Aussies 2018 tour of South Africa Spoilers

Just seen the Steve Smith presser, and I'm cynical. Everything is so PR managed these days at top level sport this is probably the start of the PR rehabilitation of Smith. Next will be a Womens Day article "My year from hell" in the next few months, followed by Channel 9 exclusive interview over next summer. Both for which he gets well paid for. This is how it normally goes. Start with tears…make a few excuses....explain how hard life is without doing something you love. Cynical yes, but i'll be shocked if this is not how it plays out. Smith in his next innings in Australia will be applauded out into the middle because by then the public will feel he is hard done by.
 
As WT fans we can appreciate that the major issue is the toxic culture that plaers thought they are invincible and able to get away with cheating.

Warner has played for a long time and would know there are many cameras at e very game focusing on the players.

Warner appeared to be a law to himself and as we were winning it was brushed aside however when we started losing games then the cracks appear.

Lehmann and the other selectors should have had the balls to drop Warner and get him to get his act together.

Winning at all costs culture has to change.

Glad Lehmann resigned. Now need James Sutherland to do the same. Interesting that recently his son was caught damaging a hotel room whilst on a youth cricket tour and had to pay the damage bill and apology letter. Speaks volumes when James can not control his son or teach him the correct values and respect.

Maybe this saga is a blessing in disguise for Australian cricket so real change especially with the culture can occur.
 
I think the Aussie bowling now comes under the microscope as no one knows how long this has been going on. There was a photo of Bancroft in the dressing room during the Ashes putting sugar into his pockets.
 
It wasn't sugar. Apparently it was a pellet of chewing gum - which had to taken from the bowl via a spoon, due to concerns of spreading a gastro bug that some in the team were suffering….
 
After watching the Steve smith press conference last night, I realised how insignificant this whole ball tampering scandal really is. Even though I'm still of the opinion that we need harsh penalties for these three guys, as cheating can't be accepted, it made me think that there are other sports players, especially in league, that have gone out and bashed people, raped women etc. and they're still playing (Matt Lodge comes to mind). Of course, ball tampering is bad, and we can't accept cheating in cricket or sport in general, but all he did was turn a blind eye to Bancroft and Warner concocting their own plan, and he's now being put through hell. Once he's punishment is finished, we need to forgive him and start again.
Same with Bancroft, he was just doing what he could to keep his spot in the team. And again its wrong what he did, but when it comes down to it, I think 9 out of 10 people in his position would have done the same thing.
Warner is the only one I don't feel sorry for, as he has been behind the negative culture in the team, and by the sounds of things at the moment, the one who created the whole plan. He's a grub. and one we don't need in our national team.
The penalties IMO are fair, especially after their denial of what they were doing, but I do think we need to stop giving these guys so much stick and get on with the cricket, as they still have a whole test to play!
 
@ said:
After watching the Steve smith press conference last night, I realised how insignificant this whole ball tampering scandal really is. Even though I'm still of the opinion that we need harsh penalties for these three guys, as cheating can't be accepted, it made me think that there are other sports players, especially in league, that have gone out and bashed people, raped women etc. and they're still playing (Matt Lodge comes to mind). Of course, ball tampering is bad, and we can't accept cheating in cricket or sport in general, but all he did was turn a blind eye to Bancroft and Warner concocting their own plan, and he's now being put through hell. Once he's punishment is finished, we need to forgive him and start again.
Same with Bancroft, he was just doing what he could to keep his spot in the team. And again its wrong what he did, but when it comes down to it, I think 9 out of 10 people in his position would have done the same thing.
Warner is the only one I don't feel sorry for, as he has been behind the negative culture in the team, and by the sounds of things at the moment, the one who created the whole plan. He's a grub. and one we don't need in our national team.
The penalties IMO are fair, especially after their denial of what they were doing, but I do think we need to stop giving these guys so much stick and get on with the cricket, as they still have a whole test to play!
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Spot on
 
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Of course, ball tampering is bad, and we can't accept cheating in cricket or sport in general,
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I agree. Although it appears that the ICC don't regard it as a very serious offence. It's on a par with deliberate time wasting and showing serious dissent at an umpire's decision.

Perhaps one reason the ICC don't regard it as particularly serious is that, in the past, ball tampering was so widespread. Even today, all teams return the ball to the keeper on the bounce in order to rough the ball up, which they are not supposed to do, although it is hard to police.

It's interesting that of all the famous ball tampering charges in recent times - Atherton, Tendulkar, Afridi; and Faf (twice), the Australians were the only ones to admit to the charge. The others denied their intention was to alter the state of the ball.
 
@ said:
@ said:
Of course, ball tampering is bad, and we can't accept cheating in cricket or sport in general,

I agree. Although it appears that the ICC don't regard it as a very serious offence. It's on a par with deliberate time wasting and showing serious dissent at an umpire's decision.

Perhaps one reason the ICC don't regard it as particularly serious is that, in the past, ball tampering was so widespread. Even today, all teams return the ball to the keeper on the bounce in order to rough the ball up, which they are not supposed to do, although it is hard to police.

It's interesting that of all the famous ball tampering charges in recent times - Atherton, Tendulkar, Afridi; and Faf (twice), the Australians were the only ones to admit to the charge. The others denied their intention was to alter the state of the ball.
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Pretty hard to deny it when you're caught with sandpaper on the field.
 
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here's my 2 cents worth

12 month bans are extremely harsh on "legal terms". the australian media and public has been definitely over the top with this.

BIG however,

i havent been impressed with the aussie team's behaviour for a long time. the arrogant, holier than thou, up themselves attitude and bullying was the "culture" of the team personified highly by warner. i noticed it more and more during lehmann's tenure.

i really appreciate most of the players' toughness honestly- people like starc, pattinson, cummins etc have had multiple injuries but come back bigger, stronger and faster. you need a lot of mental toughness for that but the aussies have shown no humility when winning or losing. there is a serious lack of respect for other countries, and i repeat this hasn't been there forever- i can see how these player speak in the media and except warner there are humble and down to earth people.

smith definitely doesn't deserve what he got, i used to love watching him bat for nsw after his first stint in the baggy green.

if CA goes on to expain that these bans are over the whole attitude issue with the team i'll cop it, but they cannot possibly ban players based on what we know.

now as for lehmann, i honestly do not see how he didnt know. he was guilty as charged over the walkie talkie and what about peter handcomb SURELYYY he has to be charged for telling bancroft..

as for warner, idk if it was pre-planned or what and im certainly not gonna base the ashes victory on this but a serious investigation has to be done about when the aussies started reverse swinging the kookaburra coz of the middle order collapses in the ashes and ever since warner started wearing tape on his finger a year ago (incidentally when he broke his finger). i read elsewhere that his fingers were in the cameras a lot in the 2nd test- and behold bancroft took over the "ball shining" duties from the next test. a serious investigation needs to be carried out if CA is actually serious about this and not just doing it coz of the overreaction of media and fans.

that's all.
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I agree - it has been blown out of all proportion by the media - yep it was wrong - the ICC handed down their punishment that was pretty standard for something that happens on numerous occasions. I can understand the ACB handing a separate punishment but the length is ridiculous and appears to be done to appease the media and sponsors. The CBA has pulled Smiths sponsorship because they don't like a cheat!!! - What a joke - this organisation has lied and cheated people out of money for years - put the thing in perspective - they scuffed up a cricket ball and got caught - big deal.
 
@ said:
@ said:
@ said:
Of course, ball tampering is bad, and we can't accept cheating in cricket or sport in general,

I agree. Although it appears that the ICC don't regard it as a very serious offence. It's on a par with deliberate time wasting and showing serious dissent at an umpire's decision.

Perhaps one reason the ICC don't regard it as particularly serious is that, in the past, ball tampering was so widespread. Even today, all teams return the ball to the keeper on the bounce in order to rough the ball up, which they are not supposed to do, although it is hard to police.

It's interesting that of all the famous ball tampering charges in recent times - Atherton, Tendulkar, Afridi; and Faf (twice), the Australians were the only ones to admit to the charge. The others denied their intention was to alter the state of the ball.

Pretty hard to deny it when you're caught with sandpaper on the field.
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They were all caught red handed. Didn't stop them from denying it. Interestingly, Bancroft was not done for ball tampering, because the umpires did not believe the condition of the ball had been altered. He was done for an intention to alter the state of the ball.
 
If cheating while representing your country is no big deal then being banned from representing your county must also be no big deal.
 
Just like all sports these days cheating in any form is hard to get away with, and scrutinized far more harshly thanks to social media. So if you roll the dice, you would have to question the motivation in taking the risk.

Sporting bodies dont have the ability to deal with anything in house anymore, but the reaction to this is as if its some shocking isolated incident from those with selective memories, and or those who have the propensity to enforce the moral high ground under the guise that they are beyond ever making a regrettable decision, is a sad indicment of the times we live in.
If we are so vocal in publically shaming our sports people when losing, then maybe we shouldn't be so mortified or shocked when they make an err in judgment, in an attempt to cheat to increase their chances of winning.
 
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