in the World Cup squad," Hohns said.
"Michael is a key component of our World Cup plans, and with the relevant treatment, we are hoping that he will be back sooner rather than later."
And what a great choice of selection of piccie's I have there - all done before the winner (Gilly!!) of the Alan Boarder Medal was announced .. and MASSIVE Yay's for GILLY - Mr Adam Gilchrist being award winner of the Alan Boarder medal for 2003 - SO exciting!!! So happy and so cited for him.
And awww at him getting all emotional (i mean, as if you wouldn't!) ... but so cute cos when he one One Day Player, he was like "I don't expect to be up here again tonight, so I'll thank everyone now" ... awww...how wrong he was and I KNEW he would be!!
YAY!
I am so so so so proud of him!
He does such a fantastic job, bothw ickey keeping and as opener ... but i especially love the way, wen on telly, you can here him commenting and encrouaging after every single ball that is bowled - either to the bowler or the fielder - it's so great to hear.
So Congrats Gilly for the well deserved win!
Keep it up and bring home that cup!... The WORLD CUP!!!
I'm thrilled for him! He's a brilliant wickey, and amazing batsman, my absolute favourite to watch. And he's a great team man, and a lovely lovely guy - so a better man could not have won.
Big YAY for Ricky too - test player of the year - so proud of him too!
Just found the best Gilly article I have read - so Adam!
"WHEN the Australian Cricket Board this year asked its first class players to nominate their ideal job outside the game all sorts of boyhood dreams were laid bare. NSW batsman Michael Clarke wanted to be a Formula One driver for Ferrari, Simon Katich a television chef, Glenn McGrath a game warden, Darren Lehmann Tiger Woods' caddy and Justin Langer a doctor or famous author.
Adam Gilchrist's answer stood out for its simplicity . . . a full- time father.
Gilchrist wasn't trying to be funny. It is simply a matter of when he is not playing cricket his ideal ``job'' is being with his son Harry.
Harry is not yet one yet already he is building up quite a touring portfolio.
He made a brief tour of South Africa earlier this year, has been to all three Ashes Tests this summer and will attend the Boxing Day and New Year's Tests.
His very presence gives Gilchrist peace of mind.
During the Brisbane training camp before the recent tour of Sri Lanka and Sharjah the normally bubbly Gilchrist had the subdued look of a man with a heavy heart.
He was homesick even before leaving Australia.
``I did feel flat then and I must admit I struggled to be away from the family during Sri Lanka and Sharjah,'' he said.
``I really enjoy having them on tour. I'm already looking forward to Christmas Day to see whether he tries to take off after the other kids when they take his presents.''
One of the unsung reasons behind the rampant success of Steve Waugh' s Test team is the way Australia has learnt to look after players' wives and children.
The side still has bad days, but rarely bad Tests.
These days, wives are welcome on the road in Australia whenever they want to come, a sensible initiative given the 12-man Test team has an average age of 30 and 20 children between them.
The ACB pays for families to attend the Boxing Day and New Year's Tests and finals of the one-day series.
The ACB also shout partners one two-week overseas trip per year such as the still-talked-about tour to sun-drenched Bermuda where the players played three low-key one-dayers after their famous victory over the West Indies in 1995.
At Christmas nearly all family members share the festive season together at the two end-of-season Tests, watching New Year's fireworks on Sydney Harbour from manager Steve Bernard's room at the Quay West Hotel.
There are times, such as the first week of this year's South African tour, when the numbers are down to just one with Ricky Ponting's then- fiancee-now-wife Rianna the sole partner.
Australian cricketers haven't always been as lucky.
From 1921 to after World War II wives were banned from touring teams, prompting one British paper to declare ``Australia rules the wives.' '
In tours soon after the war they had to get special permission to join the players after the last Test.
During the Bradman era most cricketers averaged about one phone call home for the nine-month Ashes tour.
Batsman Bill Brown once sent a message via the BBC commentary to his Brisbane-based wife Barbara in 1948 to alert her that he planned to phone the following day.
Brisbane's Courier-Mail newspaper thought it was such a big occasion they sent a photographer out to capture Barbara taking the call.
Several years later it took another significant step by moving to hotels which had either one or two bedrooms or a living room per suite so there was room for the famous father to get a decent night's sleep in one room while the children slept in another.
Not that family life always goes to plan.
``I am a person who likes to prepare properly and have set routines yet there are times with Harry when that might not happen because I get five hours sleep,'' Gilchrist said. ``But I find that having him there means that I wake up with a really clear head.''
During Test matches players families share an ACB-provided suite together at the ground where children and toys are welcome.
In Melbourne the same two nannies each year are hired to assist with the children."
AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW @ Gilly. Love the bit bout other kids takin Harrison's pressies! So cute!
I love cricket books, diaries, bios etc...one of my faves being the Lee boys book...and this part always makes me go AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW
This is from when Brett made his boxing day test debut...or the lead up to it.
"One of my first memories of the whole experience began on Christmas Eve. It was my first one away from home. Mum and Dad weren't coming down, and Shane wasn't going to be in Melbourne until the test started. I sat in my room, but didn't want to ring any of the team to see what they were up to because I knew everyone had family and friends and would be doing their own thing. The last thing I wanted anyone to think was, 'Geez this Brett guy is a bit of a nuisance.' So, I'd go for a walk by myself and maybe buy a CD. I ended up running into Gilly and his wife Mel. They asked if I had any family with me, and when I said no they told me I had to make sure I got involved with all the team's family activities on Christmas Day.
The following morning I woke up and saw a gift under my door. It was an Eric Clapton CD with a card on it from Gilly and Mel. Apart from the obvious Christmas tidings, Gilly wrote that he hoped we played heaps of test cricket together. I thought it was one of the nicest gestures ever."
AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW! @ Gilly!!!!!!!!!! And AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW @ poor Brett bein lonely!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The story bout bein a Dad? Did u get the article about a month ago about the cricketers families? Had the list of all kids and ages, and there was a photo of the team with their kids? Sooo cute! I found the article online at a Uni database I use.
Acknowledging that 2002-03 had not been his best season, Adam Gilchrist was as surprised as anyone to win the Allan Border Medal on Tuesday night as Australia's cricketer of the year.
The wicketkeeper-batsman had indisputably been a key member of the dominant Australian Test and one-day teams.
But it was his limited-overs opening partner Matthew Hayden, currently ranked the world's No.1 Test and one-day batsman, who was the pre-event favourite.
Gilchrist polled 88 votes, to edge Ricky Ponting (84), Shane Warne (79) and Hayden (76).
"The award was a surprise, it's amazing, I really didn't expect it," said Gilchrist, who also won the one-day international player of the year award.
"So many guys had great years, Matty Hayden had a standout year, probably a better year even than last season when he won the award.
"So I think all of us were banking that he was going to be the man."
When asked if it had been his best-ever season, Gilchrist replied: "To be honest no, seeing from my reaction tonight.
"It started out well.... I was probably a fraction inconsistent in one-day cricket, in Test cricket I felt like I took some opportunities well and missed a few opportunities, although that's the type of player I am."
Gilchrist nominated skipper Steve Waugh's century in the fifth Ashes Test earlier this month as his highlight of the season.
Personal high points would have included back to back unbeaten Test hundreds against South Africa.
The Allan Border Medal is still in its infancy, but Gilchrist said it was already something coveted by the players.
"It's grown in tradition in four years, it's grown legs," he said.
"It's got a little bit of history now if you look at the names already on the winners board.
"I guess the key ingredient with this one is that the players vote on it."
The previous winners were Hayden (2002), Steve Waugh (2001) and Glenn McGrath (2000).
The voting began on the tour of South Africa from February-April last year and finished with the VB Series finals last weekend.
Votes were cast by the players, umpires, match referees and media representatives on a 3-2-1 basis for each game, with an extra weighting given to the 11 Tests over the 27 one-day internationals.
Test captain-in-waiting Ponting (13 votes) was a narrow winner of the Test Player of the Year ahead of Warne (12) and Gilchrist (10).
Warne's chances were hampered by missing the last two of the 11 Tests in the voting period with a dislocated shoulder.
Gilchrist also won the One-Day International Player of the Year with 18 votes, one ahead of Hayden and Brett Lee.
He made 751 runs with two centuries at an average of 32.65 and a strike rate of 95.79.
Gilchrist also took 40 catches and made five stumpings.
But Gilchrist's Test average of 77.33 this season was the best in a team where Ponting and Hayden also averaged more than 60.
Found this Tony Squires article about Brett's fashion label amusing - luv Tony!
"V for V-neck
Put the boys in pink shirts and celebrate Brett Lee's latest victory, writes Tony Squires.
Once again, Science Week bumps alluringly into Fashion Week. Once again, calls for a crossover parade of brainiacs in bold new-season lab coats, this year with added zippers and a hint of denim, have been ignored. The Science Fashion Week parade, in conjunction with the Chemistry Made Easy course run by models, will have to wait till next year.
For now, though, I have an invitation to next week's Morrissey show at the fashion fest; I have pants with at least one zipper in them - I'm ready to go.
Happily, Fashion Week kicked off a little early with the launch of Brett Lee's range of clothing. This is Brett Lee the Test cricketer. Brett Lee the fastest bowler in the world. Brett Lee, who has a racing greyhound dog named after him. A dog part-owned by Tony "Plugger" Lockett, who has done ads for that other gentlemen's fashion emporium, Lowes.
And this is Brett Lee, sweet-faced, charming and V groovy in his signature gear. As "groovy" as that word isn't. It doesn't get much groovier than that. Let's face it, this kid doesn't look scary without a cricket ball in his hand and the intention of hurling it down at you at more than 150km/h.
He's desperately in need of a handlebar moustache. He makes Merv Hughes look like Genghis Khan. Sorry ... Merv Hughes does look like Genghis Khan. He makes Bambi look like Genghis Khan. That's better. Maybe a bit overblown ... OK, he makes someone who looks somewhere between Bambi and Merv Hughes look like Genghis Khan. This writing game's easy, isn't it?
The point is, he doesn't look like your old-fashioned tearaway pace bowler. I say as much to former Test bowler Geoff Lawson, who is resplendent in a brown V-neck jumper. He's one of many sporting stars on hand to check the new fashion label. Some have been roped in to do the catwalk-model bit - Michael Slater, Sydney Swan Troy Luff, former Dragons player Nathan Brown, basketball guru Steve Carfino and Shane Lee among them.
"It wouldn't have happened in our day, H," another fast bowler, Wayne Holdsworth, says to Lawson, whose nickname is Henry, shortened to just H, quite obviously. Holdsworth is wearing a deep-blue shirt of impeccable cut, matched with comfortable black slacks. At least, they could have been slacks. I didn't really look. Being a fashion guru is actually quite hard.
On stage, Lee is thanking people who've helped him with his rag-trade aspirations. Like the bloke up the back wearing "a lovely pink shirt".
"When was the last time you heard a fast bowler say that sentence, H?" I ask Lawson, rushing straight into the first-letter stage of our relationship.
"I don't know," he comes back. "You might say it to a batsman you're bowling at." Ah ... fashion as a sledging tool.
Anyway, on stage Tara Moss is interviewing Bing (Lee's nickname) and the models. This is an idea that must immediately be taken up by the organisers of Australian Fashion Week. Make 'em walk and talk at the same time.
Lee likes zippers. Some of the pants have them down the front of the thigh. I'm saying nothing. Michael Slater's coat has a two-way zipper so you can have a go from either end if you're in a frenzy to get the thing off. Nathan Brown is wearing a shirt in a colour that Brett describes as "sort of crushed grapey kind of". That's the official colour in the catalogue.
The clothes are very cool. Not that I'd know. As we speak I am wearing a flannelette shirt, tracky-dacks and slippers. And I've been to the shops this morning. The three-quarter-sleeve T-shirts look brilliant. I'm not sure if they just look brilliant on men who spend their days playing sport for Australia or if the more Homeresque among us could squeeze into one.
So, feeling sufficiently bitter and twisted at Brett Lee's deserved burgeoning success story, your correspondent sought comfort in wine and sad songs"
Today when we were on the computers in English, George (my friend who's also reeaaallly good at cricket) was on the comp next to my friend jo (who was on the comp next to me) and she asked him what he was doing, and he said he was looking up to see how Dan was going.
and LOL i toooottaaalllyy had to hold my tongue!! hehehe. I was just DESPERATE to go 'oh well they're not doing so well at the moment - but before he did this and this and got that many runs and this many wickets' etc! LOL. And i just had to keep all quiet coz I totally couldn't explain away my vast knowledge! LOL.
And awwww, The Times had another article today about the U19s, but didn't mention Dan. DAMN that Tim Bresnan though coz he's ALWAYS mentioned. Pah. Pah pah pah. I think he must be AWESOMELY good though, coz they're ALWAYS saying nice things about him. They were generally saying how awfully they did in this article though (until they got onto Tim... pah lol) so maybe it was good that they didn't mention Daniel Louis.
Ok, so there's this great pic that goes with this, only I can't find it online as yet (and like SOME don't have a scanner! :P). So here's the little article bit ... and I'm still hunting the pic, I am sure it will come up SOMEWHERE!
-Brett the suitor-
Now your guess is as good as ours as to whatever possessed Brett Lee to deck himself out in this outrageous burgundy (or is it maroon?) coloured suit for Tuesday night's Allan Border Medal function (perhaps it is something to do with him being involved with a Sydney menswear store), but we can report not everyone turned their noses up at it. One who certainly did not was Neighbours starlet and pop queen Delta Goodrem, who after belting out her latest hit on stage was spotted deep in cosy conversation with the world's fastest bowler at the after-function bash. One suggestion was that the chat had something to do with the title of the song Delta had just sung - Born to Try. "
apparently the rain (YAY you got RAIN!!) helped out here coz... ummm... well I'm not sure but it was like 'something something 300 runs, something something 100 overs left... something something' so yeah, woohoo!! LOL.
no mention of dan in the paper AND (YAY) for once there was no mention of Mr Bresnan either (most people call him........ Tim...... - that's from Monty P Holy Grail film btw, if you were wondering) - so that was good coz his cricketting brilliance annoys me. lol. Stealing all damn's limelight.... pah.
anyways... maybe we'll win this game...... maybe........ (i'm not holding my breath though)
I keep forgetting to mention this, i thought it was so cute.
On Wednesday morning, after the AB Medal, when of course there were many interviews and stuff, on 1 radio station, the guy asked Gilly wat was with his suit and he was like "my wife picked it out for me" ... and awwww ... jus thought it was so cute. lol
How comforting is this for a mother (or indeed even a girl who has a soft spot for the sexiest guy on the team) to read:
"When English cricket sent some of its young lambs in against Australia this winter, the inevitable result was slaughter"
LOL!!! Oh.. the nasty images....
Gave me a start though, coz this article was about young footy players - and i suddenly realised that Daniel Louis is the equivalent of Jermaine Jenas (19yr old who plays for nufc and is AWESOME)!!
Michael Bevan is feeling just a little left out. He isn't needed like he used to be.
Famous for conjuring up enough match-winning innings to fill a book - The Best of Bevan - the cool, calm left-hander has been given few such opportunities recently because of the blinding form of Australia's top order.
He doesn't mind - too much.
"I think my role has changed a little bit, obviously because we're improving as a side," said Bevan, who rated himself a 50-50 chance of overcoming his groin injury in time for the World Cup opener against Pakistan on February 11.
"My role has probably diminished a little bit so I have got to make sure that I'm there to do my role when I get the opportunity.
"Essentially you have two scenarios. You have the scenario where the team has smashed them and you get five or ten overs to bat and you've got to score a run a ball.
"The other scenario is if you're 4-25 or 4-50 and then you've got to assess the situation and just make sure you guide the team to a certain degree. I guess those things haven't changed.
"From last summer's perspective, I was fairly happy I guess from the point of view that I got to have a hit. Probably the ten matches prior to that I hadn't really had a hit."
Bevan is a sneaky batsman who can get to 30, then 40, then 50 and beyond before the opposition knows what has hit them.
But with Matthew Hayden, Adam Gilchrist and Ricky Ponting enjoying a purple patch, one of the world's best one-day batsman has been relegated to a supporting role of late.
"I guess as a player you're always trying to give yourself the opportunities to play a major part in the match, but you've also got to accept it is a team game and you've got to fit in to the team," said Bevan.
He has started running again, gently, as he recovers from a torn groin muscle with the help of team physiotherapist Errol Alcott.
Bevan said that at age 32 he was determined keep improving.
"That's important for me because it keeps me going and gives me challenges."
One challenges is a return to bowling.
His chinaman deliveries have alternated between terrific and terrible in the past, but they give captain Ricky Ponting an option for a few overs at least.
"I got a knock in the first or second match of the one-day series on my hand off a spinner and it's stopped me from gripping the ball," said Bevan.
"Once that comes good I'll try and actively pursue my bowling a little more."
Bevan is still rated among the very best one-day batsman in the world because of his second-to-none ability to adapt to any situation, whether it be a need for quick runs or the protection of his wicket.
Asked for his secret, Bevan replied: "All I try and do is ... make sure I give myself options.
nice long article about how well they're doing (for once! lol) today - no mention of Mr Broadbent OR of the Almighty Bresnan boy.... some other dude (forgot his name though) was apparently doing superbly and bashing your little Aussie wickets over at a very fast bowling rate. Woohoo! (he got like 5 for.. umm... very few... i think...)
also, i overheard the convo of a friend today (who also liked my boy last year!) where she said that Dan was the only guy in the 6th form that she kinda liked and her and the other two ppl she was talking to were like 'he's not been here for AGES - where's he gone???' and were getting all worried.
and i was sitting there going, PAH well obviously you don't like him all that much if you don't even know he's in Aus playing cricket for YOUR OWN COUNTRY!!!! LOL. Or maybe they're just not quite on the same page of stalking as I am (I'm in the first few chapters... i realised today that despite everything i've never really stalked anyone! YAY!! I'm so impressed with myself! LOL)
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...is anyone really "ready for life and what it's like?"...
YAY for Brett's amazing catch - I love caught and bowled dismissals, and Brett's was amazing - brilliant reflexes - and LMAO at his somewhat surprised reaction to taking the catch! YAY!
pah, i'm angry with my cricket boy for being way too lazy to come to school today.
of course he might be like on his death bed or sommat (lets hope not) but i'm just assuming that he was too lazy to come. pretending to be jetlagged still. he's been back for 10 days. it's meant to be an hour a day (if u get me) for getting over it. That means he's... well... had his fair share. so c'mon dan, get ya sexy ass back in here!! LOL!! We miiissssssssss yoooouuuuu - your best friend has even started hanging round with us he's so lonely! LOL!
Big Yays for our match against Nambia ... (?) ... lol @ it being quite short ... but yay for our bois going at it full on and yay!
Yay for my boi gett'n a bat, even if he didn't do so good, maybe needs more praccy ... but yeh, yay at him gett'n a hit!
Oohhhh ahhhh Glenn McGrath!!!! YAY for such a fantastic innings ... wooo hooo!
The wickets in the end were just dropping and dropping and dropping! Couldn't believe it when I watched "highlights" on foxtel this arvo. Instead of cutting the highlights like usual, they showed Nambia's (?) entire innings ... aawww ...lol!
i'd be his best friend anyday...
there's no eye-candy now! lol. sob Does he have no thought for my feelings?!!?!? Just waltzing off to Australia like that.... pah!!! 
