Author: Bearsy

A Queensland Bear with attitude

Intellectual Honesty

It was in my first year at college (read Uni these days) that I realised that many people hate to admit that they don’t understand something, or that they are unfamiliar with something or someone.   My school, perhaps unusually, had drummed it into us that it was our duty as students to ask questions when we did not understand, so that we could learn and thereby cease to be ignorant.   That was what education was about: if you don’t ‘get it’ – ask! Continue reading “Intellectual Honesty”

Australia Day 2012

Thursday 26th January is Australia Day.   It’s also Republic Day in India, but more about that later.

It’s a national holiday when we all enjoy ourselves, hold citizenship ceremonies and generally celebrate all that’s good about The Lucky Country.

This year’s Australian of the Year is a popular choice – Geoffrey Rush (Speech Therapist in The King’s Speech, and many other notable rôles).   I didn’t catch the entirety of his acceptance speech, but it was good-humoured and staunchly Australian.   Here’s a quote –

We love acting the goat, taking the mickey, cracking a joke, spinning a yarn …

Continue reading “Australia Day 2012”

More Cricketing Trivia

I have refrained from posting about the Perth Test, where both teams appear to be intent on snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, but I cannot resist pasting this extract from an article penned by Andrew Hughes in Cricinfo.

Talking about India’s selection for this match, he observes –

… experience leads me to suggest that the kind of team they will pick will be one that looks good on paper, sets off with purpose, gets within sniffing distance of the outskirts of victory, then wanders off to sit in a field making daisy chains before falling asleep under a bush.

While I’m here, how amusing that Sachin Tendulkar, usually known as “The Little Master”, is now being referred to in some Australian newspapers as “The Little Brat”, following his visible disbelief and subsequent hissy fit at his dismissal for lbw.

Sri Lankan umpire Kumar Dharmasena gave him out, and the DRS system – which cannot be used officially because the Indians refuse to accept  it – clearly demonstrated that the umpire was right.

The Saffers continue to defeat Sri Lanka, I see, but only with 8 balls to spare in the latest ODI.   Officially they won by five wickets, but squeaking in by the skin of their teeth sounds more appropriate to me. 😀

Three snippets for Cricket tragics

I posted this yesterday, but on reflection I felt that it was not really saying anything, so I deleted it. But since nobody else is posting (except dear old two-face), here it is again. It’s better than a blank page! 🙄

Luke Wright
As you are probably aware, our new domestic “get the public interested with glitz and glamour” competition is currently under way between eight teams in the T20 Big Bash.

What you may not know is that each team includes one or two players from overseas.   Chris Gayle, for example, Dan Vettori and so on, most of them well-known in Australia.

I had not previously been aware of  Luke Wright, a young Englishman playing in the Melbourne Stars, although I must have watched him at the Gabba a few weeks ago.   But yesterday in Tassie, against the Hobart Hurricanes he hit 117 off 60 balls, a phenomenal achievement that included nine sixes.   Luke may not be good enough for the English Test Team, but the crowds at Bellerive Oval loved him.

Travis Birt
He may have ‘only’ managed 51 off 23, but Travis achieved a hat-trick of sixes for the Hurricanes.  Have a squiz at the video clip.

Predictions for 2012
For those who haven’t already read it on Cricinfo, here’s a link to a wonderful article written by Sidin Vadukut, who uses his crystal ball to tell us What will happen in cricket in 2012.   Sidin has a way with words, and doesn’t mind who he pokes fun at.   Most enjoyable. 😀

You and I should trust our Captains, Soutie

You were worried that Graeme Smith had declared too soon, and I was equally worried about Michael Clarke’s decision – even more so when Tendulka and Laxman had taken the Indians over halfway in the run chase for the loss of only three wickets.

But I was wrong, and following Clarke’s astonishing/well-deserved/fluky dismissal of the Little Master and Hilfenhaus’ elimination of Laxman, I felt I could relax a bit.   The Indian tail wagged far too well by putting on another 120 or so, but we were still 68 ahead when the tenth wicket fell.  Plus an innings, and a day to play it in, of course.

Looks like your guys are well on track to deliver your own innings win on day four, so Graeme turns out to be as astute as Michael – and we armchair tragics should have confidence and STFU!! 😆