Sports Wrap (Other Sports)

Cricket:

Australia is on course for a one day clean sweep in its 7 match series against England after winning game 5. England set Australia 300 from their 50 overs. It was one of England's highest scores against Australia in the one day arena, but with Ponting in imperious form (126 off 109 balls) and Clarke maintaining his consistent summer form (52 runs) Australia's one day train was hard to stop.

Australia's cause was helped by by some very poor English fielding, and some solid hitting from Ponting. The 6th one day match will begin tomorrow night at Trent Bridge.

Tennis:

In case you missed it, Roger Federer missed the chance of winning his 6th straight US Open title when he was defeated by young Argentinean Juan Martin Del Potro in five sets.

The match was unusual in that it was a rare occasion to see Federer lose his temper when swearing at the chair umpire. At another stage throughout the match both players did not know what decision the chair umpire had made and stood looking at each other with their arms up in bewilderment.

It clearly shows that when Federer is rattled, and that is a very rare occasion, the opposition has a chance. Del Potro took his chance and hopefully he can continue his good form into the Australian Open in January 2010.

In the women's final, you would have had to have been out of media range to have missed the coverage relating to Serena Williams' profanity ridden abuse at a lines-woman after she had been foot faulted in the final against Kim Clijsters. The result of that abuse was that Clijsters won the final and completed a remarkable come back after leaving the WTA Tour to have her first child 18 months ago.

Sports Wrap (Football)

Europe:

Last weekend saw the resumption of European leagues and the commencement of the Champions League after the most recent round of world cup qualifiers.

In the English Premier League, the usual suspects (the top four) had interesting weekends. Manchester United defeated Tottenham 3-1 after falling behind to an early Jermaine Defoe bicycle kick. Chelsea also came from behind in defeating Stoke 2-1 but only sealed the win thanks to a Florent Malouda stoppage time strike. Liverpool walloped Burnley 4-0 and had the Reds shot more accurately the score would have been much greater. Liverpool had 27 shots in the match. Arsenal had an eventful trip to the Manchester City which resulted in a 4-2 loss. The talking point however was Adebayor stamping on former team-mate Van Persie's face and after scoring running the length of the field to celebrate in front of the travelling Arsenal fans. Adebayor has been charged with violent conduct for his stamping incident but nothing has eventuated about his celebration....yet.

In La Liga in Spain, Valencia had a high scoring win over Valladolid (4-2) with David Villa scoring 2 and David Silva also scoring one. Athletico Madrid drew 1-1 with Racing Santander, whereas the other Madrid team boasting the newly formed galacticos defeated 3-0 with superboot Ronaldo adding the third in injury time. Barcelona also won its second game of the season with Ibrahimovic and Messi scoring goals against Espanyol to keep Barcelona undefeated so far.

In Serie A, Juventus were away to Lazio in Rome, but that didn't deter them as they won 2-0 with Trezeguet sealing the win with an injury time strike. Inter Milan had to wait until 19 minutes from time before scoring and seeing off Parma. Roma travelled to Siena and won 2-1 and AC Milan drew 0-0 with Livorno.

The Champions League kicked off last night with no real surprises in the results columns. Manchester United, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and AC Milan won their matches against their respective opponents. The second lot of matches will kick off tomorrow morning Australian Eastern Standard time.

Soccer (Local):

Perth drew with Gold Coast 2-2 with Shane Smeltz scoring another goal (he has 9 so far this season from 6 games). Melbourne still have not won at home this season drawing with Wellington 1-1. Sydney were upset by a Robbie Fowler screamer, Brisbane flogged the woeful Newcastle, and Adelaide defeated Central Coast 1-0.

Sports Wrap (Union).....yawn.

Rugby Union:

The Springboks proved again that boring rugby wins matches. In a match that was high scoring (32-29), you might be excused to think that there was some running rugby (and tries) involved. Sadly this was not the case as of the combined total of 61 points, only 20 points were from tries (2 tries each). What this game also showed was the Springbok's drive to success no matter how unattractive they play, and how far the All Blacks have got to go to be serious contenders for the world cup in their own back yard in 2011.

The game itself was a little more entertaining than an episode of a nature documentary, but only just. Whilst Francois Steyne proved that he can slot penalty goals from almost anywhere on the pitch (he kicked one from 60 meters out), and Morne Steyne also added his own share of kicked goals, the game was just that, another kick-a-thon. It is no surprise that rugby fans are turning away from the game they used to love in favour of other 'running' sports. Having said that, the game was entertaining in the last 10 minutes when it appeared that the All Blacks might stage a remarkable comeback to pinch the game, and keep the chance of taking Tri Nations trophy from under the Springbok's nose, alive. That did not eventuate and the All Blacks were left ruing a number of bad decisions, poor handling and another unconvincing line out performance.

If you missed the game, you didn't miss much, but here are the highlights....

The All Blacks now await the arrival of the Wallabies in Wellington where both teams will play, or not as the case may be, for the wooden spoon. Lets hope that they throw off the shackles and throw the ball around like a hot potato.

Sports Wrap (NRL).....what a weekend!!

NRL: Well well well, didn't the first week of the finals throw up a few curve balls, not to mention a few mad monday celebrations going a little off the rails (stand up South Sydney)!

Dragons v Eels: The Dragons showed that a drubbing dished out to the Eels the previous week counts for little when the pressure of the finals kicks in. In true recent Dragon style, the red-v army on the field produced a performance that was reminiscent of skippy in the headlights. The headlights in this match were the feet and skills of Jaryd Hayne and he showed that he not only is an amazing player but also an inspirational player. He and his teammates last week were more like George Bush in a spelling bee, whereas this week under his tutelage they were able to spell and pronounce "Batrachomyomachia". Such was the turn around that betting agencies now have the Eels as being at $6 to win the premiership! Not bad for team that was at roughly $150 before they went on their winning streak.

The Eels now have a semi final against the travel shy Titans, whereas the Dragons have to face the Broncos in Brisbane. Not a bad result for the Eels, whereas Dragons fans have already started mad monday in preparation for the worst.

Bulldogs v Knights: The Bulldogs proved that without Kimmorley they can still put on a show and win well. The Knights, whilst plucky, determined and persistent, were no real match for the Bulldogs. The Knights took the lead first but, that was the end of any real momentum that they had in the match. It didn't help that their gamble on hooker Isaac De Gois paid less than 16 minutes. Not a great return in anyone's book.

The Bulldogs now have a week off to prepare for the winner of Eels and Titans and with Kimmorley a chance to return the Bulldogs may again firm as grand final favourites.

Titans v Broncos: The Broncos proved that the Titans are beatable at home. The Broncos got out to a commanding 20 point lead early on in the game as the Titans were anything but defensive. Whilst the Titans came back into the match only to be beaten 40-32, the talk after the match was all about, you guessed it, the refereeing. Titans coach John Cartwright had very few choice words to say about the men in the middle, but sadly for him the only thing to come from that may be a fine, the fact that his team lost, and now they have to travel to Sydney to play a team that finished 5 places below them in the regular season. Not really any consolation is it considering they like travelling as much as a punch in the groin.

Storm v Sea Eagles: Ah revenge tastes so sweet. The Storm avenged last years grand final drubbing by putting the boys from Manly onto their mad monday very early into the finals series.

It took Manly 70 minutes to register a point and by that stage, the Storm were 34 points in the good. Manly managed another try and conversion a few minutes later but that was the end of a comeback as Slater put down his fourth and final try for the game in the 77th minute. All in all, the Storm ran out 40-12 victors and will now enjoy the week off waiting to see who they face from the Broncos Dragons match.

Sports Wrap (AFL)......what a weekend!!!!

If you have been in a coma or watching seasons 1-7 of the Golden Girls in one go you may have missed the mammoth weekend of sport. Here is a quick wrap of the weekends events starting with AFL.

AFL: The weekend produced one of the games of the season when the Crows and the Pies fought toe to toe until the final nail biting moments of the final quarter.

Many Crows supporters (and most non-Pies fans) may still be wondering how John Anthony was awarded a free kick in the dying seconds of the final quarter. Ben Rutten, the Crows defender, was adjudged to have been more than holding Anthony's hand and Anthony was given a shot at goal from about 40m out from which he converted and handed the Pies a chance to progress to the Grand Final should they defeat the Cats this weekend.

It was an extraordinary match, where the Crows stormed out to a substantial 29 point lead at quarter time, which was only reduced by 3 points at half time. The Crows appeared to be in cruise control. The third quarter, however, was a massive turnaround with the Pies scoring 6 goals 2 points to the Crows 2 points. The final quarter saw both sets of fans reach nirvana when their team gained the lead only to then plummet to depression when the lead changed hands. This emotional roller coaster continued right until the final seconds with the Pies prevailing. Just in case you missed the match have a look at the highlights...

The second semi final saw the Lions belted by the Dogs in a very one-sided match. Having said that, The Lions only trailed the Dogs by 24 points with 5 minutes to go in the third term, but the Dogs kicked on and old heads prevailed. The Lions are in transition and it was a fantastic effort to get to the finals in Michael Voss's first season in charge, let alone make the second week of the finals.

The Dogs ran out eventual winners by 51 points and now travel on to meet the Saints this weekend, whereas the Lions will regroup over summer and should be a force come next year.

On Saturday I found God.....

A football match is about the last place you would expect to find anything religious, let alone the big man himself, but it was the improbable match between Sydney FC v North Queensland where not only did I found God, I was actually touched by him aswell (well he signed my shirt)!

I am of course talking about the Liverpool FC legend Robbie "God" Fowler. I have to admit that I am a Reds tragic and to say that I was excited at the chance of meeting God would be a massive understatement. All of my ravings to my unRed-initiated friends made me sound like a bible basher from the midwest of the US.

The hype about the game was justified on his arrival in Sydney. Fowler is one of the greatest ever Reds players of all time (recently finishing 4th in a poll of the top 100 players) and his class has shown on and off the field already since signing with the Fury ealier this year.

The game on Saturday was very much a Fowler tribute match. Sydney FC had laid out the red carpet, put on a red double decker bus and a Beatles tribute band before the game, and there were rumblings of Liverpool's anthem "You'll never walk alone" as God walked out onto the pitch.

As for the match itself, yes God has put on a bit of weight and he is not as fast as he used to be, and the start of the Fury's season clearly shows that he has no miracles in his bag of tricks, but he still has a number of things:

1. Footballing class and pedigree;

2. Skills (as the fan sitting next to me said, "he makes the rest of the players look like Sunday league footballers with massive hangovers.....oh no wait, they are still drunk next to him");

3. Crowd pulling appeal and massive amounts of Australian based Liverpool fans; and

4. Goals Goals Goals.

The A-League, and particularly the Fury, has done very well to get hold of Fowler as the crowd figures and the excitement generated by the game simply showed. The crowd was more than double Sydney's previous other 'big game' and even tried and true rugby league, union or AFL supporters were talking about his arrival in the big city. Not since Dwight Yorke was playing for Sydney in the inaugural A-league season has the excitement been so high about a game of football.

It truly was a spectacle and it is great to have the holy man down under. Long may he stay here. And in case you needed a reminder of his class, look at the goal he scored on Saturday that sunk the Sydney sky blues.....http://

http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/archivedirs/news/2006/oct/8/N153706061008-0859.htm

http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,26068467-5000940,00.html

NRL Finals Preview

Dragons (1) v Eels (8):

The most obvious question is will Wendell's head fit into the stadium? The Dell is getting more media coverage than Paris Hilton at an adult film festival and it will be interesting to see if he can handle the pressure as the Dragons look to get rid of the choker tag.

Under Nathan Brown, the Dragons arguably had some of the best players the NRL has seen in the past decade but just couldn't put it together when it mattered. Maybe he was taking his coaching tips from Greg Norman, but with Wayne Bennett in control if they cant win the competition the psychological damage may be irreparable and the Dragons faithful may be waiting some time before future finals chances come a'knockin.

Now back to the actual game, the Eels will be struggling to turn around from last weeks dismal shellacking against the Dragons. Of course they will get some inspiration from Jarryd Hayne having won the Dally M medal earlier in the week and undoubtedly his actual form during the game. Similarly, they didn't win 7 in a row by being a dud team, but can they actually turn it around?! No really, can they?!

The Dragons on the other hand have it all to lose. They are the heavy favourites after a dominant season (albeit a few minor hiccups towards the end end of the season). They also have history in their corner as well with only one 8th placed team beating the minor premiers under the NRL McIntyre finals system (Warriors beat the Storm in 2008).

Tip: Dragons by 8

Bulldogs (2) v Knights (7):

Kevin Moore might have dropped the coach of the year trophy at the Dally M awards earlier in the week, but he is unlikely to be caught on the hop against the Knights this weekend.

He was a well deserved recipient of the award having almost done the impossible of turning the Bulldogs from wooden spooners into minor premiers in one season. It was only a special Benji Marshall and a relaxed West Tigers who prevented the dream turn around.

The Bulldogs will again struggle this weekend without Brett Kimmorley, but they had better learn to live without him fast as, barring divine intervention, he will not be back for the entirety of the finals. The Bulldogs will play tight and solid (as evidenced by their 5 award recipients at the Dally M awards), but whether they have that little bit of creativity will depend on the halves and whether they can shut down Mullen.

The Knights have snuck under the raider into the finals with most attention being on their opponents and the Dragons but with steady heads in Gidley, MacDougall, and Mullen, not to mention the bookends of those three with their creativity. It will be very interesting to see the result and despite the the praise heaped on the Bulldogs above, there is a whiff of a boilover...

Tip: Knights by 2

Titans (3) v Broncos (6):

Did someone say derby? Did someone say sibling rivalry? Did someone say epic clash that most of Queensland will be besotted with?

It is the first time the Titans have been in the finals and they have proved that the are worthy title contenders.....if only the final was played on the Gold Coast. The Titans are supremely dominant at home but represent a wet dead fish away from home. Having said that, they have played good football home and away over the past 5 weeks (except for a minor blip last weekend).

The Broncos are storming into the finals like Casta Semnya on the final straight of the women's 800m world championship final. They have played some very attractive but also sensible league and teams that underestimate them will do so at their peril. The Broncos also have a fantastic mix of youth and experience (players with a combined total of 300 plus finals games) and should they be in a position to win the game against the Titans, the old heads should prevail and see the Broncos survive the first round.

Tip: Broncos by 7

Storm (4) v Sea Eagles (5):

In what is fast turning into a rivalry to match some of the greats (see Bulldogs v Eels, Manchester United v Liverpool, Collingwood v Essenden, England v Australia) these two teams play a grand final rematch in round one of the finals!

After 6 rounds of this season, hardly anyone gave the Sea Eagles any chance of making the finals let alone almost getting a home final. Similarly, most punters and pundits would have placed the Storm in their top two teams come season's end.

Watmough has been a revelation this season and has stepped up in the absence of Brett Stewart. Orford has also been fantastic as he has not been able to rely on Stewart getting onto the end of of his passes and kicks not to mention directing the team around like a cattle dog.

The Storm, on the other hand have had an indifferent season and looks like its been one of transition. They have not been helped by the late off season dramas with Inglis and the large number rep players during the middle of the season, but with Inglis back and firing on all cylinders, the Storm look like peaking at the right time. Finch was a great pick up during the season and he has done well with Cronk and the Storm at home will be tough to beat. These two teams will undoubtedly put on a spectacle, so tune in for fireworks.

Tip: Storm by 10

Wallabies break the duck

The Wallabies finally brought home the bacon....well perhaps not the whole pig but at least a leg...by defeating the Springboks 21 -6 in Brisbane.

Brisbane has been a happy home stomping ground for the Wallabies when playing the Springboks as they have not been beaten there since 1971. However, going into the game, many people would have expected the Wallabies' stomping to have extended at best to grapes in France when they popped over to see Lote for a short sojourn.

The Springboks went back to their English-like kick reliant game and the Wallabies caught a bug that made their legs pump and run forward instead of kick, fumble and run around in circles. The player that caught the worst of the bug was Benn Robinson who appeared to be everywhere doing almost anything, whilst Will Genia proved to be a man on the verge of swine flu with his form. Genia was revelation on his debut. He had one try disallowed himself and also had one assist to Turner disallowed as well. His quick clean passing from the base, not to mention his previously unheralded running game, helped the Wallabies to a very positive approach.

With Genia's passing game spot on, Giteau all of a sudden had time and space to play with the ball and had the wallabies going forward. Having said that, the Wallabies forwards played unlike they have done for the past four Tri Nation games...really good. It must have been the injection of youth and pace (see Pocock and Chisholm) as the coach hasn't changed and nor have his methods.

It was a long overdue entertaining rugby match littered with the occasional poor play and errors that have recently plagued the Wallabies but all in all a temporary return to the days of running rugby. Hopefully it is the turning point the Wallabies need for the rest of the Tri Nations and the the upcoming Spring tour. Similarly, the result also keeps the Tri Nations alive and gives the All Blacks a shot of stealing the trophy from under the Springbok's nose.

Hewitt continues loosing streak against Federer

Lleyton Hewitt lost for the 14th straight occasion against Roger Federer at the US Open.

Some of you reading may say surprise surprise, but the Australian proved to be his usual battling self by taking the first set off the Swiss father of two and proving again that the Federer does not like to be rushed or dictated around the court. Other opponents should take note, but sadly many never do and simply get blown away when they step onto the court.

Hewitt's 'C'mon's after the first set were not as regular as he eventually went down 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 4-6 but he did show that he still has the game to take it to the best the ATP has got to offer.

In contrast, Sharapova showed that she is still showing more interest in what she wears on the court rather than how she performs. She looked great but her tennis was not, and US teen Melanie Oudin took full advantage winning 7-5 in the third set. Having said that, credit must go to her for being able to play any sport wearing as much jewelry and make up as she does.

In other US Open news, Sharapova's former flame and local favourite Andy Roddick was also on the end of a shock result and was knocked out by an unseeded compatriot, John Isner, 7-5 in the fifth set.

Apart from those upsets the usual suspects are still in the running and the second week should bring us some dream matches. Plenty to look forward to.

Socceroos struggle In Asia.....

Whilst Australia cruised through the qualifying rounds for the world cup, they found it very difficult against a very well drilled South Korean last night.

Admittedly, Australia was missing Kewell, Neill and Cahill, but for a team ranked 14th in the world, and 35 positions above the Koreans, they should have done better. Worringly, it again showed the lack of depth and that without some of the big guns in the team, the other members of the socceroos failed to step up and take the lead required to push through against the Koreans.

The Koreans are very strong at present, having not lost in 25 matches, but similarly Australia had not lost in over a year, so the scoreline and the socceroo's play play highlighted that there is still some serious work to be done before the before heading to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Australia was sloppy and inconsistent last night and the Koreans took full advantage of that. The second Korean goal was painful to watch as the ball bobbled over the goal line after having been deflected and touched by numerous Australian defenders. Benny Hill would have been proud of the goal and all you needed was his trademark music to make it seem like it was a staged event.

Game performances: McDonald again struggled to break his international duck, Grella proved that he possesses as much finesse as John Howard bowling a cricket ball, Carle showed flashes of skill but footwork probably more suited to Dancing with the Stars, Schwarzer is like a fine wine, but sadly the defence in front of him was more like a cheap goone bag.

The game itself brought back the ghosts of the 2007 Asian Cup campaign and reaffirmed that Australia will be much more confident and representative of their high world ranking against European opposition in South Africa next year.

www.smh.com.au

www.foxsports.com.au

AFL finals predictions

Oooooooh its September. The boys from Flight of the Concords sang it best....."its business time". Whilst the kiwi singing duo were clearly talking about the horizontal action, the only thing horizontal about AFL in September will be retirees and players from teams not in the finals lying on the couch watching what could've been and in some cases (Hawthorn....ahem) should've been.

Crows v Bombers - Elimination final 1

Friday night will see the Bombers fly west to Adelaide and take on a pack of Crows who are peaking at the right time. The Crows have won their last 3 games, whilst the bombers have been anything but consistent with every possible result in their past five games (LDWLW). As such, it will be very hard for the Bombers to beat the Crows anywhere, let alone at home. The winner of this final will play the loser of Saints v Pies on Sunday. The loser....its goodnight nurse.

Prediction: Crows by 45

Lions v Blues - Elimination final 2

Saturday night, the Blues travel north to Brisbane to face the Lions in a climate similar to the Blues sponsor - Malaysia. The Blues have not been in the the finals for some time (which may have been playing on their minds last weekend when they were spanked by 72 points by the Crows), whilst the Lions are a good mix of youthful exuberance (and class - see rising star Daniel Rich) and experience. Again the home ground advantage will certainly help the Lions and it will be hard for the Blues to turn around from last weekends defeat. The winner will play the loser of Cats v Dogs, whilst the loser takes off to a tropical island for the end of season footy trip.

Prediction: Lions by 13

Saints v Pies - Qualifying final 1

Sunday will bring viewers both live and at home a cracking end to the first weekend of the finals. The Saints have been unconvincing in recent weeks but surely 19 wins in a row must count for something more than a second chance in the finals?! The Pies on the other hand are in great form and even more so at the G where they have won 7 from 8 games there this season. The Saints will struggle against the inform Pies, unless they can rediscover some form. The winner progresses to the semi final and a week off, whilst the loser will play the winner of Crows v Bombers.

Prediction: Pies by 5

Cats v Dogs - Qualifying final 2

By far and away the most anticipated final of the weekend. It will not only separate the animal lovers, but also hopefully put on a show to remember. Either team could win this it is that tight. Whilst the Dogs are the more consistent of the two in the past month of football, rule out the Cats at your peril. The winner progresses to the semi final and a week off whilst the loser takes on the winner from the Lions v Blues.

Prediction: Dogs by 1