Writer's Block & The Return of Jimmy

I’ve been struggling to write of late, so this will be just a quick couple of things. No theme, no clever tie-ins and no smooth segues. But speaking of segues…

Shaun Tait
Did you see the Twenty20 match the other night? Wow. Adam Gilchrist was almost standing on the fence and they were still smacking into his gloves at head height. The New Zealand batsmen looked worried like you don’t see in professional cricket anymore and then had the nerve to question his action. Sounds like sour grapes to me. There is nothing wrong with his action.

Brett Lee has looked really sharp too, and is putting it in good spots, but the batsmen didn’t want anything to do with Tait. And on that form, Tait needs to be in the Test side. But how do you fit Tait into the team?

Do they play four fast bowlers? Maybe, but a test match lasts for 5 days, for most of which time the shine will be off the ball and the pitch will be worn. Plus, variation is always required in an attack. So, ideally, you want a spinner.

Do they play five bowlers? I’d like to see 5 bowlers but it’s not like Brad Hodge is hiding in the middle order. After the openers and Ponting the order is Clarke, Hussey, Symonds. So who do they drop? The future captain, the guy averaging 85 or the on-fire all-rounder?

Do they replace Mitch Johnson? Again, tough because he is also bowling well, at good speed and being a lefty adds even more variation.

So what to do? They could drop Phil Jacques, open with Hayden and Hussey and play 5 bowlers, but they won’t do that because Hussey is playing so well at 5 and has said he doesn’t want to open. I say, roll the dice with 4 quicks. If you pick your best 4 bowlers, well, there’s no way Hogg should be ahead of Tait. Back Symonds and Clarke to provide some variation with their spin, prepare some fast tracks and give the Indians a full-on barrage of short stuff.

The Draft
It looks like Stephen Wells and the recruiting department have done another stellar job with The Cat’s draft and Rookie additions. Reading about the selections at last month’s national draft, we know that Harry Taylor, their first pick, is versatile, hard-working and productive: Apparently some are comparing him to Darren Milburn. Their second pick, Dawson Simpson seems to be some kind of giant and the Cats may have found some value in the later rounds with the other Simpson and Dan McKenna. The Rookie selections included Chris Kangars, who played for the Geelong Falcons and was apparently a 400m runner before turning to football. Should be interesting to watch. We’ll have a bit more to offer on them as the season kicks off and our resident VFL expert, Mrs Watson, might be so kind as to grace us with some of his considered opinions.

TV
Every summer the Networks roll out their cheapest and worst American imports. This year, Channel 9 stink-com “The Big Bang Theory” takes home the ‘One-more-minute-of-this-and-I’m-gouging-my-own-eyes-out-with-a-kiwi-fruit-knife’ award. However, following in the footsteps of red-headed mannequin David Caruso, Jimmy Smits has made his return to the small screen, and I must say, I am thoroughly enjoying his renaissance. Sure, he’s blown-up a bit since his ‘LA Law’ days, but that smouldering Latino intensity is still there, simmering away beneath a healthy winter coat of Cuban blubber. Watch as Smits simultaneously charms and assaults his way into your heart as Alex, head of a Sugar empire who will do anything to protect his family – up to and including keeping a straight face while his brother-in-law butchers every scene he’s in with his bush-league over-acting. Still, it’s worth it to see the now powerfully built Smits flexing his acting guns on the small screen again rather than remaining banished in a world of tele-movie disaster flicks and late-night soft-core porn. Smits Happens.