Public Address - Field Theory (Home)

Good shot old chap | Nov 11, 2008 20:04

As fun as it is to bitch about things we hate (and even more fun to swear about them) it always does the spirit good to look at the good things happening in the world. And in particular (for this blog) the sports world.

First up, an historic day as an underprivileged minority is finally acknowledged! On Monday a group of individuals finally had their contributions to the sport of golf honoured: Lefties. Oh and New Zealanders

Sir Bob Charles became the first left-handed player to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. And I suppose he is also the first New Zealander too, but the left-handed thing is bigger.

Charles, 72, the first New Zealander and the first lefty to be selected to the shrine, won the 1963 British Open. It is the highlight of a lengthy career that is still ongoing--he finished T-20 last week in the Russian Seniors Open in Moscow. "I've actually lost count," Charles said when asked how many times he has equalled or bettered his age. "I started bettering my age at 65. I've been able to [do it] every year since then." Charles has six PGA Tour victories, 24 international titles and 23 wins on the Champions Tour.

And check out how he wowed the ladies in this shot. They can't even stand straight.

And remember the marathon runner from last week who Nike wouldn't say was a winner even though her time was faster than the "elite" runners? Well it looks like they missed a trick:

On Thursday, representatives from Reebok, Nike's arch-rival, surprised O'Connell with a special awards ceremony at her Beginning with Children Charter School in Brooklyn, New York.

Reebok presented O'Connell with the following: a free pair of shoes every month for a year, T-shirts for everyone in her class, and a $2,500 donation to her school.

They also gave her a F.U.N. Award with a trophy inscribed with "Winner and Heroine of Non-Elite Runners Everywhere." According to Reebok the N "does not stand for Nike".

Another quick uniform note: despite the minute of silence for Remembrance Day before the Scotland test, neither team had poppies on their uniform. Strange given that it's not an unprecedented thing for the All Blacks.

I also did some (very quick) analysis of Tracey Nelson's stats (what is it with geeks and data).

What's clear to see in Tracey's numbers (after playing with the numbers in excel for a few minutes) is that we had a much more productive second half. For example we made 45 tackles in the first half and 59 in the second (this may be due to Scotland's increased possession in the second half where they were camped on our line). From informal observation this often seems to be the case with the All Blacks (especially against second tier nations) as fitness prevails and quality subs become important.

I also created a variable called "Total Tackle Incidents" (TTI). It's a very basic proxy and is just "tackles made" + "assisted tackles" + "first 3 to breakdown". First 3 is a weird stat, because I assume it's both offensive and defensive, and is simply a proxy for "attempts to secure the ball".

Also if you take it that only the first three players to the breakdown are effective in gaining possession then First 3 can be considered to be a similar stat to "tackles" or "line breaks", and it becomes a unit of work on the field. (I am also looking at changing First 3 to a rate per 15 men on the field, but I'm still figuring out how that works)

So with that in mind...in the first half we had 121 TTI and in the second half we had 226 TTI (almost double!). This mainly comes from our reserves like McCaw and Filipo who came on with an amazing work-rate. Also players like Toeava*, Tuitavake and Boric making more tackles in the second half.

*UPDATE: I checked this and naturally there was a mistake in my calculations. Toeava's tackles were counted in the second half instead of the first.

Interestingly our assisted tackle numbers drop considerably in the second half, especially in the forwards.

The stats also show that Mealamu was the only player not to record a tackle, but he did miss one.

And our new work-horses are Read, Messam and Thompson (I know, duh)

For those who like such things we can guesstimate what McCaw would've done if he was on the field all game (sort of, it's based on the performance of his "lesser mortal" teammates):

• 5 tackles
• 2 assists (rounded)
• And first 3 to the breakdown 41 times!

But, is he one of the 25 hottest men in the world? Depends on who you ask I suppose.

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You play to win the game | Nov 10, 2008 11:44

At the international and professional level of any sport there is only one goal. One. You are not there to showcase your skills. You are not there to advertise your country. You are not there to do anything but win the goddamn game.

That is why at certain times this week I have become angry at Graham Henry. Don't worry; I'm not joining Chris Rattue on his Robbie Deans-is-the-sexiest-man-alive soapbox. I just feel that there were some questionable personnel decisions on the weekend.

But let's start at the beginning…

The All Blacks ran out onto Murrayfield and I'm not sure anyone knew they were there. Like the world's first team of rugby-ninjas they made their way onto the pitch undercover of darkness as the lights of the stadium were left off until the anthems began. And the anthems had no vocals, so we were able to hear that wonderful melodic sound of rugby players trying desperately to remember all the words and sing in tune.

After the haka the Scots sent out their very successful Olympic cyclist as a ceremonial ball-boy. The commentators (including Murray Mexted, groan) had decided that this was yet another evil scheme to disrupt the effect of the haka. The haka that the opposition don't really have to let us do.

I get very annoyed when opposing teams supposedly "disrespect" the haka. In my mind they can do whatever they want while we do our little dance. And if it's their home ground and they want to sing a wee song afterwards then why would we see that as disrespect?

Quick uniform notes (I'll get them out of the way now):

• The All Blacks shorts now have logos on them. One leg has the silver fern and the other has the Adidas logo, but they are on opposite sides to their placement on the jersey.
• Some All Blacks, including Kevan Mealamu, wore long sleeves under their jerseys. This undershirt came with the obligatory Adidas logo just above the elbow.
• This means that some players had eight Adidas logos on them! One on the jersey, one on the shorts, one on each sock, one on each long sleeve and one in each number on their back
• The Scots, playing in their alternate strips, out did us in that category though. They had Canterbury logos on the front and back of their shorts, an extra logo on the back and, of course, the trademarked Canterbury Wallabra.
• And speaking of the white jerseys, I thought Scotland played in Navy at home and only donned the white when playing the All Blacks on the road. Do I have that backwards?
• Although the ugliest uniforms of the weekend were those bizarre red get-ups the English were wearing. Nike, stop ruining our duds.
• To the clothing manufacturers, can we please go back to the days of jersey swapping? It might still happen in the locker room, but for some reason it doesn't feel right.

Now to the game. Wayne Barnes blew his whistle a lot, however, for the most part he was correct in his rulings. His sending off of Scottish midfielder Nick de Luca for "cynical" play was harsh but justified. However, it did send the commentators into a feedback loop. First one said "cynical play", then they were agreed with "yes, cynical play", then "clearly cynical", then "we don't need cynical play like that". All in all I think I counted 10 or so uses of "cynical". Interestingly I'm not entirely sure de Luca was being cynical, unless he really didn't have any belief in his team.

The thing that got me about Barnes was his scrums. He constantly penalised All Black debutant Jamie Mackintosh for early engagement. Listening carefully, it was clear that Mackintosh (or perhaps the guys behind him) was finding it hard to predict Barnes' scrum call cadence (crouch, touch, pause… engage!). Here in the antipodes the refs tend to say "engage" directly after the (unnecessary) word "pause" (ie. crouch, touch, paaaaaaaauuuuuusssseeengage!). Mackintosh might be a good sizable option in the scrum but to my mind he is not a starter in the All Blacks, especially if he can't change his scrum tactics on the fly.

Ma'a Nonu had another one of his crappy games (which means he'll be good next week). When Nonu is playing like that you can assume that he will not get better. I cannot remember a game where Nonu starts out flat-footed and fumbly and then comes right and is brilliant.

These choices had me yelling at Henry (though he was in Scotland and the broadcast was delayed). You play to win the game, and you are more likely to win the game with Mackintosh and Nonu on the sideline.

Also, Scotland, WTF? When the opposition's kicker is lining up you do not sit quietly and respectfully while he tries to slot it. You do everything in your power (as the 16th man) to disrupt him. And usually that means some kinds of shouting or general disturbance. Poor showing Scottish crowd, remember, they play to win the game, you shout to win the game.

There are a bunch of new players that I wouldn't have benched for anything (other than injury). Kahui, Messam, Tuituvake and Donald (yeah I can't believe the last one either). Toeava had a good game too before wrecking his shoulder quite painfully. Shame, because he seemed to be coming around.

After the World Cup there has been a great wailing and gnashing of teeth about every player that leaves for the overseas dosh. And everytime we seem to have someone who can slot in and be as good. For example Andy Ellis has busted his ribs and Alby Mathewson is stepping in. Admittedly all Alby has do is be average and he'll fill Ellis' shoes nicely, but you get my point.

And the comebacks are doing quite well thank you. Rokocoko and Weepu were having a grand old time out there.

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The score is 43-1 | Nov 07, 2008 10:34

Perhaps it was Barack Obama's, constantly mentioned, athletic ability but sport came up an awful lot this American election season. And now I think it's safe to call that this election proved once and for all, despite all prejudices and the fact that I can't stand either of them: basketball is more popular than hockey.

On ESPN's Pardon the Interruption last night Washington Post journalist Michael Wilbon had this to say on the election of Barack Obama:

For 100 years, going back to Jack Johnson, black sports figures have always been accepted when it comes to entertaining white Americans…[but not in politics]

Which is why it's hard to agree with stories that claim: Black athletes eased Obama's path to White House. It was also noted during the same PTI that "sports are the funhouse mirror where we check our reflection". A large number of black people earning money in sport do not mean you have a racially integrated society.

And are the athletes who eased Obama's path actually thinking of racial equality or are they thinking about the big money they're earning?

New York Jets nose tackle Kris Jenkins thought about his taxes, but, more importantly, his three young children and his half-brother serving in Iraq.

"I can't be selfish enough to think about keeping all of my money and just being in a better tax bracket because I have to be sure that I do my part for the world to be a better place for my kids," he said.

And if you do believe that sports helps acceptance then it doesn't bode well for the gay community, who were not only heavily discriminated against on election night but also don't have any mainstream athletes to help "ease" their path.

In fact, Tony Dungy (the first black coach to win the Superbowl) is quoted in that ESPN article, but has openly campaigned against gay rights. I guess equality isn't for everyone.

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Gees up, then, hose down. | Nov 04, 2008 12:38

It's that great Southern Hemisphere racing day: The Melbourne Cup.

The day when latent gamblers are able to take a flutter on the gee-gees. You may have already entered yourself in an office pool. You may be wearing a funny hat or fascinator. You may just be hoping that the bookies aren't going to take your thumbs.

Whatever the case here a few tips from a guy who spent a large amount of time in one of New Zealand's horse-racing centres: Matamata (you matter, in Matamata).

• Don't pick the horse with the funniest name, that is only true is betting on human-racing (see: Bolt, Usain)
• Office pools are not the best idea if you really don't want to see the person you hate the most at work clutching wads of your hard-earned cash
• Makybe Diva has won the Cup three times in a row, so she's at least worth a lazy tenner to win her fourth
• When there are a lot of horse races at one track on one day with lots of prize money then it is called a "Carnival". But all the weird carnies are replaced with weird bookies.
• The more a horse is paying to win the better it is. Fact.
• Aidan and Danny O'Brien are each training three horses in this year's race. This means they've less time to spend with each horse, hence, these under-prepared horses will lose.
• Littorio is being ridden by Steven King. A sure sign that the devil's work is afoot.
• You'll want to sneak some booze into wherever you are watching the race. I recommend the old booze in the sandwich trick
• And you will need the booze because horse racing is all about sitting in the sun drinking, losing money and… actually I think that's about it.
• And remember: if all else fails, go Gonzo.

"That sounds a little weird," I said. "It's unacceptable. We must have access tp everything. All of it. The spectacle, the people, the pageantry and certainly the race. You don't think we came all this way to watch the damn thing on television, do you? One way or another we'll get inside. Maybe we'll have to bribe a guard--or even Mace somebody." (I had picked up a spray can of Mace in a downtown drugstore for $5.98 and suddenly, in the midst of that phone talk, I was struck by the hideous possibilities of using it out at the track. Macing ushers at the narrow gates to the clubhouse inner sanctum, then slipping quickly inside, firing a huge load of Mace into the governor's box, just as the race starts. Or Macing helpless drunks in the clubhouse restroom, for their own good...)

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