TOPIC:

ArkRoyal wrote: Freeze: on the national cricket side, they should just pick their six best batsmen and four best bowlers. This would give you the following team:

Rogers
Warner
Hughes
Clarke
Smith
Maxwell
Haddin
Johnson
Starc
Siddle
Hiflie

The batting is a wee bit fragile for all the reasons you mention in you last post, but overall, it should post 500 runs in a test, which makes you competitive. In the test just gone, the batting achieved this aggregate, the bowlers excelling in losing the test match. There is no point playing a spinner if they are incapable, one is better off with four seamers and two part-time spinners. Australia has always taken this that and the other spinner to various places, including Graeme Beard to Pakistan in 1980, for example. O'keefe and Lyon are simply the latest illustration the country's pre Warne and post Warne difficulties to find class spinners.

Cheers.

Siddle is ordinary AR & Hilfy needs the conditions to suit eg swinging or seaming around.

Sheesh Graeme Beard there is a blast from the past he was an ordinary spin bowler like a few others who got a gig in those early to mid 80s- Bennett, Holland, Bright, Sleep et al

Hi BH -- I am with you on Siddle; easily only the third best seamer last summer; Hilfie might nip a couple out early with his out-swing; Starc can at least help Johnson and bang the ball into the pitch, which worried the home batsman a wee bit; it is all preferrable to playing spinners whom failed to even hold up an end, never mind take wickets.

Oh yes -- we have tried loads of spinners over the years: Holland did win us a test match, to his credit, in 1985

The Western Fury were playing a game at the WACA on Sunday.

Pretty hard on Okeefe their ark....pretty sure he has been the sheffield shields leading wicket taker for a spinner for the last few seasons......first test and all that......saying that I would of loved young Zampa getting a gig instead of Lyon.....but Aus cricket has invested a lot of time in Lyon....34 tests and probably are too far down the road now to dispense with him.......would love to see Sandhu, Whiteman and Ryan Carters get a go, as well as that good lookin blonde fella who scored 80 odd.....Shane something or other?....he looked the goods in the final v WA.......one for the future I reckon!

ArkRoyal wrote: Hi BH -- I am with you on Siddle; easily only the third best seamer last summer; Hilfie might nip a couple out early with his out-swing; Starc can at least help Johnson and bang the ball into the pitch, which worried the home batsman a wee bit; it is all preferrable to playing spinners whom failed to even hold up an end, never mind take wickets.

Oh yes -- we have tried loads of spinners over the years: Holland did win us a test match, to his credit, in 1985

Bob 'Dutchy' Holland did spin Australia to victory at the old dustbowl SCG in 84/85 against the West Indies AR but I also seem to remember one Allan Border spinning Australia to victory at the old dustbowl SCG against the Windies just a few years later!
Thank feck we had one S.K Warne come along from 92-07 & S.C.G MacGill as his sidekick otherwise we would have to hark back to the days of Mallet & Benaud as our last decent Test offie & leggie respectively!

BH......how could you forget Bryce McGain mate?.....

How about that fella Taylor the spinner......no not Mark..... the other fella who the selectors picked thinking it was Mark!!......pretty sure that is how the story went....

Peter Who?
Peter Taylor.