Its been a while since last I committed any of my thoughts, half baked or otherwise, to paper. For those of you that have missed my offerings, I can only apologise. For the rest of you, those who's peace I am about to shatter, I again apologise.
This blog will feature my first effort at predicting the picks of the NFL teams for the upcoming Draft (Player Selection Meeting). We have been told again and again that there are no "studs" in this draft class, and that teams with high picks may seek instead to look for solutions elsewhere. However, the teams still have to draft, and in every class there is the hope that a roster will be improved with each selection.
This is the first time since 1999 that my beloved Philadelphia Eagles "earned" a high draft pick through their ineptitude in the 2012 season. The Eagles are in transition, with a new coach Chip Kelly coming in to try and turn around a Franchise that has not won a playoff game since the 2008 postseason under Andy Reid. But the first overall pick goes to the Kansas City Chiefs, who are now coached by...Andy Reid. They, for a "worst team in football" have very few glaring needs, but quarterback is certainly one of them. That is the reason why I suspect, despite the absence of an Andrew Luck, a Robert Griffin III...even a Nick Foles, they will still use the first pick on a quarterback.
So, without further ado, here is my first round mock draft.
KANSAS CITY - Geno Smith, Quarterback, West Virginia
JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS - Jarvis Jones, Outside Linebacker, Georgia
OAKLAND RAIDERS - Sharrif Floyd, Defensive Tackle, Florida
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES - Luke Joeckel, Offensive Tackle, Texas A&M
DETROIT LIONS - Bjorn Werner, Defensive End, Florida State
CLEVELAND BROWNS - Dee Milliner, Cornerback, Alabama
ARIZONA CARDINALS - Mike Glennon, QB, North Carolina State
BUFFALO BILLS - Manti T'eo, Inside Linebacker, Notre Dame
NEW YORK JETS - Damontre Moore, OLB, Texas A&M
TENNESSEE TITANS - Chance Womack, Offensive Guard, Alabama
SAN DIEGO CHARGERS - Eric Fisher, OT, Central Michigan
MIAMI DOLPHINS - Cordarrelle Patterson, Wide Receiver, Tennessee
TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS - Xavier Rhodes, CB, Florida State
CAROLINA PANTHERS - Star Lotulelei, DT, Utah
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS - Sheldon Richardson, DT, Missouri
ST LOUIS RAMS - Kenny Vaccaro, Strong Safety, Texas
PITTSBURGH STEELERS - Alec Ogletree, ILB, Georgia
DALLAS COWBOYS - Jonathan Cooper, OG, North Carolina
NEW YORK GIANTS - Ezekiel Ansah, DE, BYU
CHICAGO BEARS - Kevin Minter, ILB, Louisiana State University
CINCINATTI BENGALS - Eric Reid, Free Safety, Louisiana State University
ST LOUIS RAMS (from Washington Redskins) - Keenan Allen, WR, California
MINNESOTA VIKINGS - Deandre Hopkins, WR, Clemson
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS - Datone Jones, DE, UCLA
SEATTLE SEAHAWKS - Cornellius Carradine, DE, Florida State
GREEN BAY PACKERS - Travis Frederick, Center, Wisconsin
HOUSTON TEXANS - Robert Woods, WR, USC
DENVER BRONCOS - Jonathan Hankins, DT, Ohio State
ATLANTA FALCONS - Arthur Brown, ILB, Kansas State
NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS - John Jenkins, DT, Georgia
SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS - Matt Elam, FS, Florida
BALTIMORE RAVENS - Sam Montgomery, DE, Louisiana State University
My mock draft does not account for possible trades, nor does it try to guess what the 32 teams will do in free agency with their own and available players. I have merely attempted to identify urgent needs for all teams and assigned them the best available players at that position. I'm sure my next mock draft will contain many changes, but its a start, isn't it?
If you have any comments, please feel free to hit me up on The Twitter, @ndutton13 and don't forget to listen to my and Paul Mainwarings weekly rantings on "Waxing Lyrical with Mainz and Dutts", available on iTunes.
Monday, 18 February 2013
Friday, 7 December 2012
Where Have All The Wizards Gone?
Days after hopping between hinting at a comeback for his country then dismissing such reports in a way that wasn't really a dismissal, Shane Warne served up a timely reminder as to why he has been retired from test cricket for nearly six years, as he returned figures of 0/41 for the Melbourne Stars against the Melbourne Renegades in the opening clash of the Big Bash League in Australia. In case the stupid names of the teams AND the competition were not enough of a hint, this is a T20 jamboree. And Warne bowled only two overs. Speaking as an England fan, I would heartily love to say Warney back in the floppy sun hat on that form.
However, the events of the week did get me thinking, not so much of Warne himself but rather of the trade he still, with a generosity of spirit his legendary status affords him, performs, namely that of bowling leg spin. I considered the prospect that, at aged 43 and a long time out of the international scene, Warne may STILL be the most prominent leg spinner in Test cricket.
Since the last Test of the 2006/7 Ashes series, when Warne departed the scene, 124 spin bowlers have bowled at least ONE ball in Test match cricket. 64 have taken at least one wicket, and of this number only 12 (TWELVE) bowled leg spin.
Leg spin is, as most cricket purists (snobs, like me) will tell you, is an art form. It requires a certain type of mindset to bowl it, knowing that while you are a wonderful wicket taking option for your captain, a bad day may see you become profligate, and swiftly dispatched to ponder your deeds in a secluded area of the field of play. It can be feast or famine. Leg spin was eschewed by most on the international scene by the beginning of the 1990s, with many teams preferring the economy and occasional threat of off spinners and orthodox left armers. Shane Warnes arrival on the Ashes scene, with his Ball of the Century to one of England's better players of spin at the time Mike Gatting, is alleged to saved Test cricket, with youngsters everywhere wanting to perfect this mysterious art. This may be so, but even with the great mans impact very few actually prospered at the highest level. Anil Kumble (who took 72 wickets after Warne retired before he too hung up his boots) is the second most successful leggie of all time with 619 scalps, but it must be pointed out that he was not a huge spinner of the ball, and got a lot of his wickets utilising his bounce and his googly, which did for many a tailender. Current England spin bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed took 185 wickets for Pakistan, which his successor in the Pakistan side Danish Kaneria took 78 of his 261 Test wickets in the period after Warne retired and before his fall from grace for his alleged involvement in match fixing at Essex. The great understudy, and subject of many a "If (subject A) hadn't been around, then (subject B) would have been a world beater" discussion, Stuart MacGill took 208 Test wickets, usually when Warne wasn't around, but took only ten in 4 matches as the number one leggie in Oz before he joined Warney in retirement.
In the last two years, it seemed that maybe leg spin was creeping back into the game, with South Africa utilising Pakistan born Imran Tahir and the West Indies unearthing the exciting Devendra Bishoo. India too, for so long the place where leg spin goes to die, looked like they had a new Kumble in Amit Mishra, after seemingly giving up on the Piyush Chawla experiment (2 Tests, 3 wickets in 2008) and maybe crickets most deadly art was on the way back. Erm...sadly no. Bishoos 11 Test matches have yielded 40 wickets, but at a cost of 39.55 each. He lost his place to "mystery" spinner Sunil Narine. Mishra has played 13 Tests since the end of the Warne Era, and he has taken 43 wickets at the high price of 43.30. He seems to have a problem with bowling front foot no balls, an unpardonable sin for a slow bowler, and a problem shared with Tahir, who has struggled both in England and recently in Australia, where he was dropped in favour of slow left armer Robin Petersen. Tahir has appeared in 11 matches, taking a disappointing 26 wickets at 50.19!
Since Warne made his debut, the one country most notable for its mission to remove leg spinners from Test cricket is, you guessed it, England, the team most tormented by Warne. Since Warne's debut in January 1992, English leg spinners have taken 20 wickets...all of these taken by Ian Salisbury, who last played Test cricket in 2000. Since Warne's retirement, English leggies have failed to bowl a single ball in Test cricket, let alone take a wicket. But it would be unfair to blame the English struggles of the 1970s/80s/90s for their reluctance to find, blood and persist with a leg spinner. In the history of their period playing Test cricket, 19 English spin bowlers have taken more than 100 Test wickets. Only one of these 19 was a leg spinner, Doug Wright, and even the annals of Cricinfo list him as right arm medium/legbreak googly rather than an out and out leggie.
The "mystery" once attached to purveyors of leg spin has now been given to bowlers with that sinister weapon (and far from heaven sent bowling actions) the "doosra", or "other one", or bowlers like Ajantha Mendis of Sri Lanka and Ravi Ashwin of India who have perfected the ball out of the front of the hand, or "carrom" ball. While Ashwin has enjoyed success since making his Test bow, Mendis is now seen primarily as a one day / T20 bowler. Maybe the age of the leg spinner is truly over, or maybe we just need Warne to give it one more shot...
However, the events of the week did get me thinking, not so much of Warne himself but rather of the trade he still, with a generosity of spirit his legendary status affords him, performs, namely that of bowling leg spin. I considered the prospect that, at aged 43 and a long time out of the international scene, Warne may STILL be the most prominent leg spinner in Test cricket.
Since the last Test of the 2006/7 Ashes series, when Warne departed the scene, 124 spin bowlers have bowled at least ONE ball in Test match cricket. 64 have taken at least one wicket, and of this number only 12 (TWELVE) bowled leg spin.
Leg spin is, as most cricket purists (snobs, like me) will tell you, is an art form. It requires a certain type of mindset to bowl it, knowing that while you are a wonderful wicket taking option for your captain, a bad day may see you become profligate, and swiftly dispatched to ponder your deeds in a secluded area of the field of play. It can be feast or famine. Leg spin was eschewed by most on the international scene by the beginning of the 1990s, with many teams preferring the economy and occasional threat of off spinners and orthodox left armers. Shane Warnes arrival on the Ashes scene, with his Ball of the Century to one of England's better players of spin at the time Mike Gatting, is alleged to saved Test cricket, with youngsters everywhere wanting to perfect this mysterious art. This may be so, but even with the great mans impact very few actually prospered at the highest level. Anil Kumble (who took 72 wickets after Warne retired before he too hung up his boots) is the second most successful leggie of all time with 619 scalps, but it must be pointed out that he was not a huge spinner of the ball, and got a lot of his wickets utilising his bounce and his googly, which did for many a tailender. Current England spin bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed took 185 wickets for Pakistan, which his successor in the Pakistan side Danish Kaneria took 78 of his 261 Test wickets in the period after Warne retired and before his fall from grace for his alleged involvement in match fixing at Essex. The great understudy, and subject of many a "If (subject A) hadn't been around, then (subject B) would have been a world beater" discussion, Stuart MacGill took 208 Test wickets, usually when Warne wasn't around, but took only ten in 4 matches as the number one leggie in Oz before he joined Warney in retirement.
In the last two years, it seemed that maybe leg spin was creeping back into the game, with South Africa utilising Pakistan born Imran Tahir and the West Indies unearthing the exciting Devendra Bishoo. India too, for so long the place where leg spin goes to die, looked like they had a new Kumble in Amit Mishra, after seemingly giving up on the Piyush Chawla experiment (2 Tests, 3 wickets in 2008) and maybe crickets most deadly art was on the way back. Erm...sadly no. Bishoos 11 Test matches have yielded 40 wickets, but at a cost of 39.55 each. He lost his place to "mystery" spinner Sunil Narine. Mishra has played 13 Tests since the end of the Warne Era, and he has taken 43 wickets at the high price of 43.30. He seems to have a problem with bowling front foot no balls, an unpardonable sin for a slow bowler, and a problem shared with Tahir, who has struggled both in England and recently in Australia, where he was dropped in favour of slow left armer Robin Petersen. Tahir has appeared in 11 matches, taking a disappointing 26 wickets at 50.19!
Since Warne made his debut, the one country most notable for its mission to remove leg spinners from Test cricket is, you guessed it, England, the team most tormented by Warne. Since Warne's debut in January 1992, English leg spinners have taken 20 wickets...all of these taken by Ian Salisbury, who last played Test cricket in 2000. Since Warne's retirement, English leggies have failed to bowl a single ball in Test cricket, let alone take a wicket. But it would be unfair to blame the English struggles of the 1970s/80s/90s for their reluctance to find, blood and persist with a leg spinner. In the history of their period playing Test cricket, 19 English spin bowlers have taken more than 100 Test wickets. Only one of these 19 was a leg spinner, Doug Wright, and even the annals of Cricinfo list him as right arm medium/legbreak googly rather than an out and out leggie.
The "mystery" once attached to purveyors of leg spin has now been given to bowlers with that sinister weapon (and far from heaven sent bowling actions) the "doosra", or "other one", or bowlers like Ajantha Mendis of Sri Lanka and Ravi Ashwin of India who have perfected the ball out of the front of the hand, or "carrom" ball. While Ashwin has enjoyed success since making his Test bow, Mendis is now seen primarily as a one day / T20 bowler. Maybe the age of the leg spinner is truly over, or maybe we just need Warne to give it one more shot...
Monday, 3 December 2012
Farewell To A Fighter
The 4th Ashes Test in England in 1997 saw a resounding victory for the tourists, who followed their victory in Manchester in the 3rd test with a crushing innings and 61 run win at Leeds. Such was the way the series had turned, after England's incredible effort in the opening match of the series had been followed by a draw at Lords, but only with the weather saving the home side after they were bundled out for 77 in the first innings. The Aussies were on a roll, yet after the win at Old Trafford they made a change. The misfiring Michael Bevan had given the selectors little option but to drop him, after a run of low scores, and so it was that they entrusted the number six spot to a precocious young batsman from Tasmania, who, after three half centuries in his first six tests, seemed ready to be given a run. After 261 balls yielded a maiden Test ton (127), it was apparent that the name Ricky Ponting would be one that the English fans would have to get used to hearing, over the next decade or more.
Now, back to modern day. Ponting's international career has ended, after a remarkable 168 Test match appearances (equalling the Australian record held by Steve Waugh, no friend to English bowling himself), 13,378 test runs and another 40 hundreds to accompany that one at Headingley. It is fair to say that as a batsman, he has been amongst the very best in the world over the last 15 years. Pugnacious, aggressive and also at times pleasing on the eye, he spent much of the first decade of the 21st century punishing international attacks in a way that his compatriot Sir Donald Bradman would have enjoyed. In 2005 and 2006, he plundered an astonishing 2877 runs with 13 centuries. However, once 2007 came around, Ponting would never again average more than 47 in a calender year.
The longest standing argument concerning Ponting concerns not his appetite for and ability to carve out runs, but features on his record as Australia's captain. Was he a great captain, or was a captain blessed with a phenomenal side? I would tend to side with the latter. He was comprehensively out-thought by Michael Vaughan in 2005, while he was made to look inept as a leader in 2010/11 by the rampant Strauss-led England side. His batting record as a captain / non captain is interesting, in that while his average NOT as captain was better than his efforts as a leader, it is only by the very smallest of margins (52.18 versus 51.51).
His record (as a batsman again, I am not adequately full of myself to speak of his captaincy credentials for anything longer than a single paragraph) against England is indicitve of a man who, far from grateful that the Mother Country were his first major victims, took great delight in making the English fielders watch him bat and bat. In 35 Tests against England, he amassed 2476 runs with eight centuries. He saved his best performances however for matches against India, with his 29 appearances producing 2555 runs at an average of 54.36 (with again 8 centuries, including his career high 257). It is perhaps incredible to consider that he came oh so close to falling out of the Australia side in 2001! After an innings of 141* at Sydney in January 2000 (against India, of course!), he had gone 11 Test matches and 18 innings without a Test match century, with only a single half century when the Australian captain Steve Waugh tore a muscle at Trent Bridge during the 3rd 2001 Ashes Test. Simon Katich was brought in for the next match (again at Headingley, he loves Leeds), with the thinking being that a solid show from Katich would see him replace Ponting when Waugh returned. Katich mustered 15 and 0*. Ponting managed 144 and 72. He was safe.
As with most notable players, I like to look at people like Ponting and see how if at all I am similar to them. I can announce that I have one tangible similarity. Its not our choice of bat equipment (Ponting has been with Kookabura his whole career, whereas we ALL know I love GM), its not our favouring of the pull and straight drive. Its our birthday. Ponting came into the world December 19th 1974, while I followed six years later.
He leaves the game with the Australian team beaten at home by South Africa for the 2nd straight series, but with a captain hungry for runs. A win in the last Test would have seen the Aussies top the World Rankings, painting something of a false image concerning the Aussies current abilities. Maybe, under the stewardship of Michael Clarke, the Old Enemy will once again rise to the top of the charts. They must do so without Old Man Ponting, and the hunt for a new lynch pin begins. But don't worry England fans, while the Aussies do come to Leeds next summer, its only for an ODI.
Now, back to modern day. Ponting's international career has ended, after a remarkable 168 Test match appearances (equalling the Australian record held by Steve Waugh, no friend to English bowling himself), 13,378 test runs and another 40 hundreds to accompany that one at Headingley. It is fair to say that as a batsman, he has been amongst the very best in the world over the last 15 years. Pugnacious, aggressive and also at times pleasing on the eye, he spent much of the first decade of the 21st century punishing international attacks in a way that his compatriot Sir Donald Bradman would have enjoyed. In 2005 and 2006, he plundered an astonishing 2877 runs with 13 centuries. However, once 2007 came around, Ponting would never again average more than 47 in a calender year.
The longest standing argument concerning Ponting concerns not his appetite for and ability to carve out runs, but features on his record as Australia's captain. Was he a great captain, or was a captain blessed with a phenomenal side? I would tend to side with the latter. He was comprehensively out-thought by Michael Vaughan in 2005, while he was made to look inept as a leader in 2010/11 by the rampant Strauss-led England side. His batting record as a captain / non captain is interesting, in that while his average NOT as captain was better than his efforts as a leader, it is only by the very smallest of margins (52.18 versus 51.51).
His record (as a batsman again, I am not adequately full of myself to speak of his captaincy credentials for anything longer than a single paragraph) against England is indicitve of a man who, far from grateful that the Mother Country were his first major victims, took great delight in making the English fielders watch him bat and bat. In 35 Tests against England, he amassed 2476 runs with eight centuries. He saved his best performances however for matches against India, with his 29 appearances producing 2555 runs at an average of 54.36 (with again 8 centuries, including his career high 257). It is perhaps incredible to consider that he came oh so close to falling out of the Australia side in 2001! After an innings of 141* at Sydney in January 2000 (against India, of course!), he had gone 11 Test matches and 18 innings without a Test match century, with only a single half century when the Australian captain Steve Waugh tore a muscle at Trent Bridge during the 3rd 2001 Ashes Test. Simon Katich was brought in for the next match (again at Headingley, he loves Leeds), with the thinking being that a solid show from Katich would see him replace Ponting when Waugh returned. Katich mustered 15 and 0*. Ponting managed 144 and 72. He was safe.
As with most notable players, I like to look at people like Ponting and see how if at all I am similar to them. I can announce that I have one tangible similarity. Its not our choice of bat equipment (Ponting has been with Kookabura his whole career, whereas we ALL know I love GM), its not our favouring of the pull and straight drive. Its our birthday. Ponting came into the world December 19th 1974, while I followed six years later.
He leaves the game with the Australian team beaten at home by South Africa for the 2nd straight series, but with a captain hungry for runs. A win in the last Test would have seen the Aussies top the World Rankings, painting something of a false image concerning the Aussies current abilities. Maybe, under the stewardship of Michael Clarke, the Old Enemy will once again rise to the top of the charts. They must do so without Old Man Ponting, and the hunt for a new lynch pin begins. But don't worry England fans, while the Aussies do come to Leeds next summer, its only for an ODI.
Friday, 23 November 2012
Good Year For The Captain
I awoke Saturday morning to the news that Graham Smith, the slayer of England captains, was sitting overnight on 111* (a total I am convinced he arrived at just to annoy my sister Nicky, who has a loathing for the number), the key innings in total of 217/2 for South Africa in reply to Australia's 550 all out. This large Aussie total owned much to their captain Michael Clarke, who when finally dismissed in this match had made 230, giving him his second double century of the series, and an astonishing FOURTH for the year (including a 329*).
Armed with this knowledge, I set about looking at how Test captains have fared with the bat in 2012, in comparison to how fruitful a year 2011 had been for those that lead their teams. The results were very encouraging.
There have been 15 Test centuries by skippers in 2012, Clarke leading the way with 4 of them (all at least doubles, remember), followed by his South African counterpart Smith who has three. Spread over the captaincy reigns of both Andrew Strauss and the current incumbent Alastair Cook, England captains have raised the bat and removed the lid three times, while New Zealands Ross Taylor and Mahela Jayawardene of Sri Lanka both have two hundreds this year. Darren Sammy, perhaps the most maligned of all the captains when it comes to his place, led a hearty fightback for his side in England in 2012 with a maiden test hundred coming at Trent Bridge.
Of the test playing nations, the only sides whose captains failed to notch a century were Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. Misbah-ul-Haq captained five matches for Pakistan with a top score of 84, while Mohammad Hafeez took the reigns once, with his best effort being 20. MS Dhoni (6 matches) and Virender Sehwag (1) mustered four 50s between them, while Brendan Taylor (top score 9) and Mushfiqur Rahim (43) did not even pass 50 in their combined 5 innings. The other man to lead a side in a test in 2012 was Tilakaratne Dilshan for Sri Lanka, who achieved a top score of 78.
Both Cook and Clarke average over 100 as captain, with Cook's achievement bettered by Clarke who has attained his average through 12 innings compared to Cook's two. Clarke is, unsurprisingly, the leading run scorer also with 1271 runs through the year. Taylor is at the bottom of this list, averaging a mere 5.5 runs.
So how does this compare with 2011? Well, there were only 13 captains of Test sides in 2011, and the results are different in many ways. Misbah is the leading run scorer with 765 runs and one century, but the leader in terms of number on tons is the same as in 2012. Yes, its Michael Clarke. Though "only" managing 618 runs at an average of 38.62, he did score three Test centuries. The owner of the best average in 2011 was, in a reversal of 2012, Brendan Taylor of Zimbabwe, with his 358 runs coming at a lick of 71.60 (2 hundreds). The nations without a captain reaching three figures in 2011 are West Indies (Sammy, 325 runs @ 18.05) New Zealand (Ross Taylor, 228 @ 38) Bangladesh (Al Hasan and Rahim contributing a top score of 69 between them) and interestingly, the side that ended the year ranked number one in the world, England (Andrew Strauss 316 runs @ 28.72)
It would seem to be a good time to lead your side in Test cricket, if you enjoy batting. The only team over these two years without a century from a captain are Bangladesh, and this is hardly the only problem this team has at present. I will be intrigued to sit here a year from now and see how kind 2013 was to the men who captain at the highest level of cricket, especially with one completed Ashes series and another around the corner.
Armed with this knowledge, I set about looking at how Test captains have fared with the bat in 2012, in comparison to how fruitful a year 2011 had been for those that lead their teams. The results were very encouraging.
There have been 15 Test centuries by skippers in 2012, Clarke leading the way with 4 of them (all at least doubles, remember), followed by his South African counterpart Smith who has three. Spread over the captaincy reigns of both Andrew Strauss and the current incumbent Alastair Cook, England captains have raised the bat and removed the lid three times, while New Zealands Ross Taylor and Mahela Jayawardene of Sri Lanka both have two hundreds this year. Darren Sammy, perhaps the most maligned of all the captains when it comes to his place, led a hearty fightback for his side in England in 2012 with a maiden test hundred coming at Trent Bridge.
Of the test playing nations, the only sides whose captains failed to notch a century were Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. Misbah-ul-Haq captained five matches for Pakistan with a top score of 84, while Mohammad Hafeez took the reigns once, with his best effort being 20. MS Dhoni (6 matches) and Virender Sehwag (1) mustered four 50s between them, while Brendan Taylor (top score 9) and Mushfiqur Rahim (43) did not even pass 50 in their combined 5 innings. The other man to lead a side in a test in 2012 was Tilakaratne Dilshan for Sri Lanka, who achieved a top score of 78.
Both Cook and Clarke average over 100 as captain, with Cook's achievement bettered by Clarke who has attained his average through 12 innings compared to Cook's two. Clarke is, unsurprisingly, the leading run scorer also with 1271 runs through the year. Taylor is at the bottom of this list, averaging a mere 5.5 runs.
So how does this compare with 2011? Well, there were only 13 captains of Test sides in 2011, and the results are different in many ways. Misbah is the leading run scorer with 765 runs and one century, but the leader in terms of number on tons is the same as in 2012. Yes, its Michael Clarke. Though "only" managing 618 runs at an average of 38.62, he did score three Test centuries. The owner of the best average in 2011 was, in a reversal of 2012, Brendan Taylor of Zimbabwe, with his 358 runs coming at a lick of 71.60 (2 hundreds). The nations without a captain reaching three figures in 2011 are West Indies (Sammy, 325 runs @ 18.05) New Zealand (Ross Taylor, 228 @ 38) Bangladesh (Al Hasan and Rahim contributing a top score of 69 between them) and interestingly, the side that ended the year ranked number one in the world, England (Andrew Strauss 316 runs @ 28.72)
It would seem to be a good time to lead your side in Test cricket, if you enjoy batting. The only team over these two years without a century from a captain are Bangladesh, and this is hardly the only problem this team has at present. I will be intrigued to sit here a year from now and see how kind 2013 was to the men who captain at the highest level of cricket, especially with one completed Ashes series and another around the corner.
Tuesday, 20 November 2012
The Hot Seats
Eleven weeks of the NFL season have now passed. The weeks that have passed have painted their picture of the 2012 season, and has left a number of deep impressions upon the psyche of those that follow America's favourite game.
Of the 32 franchises, I take a look at those teams that I believe will part company with their head coach at the end of the season, as well as casting a slight glance upon those teams whose coaches seat may not be boiling, but its certainly a bit warm.
San Diego Chargers - Head Coach Norv Turner. Record with Team - 53 wins 37 losses (as of November 19th)
This talented team has continually disappointed under the reign of Turner and GM AJ Smith. It was a shock to virtually the free footballing world that Turner and Smith were kept on after the 2011 season. With a record currently reading 4-6, it would be shocking if the Chargers owners repeated their generosity again.
Cleveland Browns - Head Coach Pat Shurmur. Record 6-20
The Browns have new owners, and despite them remaining "competitive" in many of their games this season, the facts are that they have lost 8 games, and new owners generally want to bring "their" guys in with them. There are some building blocks in place in Cleveland, but the franchise has known nothing since defeat since their rebirth in 1999.
Jacksonville Jaguars - Head Coach Mike Mularkey. Record 1-9
Mularkey is only ten games into his first season with the Jags, but 2012 has been little shy of a disaster. A lengthy holdout from star running back Maurice Jones-Drew during the offseason did little to aid the new coach, and the inept play of 2011 first round draft pick QB Blaine Gabbert has mortally wounded this team since day one. The Jags also have a new (ish) owner, and with a dwindling fan base coupled with the team being frequently linked with a move to LA, it would shock no one if the house was cleared in Florida.
Kansas City Chiefs - Head Coach Romeo Crennel. Record 3-10
Many predicted big things for the Chiefs at the start of the season. Many talented players were fully fit after injury, the team had rallied around interim coach Crennel when he stepped in towards the end of the 2011 season, and some (yes, including me) tipped them to perform well, maybe going even as far as the Super Bowl. This has not happened. The team has been plagued by awful QB play, abysmal defense and a frustrated fan base.
Dallas Cowboys - Head Coach Jason Garrett. Record 16-15.
Cowboys owners Jerry Jones has been vainly seeking a championship since the 1995 season, and is not renowned for his patience. Garrett was the heir apparent for the head coaching job when he was appointed offensive coordinator to head coach Wade Phillips, and took over when Phillips was fired during the 2010 season. The Cowboys have so much talent on paper, but poor play, bad clock management and a crippling amount of "dead money" against the salary cap has left the coach (and his oft criticised QB Tony Romo) on the brink on unemployment.
Philadelphia Eagles - Head Coach Andy Reid. Record 129-86-1
Reid has been in charge of the Eagles since 1999. He has taken the Eagles to 5 NFC Championship games, including a Super Bowl appearance. However, the team record since the Super Bowl has been mixed. Reid and the Eagles have drafted poorly, have made mistakes on free agents, and have made staggering personnel decisions, all things for which Reid has the ultimate say on. On the field, as with many of the other named coaches, Reid has suffered at the hands of his quarterback. A new one is clearly needed for 2013 and beyond, but it appears that Reid won't benefit from the new boys play.
Carolina Panthers - Head Coach Ron Rivera. Record 8-18
The Panthers were going to challenge the dominence of the New Orleans Saints in the NFC West. They spent money on running backs Jonathon Stewart, Deangelo Williams and free agent Mike Tolbert. Cam Newton, the rookie sensation of 2011, was going to take the NFL by storm and top his phenomenal displays of a year before. Yes, this was going to happen. It didn't. Newton has been inconsistent, the defence has been shoddy, the running backs not used. The team fired their GM, Rivera will probably be next.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS -
Ken Wisenhunt, Arizona Cardinals.
Mike Shanahan, Washington Redskins
Detroit Lions, Jim Schwartz
New York Jets, Rex Ryan
Buffalo Bills, Chan Gailey
Oakland Raiders, Dennis Allen.
Wisenhunt, Ryan and Schwartz may have done enough in the past to convince their bosses that they deserve one more year. Shanahan may well rely on rookie QB RG3 getting his team up around an 8-8 record to save his job. Gailey's future would seem to be tied up with Bills GM Buddy Nix, while Allen is in his first year in Oakland. The old regime under Al Davis would probably pull the trigger, but with the team in a mess when he joined, he may just scrape another year.
Of the 32 franchises, I take a look at those teams that I believe will part company with their head coach at the end of the season, as well as casting a slight glance upon those teams whose coaches seat may not be boiling, but its certainly a bit warm.
San Diego Chargers - Head Coach Norv Turner. Record with Team - 53 wins 37 losses (as of November 19th)
This talented team has continually disappointed under the reign of Turner and GM AJ Smith. It was a shock to virtually the free footballing world that Turner and Smith were kept on after the 2011 season. With a record currently reading 4-6, it would be shocking if the Chargers owners repeated their generosity again.
Cleveland Browns - Head Coach Pat Shurmur. Record 6-20
The Browns have new owners, and despite them remaining "competitive" in many of their games this season, the facts are that they have lost 8 games, and new owners generally want to bring "their" guys in with them. There are some building blocks in place in Cleveland, but the franchise has known nothing since defeat since their rebirth in 1999.
Jacksonville Jaguars - Head Coach Mike Mularkey. Record 1-9
Mularkey is only ten games into his first season with the Jags, but 2012 has been little shy of a disaster. A lengthy holdout from star running back Maurice Jones-Drew during the offseason did little to aid the new coach, and the inept play of 2011 first round draft pick QB Blaine Gabbert has mortally wounded this team since day one. The Jags also have a new (ish) owner, and with a dwindling fan base coupled with the team being frequently linked with a move to LA, it would shock no one if the house was cleared in Florida.
Kansas City Chiefs - Head Coach Romeo Crennel. Record 3-10
Many predicted big things for the Chiefs at the start of the season. Many talented players were fully fit after injury, the team had rallied around interim coach Crennel when he stepped in towards the end of the 2011 season, and some (yes, including me) tipped them to perform well, maybe going even as far as the Super Bowl. This has not happened. The team has been plagued by awful QB play, abysmal defense and a frustrated fan base.
Dallas Cowboys - Head Coach Jason Garrett. Record 16-15.
Cowboys owners Jerry Jones has been vainly seeking a championship since the 1995 season, and is not renowned for his patience. Garrett was the heir apparent for the head coaching job when he was appointed offensive coordinator to head coach Wade Phillips, and took over when Phillips was fired during the 2010 season. The Cowboys have so much talent on paper, but poor play, bad clock management and a crippling amount of "dead money" against the salary cap has left the coach (and his oft criticised QB Tony Romo) on the brink on unemployment.
Philadelphia Eagles - Head Coach Andy Reid. Record 129-86-1
Reid has been in charge of the Eagles since 1999. He has taken the Eagles to 5 NFC Championship games, including a Super Bowl appearance. However, the team record since the Super Bowl has been mixed. Reid and the Eagles have drafted poorly, have made mistakes on free agents, and have made staggering personnel decisions, all things for which Reid has the ultimate say on. On the field, as with many of the other named coaches, Reid has suffered at the hands of his quarterback. A new one is clearly needed for 2013 and beyond, but it appears that Reid won't benefit from the new boys play.
Carolina Panthers - Head Coach Ron Rivera. Record 8-18
The Panthers were going to challenge the dominence of the New Orleans Saints in the NFC West. They spent money on running backs Jonathon Stewart, Deangelo Williams and free agent Mike Tolbert. Cam Newton, the rookie sensation of 2011, was going to take the NFL by storm and top his phenomenal displays of a year before. Yes, this was going to happen. It didn't. Newton has been inconsistent, the defence has been shoddy, the running backs not used. The team fired their GM, Rivera will probably be next.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS -
Ken Wisenhunt, Arizona Cardinals.
Mike Shanahan, Washington Redskins
Detroit Lions, Jim Schwartz
New York Jets, Rex Ryan
Buffalo Bills, Chan Gailey
Oakland Raiders, Dennis Allen.
Wisenhunt, Ryan and Schwartz may have done enough in the past to convince their bosses that they deserve one more year. Shanahan may well rely on rookie QB RG3 getting his team up around an 8-8 record to save his job. Gailey's future would seem to be tied up with Bills GM Buddy Nix, while Allen is in his first year in Oakland. The old regime under Al Davis would probably pull the trigger, but with the team in a mess when he joined, he may just scrape another year.
Monday, 19 November 2012
A Tribute To Grit
The first Test match between England and India ended this morning in what will seem a crushing nine wicket defeat for the visitors, with India chasing down a paltry 77 to win just after lunch on the 5th day. That the match lasted this long is a testament to a great partnership of 157 between wicketkeeper Matt Prior, desperately unlucky to miss out on a 2nd innings century after missing out on a fifty in the first innings, and England Captain Alastair Cook, who defied the home bowlers for 556 minutes and 374 balls for a marathon 176.
Since vehemently calling for Cook to be dropped during the 2010 home summer, I and all other England fans have watched him go from "satisfied with a 60" to "not quite pleased enough with 160". He of all the other England players have embraced batting coach Graham Gooch's "daddy hundred" mentality with the most relish. Since the first Ashes test of the 2010/11 series, Cook has scored 2408 runs in 24 matches (averaging 65.08), with 8 hundreds and 7 fifties. Of those 100s, for half of them Cook has batted past 150 with two of those four ending with him past the 200 milestone. He has developed that most wonderful trait of a successful batsman, that one thing that sets them apart. Greed. He wants to score as many runs as he can, and he is angry when he feels he has left runs "out on the field", as it were. At the age of just 27 (he will be 28 on Christmas Day, a birthday he shares with another left hander who has opened the batting for England in the last decade, Marcus Trescothick), he currently has amassed 6772 Test match runs for England. The English record is 8900, held by...Graham Gooch. Of the major Test playing nations, England are the only one that do not have a bowler with more than 400 Test wickets and/or a batsman with at least 10,000 Test runs. Cook should, baring injury, put that right before too long.
Like his South African contemporary Graham Smith, Cook is not the easiest on the eye of batsman. His style of batting is to grace what Pot Noodle is to the fine dining experience. He is content to leave the ball, waiting for bowlers to get too straight and stray onto his pads. If they learn this lesson and try and drop it short, he has a punishing cut shot and a decent command of the pull shot. He is by no means a big hitter (he has 777 Test 4s, and only 7 maximums), but he is aware that six singles dropped into the leg side carry the same value as one massive boundary clearing blow.
The First Test will disappoint him in its result, as it is the first time he has tasted defeat as Captain in a Test match (he won both matches during his caretaker spell in Bangladesh in 2010), but he may well be happy to reflect that he is the first Test captain EVER for ANY country to score a century in his first three Test matches, he has notched more centuries on the subcontinent for England than any other player (5), and he has just notched the highest score EVER by an England captain in a Test match in India (his 176 beat the previous holders 144. The previous holder was Kevin Pietersen). These three milestones are very nice, and will probably produce a wry smile on the captains still boyish face, but he will want the rest of team to follow his lead and find a method with which to combat the attack of India. If he doesn't pass fifty again on this tour, but England somehow pull out a win, then he'll be happy. But I suspect if England are to come back in the series, the captain staying at the crease will be crucial to achieving this. The voyage with Captain Cook is only just beginning.
Since vehemently calling for Cook to be dropped during the 2010 home summer, I and all other England fans have watched him go from "satisfied with a 60" to "not quite pleased enough with 160". He of all the other England players have embraced batting coach Graham Gooch's "daddy hundred" mentality with the most relish. Since the first Ashes test of the 2010/11 series, Cook has scored 2408 runs in 24 matches (averaging 65.08), with 8 hundreds and 7 fifties. Of those 100s, for half of them Cook has batted past 150 with two of those four ending with him past the 200 milestone. He has developed that most wonderful trait of a successful batsman, that one thing that sets them apart. Greed. He wants to score as many runs as he can, and he is angry when he feels he has left runs "out on the field", as it were. At the age of just 27 (he will be 28 on Christmas Day, a birthday he shares with another left hander who has opened the batting for England in the last decade, Marcus Trescothick), he currently has amassed 6772 Test match runs for England. The English record is 8900, held by...Graham Gooch. Of the major Test playing nations, England are the only one that do not have a bowler with more than 400 Test wickets and/or a batsman with at least 10,000 Test runs. Cook should, baring injury, put that right before too long.
Like his South African contemporary Graham Smith, Cook is not the easiest on the eye of batsman. His style of batting is to grace what Pot Noodle is to the fine dining experience. He is content to leave the ball, waiting for bowlers to get too straight and stray onto his pads. If they learn this lesson and try and drop it short, he has a punishing cut shot and a decent command of the pull shot. He is by no means a big hitter (he has 777 Test 4s, and only 7 maximums), but he is aware that six singles dropped into the leg side carry the same value as one massive boundary clearing blow.
The First Test will disappoint him in its result, as it is the first time he has tasted defeat as Captain in a Test match (he won both matches during his caretaker spell in Bangladesh in 2010), but he may well be happy to reflect that he is the first Test captain EVER for ANY country to score a century in his first three Test matches, he has notched more centuries on the subcontinent for England than any other player (5), and he has just notched the highest score EVER by an England captain in a Test match in India (his 176 beat the previous holders 144. The previous holder was Kevin Pietersen). These three milestones are very nice, and will probably produce a wry smile on the captains still boyish face, but he will want the rest of team to follow his lead and find a method with which to combat the attack of India. If he doesn't pass fifty again on this tour, but England somehow pull out a win, then he'll be happy. But I suspect if England are to come back in the series, the captain staying at the crease will be crucial to achieving this. The voyage with Captain Cook is only just beginning.
Saturday, 10 November 2012
Wow, Ain't It Been A While
Welcome back everyone, its been FAR too long...
Since last I penned anything coherent upon these sheets, an awful lot has changed. From a self promotion point of view, my sometimes collaborator on this blog Mainzey and I have begun a podcast known as "Waxing Lyrical With Mainz and Dutts", which is available to download on iTunes. In other slightly more impressive news, I have discovered that, with a 95% certainty, I should become father to a daughter in March. All very exciting stuff.
In this blog, I want to take a slightly more in depth look at a topic that Mainzey and I discussed on the latest Waxing Lyrical, that is the England tour to India.
England's record in India since 1933 must be awful, mustn't it? Given how poorly we travel to the subcontinent, our awful record and style against spin, we must be absolutely terrible....Well, it may shock some of you to learn that if you dismiss the 1993 series (in which England were beaten 3-0 after an "expert" scouting party dismissed one of the Indian spinners with the words, after watching footage of him, "I didn't see him turn a single ball from leg to off. I don't believe we will have much problem with him" (Anil Kumble, who went on to take 21 wickets in the series while NINE England bowlers took 28 between them)) England have won 11 Tests in India, and have lost...11. Doesn't seem that bad all of a sudden does it? However three of those wins came in the 1976/77 tour, a further two in 1984/5 and NOW it seems bad.
There have been 51 tests between England and India in India, and 26 of them have ended in a draw. The fact of the matter remains that it is VERY hard for both teams to win in India, unless one team commits Harri-Kari. India very rarely do so (although they did in 2006, the now famous "Freddie's Lions" test), whereas even over the last four years of English success, there are still notable instances of collapse. (Jamaica 2009, Headingley 2009, Abu Dhabi 2012...I could go on.) Patience is very much the key, and England it would seem do have the batsmen to play the patient game. The new captain Alastair Cook made his debut in Nagpur in 2006, and followed up his first innings 60 with a century in the second. He will, along with Jonathon Trott, be the key men in blunting whatever new ball fire the Indians throw at England, hopefully allowing the more stylish Pietersen Bell and Prior to make hey.
After the shambles in the UAE on the last tour, it should be noted that while India have a very potent spin attack, it contains little mystery. Ravi Ashwin has been a sensation since coming into the test team, with both bat and ball, but he remains essentially a top spin bowler, with only a well disguised "carrom ball" as his major wonder weapon. Harbajahn Singh seems to be on the downside of his glittering Test match career, and Pragyan Ojha will no doubt have Kevin Pietersen in his sights (he's a slow left arm bowler, in case you didn't know), but from what little I have seen of him he seems to get an awful lot of wickets when the ball does NOT spin.
When it comes to the English attack, we will obviously fight fire with fire and pack our side with spinners also, like we do every subcontinental tour? Well maybe not. The recent Australia and South Africa victories in India have come when those sides stuck to their strengths, the Aussies in deploying three seamers and an attacking spinner, the Proteas with three quicks, Kallis and a holding man. There seems little point in trying to beat the Indians at THEIR game in THEIR house. Given the form he has shown with the bat in the warm up games, it seems certain that Samit Patel will fill (and he will FILL it, I assure you) the troublesome number six spot for England. He is a slow bowler who does not rip the ball, but could (with a certain generousity of spirit) hold an end down, allowing England to rotate their first choice bowlers. Obviously the real key man for England will be Graeme Swann, who England hope will come to the fore as he did in the recent Sri Lanka tour, during the second test of which he took his second test ten wicket haul.
Since England last played Test cricket against India, there have been some notable changes. Rahul Dravid, the lone shining light in 2011, has retired, and has taken the silky VVS Laxman with him. Virat Kolhi has emerged as the new star of the batting lineup, but there are still the old favourites of Yuvraj Singh (if he plays, look for Dhoni to get him the ball as soon as his nemesis Pietersen comes to the crease) the captain MS Dhoni and of course Sachin Tendulkar. Now aged 39, this will probably be the last time England face the little master in Test cricket. He has enjoyed English visits to his homeland, with 11 matches garnering 848 runs at an average of 60.57, a mere five runs greater than his career average. He is not in the greatest of form however, and has gone 25 Test innings since his last century, with only five 50s in that time also. His last century IN INDIA came in October 2010, eight Tests ago. Granted it was a double ton against Australia, but that will seem a long time ago. If England can once more keep Sachin from raising his bat and removing his helmet to acknowledge the applause of a nation that idolises him, they may go someway towards winning in India.
Since last I penned anything coherent upon these sheets, an awful lot has changed. From a self promotion point of view, my sometimes collaborator on this blog Mainzey and I have begun a podcast known as "Waxing Lyrical With Mainz and Dutts", which is available to download on iTunes. In other slightly more impressive news, I have discovered that, with a 95% certainty, I should become father to a daughter in March. All very exciting stuff.
In this blog, I want to take a slightly more in depth look at a topic that Mainzey and I discussed on the latest Waxing Lyrical, that is the England tour to India.
England's record in India since 1933 must be awful, mustn't it? Given how poorly we travel to the subcontinent, our awful record and style against spin, we must be absolutely terrible....Well, it may shock some of you to learn that if you dismiss the 1993 series (in which England were beaten 3-0 after an "expert" scouting party dismissed one of the Indian spinners with the words, after watching footage of him, "I didn't see him turn a single ball from leg to off. I don't believe we will have much problem with him" (Anil Kumble, who went on to take 21 wickets in the series while NINE England bowlers took 28 between them)) England have won 11 Tests in India, and have lost...11. Doesn't seem that bad all of a sudden does it? However three of those wins came in the 1976/77 tour, a further two in 1984/5 and NOW it seems bad.
There have been 51 tests between England and India in India, and 26 of them have ended in a draw. The fact of the matter remains that it is VERY hard for both teams to win in India, unless one team commits Harri-Kari. India very rarely do so (although they did in 2006, the now famous "Freddie's Lions" test), whereas even over the last four years of English success, there are still notable instances of collapse. (Jamaica 2009, Headingley 2009, Abu Dhabi 2012...I could go on.) Patience is very much the key, and England it would seem do have the batsmen to play the patient game. The new captain Alastair Cook made his debut in Nagpur in 2006, and followed up his first innings 60 with a century in the second. He will, along with Jonathon Trott, be the key men in blunting whatever new ball fire the Indians throw at England, hopefully allowing the more stylish Pietersen Bell and Prior to make hey.
After the shambles in the UAE on the last tour, it should be noted that while India have a very potent spin attack, it contains little mystery. Ravi Ashwin has been a sensation since coming into the test team, with both bat and ball, but he remains essentially a top spin bowler, with only a well disguised "carrom ball" as his major wonder weapon. Harbajahn Singh seems to be on the downside of his glittering Test match career, and Pragyan Ojha will no doubt have Kevin Pietersen in his sights (he's a slow left arm bowler, in case you didn't know), but from what little I have seen of him he seems to get an awful lot of wickets when the ball does NOT spin.
When it comes to the English attack, we will obviously fight fire with fire and pack our side with spinners also, like we do every subcontinental tour? Well maybe not. The recent Australia and South Africa victories in India have come when those sides stuck to their strengths, the Aussies in deploying three seamers and an attacking spinner, the Proteas with three quicks, Kallis and a holding man. There seems little point in trying to beat the Indians at THEIR game in THEIR house. Given the form he has shown with the bat in the warm up games, it seems certain that Samit Patel will fill (and he will FILL it, I assure you) the troublesome number six spot for England. He is a slow bowler who does not rip the ball, but could (with a certain generousity of spirit) hold an end down, allowing England to rotate their first choice bowlers. Obviously the real key man for England will be Graeme Swann, who England hope will come to the fore as he did in the recent Sri Lanka tour, during the second test of which he took his second test ten wicket haul.
Since England last played Test cricket against India, there have been some notable changes. Rahul Dravid, the lone shining light in 2011, has retired, and has taken the silky VVS Laxman with him. Virat Kolhi has emerged as the new star of the batting lineup, but there are still the old favourites of Yuvraj Singh (if he plays, look for Dhoni to get him the ball as soon as his nemesis Pietersen comes to the crease) the captain MS Dhoni and of course Sachin Tendulkar. Now aged 39, this will probably be the last time England face the little master in Test cricket. He has enjoyed English visits to his homeland, with 11 matches garnering 848 runs at an average of 60.57, a mere five runs greater than his career average. He is not in the greatest of form however, and has gone 25 Test innings since his last century, with only five 50s in that time also. His last century IN INDIA came in October 2010, eight Tests ago. Granted it was a double ton against Australia, but that will seem a long time ago. If England can once more keep Sachin from raising his bat and removing his helmet to acknowledge the applause of a nation that idolises him, they may go someway towards winning in India.
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