Something to talk about

Yes dear readers there hasn't been much here recently. I've been in bed recovering from flu, on the couch avoiding getting wet and in the office trying to get something done. So now I'm here and writing I'm not sure what to write. Not for the first this week either. In the absence of spectacular photography, interesting anecdotes or philosopical musings I'll be talking about what else has been filling my life. If other people can blog about kittens, knitting and Robbie then I can blog about sport. Cricket in fact (completely unrelated to the fact that Spurs, Sporting AND the Glory all lost last weekend). So there.

Even though I'm on the other side of the world I'm really really enjoying the fact that Australia are beating England in the cricket. It's a little hard to share that joy here because cricket is not well known in Portugal. My passing on the joyous news of victory is met with polite smiles and "thats nice". The concept of a game lasting 5 days is alien here, on reflection cricket is the one game where at times you dont just win, you can crush the other team as you inflict defeat. Either by just the sheer easiness of your victory, as in Brisbane, or by plucking victory when it seemed to be impossible to achieve, as in Adelaide.

Over here I get the English point of view mostly because the BBC, The Times and The Guardian are more comprehensive online resources than the Australian media. But thank f*k for Cricinfo because otherwise I'd go insane. One article was amazed we Aussies have enjoyed these victories so much. The fact that we've had to listen to "We won the Ashes" from every English person since 05 plus we always enjoy beating England for "historical" reasons appears to have escaped these excellent researchers.

One thing that I've mused about for a while - and since I have no one to share these musings with over a beer then I will write instead - teams may change personnel but the mindset and the preparation continues the same. Premier League teams in England are full of foreign players but still play an English style of football. For those planning to play cricket in Australia here are the common mistakes:

• Prepare well. England warmed up for Australia's bounciest pitch by playing on our only spinning wicket and our best batting wicket. Smart.
• Pick batsmen who can bat. England still pick people on the basis of one good month. Cricket takes years to learn. The English media is amazed that Phil Jaques scored two centuries against England yet wasn't considered for the first test. Why? Because in Australia it takes several seasons to get into the team, and Jaques has only really been around since 2003 (90 matches to average 57 vs Langer 296 matches averaging 51).
• Swing bowling works in Perth, and on the first morning of a Test match. That's all. Yet England continue to pick two swing bowlers tour after tour as if somehow this fact will magically change. Pick tall bowlers who bowl fast. No excuses when you have Mahmood and Plunkett in the squad.
• "Reliable" players, all rounders who "bat a bit and bowl a bit", players who "add balance" are still the mainstay of the English team. If they don't win matches, why play them? You need 6 people to get 600 runs and 4 guys to get 20 wickets, not to replace one of them for a guy that averages 20 and might get 1 for 40. Thats not an all-rounder. All rounders are Botham, Khan, Flintoff, match winners and superstars. Plus if you have one you don't make his life harder by making him captain.

After all that cricket is still funny. Gideon Haigh's writing is more enjoyable and adds way more atmosphere than the BBC's "The Barmy Army was quiet" bloggers. Shane Warne's "You don't like being called the Sherminator do you?" to Ian Bell had me giggling for days. For those who don't like sledging I have a quote for you "We didn't need to sledge because we had the batsmen scared enough" - Jeff Dujon, 1980's West Indian keeper proving that talent rises above all .

And its still human. I felt a pang of empathy at Matthew Hoggards video diary where he seems to be stuck in an endless cycle of changerooms and hotel rooms. After 24 hours travelling from Yorkshire he still hadn't left England. And the ECB wonder why their cricketers are having issues with touring. Another example from Chris Gayle's blog "After the game we came back to the team hotel and did the usual – gathered in the hallway and stayed up until 6am just talking." Or their media manager's photos of India. Sex drugs and rock'n'roll it ain't all the time.

Last week I introduced the Portuguese to AFL using a DVD of last years grand final. The general consensus was "we admire the amount of running they do but we prefer rugby". It makes sense - rugby is a game that is a lot more structured and so easier to understand. Football is easier still. But it also says something about what AFL has become, a sport of athletes. I remember when guys who described themselves as "overweight", "asthmatic", "a thug" and "useless" were champions of our game. "I could mark and I could kick and, in my book, that’s about as far as I went," he said*

*"He" is Tony Lockett - all time AFL leading kicker, winner of the Brownlow medal (for best player) at the age of 21, 6 times All Australian and 4 times leading league goalkicker.

Don't despair people. Theres one more post of photos to share, and some farewells to say next week. Plus a project review, an orebody model and at least one dinner to have. So no more sport rants!