Cricket

For those of you who read this blog, you may be thinking "WTF is cricket?".

Cricket is a game of skill, patience and afternoon tea breaks. It is an awesome game and Australia kicks ass.

Every two years, Australia plays England in a series of matches called "The Ashes". It is cricket's oldest and most intense rivalries and the location alternates between Australia and England. It started in 1882. The name came about after England's home series defeat in 1882 led to a mock newspaper obituary, and when England won in Australia next time round, a bail-burning ceremony in Melbourne resulted in the ashes being placed inside an urn, and being presented to the winning captain.

Speeding forward, from 1989 to 2005 Australia were unbeaten. In 2005 England managed to make a comeback and won the series. This surprised everybody, not least the Australians who had probably become a little complacent. After all, it's hard to keep improving and retaining your edge when you are the world dominators of the sport.

The 2006/2007 Ashes series, played in Australia, has just concluded. Australia won 5-0, meaning that we gave those whingeing Poms a royal spanking.

I don't really follow cricket much these days, but I remember fantastic days spent at Adelaide Oval with Dad, Kate, my Uncle Bert and cousin Sharyn, watching the cricket. Warm, sunny skies, mexican waves, the whistles of the drunken yobbos sitting on the beer hill under the scoreboard as all the cute women walked past them, and swarming onto the grounds at the end of a match to shake the hands of a cricketer. Once I even managed to shake the hand of Viv Richards from the West Indies, one of the greatest batsman to ever play the game.

Ah, those were the days.