So it's that time of the year again, when AVCon has passed and we go looking for things to do with all our miraculously free evenings, but instead of doing something constructive we turn to rambling incessantly about unimportant things on the internet, keeping spouses awake with our rattling at the keyboard and generally making a nuisance of ourselves.
In keeping with this fine tradition, here is a list of goals for the month, some of which will get done and make interesting content for this here blog, some of which will get done and not make interesting content, which will be posted regardless, and most of which won't get done at all and will be discarded with only this buried post floating in the ether to remind the world that sometimes people aren't very good at following through with their promises. To help me with this last point, we've set the bar high, and fully expect to fail many if not all of these goals, but that is what Blaugust is for, after all.
Leaflocker: Post five times a week, on a variety of topics, including one a week touching in some way upon religion. Actually keeping an posting answers for any quizzes that ensue. Encouraging others to attempt to meet ludicrously unrealistic posting schedules as well. Try not to be bothered if nobody reads it.
Wesnoth: While I wait for inspiration on Habemus Papas, I have fallen back on my old Wesnoth hobby, this time focusing on maintaining and restoring the Imperial Era and associated bits and pieces. If this means nothing to you, dear reader, don't worry about it, as you're unlikely to see much more about it here unless I get really desperate for content (by which I mean 'until early next week) and for the sake of your sanity do not type 'Battle for Wesnoth' into your search engine and download this excellent open-source fantasy turn-based strategy game. It really is the TV Tropes of the gaming world. Anyway, I intend to update the old 1.6 campaign 'Alfhelm the Wise' to be compatible with version 1.10 in the coming months, making it to at least the end of chapter two by the end of the month.
Domesticity: There are some projects that need to be done around the house this month. They include reattaching the door to the cupboard under the stairs, finishing cleaning the gutters, actually mowing the lawn, cutting the ivy that is attacking the upstairs window, buying and fitting a new lock for the shed, building the barbeque and deadheading the roses. Once all this is done, I can reward myself by re-organising the library to my heart's content.
Library: Read and report on at least four books for the month. To get this one done, I may have to choose small books, as my current reading rate would be considered glacial by many garden snails.
Setting Alarms: Getting up earlier in the mornings to have breakfast, do a series of stretches to prevent my neck and shoulder muscles from seizing and turning me into a hunchback, and spend time either reading or working on my new Diatessearon project, all things that I have been neglecting in recent times.
Internet: None at all at work. Work towards winning current game of Diplomacy.
Sleeping: Nah.
Seems like a sensible list to me. Tune in at the end of the month to find out how we did. If you want to follow other Blaugusty peeps, check out the clever folks at www.chenonetta.com.
Thursday, 2 August 2012
Wednesday, 1 August 2012
The Leaflocker Olympics
When it comes to the little bits that make up me, my Australianess trumps my nerdosity. I have committed the cardinal sin that one can commit in geek society, I actively follow, support, and on occasion even play, sport. While most of the people that I interact with on a regular basis roll their eyes and mutter something about 'the sportball being in town', I live and breathe sport during the Olympics.
I am not alone, it seems sometimes that the entirety of the country is mesmerised by Olympic gold. Of all the countries participating in the games this year, Australia (the 52nd-largest country in the world) has the fourth-most participating athletes, with 410 (yes, one in every 50,000 Australians, or one Aussie for each town the size of Mildura, is an olympian this year), and every paper and news report in the country will devote a large percentage of space to covering the minutiae of the athletes and the Games. If we weren't all completely convinced already, here is further proof that the nation is make up, if not entirely, then at least primarily, by nutters.
However, because I have to be different and because I admit to finding the Australian obsession with sport a little bit creepy, I have for the last four olympic games followed a policy of supporting teams from countries with a less ridiculous approach to the games. I do this in a sort of ad-hoc way, because following the results for any country that doesn't wear green and gold is difficult when there's a possibility that an Australian athlete might even think about turning up for training or a press conference at some point in the next hour, but the internet is a wonderful place, so we do our best.
I support countries that have not won an olympic gold medal, based on a number of criteria which are selected randomly from a pool of categories that change each Olympiad based on my flights of fancy, but this year the teams that will have the weight of in-principle Leaflocker support are:
Earning permanent placement in this list by virtue of being our official favourite country here at the brand-spanking new Leaflocker offices, Lesotho! Lesotho has sent a team of 5, including 3 participants in the marathon. Due to the altitude, we imagine that marathon runners from there are pretty respectable, but our special favourite Lesotho competitor is the 50m freestyle swimmer 'M'asempe Theko, whose best swim has a time more than double that of the fastest qualifiers: not bad considering that there is probably not very many olympic-quality swimming facilities in the tiny mountainous country. It's also worth noting that the London 2012 website informs us that marathon runner Tsepo Ramonene (running in only his second marathon) has the same height and weight as Mrs. Owl, the sort of information that you're guaranteed not to get anywhere else that makes the Leaflocker stand out, I know. Lesotho is also sending a taekwondo judge, who is quoted as saying:
"We are a nation proud about sport. Our country is small and, because it's landlocked by South Africa, people don't know about it. It's through sport that people can learn about Lesotho. We have a lovely country that we want the whole world to know about."
Well, the Leaflocker is doing our part in getting the word out, Lesotho. Make us proud.
In the 'impressed in the cricket this year' category, narrowly edging out Papua New Guinea, is the team from Nepal (it seems to be a year for the mountainous countries). Nepal might not have excellent chance, given that all five of their athletes qualified by wild-card or universality place, but we'll be supporting the guys from the country with the two-toothed pennant. Some might doubt Nepal's place on this list, given that they actually won a bronze for taekwondo in Seoul the year before I was born, but since it was an exhibition sport and we like their pluck, they get the nod. We're paying special attention to Pramila Rijal, representing in the 100m. I'd make a joke about there being no flat land in Nepal, but I know they have cricket fields, so a sprint track is not out of the question. C'mon Nepal!
In the 'competes in the Greco-Roman wrestling' category, always my personal favourite, are the Federated States of Micronesia. Keitani Graham is the man to watch, if you can stand to watch Greco-Roman wrestling and can find a TV channel that will broadcast his first-round match. There are also five other competitors from the country, including Manuel Minginfel, who could actually be an actual chance for a medal in the weightlifting. One presumes that with a currency that is essentially made of enormous rocks, weightlifters from Micronesia might be quite formidable.
In the 'we supported them last time' category, it's the six men and women from Cambodia, whose best hope was Ratanakhomy Khom, who made it to the second round of the Judo by virtue of having a bye in the first round before being knocked out by a Mexican with no appreciation of the level of support and investment in Cambodian olympic hopes by the editorial team here at the Leaflocker. It's only logical that a country with a flag this cool can't be far away from an olympic medal.
Well, that's all the countries that we're supporting, but there are also some competitors from Southern Sudan and Netherlands Antilles competing under the Olympic flag who will have the full force of Leaflocker support as well, so go those guys, wave that neutral flag! Tune back in in a couple of weeks and we'll give you all the low-down on how everyone went and hopefully eliminate some of these countries from being eligible to be supported by the Leaflocker next time around.
This is not to say that I won't be tuning in to watch the Australians as well, particularly in the team sports, but I will not live or die by the medal count or the media frenzy. We here at the Leaflocker are taking the time to acknowledge the little countries, those that are participating in the games with little to no chance of winning anything, and the few athletes who carry the hopes and ambitions of their nations on their shoulders. And you know, you should too. There's plenty more teams out there, guys, and if you want, I'll even share mine. My only regret is that Sri Lanka have won medals in the past, so I won't be spending my time shouting "Go Lanka Go" at the TV. Well, I might a little, but you don't get to hear about it.
I am not alone, it seems sometimes that the entirety of the country is mesmerised by Olympic gold. Of all the countries participating in the games this year, Australia (the 52nd-largest country in the world) has the fourth-most participating athletes, with 410 (yes, one in every 50,000 Australians, or one Aussie for each town the size of Mildura, is an olympian this year), and every paper and news report in the country will devote a large percentage of space to covering the minutiae of the athletes and the Games. If we weren't all completely convinced already, here is further proof that the nation is make up, if not entirely, then at least primarily, by nutters.
However, because I have to be different and because I admit to finding the Australian obsession with sport a little bit creepy, I have for the last four olympic games followed a policy of supporting teams from countries with a less ridiculous approach to the games. I do this in a sort of ad-hoc way, because following the results for any country that doesn't wear green and gold is difficult when there's a possibility that an Australian athlete might even think about turning up for training or a press conference at some point in the next hour, but the internet is a wonderful place, so we do our best.
I support countries that have not won an olympic gold medal, based on a number of criteria which are selected randomly from a pool of categories that change each Olympiad based on my flights of fancy, but this year the teams that will have the weight of in-principle Leaflocker support are:
Earning permanent placement in this list by virtue of being our official favourite country here at the brand-spanking new Leaflocker offices, Lesotho! Lesotho has sent a team of 5, including 3 participants in the marathon. Due to the altitude, we imagine that marathon runners from there are pretty respectable, but our special favourite Lesotho competitor is the 50m freestyle swimmer 'M'asempe Theko, whose best swim has a time more than double that of the fastest qualifiers: not bad considering that there is probably not very many olympic-quality swimming facilities in the tiny mountainous country. It's also worth noting that the London 2012 website informs us that marathon runner Tsepo Ramonene (running in only his second marathon) has the same height and weight as Mrs. Owl, the sort of information that you're guaranteed not to get anywhere else that makes the Leaflocker stand out, I know. Lesotho is also sending a taekwondo judge, who is quoted as saying:"We are a nation proud about sport. Our country is small and, because it's landlocked by South Africa, people don't know about it. It's through sport that people can learn about Lesotho. We have a lovely country that we want the whole world to know about."
Well, the Leaflocker is doing our part in getting the word out, Lesotho. Make us proud.
In the 'competes in the Greco-Roman wrestling' category, always my personal favourite, are the Federated States of Micronesia. Keitani Graham is the man to watch, if you can stand to watch Greco-Roman wrestling and can find a TV channel that will broadcast his first-round match. There are also five other competitors from the country, including Manuel Minginfel, who could actually be an actual chance for a medal in the weightlifting. One presumes that with a currency that is essentially made of enormous rocks, weightlifters from Micronesia might be quite formidable.
In the 'we supported them last time' category, it's the six men and women from Cambodia, whose best hope was Ratanakhomy Khom, who made it to the second round of the Judo by virtue of having a bye in the first round before being knocked out by a Mexican with no appreciation of the level of support and investment in Cambodian olympic hopes by the editorial team here at the Leaflocker. It's only logical that a country with a flag this cool can't be far away from an olympic medal.
Well, that's all the countries that we're supporting, but there are also some competitors from Southern Sudan and Netherlands Antilles competing under the Olympic flag who will have the full force of Leaflocker support as well, so go those guys, wave that neutral flag! Tune back in in a couple of weeks and we'll give you all the low-down on how everyone went and hopefully eliminate some of these countries from being eligible to be supported by the Leaflocker next time around.This is not to say that I won't be tuning in to watch the Australians as well, particularly in the team sports, but I will not live or die by the medal count or the media frenzy. We here at the Leaflocker are taking the time to acknowledge the little countries, those that are participating in the games with little to no chance of winning anything, and the few athletes who carry the hopes and ambitions of their nations on their shoulders. And you know, you should too. There's plenty more teams out there, guys, and if you want, I'll even share mine. My only regret is that Sri Lanka have won medals in the past, so I won't be spending my time shouting "Go Lanka Go" at the TV. Well, I might a little, but you don't get to hear about it.
Sunday, 15 April 2012
Job Application
Dear Sir/Madam,
I write to you to apply for my dream position of cricket DJ at Adelaide Oval. It is my belief that your current DJ, while he does a presentable job shouting "Hey-oo" and playing the Addams Family Theme to gee up the crowd, is not fufilling his full fun potential (or FFP) for One Day International and Twenty20 matches. In fact, it is my belief that an intelligent DJ interacting with the match as it happens would render these artifical means of exciting the crowd, along with the ever-tiresome being told that "you're the best fans EVER", completely obselete.
I addition to my demostrated cricket knowledge (witness my astonishingly accurate predictions as to the results of the World Twenty20 qualifier in the UAE this year), I own my own aviator sunglasses and tape deck, and have a passable knowledge of 70's and 80's pop-rock.
I write to you to apply for my dream position of cricket DJ at Adelaide Oval. It is my belief that your current DJ, while he does a presentable job shouting "Hey-oo" and playing the Addams Family Theme to gee up the crowd, is not fufilling his full fun potential (or FFP) for One Day International and Twenty20 matches. In fact, it is my belief that an intelligent DJ interacting with the match as it happens would render these artifical means of exciting the crowd, along with the ever-tiresome being told that "you're the best fans EVER", completely obselete.
I addition to my demostrated cricket knowledge (witness my astonishingly accurate predictions as to the results of the World Twenty20 qualifier in the UAE this year), I own my own aviator sunglasses and tape deck, and have a passable knowledge of 70's and 80's pop-rock.
Monday, 26 March 2012
We Apologise for This Break in Transmission
The editorial team would like to extend our very sincere apologies for this prolonged break in transmissions caused by suddenly becoming incredibly poor in liquid assets. Our technicians are working on the problem, and normal programming should begin again soon.
In the mean time, have a look at these pretty pictures.
In the mean time, have a look at these pretty pictures.
Tuesday, 13 March 2012
Read: I Can Jump Puddles
We're having some technical internetty problems here at Leaflocker HQ, stay tuned for the completed reveiw and quiz just as soon as we can get them ironed out...
Australian books, to speak broadly and generalise, are a little bit like Australian film, vividly told, deeply emotional and full of sex scenes (and by 'sex scenes' I generally mean 'rape'). In fact, I once watched a marathon ten Australian films up until the first sex scene in each and spent a grand total of just three hours and ten minutes in front of the TV before going to bed disgusted with the Australian film industry. Thus it's with great trepidation that I pick up an Australian book or film, expecting the worst of human nature.
This one is an autobiography of Alan Marshall, a boy with crippling polio set in turn of the twentieth century rough and tumble rural Victoria, what unspeakable things wuld happen to this poor, defenceless crippled child...
I steeled myself and began to read...
Page 123:
Reading Progress:
Number of Books read: 9
Australian dividend: 2.045
Science Fiction dividend: 2.5
Fantasy dividend: 3.5
Biography dividend: 2.5
Mystery dividend: 0.5
Probably Next Up: Morris West, Shoes of the Fisherman/The Devil's Advocate/The Salamander (provided that I finish the Salamander)
Australian books, to speak broadly and generalise, are a little bit like Australian film, vividly told, deeply emotional and full of sex scenes (and by 'sex scenes' I generally mean 'rape'). In fact, I once watched a marathon ten Australian films up until the first sex scene in each and spent a grand total of just three hours and ten minutes in front of the TV before going to bed disgusted with the Australian film industry. Thus it's with great trepidation that I pick up an Australian book or film, expecting the worst of human nature.
This one is an autobiography of Alan Marshall, a boy with crippling polio set in turn of the twentieth century rough and tumble rural Victoria, what unspeakable things wuld happen to this poor, defenceless crippled child...
I steeled myself and began to read...
Page 123:
Reading Progress:
Number of Books read: 9
Australian dividend: 2.045
Science Fiction dividend: 2.5
Fantasy dividend: 3.5
Biography dividend: 2.5
Mystery dividend: 0.5
Probably Next Up: Morris West, Shoes of the Fisherman/The Devil's Advocate/The Salamander (provided that I finish the Salamander)
Thursday, 8 March 2012
Tie of the Week
Perhaps this post should really be called "Win of the Week", since Sri Lanka did not get close enough for a tie in the final of the Tri Series cricket last night, although for a while there it seemed like it might be a close run thing. "But wait," I hear you say, "why are you talking about the cricket when you should be showing me pictures of ties?" The answer is that I (and my tie, hence the cunning excuse to make yet another post about cricket) were at the game at the Adelaide Oval last night to watch in real life.
I have no idea why this photo is upside down and can't seem to fix it, it's fine in my image library on my computer. Anyway, if you turn your monitor upside down, here's a picture of me, my tie, and part of a kickin' Sri Lankan brass band. We are having a lot of fun and the atmosphere is electric.
Tie Number:007
Designation: The Colom-bow
Provenance: Ian's Stash, February 2012
Manufacture: Unknown
No. of Comments: 7 (High)
Most Favourable Comment: "Nice tie, bra!"
Least Favourable Comment: "Umm...really? A bow tie?"
Observations: Bow ties are cool.
And just 'cause I have the bandwidth so I might as well use it...
Here's the other half of the brass band, one of two Sri Lankan brass bands in the area I was sitting in that alternated in filling the stadium with music. I'm pretty sure that these guys only knew one song, but that was ok, because the other band knew a different one (and I've never heard La Cucaracha sound like that before).
The best thing about standing around in the Sri Lankan section of the ground, apart from the music, is that it was easy to see what's going on, since I was a good foot taller that most of the others around. I am now also conversant in all the Sri Lankan bolwing chants, from the simple "Go Lanka Go...Go Lanka Go..." and "We want Dilshan, We want Dilshan"; to complicated call-and-response numbers like "Maharoof OH NO! You OK? OH NO!" and "We want an-OTHER WICKET. Just like the OTHER WICKET!"
My favourite is still the sublime: "Malinga BOWL HIM NOW!...Malinga BOWL HIM NOW!" which is just great when Herath comes in to bowl "Herath Mudiyanselage Rangana Keerthi Bandara Herath BOWL HIM NOW!" (entire area dissovles into giggles)..."Herath Mudiyanselage Rangana..."
The Australian fans were a little more reserved, we were at the cricket, after all.
In short, these guys made the whole thing a whole lot of fun, adding an element of festivity that Aussie cricket fans don't often see. When I took this photo it was the drink break, equilalent to the intermission in a show, Sri Lanka were four down for nothing and everyone else was taking it easy. Not these guys. It was just a pity that their batsmen didn't really get going, I would have loved to hear some more of their chants.
I have no idea why this photo is upside down and can't seem to fix it, it's fine in my image library on my computer. Anyway, if you turn your monitor upside down, here's a picture of me, my tie, and part of a kickin' Sri Lankan brass band. We are having a lot of fun and the atmosphere is electric.
Tie Number:007
Designation: The Colom-bow
Provenance: Ian's Stash, February 2012
Manufacture: Unknown
No. of Comments: 7 (High)
Most Favourable Comment: "Nice tie, bra!"
Least Favourable Comment: "Umm...really? A bow tie?"
Observations: Bow ties are cool.
And just 'cause I have the bandwidth so I might as well use it...
Here's the other half of the brass band, one of two Sri Lankan brass bands in the area I was sitting in that alternated in filling the stadium with music. I'm pretty sure that these guys only knew one song, but that was ok, because the other band knew a different one (and I've never heard La Cucaracha sound like that before).
The best thing about standing around in the Sri Lankan section of the ground, apart from the music, is that it was easy to see what's going on, since I was a good foot taller that most of the others around. I am now also conversant in all the Sri Lankan bolwing chants, from the simple "Go Lanka Go...Go Lanka Go..." and "We want Dilshan, We want Dilshan"; to complicated call-and-response numbers like "Maharoof OH NO! You OK? OH NO!" and "We want an-OTHER WICKET. Just like the OTHER WICKET!" My favourite is still the sublime: "Malinga BOWL HIM NOW!...Malinga BOWL HIM NOW!" which is just great when Herath comes in to bowl "Herath Mudiyanselage Rangana Keerthi Bandara Herath BOWL HIM NOW!" (entire area dissovles into giggles)..."Herath Mudiyanselage Rangana..."
The Australian fans were a little more reserved, we were at the cricket, after all.
In short, these guys made the whole thing a whole lot of fun, adding an element of festivity that Aussie cricket fans don't often see. When I took this photo it was the drink break, equilalent to the intermission in a show, Sri Lanka were four down for nothing and everyone else was taking it easy. Not these guys. It was just a pity that their batsmen didn't really get going, I would have loved to hear some more of their chants.
Wednesday, 7 March 2012
World Twenty20 Qualifier
This post is about cricket, and since cricket is an esoteric subject to the minds of many readers of this blog, it contains a number of hidden sections, reached by clicking on the hyperlinks, designed to elucidate matters for those interested in finding out more and/or with a lot of time on their hands.
March, as well as being the traditional time for basketball madness, also hosts the qualifier for the World Twenty20 Cricket Tournament, held this year in Sri Lanka.
Twenty20, the format of the game most likely to ever break into the Olympics (and a very outside chance at that), is also the format that the ICC has determined will be the proving ground for associate and affiliate sides moving into the future, as the ODI World Cup will be reduced to just ten teams in 2019 and beyond, and as every associate and affiliate will have a chance, however small, to qualify for the tournament every time it occurs.
In the future there will be more teams in the World Twenty20 competition, but the 2012 edition will feature only twelve teams, including all ten of the full-member nations, and thus only two spots are up for grabs for the associates and affiliates (let's call them A&A teams for now). This means a large-scale round-robin tournament to be played in the UAE, amongst the cricketing minnows to decide which teams get to compete on the big stage in Sri Lanka. This is, for an avid cricket fan interested in the development of these sides, a very exciting event.
Because few of the A&A teams are professional or well-funded and the cricket-playing world is as far-flung as the Commonwealth of Nations, opportunities for them to play other teams from diffent regions are few and far between, and when they occur, they are between only a few teams. This bigger 16-team tournament, then, is a great chance both for teams to show their collective mettle and through success increase the profile of cricket in their home countries, but also for individual players to shine in the richest form of the sport, and hopefully pick up contracts to play in higher-level domestic competitions in other countries to dramatically improve their skills.
The six ODI-playing nations (Afghanistan, Canada, Ireland, Kenya, Netherlands and Scotland) automatically qualified for the tournament, and they are joined by ten teams who won through a series of smaller qualifing events from the regions, two (Namibia and Uganda) from Africa, three (Hong Kong, Nepal and Oman) from Asia, two (USA and Bermuda) from the Americas, one (Papua New Guinea) from the Pacific and two (Denmark and Italy) from Europe), the number of teams from each region being determined by the approximate quality of the teams in the region. Thus, each team has played a number of games over the last six months to prepare, and it should be one pretty high-quality tournament.
The top three teams after the round-robin stage in each of the two groups will go through to a series of finals. The top team in each group playing each other for a free pass to the grand final and thus automatic qualification for Sri Lanka, with the loser playing a series of elimination games against the other teams that reached the final for the last spot in the tournament.
So, how's it going to pan out? Well, as an Australian who has never seen an affiliate team play, is utterly ignorant of current form and has only a limited understanding of Twenty20 tactics, I am perfectly placed to make a full analysis of the teams and their chances, and shall now proced to do exactly that for your delectation, dear reader.
Group A
The great success story of cricket in the past five years, Afghanistan have shot from playing in the lowest international division to being the number nine ranked team in the short few years since 2008, an even won this qualifying tournament to play in the 2010 World Twenty20. Based on this success, cricket has become extremely popular in Afghanistan, but the playing ranks are still somewhat thin, with the top-level players being mostly raised in Pakistani refugee camps rather than in the country. That said, the under 17 and 19 sides are also very strong, and Afghanistan could rightly be considered the favourites to win this tournament once again. They recently played an ODI against Pakistan (the first time an affiliate nation has ever played against a full member national side), and were very impressive although they were defeated comfortably.
A few short years ago Bermuda was considered one of the better of the minnow sides and actually had ODI status, but they now rank in at number 22 in the world cricket league table, and only just qualified for the tournament, having been beaten by the lower-ranked USA in the qualifying matches. They're talking up their chances, but I expect them to collapse after winning a game or two against sides in similar situations, failing utterly to adapt to Asian playing conditions.
As one of top six A&A sides with a number of good results behind them in recent years, Canada automatically qualified for this tournament, but their recent string of losses in the West Indies domestic cricket competition suggest that they're not at the level that we've come to expect from them just at the moment. A team made up mostly of ex-pats from the subcontinent since few native Canadians play cricket, this team punches above its weight, but I expect them to crash and burn under the pressure and get beaten by a number of lower-ranked teams. I have no real reason to think this, but there you go.
Another team that has flagged in recent years with the retirement of their last generation of players, the Danish team is now considered the fifth-strongest European associate, after Ireland, Scotland, the Netherlands and Italy, and they had an easy qualification tournament against a large but pretty rubbish European field this year. They unseated Italy in the final (the "big 3" having already qualified), and are arguably in better form coming into their tournament, but since Italy is in the other half of the tournament I expect that Denmark will come bottom of this group unless Bermuda has a bad day when they play each other.
Current rankings say that Hong Kong is the second-best Asian team in this tournament, with the normally very consistent UAE having been unseated on points in the qualifiers, but I expect that they will be out performed in this group (as they have been so many times in recent meetings) by their great regional rival Nepal, who they will play on the first day of the tournament.
Cricket is the biggest game in Nepal, the little team made up almost entirely of indigenous players that I would be rooting for if I weren't throwing my weight behind Pacific number one team PNG, but the mens team has never lived up to expectations given how well their junior teams always seem to do. I think that this will be their year, but for the sake of PNG cricket I hope that they come fourth in this group, not third. To do that they'll have to out-perform Canada, which will be quite an ask, but their continually good performance in regular Asian tournaments should stand them in good stead in the conditions in the UAE.
Probably the most regularly impressive of the associate teams, the Netherlands are always strong when it comes to these events. I'd expect them to come out second in this group after Afghanistan, based on the strength of a number of players who play domestic cricket in the major nations (including Tom Cooper for my South Aussie Redbacks). Like most European sides, the Netherlands struggles to field teams of born and bred Dutchmen, but since just one of born or bred is all that is required, expect them to be a force to be reckoned with and the real yardstick in this group as to the quality of the other teams, being more consistent than Afghanistan.
The team that I'm backing in this tournament, for emotional reasons rather than belief that they can really win it. PNG are the strongest A&A team in the Pacific, not really a particularly impressive feat given that their closest rival is Fiji, all the way down at number 38 in the rankings. That said, the PNG team all play club cricket in Australia and their development program in the last few years is rumoured to be very good. They rank about in the middle of the tournament, but with the addition of former England wicket-keeper Geraint Jones providing a little extra hitting power and experience I expect them to do very well.
Group B
No discussion of A&A teams would be complete without mention of Cricket Ireland, who are the team next in line to achieve Test Status should the ICC ever deign to admit that actually, they're pretty good. Ireland is developing a strong domestic competition and this is flowing through into a very strong team, particularly in the batting department. Widely expected to win or come very close, Ireland should be the standout in an already strong group.
Cricket is not a particularly popular game in Europe, but the Italians have been consistently not terrible for a number of years now. Although outclassed by most of the teams in this group due to not playing as much cricket as the African or Asian sides, it is my fond hope that they will be competitive and courageous in this tournament, even if it's hard to see them acheiving a win unless it's against the United States.
Powerhouse of the African A&A sides, I'm predicting that this one just won't be Kenya's year, as I feel like their squad just hasn't got enough games under their belt in recent times to be able to deal with difficult Asian pitches. African sides that rely of fast bowlers can be expected to struggle on sticky wickets where spin is often the preferred option. I expect them to be outperformed by both Namibia and Uganda , and to fail to get even to the preliminary rounds of the finals.
African teams traditionally rely on home-grown cricketers, and this Namibia side is a good one in that vein. More consistent than the other African sides, Namibia won each of their qualifying matches to get to this tournament before bombing out against Uganda in the final, and I'm thinking that they'll do much the same here, qualifying into the knock-out rounds and then suffering a batting collapse against a strong bowling team.
Oman are the real wild-card for me in this tournament, because I really can't even begin to guess how they might do. Effectively the home team for this tournament after combining with Hong Kong and Nepal to knock out the UAE, they should be familiar with the conditions and do well. But Oman are always second fiddle in Asia, and being in the other group from the rest of the Asians it will be interesting to see how well they do. I'm tipping them to upset a few of the higher ranked teams too, but just miss out on the finals.
Scotland, my UK team of choice, is not doing that well at the moment. As I write this, they've lost three quick wickets to the UAE and look like struggling to score a decent total in their Intercontinental Cup match (Update: they did alright, but still lost pretty easily). Thus, though I was confident about their chances earlier I am now ranking them as number three in the group below Namibia but above Kenya. The numbers all say that I've got to wrong about someone in this group, though, and for the sake of African cricket in the future I hope that it's this, and that Scotland fall of their faces letting two African teams (or one and Oman) into the finals.
Always teh African team that I barrack for, what with their bright yellow uniforms and impressive pace bowling attack, I think that Uganda, like Kenya, will struggle this tournament, and I'm tipping a tustle between the tow and Oman for the 4-6 postions in the group that will come down to points and be too close to call. I hope that I'm wrong, and Uganda are coming off of some good form, but I don't like their chances.
Oh USA. What to say about the USA, excpe that US cricket is in disarray without and end in sight. The team is hoping that a good performance will raise the profile of the sport and convince the association to sit up and behave themselves and maybe even have some elections some time, and many pundits think that it could happen. I myself won't be laying any money on it, and think that they'll be hard pressed against Italy to get out of the bottom spot.
This could take a while....
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game for two teams of eleven players that developed in England in the 16th century and spread around the world with the rise of the British Empire. It has similarities to baseball, and if you're familiar with baseball and would like to understand cricket or just want a laugh, there is an excellent resource produced by David Morgan-Mar available here, using his always amusing transmutataional method.
Actually, since DMM does such a good job, even if you won't understand baseball his explanation of cricket is better than anything that I could give you in the time that we have available anyway.
What's Cricket?Cricket is a bat-and-ball game for two teams of eleven players that developed in England in the 16th century and spread around the world with the rise of the British Empire. It has similarities to baseball, and if you're familiar with baseball and would like to understand cricket or just want a laugh, there is an excellent resource produced by David Morgan-Mar available here, using his always amusing transmutataional method.
Actually, since DMM does such a good job, even if you won't understand baseball his explanation of cricket is better than anything that I could give you in the time that we have available anyway.
March, as well as being the traditional time for basketball madness, also hosts the qualifier for the World Twenty20 Cricket Tournament, held this year in Sri Lanka.
Traditionally, cricket matches went for days, but with the rise of Television, limited overs games rose greatly in popularity. In the seventies, national teams began playing limited overs cricket, in which each team bats only up to fity overs (unless dismissed earlier), and these One Day Internationals (ODIs) were played more and more often. Due to the time limit, the value of a batsman's wicket was decreased, causing them to play more daring shots with greater regularity, with much higher scoring rates (a good score in an ODI is about 300 runs (or a run per delivery), which is more than many test innings).
In the last decade a new form of the game has become prominent, Twenty20 has, like the name suggests, only twenty overs per side, thus scoring is often even faster and more spectacular. A game of Twenty20 takes only three hours, as compared to an ODI which takes about eight, and this allows more games to be played in a shorter time, a boon to televised cricket leading to the incredibly high-budget IPL tournament in cricket-mad India, and the format has skyrocketed in popularity since, with imitation tournaments forming around the world.
What's Twenty20?In the last decade a new form of the game has become prominent, Twenty20 has, like the name suggests, only twenty overs per side, thus scoring is often even faster and more spectacular. A game of Twenty20 takes only three hours, as compared to an ODI which takes about eight, and this allows more games to be played in a shorter time, a boon to televised cricket leading to the incredibly high-budget IPL tournament in cricket-mad India, and the format has skyrocketed in popularity since, with imitation tournaments forming around the world.
Twenty20, the format of the game most likely to ever break into the Olympics (and a very outside chance at that), is also the format that the ICC has determined will be the proving ground for associate and affiliate sides moving into the future, as the ODI World Cup will be reduced to just ten teams in 2019 and beyond, and as every associate and affiliate will have a chance, however small, to qualify for the tournament every time it occurs.
The ICC (International Cricket Council) is the organising body for cricket. It currently has 105 members, 10 full member nations, 36 associate nations in which cricket is firmly established, and 59 affiliate nations in which it is recognised that cricket is played according to the official rules.
The ten full members, as well as being the only teams eligible to play Test Match Cricket, have almost all the decision making power and money. The top 6 best performing associates and affiliates join them in being able to play recognised One Day International Matches, while the other teams (or minnows) play off in a series of ongoing tournaments to join this exclusive club. This system, which effectively ensures that the big ten get most of the ICC funding and to play in all the important competitions while the associates and affiliates have only limited opportunities to play and actually develop into decent teams, is considered by many to be a little bit of an anachronism amongst international sports for some reason. The editorship of the leaflocker does not have a position on this issue, of course.
ICC? Affiliates?The ten full members, as well as being the only teams eligible to play Test Match Cricket, have almost all the decision making power and money. The top 6 best performing associates and affiliates join them in being able to play recognised One Day International Matches, while the other teams (or minnows) play off in a series of ongoing tournaments to join this exclusive club. This system, which effectively ensures that the big ten get most of the ICC funding and to play in all the important competitions while the associates and affiliates have only limited opportunities to play and actually develop into decent teams, is considered by many to be a little bit of an anachronism amongst international sports for some reason. The editorship of the leaflocker does not have a position on this issue, of course.
In the future there will be more teams in the World Twenty20 competition, but the 2012 edition will feature only twelve teams, including all ten of the full-member nations, and thus only two spots are up for grabs for the associates and affiliates (let's call them A&A teams for now). This means a large-scale round-robin tournament to be played in the UAE, amongst the cricketing minnows to decide which teams get to compete on the big stage in Sri Lanka. This is, for an avid cricket fan interested in the development of these sides, a very exciting event.
Because few of the A&A teams are professional or well-funded and the cricket-playing world is as far-flung as the Commonwealth of Nations, opportunities for them to play other teams from diffent regions are few and far between, and when they occur, they are between only a few teams. This bigger 16-team tournament, then, is a great chance both for teams to show their collective mettle and through success increase the profile of cricket in their home countries, but also for individual players to shine in the richest form of the sport, and hopefully pick up contracts to play in higher-level domestic competitions in other countries to dramatically improve their skills.
The six ODI-playing nations (Afghanistan, Canada, Ireland, Kenya, Netherlands and Scotland) automatically qualified for the tournament, and they are joined by ten teams who won through a series of smaller qualifing events from the regions, two (Namibia and Uganda) from Africa, three (Hong Kong, Nepal and Oman) from Asia, two (USA and Bermuda) from the Americas, one (Papua New Guinea) from the Pacific and two (Denmark and Italy) from Europe), the number of teams from each region being determined by the approximate quality of the teams in the region. Thus, each team has played a number of games over the last six months to prepare, and it should be one pretty high-quality tournament.
The top three teams after the round-robin stage in each of the two groups will go through to a series of finals. The top team in each group playing each other for a free pass to the grand final and thus automatic qualification for Sri Lanka, with the loser playing a series of elimination games against the other teams that reached the final for the last spot in the tournament.
So, how's it going to pan out? Well, as an Australian who has never seen an affiliate team play, is utterly ignorant of current form and has only a limited understanding of Twenty20 tactics, I am perfectly placed to make a full analysis of the teams and their chances, and shall now proced to do exactly that for your delectation, dear reader.
Group A
The great success story of cricket in the past five years, Afghanistan have shot from playing in the lowest international division to being the number nine ranked team in the short few years since 2008, an even won this qualifying tournament to play in the 2010 World Twenty20. Based on this success, cricket has become extremely popular in Afghanistan, but the playing ranks are still somewhat thin, with the top-level players being mostly raised in Pakistani refugee camps rather than in the country. That said, the under 17 and 19 sides are also very strong, and Afghanistan could rightly be considered the favourites to win this tournament once again. They recently played an ODI against Pakistan (the first time an affiliate nation has ever played against a full member national side), and were very impressive although they were defeated comfortably. 
A few short years ago Bermuda was considered one of the better of the minnow sides and actually had ODI status, but they now rank in at number 22 in the world cricket league table, and only just qualified for the tournament, having been beaten by the lower-ranked USA in the qualifying matches. They're talking up their chances, but I expect them to collapse after winning a game or two against sides in similar situations, failing utterly to adapt to Asian playing conditions.
As one of top six A&A sides with a number of good results behind them in recent years, Canada automatically qualified for this tournament, but their recent string of losses in the West Indies domestic cricket competition suggest that they're not at the level that we've come to expect from them just at the moment. A team made up mostly of ex-pats from the subcontinent since few native Canadians play cricket, this team punches above its weight, but I expect them to crash and burn under the pressure and get beaten by a number of lower-ranked teams. I have no real reason to think this, but there you go.
Another team that has flagged in recent years with the retirement of their last generation of players, the Danish team is now considered the fifth-strongest European associate, after Ireland, Scotland, the Netherlands and Italy, and they had an easy qualification tournament against a large but pretty rubbish European field this year. They unseated Italy in the final (the "big 3" having already qualified), and are arguably in better form coming into their tournament, but since Italy is in the other half of the tournament I expect that Denmark will come bottom of this group unless Bermuda has a bad day when they play each other.
Current rankings say that Hong Kong is the second-best Asian team in this tournament, with the normally very consistent UAE having been unseated on points in the qualifiers, but I expect that they will be out performed in this group (as they have been so many times in recent meetings) by their great regional rival Nepal, who they will play on the first day of the tournament.
Cricket is the biggest game in Nepal, the little team made up almost entirely of indigenous players that I would be rooting for if I weren't throwing my weight behind Pacific number one team PNG, but the mens team has never lived up to expectations given how well their junior teams always seem to do. I think that this will be their year, but for the sake of PNG cricket I hope that they come fourth in this group, not third. To do that they'll have to out-perform Canada, which will be quite an ask, but their continually good performance in regular Asian tournaments should stand them in good stead in the conditions in the UAE.
Probably the most regularly impressive of the associate teams, the Netherlands are always strong when it comes to these events. I'd expect them to come out second in this group after Afghanistan, based on the strength of a number of players who play domestic cricket in the major nations (including Tom Cooper for my South Aussie Redbacks). Like most European sides, the Netherlands struggles to field teams of born and bred Dutchmen, but since just one of born or bred is all that is required, expect them to be a force to be reckoned with and the real yardstick in this group as to the quality of the other teams, being more consistent than Afghanistan.
The team that I'm backing in this tournament, for emotional reasons rather than belief that they can really win it. PNG are the strongest A&A team in the Pacific, not really a particularly impressive feat given that their closest rival is Fiji, all the way down at number 38 in the rankings. That said, the PNG team all play club cricket in Australia and their development program in the last few years is rumoured to be very good. They rank about in the middle of the tournament, but with the addition of former England wicket-keeper Geraint Jones providing a little extra hitting power and experience I expect them to do very well. Group B
No discussion of A&A teams would be complete without mention of Cricket Ireland, who are the team next in line to achieve Test Status should the ICC ever deign to admit that actually, they're pretty good. Ireland is developing a strong domestic competition and this is flowing through into a very strong team, particularly in the batting department. Widely expected to win or come very close, Ireland should be the standout in an already strong group.
Cricket is not a particularly popular game in Europe, but the Italians have been consistently not terrible for a number of years now. Although outclassed by most of the teams in this group due to not playing as much cricket as the African or Asian sides, it is my fond hope that they will be competitive and courageous in this tournament, even if it's hard to see them acheiving a win unless it's against the United States.
Powerhouse of the African A&A sides, I'm predicting that this one just won't be Kenya's year, as I feel like their squad just hasn't got enough games under their belt in recent times to be able to deal with difficult Asian pitches. African sides that rely of fast bowlers can be expected to struggle on sticky wickets where spin is often the preferred option. I expect them to be outperformed by both Namibia and Uganda , and to fail to get even to the preliminary rounds of the finals.
African teams traditionally rely on home-grown cricketers, and this Namibia side is a good one in that vein. More consistent than the other African sides, Namibia won each of their qualifying matches to get to this tournament before bombing out against Uganda in the final, and I'm thinking that they'll do much the same here, qualifying into the knock-out rounds and then suffering a batting collapse against a strong bowling team. 
Oman are the real wild-card for me in this tournament, because I really can't even begin to guess how they might do. Effectively the home team for this tournament after combining with Hong Kong and Nepal to knock out the UAE, they should be familiar with the conditions and do well. But Oman are always second fiddle in Asia, and being in the other group from the rest of the Asians it will be interesting to see how well they do. I'm tipping them to upset a few of the higher ranked teams too, but just miss out on the finals.
Scotland, my UK team of choice, is not doing that well at the moment. As I write this, they've lost three quick wickets to the UAE and look like struggling to score a decent total in their Intercontinental Cup match (Update: they did alright, but still lost pretty easily). Thus, though I was confident about their chances earlier I am now ranking them as number three in the group below Namibia but above Kenya. The numbers all say that I've got to wrong about someone in this group, though, and for the sake of African cricket in the future I hope that it's this, and that Scotland fall of their faces letting two African teams (or one and Oman) into the finals.
Always teh African team that I barrack for, what with their bright yellow uniforms and impressive pace bowling attack, I think that Uganda, like Kenya, will struggle this tournament, and I'm tipping a tustle between the tow and Oman for the 4-6 postions in the group that will come down to points and be too close to call. I hope that I'm wrong, and Uganda are coming off of some good form, but I don't like their chances.
Oh USA. What to say about the USA, excpe that US cricket is in disarray without and end in sight. The team is hoping that a good performance will raise the profile of the sport and convince the association to sit up and behave themselves and maybe even have some elections some time, and many pundits think that it could happen. I myself won't be laying any money on it, and think that they'll be hard pressed against Italy to get out of the bottom spot.Thus my projected results, without going through and guessing all the individual results yet:
Group A:
1. Afghanistan, 2. Netherlands, 3. PNG
Group B:
1. Ireland, 2. Namibia, 3. Scotland
Finals:
Afghanistan d. Ireland, PNG d. Namibia, Netherlands d. Scotland
Then Netherlands d. PNG
Then Ireland d. Netherlands
Grand Final:
Ireland d. Afghanistan
So, there you are, the tournament according to the owl. If you think you have a better idea of how it's going to go down, why not join my tipping pool and try your luck? The password, incase you need it, is the automatically generated 'burgswab'.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)