The extended Gameweek 34 saw Everton break a drought against Liverpool and breaks their hearts in terms of a realistic title challenge. Talking of broken, our Premier League Week 35 Predictions and useful stats are here with enough to make an informed selection.
Each week we provide a meandering look into the upcoming round of Premier League football, with not only our predictions for the upcoming Premier League fixtures but offer up a wide range of H2H and in-season stats and barely interesting facts. This week is shorter than usual, that’s because there’s a day to do it. And no one reads this anyway.
2023-24 Premier League Week 35 Fixtures
2023-24 Premier League Week 35 Predictions
Here are our fearless predictions for the fixtures ahead, and tune in below for all the stats and barely interesting stats that go along with them. Or given our form, skip the tips and go to the stats.
West Ham 1 Liverpool 4
Wolves 0 Luton 0
Fulham 0 Crystal Palace 2
Man Utd 2 Burnley 0
Newcastle 4 Sheffield Utd 2
Everton 2 Brentford 2
Aston Villa 3 Chelsea 1
Bournemouth 1 Brighton 0
Spurs 2 Arsenal 1
Nottingham Forest 1 Man City 3
Season Progress: 46% – 149/322 – Correct Scores – 19
Season Tip Rating: Woeful
2023-24 Premier League Week 35 H2H Stats
Need a reason to pick one team over another, or just have a stat ready to impress friends and family, either way you are welcome to our favourite H2H stats of the current gameweek.
WHU v LIV – Liverpool have won four in a row v West Ham. And four in a row on a Saturday. And are unbeaten v West Ham in 12 games in April (W10 D2) with a last loss in 1968.
WOL v LUT – The H2H top flight record between Luton and Wolves is Luton 7 wins, Wolves 6 wins and 2 draws.
FUL v CRY – Three of the last four games between Crystal Palace and Fulham have ended in a draw. Fulham (D2 L2) are winless in their last four games v Palace at home. Crystal Palace are unbeaten in five games v Fulham on a Saturday (W3 D2).
MUN v BUR – Man Utd have lost just one of their last 16 games v Burnley (W10 D5 L1). Burnley last beat Man Utd in Manchester on a Saturday in 1962 (W8 D3 for Man Utd since). That improves slightly to 1968 for games on a Saturday at any venue.
NEW v SHU – Newcastle have won seven of the last eight v Sheffield Utd (W7 L1). And won the previous game this season 8-0.
EVE v BRE – Everton have won five of the six games v Brentford at Everton (one loss). Brentford have won the only two games between these sides in April. The two games were three days apart in 1936.
AVL v CHE – The home side have lost the last four clashes in this fixture. Chelsea have won five of their last six trips to Villa Park.
BOU v BHA – Bournemouth have won the last three games v Brighton. The only two games between these sides on a Sunday have ended 3-1 to the home side, with one team each getting a taste of winning.
TOT v ARS – Arsenal (W3 D1) are unbeaten in the last clashes between the sides on a Sunday. Before losing their last home game v Arsenal, Spurs were unbeaten in seven games v Arsenal at home. Spurs are unbeaten in five games v Arsenal in April (W2 D3).
NFO v MCI – The last two games between Nottingham Forest and Man City in Nottingham have ended in a draw. Man City have never beaten Nottingham Forest on a Sunday (L2 D1).
2023-24 English Premier League Current Season Stats
A quick look at the current state of play in the Premier League. An alternative table, form summary, points per game at home or away, v opposition and expected goals. So many.
As we head into NRL Round 8, here’s a new addition to our NRL previews – an analysis of each team’s strengths and weaknesses from the previous round with our NRL Round 8 Teams Strengths & Weaknesses.
NRL Round 8 Teams Strengths & Weaknesses
S = Strength W = Weakness
NZ Warriors
S: Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad was outstanding again, with 258 run metres.
W: After their poor start against Manly last weekend, the Warriors conceded three tries in 11 minutes against the Dragons.
W: While the Warriors still have a lot of goodwill – and potential – they need to back it up with more consistent performances.
W: 78% possession and 35 missed tackles against the Dragons.
Gold Coast
S: They’ve been a lot more competitive the last two games: that first win is getting closer.
S: Once again, Alofiana Khan-Pereira scored a crucial double.
S: Had a better completion rate than Manly (81%-72%).
W: Had 25 minutes to score one more try to win the game, but they couldn’t do it.
St George Illawarra
S: Continue to defy the critics who tipped them to be wooden spooners.
S: Have already won four games in 2024 after winning five in total in 2023.
S: 184 run metres and 14 points for Zac Lomax – he’s proving that signing with Parramatta won’t be a distraction.
W: 34 missed tackles against the Warriors.
Sydney Roosters
S: 193 run metres for Teddy and avoided a suspension for that attempted trip on Ryan Papenhuyzen.
W: They didn’t make of most of Munster’s sin bin, going scoreless during that period.
W: A crucial loss to the Storm keeps them outside the top eight.
W: 45 missed tackles against Melbourne.
Melbourne
S: Even though they’re not at their absolute best, they’re still equal first.
S: Another 46 tackles to Harry Grant.
S: While not as spectacular as THAT Warriors try, Coates again ices a game win an important try.
W: A silly sin binning from Cameron Munster – a rare moment of indiscipline from Melbourne. Bellyache wouldn’t have been happy with that.
South Sydney
S: The bye after a fighting display against Cronulla seems to have settled the bloodthirst against Jason Demetriou. For now.
S: Damien Cook is back: though he was unlucky to be dropped in the first place.
W: At the moment, they’re fighting it out with the Titans for the wooden spoon.
W: Have a 3-13 record against Melbourne since 2014.
Manly Warringah
S: Rebounded from the Warriors draw (a game they should have won) to be on the edge of the top four.
S: How good is fit and firing Tommy Turbo? Two tries and 196 run metres.
S: Held their nerve against a Titans side who gave their all.
W: Had more missed tackles (23-17) and more ineffective tackles (14-4) than the Titans.
Parramatta
S: 170 running metres for Bailey Simonsson.
W: Will we see more focus on Brad Arthur’s future now?
W: 31 missed tackles and 20 ineffective tackles.
W: Have conceded 105 points in the past three games, including two 40+ scores.
Wests Tigers
S: Lachlan Galvin made the most of his return, with 355 kick metres.
S: 224 run metres for Jahream Bula. He continues to be one of the most promising fullbacks in the NRL.
W: Sunia Turuva’s two tries put the Tigers away after their promising start.
W: For all their potential, three straight losses means the reality of a long season is starting to kick in.
Brisbane
S: Despite consistent rain and no Adam Reynolds and Payne Haas, Brisbane did it easily against Canberra.
S: Reece Walsh is back and firing: replacing silly hats with scintillating tries, 199 run metres, and 224 kick metres.
S: 4-0 at Lang Park so far this season.
W: Could have put 60 on the Raiders if they wanted to be ruthless, but 15 errors and a couple of bombed tries didn’t help.
North Queensland
S: 167 run metres for Semi Valemei, making the most of his first grade return.
W: 12 errors and 33 missed tackles against Cronulla.
W: While they’ve won four games and are in the eight, their -8 differential is a concern.
W: 73% completion rate against Cronulla.
Penrith
S: Obviously the bye did them some good, as they handled the Tigers comfortably. They’re now 2-1 with Brad Schneider as halfback.
S: 229 run metres for Brian To’o and 207 for Dylan Edwards
S: Eight tries in six games for Sunia Turuva this season.
W: 36 missed tackles and 19 ineffective tackles against the Tigers.
The Dolphins
S: Their highest NRL score and second biggest win in NRL history.
S: The Dolphins tryscorers were lining up in Darwin: including a hat-trick to Jack Bostock and doubles to Tesi Niu and Max Plath.
S: They stuck with Parramatta in the first half and cashed in after half-time.
W: 12 errors to Parramatta’s seven.
Newcastle
S: 43 tackles for Jayden Brailey.
W: Starting to lose touch with the top eight.
W: Were blown away by Canterbury in a 24-minute period.
W: Another injury to Kayln Ponga and he’s out for 12 weeks – a huge blow to Newcastle.
Canberra
S: Full credit to Chevy Stewart: he had a horrible first half, but he kept fighting, taking the high balls, and never dropped his head. He’ll learn a lot from that game.
W: Had chances early but couldn’t capitalise and Brisbane destroyed them in just 20 minutes.
W: Jamal Fogarty’s out for 12 weeks, which will have massive implications for Canberra’s season.
W: Lang Park continues to be a graveyard for Canberra: six wins, 16 losses, and two draws since 2004.
Cronulla-Sutherland
S: Top of the ladder for a reason – only losing to the Wests Tigers so far.
S: Arguably their best performance of the season against North Queensland.
S: 212 run metres for Kayal Iro.
W: 34 missed tackles against North Queensland.
NRL Round 8 Teams Lists
Want the actual Team lists for this weekend? Follow the link below to Nothing But League website for more.
They say there can only be winners and losers in sport, but of course they’re wrong, there’s always the draw, and who doesn’t love a draw where everyone wins. Those winners include canny punters who look for value, and here to help is our Best of World Football Draws Tips for the week – and a Scandinavian Special.
Our resident draw expert Frankington Stanley runs his keen eye over the many football divisions around the world to find the best draws for you. He’s sort of like the John West of Football draws. He’s recently been on a three month scouting journey around Central Europe and Northern Africa to hone his skills on picking a draw.
Frankington Stanley is not fussy, no country or continent is out of bounds, and the more obscure the better. And some of them are quite obscure. They don’t even feature on the Who Scored website.
So get yourself ready for another weekly serving of the finest Football Draw tips from all over the world, where The Gurgler and Frankington Stanley take the stale out of stalemate.
It’s all you can eat draws
DRAW OF THE WEEK
Here is the best of the best draw tips for the week.
Latvia – Virsliga – FK Riga vs Rigas Futbola Skola
ODDS – DRAW $3.10
FORM / STATS – How do you like a match up where all of the last six games have ended in a draw? Sounds good doesn’t it.
Throw in the last three and four of the last six games at FK Riga between these sides were draws as well.
OTHER DRAW SPECIALS
Sweden – 1. Division Ettan Soedra – Torslanda vs FC Trollhattan
ODDS – DRAW $3.30
FORM / STATS – The season is only young in this division with just four games each played. Neither of these teams have won yet, and Torslanda drew their last game. Maybe both teams will settle for a point.
We know you will.
Sweden – 1. Division Ettan Soedra – BK Olympic V Norrby IF
ODDS – DRAW $3.30
FORM / STATS – The last game between these sides ended 0-0. That is all.
DENMARK – 2. Division . Promotion Group – Middelfart v FC Roskilde
ODDS – DRAW $3.30
FORM / STATS – If you’re after a game that will stink, like a 0-0 draw, who better to be involved than Middelfart.
Netherlands- Eerste Divisie – 2023/2024 – Cambuur Leeuwarden v FC Dordrecht
ODDS – DRAW $3.70
FORM / STATS – Not many draws between these sides of late, but surely if a team is named Cambuur they are close to bore, as in 0-0 bore draw.
Sweden – Superettan – 2024 – Orebro v IK Brage
ODDS – DRAW $3.00
FORM / STATS – Sounds like a comic and looks like it will draw like a comic.
Three of the last six games between these sides at Orebro have ended in a draw. Thats a 50% chance and the last two games weren’t draws. We like those odds.
Egypt – Premier League – 2023/2024 – AI Mokawloon v Smouha
ODDS – DRAW $2.75
FORM / STATS – Four draws in the last six between these sides is a good start. Throw in the second last game at Al Mokawloon ended 0-0. Add that Smouha have won just once away this season and drawn four of nine and you’re getting into real draw country.
UK FOOTBALL DRAW SPECIAL OF THE WEEK
With so many divisions, there should be so many draws to choose from. Frankington Stanley goes next best with a draw from The Championship.
Championship – Blackburn v Coventry
ODDS – DRAW $3.50
FORM / STATS – This screams draw.
The last four games between these sides at Blackburn have ended in draws. Score draws too, for those who like a draw and goals.
Eat.
EURO DRAW SPECIAL OF THE WEEK
Some have accused us of picking easy leagues for our draws. First of all, how dare you, secondly we introduce our Euro Leagues draw of the week, where we scan the four biggest leagues in Europe for the finest draws. It could be Serie A, La Liga, Bundesliga, or Ligue 1, but what it will always be is a quality eye for a draw.
Spanish La Liga – Almeria v Getafe
ODDS – DRAW $3.25
FORM / STATS – Don’t let the lack of draws between these sides fool you. This is primed for a draw. No draws in the last six and only four in the 19 game history of this match is low.
But Almeria are dead last in La Liga with one win in 32 matches this season, so you can essentially rule out one result. And half of Almeria’s home games have ended in a draw, so it’s 50-50. As for Getafe they have drawn their last two games and have a 50% draw record away this season.
This photograph taken on April 19, 2024 shows a man holding a smartphone displaying the logo of Chinese social media platform Tiktok in an office in Paris (Photo by Antonin UTZ / AFP) (Photo by ANTONIN UTZ/AFP via Getty Images)
A new social media app is set to take over the internet!
Called U-Narcissist, the app is designed to get the best out of its content creators.
Peter, the creator of U-Narcissist, highlighted a number of exciting features on the app.
“Firstly, creators can choose to post their videos in extreme close up, split screen, triple screen, or quadruple screen! That way, the creator is ALWAYS front and centre in the video. Secondly, every video is monetised, as we have built-in advertisers who sponsor every video: it doesn’t matter if you have no followers or a million. And the more videos you make and more followers you have, the more advertising money you make. Thirdly, creators can use filters that highlight their best features: ideal for creators who want to push their videos into soft-core porn territory without stepping on OnlyFans’ toes, while making TikTok and Insta look like a child’s toy.”
The big feature will be the comments sections, with only positive comments allowed.
“Any comments that isn’t in glowing praise of the creators will be automatically deleted by our AI technology. This should ward of any trolls or ‘hate-watchers’ who want to make our creators feel bad. Have three negative comments deleted in a month and your account is destroyed permanently. Our app will literately be the nicest corner on the internet, because there’s no other choice.”
Peter said U-Narcissist was designed to accentuate the strengths of social media.
“Everyone knows social media is about self-promotion and making even the most mundane stories all about you. People who disagree either have no personality or don’t use social media enough. At U-Narcissist, it’s 100% all about you, all the time!”
Here are The Gurgler’s 2024 Chinese Grand Prix Ratings – our way of rating the performances of all the drivers from the first Chinese Grand Prix in five years, where the race saw another Max Verstappen win, a super second place to Lando Norris, and some Stroll shenanigans towards the back.
Our G-Power Rankings goes a little bit deeper than just points scored on the Sunday and has a slightly cooler name than most. We take on board Free Practice, Qualifying, performance in relation to teammate, fastest lap, and a few more stats that are attempting to highlight a driver outperforming the car and/or thrashing their teammate.
Plus, we have a range of stats and barely interesting facts from the 2024 F1 Season so far. Not much yet, but more to come as the season progresses. So much to read in so little time.
Here are the current overall standings for our Driver of the Year winner – the Martini Medal. Named in honour of one of F1’s most unsung heroes – Pierluigi Martini of Minardi fame.
We have the overall scores as they stand, plus a visual which shows the flow of each driver’s position throughout the season, plus a few points of interest below.
Here is the breakdown of the Driver of the Year points from the most recent race and the season so far.
LATEST RACE RATINGS
DRIVER OF THE SEASON UPDATE
2024 Chinese Grand Prix Ratings – Teams
This is essentially using the same drivers stats but in reverse for the worst score, but taking out anything that is a H2H between the drivers.
And our annual award focuses on the other end of the grid, highlighting the worst team of the season.
Of course, the worst team of the season award needs to be named after the worst F1 team of all time. And if you want to fund out more about Andrea Moda, follow this link.
LATEST RACE RATINGS
Here are the choicest of cuts from the F1 data we compile for season 2024, we a few hand picked barely interesting points to share below.
We have added the Fastest Lap % and Average position for Teams in addition to drivers, and it shows a clear last with RB having the worst % from Fastest Lap and average position. The Chinese GP double DNF wouldn’t have helped.
Valtteri Bottas is the only driver so far this season to finish lower than the grid slot when making the distance. Fernando Alonso is next worst with 4/5 races finsihing lower than grid spot.
Only Kevin Magnussen and Carlos Sainz have finished every race higher than they started and not DNFd. Pierre Gasly and Guanyu Zhou have finished higher than their grid spot, when they finish.
Alpine and Kick Sauber are the only teams to be noticeably slower in terms of qualifying time % vs pole. McLaren so far this season are currently 0.01% slower than the entire 2023 season mark. Despite this, Esteban Ocon is currently closer to pole this season than last.
DRIVER 2024 H2H RECORD
Beating your team mate in F1 is very important, which is why we keep an eye on the H2H stats through the season.
New for this week is the overall H2H. Which means the H2H from every session – FP and Qualifying, plus who set a faster Fastest Lap and two points for beating the team mate in the race. Note: both have to feature in same Q session for H2H point.
2024 F1 QUALIFYING STATS
Here our qualifying analysis covers just about everything we could find on qualifying.
QUALIFYING SUMMARY
QUALIFYING GRID SLOT TO % FROM POLE
QUALIFYING COMPARISON FROM 2023 SEASON to 2024 SEASON
QUALIFYING COMPARISON IN 2024 BY TRACK TYPE
FIRST LAP POSITION + GRID TO RACE RESULT GAINS
Races can’t be won or lost at the first corner, well actually they can be lost at the first corner, and a good one can make all the difference. Unless you drive a Red Bull, then it doesn’t really matter.
So here are the stats on the lightning fast starters and the slow pokes.
FREE PRACTICE
Some say Free Practice is a giant waste of time, and they are probably right. Regardless here is the average position for each drivers in Free Practice this season. Each round an average of all the sessions.
FASTEST LAP
A quick look at the Fastest Lap stats for 2024. Outliers from drivers with few laps removed.
Current Race Power Rankings in Detail
2024 F1 Season Power Rankings – Points Explanation
Here’s how the points work this season. Essentially the perfect race (Win from Pole, Fastest Lap, thrash team mate, best in race etc) should amount to the perfect 100 points.
FIRST LAP GAINS +0.5pts per position gained -0.5pts per position lost.
CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS – 25pts to 1pt as per World Championship – Sprint Race Points added.
BEAT TEAM MATE (RACE) – 10pts (if both finish or other driver got self inflicted DNF)
FASTEST LAP – 5pts – 1pt for top five drivers.
GRID POSITION TO RACE POSITION – formula +/- relative finish to grid
BEST OF THE REST (RACE) – 5pts to 1pt – top five non Mercedes-Red Bull drivers
QUALIFYING – 20pts to 1pt – Grid Position 1 to 20.
BEAT TEAM MATE (QUALIFYING) – 5pts
BEST OF THE REST (QUALIFYING) – 5pts to 1pt – top five non Mercedes-Red Bull drivers
GREAT/GRAPE – 5pts Great 2pts Honourable Mention -2Pts Dishonourable Mention -5Pts Grape
BEAT TEAM MATE (QUALIFYING) Time Gap – Formula for % beaten team mate by
BEAT TEAM MATE (QUALIFYING) Position – 0.5 Pts for every position team mate is beaten by. 0 points for second car.
FREE PRACTICE HERO – 10Pts to 1Pt – Average Position across all three practice sessions.
WIN FROM POLE – Bonus 5 Points
WIN FROM POLE WITH FASTEST LAP – Bonus 10 Points
DNF Not Driver or Team Fault Minus 2 Points
DNF CAUSED BY DRIVER/TEAM INCOMPETENCE Minus 5 Points
SPRINT RACE POINTS – Points 8 to 1 as handed out in the sprint race.
SPRINT RACE CHANGE – 0.5 Points per change in end position to starting position.
SPRINT RACE QUAL – Points 8 to 1 as handed out in the order of qualifying 1st to 8th.
It’s the Anzac Day round of the NRL, and with three big games across two countries on Thursday, you’ll need to get in early with the stats you need to tip a winner. Talking of early, our stat-filled preview of the upcoming weekend of rugby league is here to help get you to the top of your tipping comp with our 2024 NRL Round 8 Tips Predictions & Stats Preview.
Each week we offer up a quick preview glance for each match, throw in a bunch of barely interesting stats, and mix in a pinch of opinion, some spicy tips and you have a rugby league soup with probably more than one could ever need or want. It’s all you can eat NRL stats.
And this week we have some extra Anzac Day stats.
2024 NRL Round 8 Tips – This Week’s Matches
Here are our tips for the week ahead. How did we get to here? By going through all the visuals and stats below.
Warriors v Gold Coast
Thursday, 2:00 pm
St George Illawarra v Roosters
Thursday, 4:00 pm
Melbourne v South Sydney
Thursday, 7:50 pm
Manly Warringah v Parramatta
Friday, 8:05 pm
Wests Tigers v Brisbane
Saturday, 5:30 pm
North Queensland v Penrith
Saturday, 7:35 pm
Dolphins v Newcastle
Sunday 2:00 pm
Canberra v Cronulla
Sunday 4:05 pm
2024 NRL Round 8 Tips – This Week’s Tips
GOLD COAST by 2
ROOSTER By 8
MELBOURNE by 12
MANLY by 4
BRONCOS by 8
PENRITH by 14
DOLPHINS by 10
CANBERRA by 6
There’s three big games featuring the traditional Dragons v Roosters clash. But 2024 sees the other regular Anzac Day clash between Melbourne and the Warriors split, giving them one game each.
So below is just the Anzac Day stats for the teams involved.
STGI v ROO – St George Illawarra have won seven of the last eight Anzac Day clashes as the home side.
STGI v ROO – Roosters have won all three Anzac Day clashes on a Thursday.
STGI v ROO – H2H for Anzac Day Clashes overall is St George Illawarra 12 Roosters 10. At the Sydney Football Stadium it is St George Illawarra 10 Roosters 7.
WAR v GC – Warriors have won just two of 14 Anzac Day clashes. All but one of those Anzac Day clashes were in Melbourne against the Storm. And lost both of the Thursday games.
WAR v GC – The only non Melbourne Anzac Day clash for the Warriors was a loss at home in 2015 against…..the Gold Coast Titans. Which is the Titans’ only Anzac Day game v anyone.
MEL v SOU – Melbourne’s Anzac Day record is W12 L3 D1. The draw was against the Warriors in 2009. All but three games on Anzac Day for Melbourne were against the Warriors.
MEL v SOU – Melbourne have won both Anzac Day clashes on a Thursday.
MEL v SOU – South Sydney are W2 L1 on Anzac Day with wins against the Broncos and Canberra and a loss to the Broncos.
Here we take the best points of interest for each match coming up this weekend and share them with you for no cost. Feel free to share with friends and family. The bold ones are our favourites.
STGI v ROO – St George Illawarra have won their last two home games and conceded 12 points in both. Coincidentally Roosters scored 12 points in their game last weekend.
STGI v ROO – Roosters are W6 L5 on a Thursday at the Sydney Football Stadium.
STGI v ROO – Dragons have lost both of their games at the Sydney Football Stadium on a Thursday. They have won only three of their last 13 at the SFS on any day.
WAR v GC – The Warriors game on Thursday v Gold Coast will be the first Thursday game in New Zealand. For the record, Warriors have only played twice on a Thursday in two Anzac Day losses to Melbourne.
WAR v GC – Gold Coast have won three of the last four games v Warriors, just not the last one.
WAR v GC – The Warriors have a safe W9 L4 record at Mt Smart Stadium v Gold Coast. They won both games there v Qld opposition last season.
WAR v GC – Gold Coast have won two of their last three Thursday games (both against Wests Tigers) but it is W2 L6 overall. Interestingly, the Gold Coast Chargers won their only Thursday game in 1998.
WAR v GC – Gold Coast have lost their last seven away games and have won only four of their last 30 away games.
MEL v SOU – Storm v Rabbitohs remains the NRL’s most lop sides fixture (not involving Dolphins or non-current NRL sides). They have won just seven of 39 clashes.
MEL v SOU – South Sydney have never beaten Melbourne in Melbourne in 18 attempts. At both the old Olympic Ground (7 losses) and AAMI Park (11 losses).
MEL v SOU – Melbourne have never lost to South Sydney anywhere on a Thursday (three games).
MEL v SOU – Melbourne have never lost to anyone on a Thursday at home (17 games).
MEL v SOU – Melbourne have won all nine games v Sydney clubs anywhere on a Thursday.
MEL v SOU – Since 2022 South Sydney have lost 4/5 Thursday away games.
MAN v PAR – Parramatta have won four of the last five v Parramatta.
MAN v PAR – Parramatta have also won six in a row v Manly on a Friday.
MAN v PAR – Manly have won all three home games this season v Roosters, Penrith and South Sydney (technically in Las Vegas). It’s also three in a row at Brookvale on a Friday.
MAN v PAR – Parramatta have now lost five in a row on a Friday.
MAN v PAR – Manly are 3/3 at home and Parramatta are 0/2 away.
WT v BRI – Wests Tigers have lost nine straight at Campbelltown.
WT v BRI – Wests Tigers record at Campbelltown on a Saturday is a more respectable W12 L14. It only W7 L16 v Qld sides at Campbelltown on any day.
WT v BRI – Brisbane have won all eight games v Wests Tigers at Campbelltown.
WT V BRI – It’s not much better anywhere at home v Broncos – W2 L12. Although the last game v Brisbane at home was a 46-0 thrashing to the Tigers in 2020.
WT V BRI – If you exclude the Broncos, the Tigers have a W7 L4 record at home on a Saturday v Qld sides.
WT v BRI – Broncos have won ten in a row on a Saturday. And their last six in a row away on a Saturday.
WT v BRI – But….the Broncos have lost all three away games this season.
NQL v PEN – Cowboys have won their last two games in Townsville v Penrith. One was the week before finals in 2022 where many Panthers were rested, but still.
NQL v PEN – North Queensland have won six in a row at home to Penrith on a Saturday. Penrith’s last win there on a Saturday was 15 years ago.
NQL v PEN – North Queensland have won 12 of their last 14 at home on a Saturday. And four in a row v Sydney clubs.
NQL v PEN – Penrith have won five in a row v Qld clubs and 17 of their last 20 v Qld clubs since 2020.
NQL v Penrith have lost just two 17 games away on a Saturday since 2020.
DOL v NEWC – Dolphins are W3 L1 at Suncorp Stadium v NSW teams.
DOL v NEW – Dolphins have won all three games v NSW this season.
DOL v NEW – Dolphins are W4 L3 on a Sunday.
DOL v NEW – Newcastle have lost 20 in a row away to Queensland sides in Queensland. Their last win was in 2015.
DOL v NEW – Newcastle have lost both of their away games on a Sunday this season and scored 12 points in both games.
DOL v NEW – Newcastle are winless away this season.
CANB v CRO – Canberra have won five on a row v Cronulla at home.
CANB v CRO – Canberra have won nine of their last ten games at home on a Sunday. It’s seven of the last eight at home on a Sunday v Sydney teams.
CANB v CRO – Cronulla have lost their last three away games on a Sunday and conceded 43.3 points on average.
Another big weekend of NRL action featuring sizzling Dolphins, hot Sharks and a friendly scuffle in the tunnel. As ever there were star performances, work horses giving it their all, and the Broncos returning to their best. But which players were the best of the best you ask? We’ll let the stats do the talking and separate the Wheat/Chaff to present the 2024 NRL Round 7 Team of the Week & Player Stats.
First we have our Team of the Week, which takes some of the key player stats from the weekend and using various scoring methods come up with the best players in their positions from the latest round of the NRL.
Then there’s additional player stats from this weekend and some bite sized points of interest.
We’ve used the stats for each position and picked the best starting 13 players from the most recent round, the stats and points assigned are explained at the end.
On top of the best starting 13, we include the best four interchange players of the week. Seeing who has provided maximum impact from the bench.
Plus we throw in the players we thought were great but the stats did not with Gurgler’s Choice.
2024 NRL Team of the Season…so far
Here is the above but for all rounds.
2024 NRL Round 7 Player Stats
Want to see which players topped the key stats for the latest round of the NRL this weekend?
Want to see which players topped the key stats for the latest round of the NRL this weekend?
2024 NRL Player Stats…so far.
2024 NRL Round 7 Player Comparisons
Here is a quick look at the H2H Player stats from the most recent round in key positions.
This week we look and fullbacks as ever, and the best of the halves.
INTERESTING STATS FROM THIS ROUND
Isaiya Katoa set a new weekly record for most combined Try Assists and Line Break Assists. Four of the top 11 players for weekly combined Assists came from Round 7.
Three of the top four players for Run Metres this week came from losing sides. Including the top two both from the Warriors, who were well beaten.
Broncos man mountain Xavier Willison topped the Post Contact Metres and was second for Run Metres for players from the bench.
Jack Bostock’s four line breaks topped the week and doubled his previous single match round best.
Charnze Nicholl-Klokstad is averaging 28.0 runs per game. Dylan Edwards is next best with 23.3. Tohu Harris is the leading forward on 20.9 runs per game.
Latrell Mitchell still leads the Line Break Assists per game stat.
Ben Hunt’s 13 season try assists is nearly double the next best of seven from Chad Townsend.
How the Team of the Week works
Want to know how we come up with the numbers to rank the players, the below table should explain hopefully.
Want more Player Stats? Neeeeed more NRL data and stuff? Why not try our friends at Nothing But Legue for bite sized pieces of NRL Stats and more every day.
Want more NRL information than just the draw, results or the current ladder? Then you are in the right place and the right time with the home of Stats and Stuff via our 2024 NRL Round 7 Stats Summary for the weekend that was.
Each week we compile and keep up to date a wide range of stats from the latest weekend of NRL action plus the best 2024 NRL Season Stats to help you to the top of the tipping competition, land a few responsible winners or even make your Supercoach team better. And now with a match by match summary full of all the stats you need and/or want.
NRL Tipping Club presents….The NRL Thursday Liquid Lunch.
Quick NRL Round 7 Stats Season Summary
Some weekly and season stats and additional interesting visuals for the weekend that was and the season that is.
NRL Round 7 Stats Summary
NRL Round 7 Stats Summary – H2H Match by Match Stats and Stuff
All eight games with all the stats you could ever want or need with added barely interesting stats to go with. Giving you a decent wrap up of all that went on in the NRL on the weekend.
Melbourne have won nine of their past ten games v Roosters.
Roosters have lost all five Thursday night games v Melbourne.
Melbourne have won six in a row on a Thursday. 29 of 35 games on a Thursday v all opposition.
Roosters have lost their last five home games v Melbourne with a last win in 2019. The Roosters have also lost their last three games v Melbourne at the Sydney Football Stadium
Roosters made just one line break v Storm. That’s the fifth time this season that a team has made only one line break in a match.
Friday’s win was the fourth win in their last 11 games v Warriors.
Warriors won all four Friday away games last season. Friday’s loss was their first away loss on a Friday this season.
St George Illawarra have won their last two home games and conceded 12 points in both games.
It was the first time in their NRL lifetime that the Dolphins had scored over 40 points. Beating the point scoring record set against the Dragons in Round 2 this season.
Dolphins are now three wins from three against Sydney teams in 2024. They only won three in the entire 2023 season.
The Dolphins win broke a run of three straight losses on a Friday.
Dolphins record away to Sydney clubs is now W2 L5. Coincidentally, the Dolphins’ only away win v Sydney clubs are at Suncorp Stadium in Magic Round and this one in Darwin.
Isaiya Katoa’s combined seven line break assists and try assists is a player single round record for 2024.
Parramatta’s record in Darwin is now W6 L4. However they have lost their last three games there, all against various Qld opposition. Overall the Eels’ record in Darwin v Qld sides in W3 L4.
Parramatta’s last five Friday games have ended in defeat.
Penrith’s record at Bathurst is W6 L4. On a Saturday it is W6 L3. And vs Wests Tigers it’s 1-1.
Penrith’s home record on a Saturday is W17 L2. Only the Wests Tigers and South Sydney have beaten the Panthers on a Saturday at home since 2020.
Wests Tigers have lost their last six away games on a Saturday. They have also won just one of their last nine Saturday games away to Sydney clubs.
Wests Tigers have lost 12 of their last 14 matches at non regular NRL grounds going back to 2012. Penrith have won seven of their last eight.
Gold Coast have lost seven straight games at home on a Saturday and lost ten of their last 11. And won just two of their last 18 at home on a Saturday v Sydney clubs.
Manly have won five of the six games on the Gold Coast on a Saturday.
Manly have won six of their last seven away to Qld sides.
Broncos have won ten straight Saturday games.
Canberra have lost 12 of the previous 14 matches v Broncos in Brisbane. And lost six of seven Saturday games in Brisbane.
Canberra have won two of their last eight away to Queensland sides.
The Broncos currently sit sixth on the ladder. It’s the first time they’ve been in the top eight at the end of the round this season.
Bulldogs have won all three of their home games this season.
Newcastle’s loss broke a run of six games in a row on a Sunday v Sydney teams.
Cronulla have won 11 of their last 12 v North Queensland. And won 10 of their last 12 home games v Cowboys.
Cronulla have now won their last two home games v Qld sides by a combined 78-12.
Cronulla’s record v Qld teams at Sharks Park on a Sunday is W8 L3.
SHANGHAI, CHINA - APRIL 21: Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (1) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB20 leads Lando Norris of Great Britain driving the (4) McLaren MCL38 Mercedes on track during the F1 Grand Prix of China at Shanghai International Circuit on April 21, 2024 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images )
Max Verstappen wins his first Chinese Grand Prix, which is probably a surprise that he hasn’t won this race before, except this was the first one since 2019. Talking of partying like it is 2019 here is our 2024 Chinese F1 Grand Prix Result Summary which covers both races and anything else of interest.
This 2024 Chinese Grand Prix Result, Lap by Lap, Review & Summary gives you just enough to catch up with. With just a hint of cynicism, bias, opinion and colour. The perfect bite sized review for those who couldn’t be bothered, or don’t have enough time.
Didn’t see the race live? Don’t have time to watch the whole race? Here’s where we capture the laps where stuff happened. We write these live as we go, sort of like a minute by minute for the football, but marginally more interesting.
Setting the scene – Max Verstappen takes pole, again, but it was a late rush where Alonso, Norris all had chances at first on the grid. Carlos Sainz spun at the last corner bringing out a red flag but the car was not damaged too badly and he continued after the break. In other interesting qualifying news Lewis Hamilton lines up 18th on the grid after a shocker in Q1. Daniel Ricciardo outqualified Yuki Tsunoda for the first time in the season but will need a decent race result to keep the wolves at bay.
This was all after a sprint race dominated by Max Verstappen eventually. But this was after Lewis Hamilton led for quite a while and Lando Norris threw away his Sprint Race pole at the first corner. The race will be remembered for a huge battle for third involving Fernando Alonso, the two Ferraris and Sergio Perez. A taste of what F1 could be without Max winning everything.
As for race day it is overcast with a chance of some rain. They say 10% but it looks more than that. Will it be enough to stop Max Verstappen? No, but it might slow Sergio Perez enough to have a battle for second. We will see.
GRID (Starting Order) – VER PER ALO NOR PIA LEC SAI RUS HUL BOT
Lap 1 – Max Verstappen get away well enough and chops off Sergio Perez enough. Enough for Fernando Alonso to sneak up the inside of Perez into turn two in a typical bold Alonso move (on Perez). Further behind the Ferraris bottle it and both lose places to George Russel and Nico Hulkenberg. Although Leclerc steals back his place into the hairpin. Same with Sainz a little later. Lance Stroll made up a few places nicely and as ever Daniel Ricciardo fluffs the start and ends up just one place ahead of Yuki Tsunoda in 15th. That won’t help keep his seat. In back of the grid news Lewis Hamilton is only 19th after the first lap. Ouch for the Mercedes.
ORDER – VER ALO PER NOR PIA RUS LEC SAI HUL STR
Lap 4 – The race itself might regret Alonso getting ahead of Perez, as he seems to be bunching up the top eight behind him. Meanwhile Max Verstappen is cruising out in front by over three seconds and going about a second a lap at this stage. Not that Perez would have done much more about Verstappen. And like the sprint race, who cares about Max Verstappen winning when you get great battle with Fernando Alonso involved.
Lap 5 – Sergio Perez slips past Fernando Alonso for second. Too easy. Damn you Red Bull for building rocket ships. Talking of overtaking a nice move from Lewis Hamilton on Kevin Magnussen for 17th.
Lap 6 – Interesting caption on the coverage as the two Red Bulls are shown a long way in front on the long back straight. It pointed out who Verstappen and Perez are. One would have thought with any knowledge of F1 for the past three season that such labelling wasn’t necessary. A random Kick Sauber mention as we’ll probably forget they’re in the race after this. Valtteri Bottas is 10th and local hero Guanyu Zhou is second last aka 19th.
Lap 7 – Fernando Alonso is overtaken by Lando Norris for third. Maybe Lando and his McLaren can give us a race considering he was plenty fast in sprint qualifying. In less exciting overtaking news an Alpine was trying to get past a Williams for something.
Lap 9 – With DRS assistance Charles Leclerc powers past George Russell into turn one in a beautiful move. Soft tyre driving Yuki Tsunoda and Guanyu Zho change tyres. Lewis Hamilton does a lap later too. Bit of a write off this weekend now. Although, he has second place in the sprint race as something to take home. He advised on radio that the soft tyre was “The Worst Tyre Man”. Which is either a fair description of the compound or a very unfair description of a human impersonating a tyre man.
ORDER – VER (+7 seconds) PER NOR ALO PIA LEC RUS SAI STR BOT
Lap 12 – In other someone trying to make a race of this news, Charles Leclerc is on a bit of a charge, charging down the inside of Oscar Piastri for 5ht at the hairpin on the back straight.
Lap 13 – In pitstop news Pierre Gasly and Alpine have a shocker with almost being sent out with a loose wheel. Also a bit loose is Yuki Tsunoda and a Kick Sauber almost colliding in pit lane. Alonso and Russell have pit too dropping to 9th and 10th. All the stops leave Daniel Ricciardo in rare 7th territory.
Lap 14 – Max Verstappen pits. As does Sergio Perez. Ahh, the luxury of having one driver much better than the other. They both take hard tyres. This leaves the McLarens out there with the Ferraris. Verstappen and Perez rejoin 4th and 6th for now.
Lap 16 – Max Verstappen sets fastest lap and overtakes the yet-to-pit Charles Leclerc for second. Just in case you were wondering who was going to win this race. Sergio Perez serves up more of the same v Leclerc a few laps later to double down on the Red Bull dominance.
Lap 20 – Verstappen breezes past Lando Norris and re-takes the lead. There may be more to this race with one stops v two stops. But realistically Red Bull and Verstappen are playing with the field. And to a lesser degree, Sergio Perez. In other swapping Red Bull news, Daniel Ricciardo is “faster than his team mate” and goes past for 14th. One place behind Lewis Hamilton. Between 13th, 14th, Alonso in 5th and Nico Rosberg in the commentary box, those drivers have won the last nine Chinese Grands Prix.
Lap 21 – Valtteri Bottas’ car is smoking and stopped on the edge of the circuit. With a Yellow flag turn into a Safety Car for our interest? Stand by…..Yes. Sort of. At least Bottas leads to something interesting happening in a race. No offence to him.
VIRTUAL SAFETY CAR DEPLOYED
Lap 22 – Much pit lane action. Including Lando Norris for his first of the race. Norris keeps a podium spot by exiting in third behind the Red Bulls.
ORDER – VER (+22 seconds) PER NOR ALO LEC RUS PIA SAI HUL OCO
FULL SAFETY CAR DEPLOYED
The full safety car is deployed when it becomes clear that the vacated Kick Sauber of Bottas won’t budge.
Lap 23 – Both Red Bulls pit now the full Safety Car is called. So too does Fernando Alonso. Red Bulls take hard tyres, Alonso soft. Verstappen keeps his lead but Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc who pit before the Safety Car splits the Red Bulls.
ORDER – VER NOR LEC PER PIA SAI ALO RUS RIC STR
Lap 25 – Oscar Piastri pits and ends up 8th in front of Daniel Ricciardo for a nice Aussie moment. Talking of the Aussies Ricciardo’s team mate pit for tyres and he didn’t. An interesting late race tussle for the final point coming and ending in tears? We’re calling it right here.
In tactics news, everyone is on hard tyres except for Fernando Alonso (Soft – will regret) and Daniel Ricciardo (Medium). Most on the hard are likely to need another stop. So softer tyres look like a disadvantage for now. Until the rain comes. We hope.
SAFETY CAR ENDS
Lap 26 – All is well on the restart, until halfway around the lap shows Yuki Tsunoda with a busted rear wheel. Followed by Kevin Magnussen with a busted front wheel. Then footage of Lance Stroll running up the behind of an RB, which turns out to be Daniel Ricciardo. A lot to dissect here. So Kevin Magnussen clips Tsunoda during the restart lap – Tsunoda out and Magnussen pits. The Lance Stroll-Daniel Ricciardo incident was before the Safety Car restart, with Stroll running up the back of Ricciardo at the hairpin. Stroll calling Ricciardo an idiot for braking. Well that does happen into a hairpin, and since you can’t overtake under the Safety Car, going slower under the safety car should be expected. Maybe for a normal F1 driver. Maybe his Dad can fix it. This leaves Ricciardo 9th and Stroll pits.
SAFETY CAR DELPOYED
SAFETY CAR LEAVES (After too long)
Lap 32 – Daniel Ricciardo is the big loser on the restart dropping from 9th to 13th. His car may not be perfect after being rammed by Stroll. His slide through the field means he will soon be in Stroll’s company at the tail of the field.
ORDER – VER NOR LEC PER ALO SAI RUS PIA HUL HAM
Lap 36 – At the front Max Verstappen is leading comfortably enough – 2.6 seconds in front of Lando Norris who is similarly distanced from Charles Leclerc who is under pressure from Perez and Alonso – whose soft tyre gamble probably isn’t working out.
Lap 39 – Sergio Perez takes the final podium spot off Charles Leclerc who is quickly onto the radio about tyre strategy. Bit late now for the Ferrari man. Talking of Ferrari Carlos Sainz is under pressure for 6th from George Russell.
Lap 44 – As ever Fernando Alonso takes it into his hands to entertain F1 fans by pitting for new Medium tyres with 12 laps to go. 12 laps? Bloody hell, this is going to be a long-ish time. Further to the front, the remaining battle of interest is whether Sergio Perez can catch Lando Norris for 2nd. That doesn’t happen as by Lap 52 Norris is 11 seconds ahead of the Red Bull.
ORDER – VER NOR PER LEC SAI RUS PIA HAM HUL OCO
Lap 48 – Fastest lap setting Fernando Alonso passes Nico Hulkenberg for 9th. Probably only Lewis Hamilton’s 8th or Oscar Piastri’s 7th left to steal. Hamilton is closing in on Piastri. He takes Hamilton within a lap. A lap later Alonso gets past Oscar Piastri. Lord knows where he could end up now. Six laps to go.
ORDER – VER NOR PER LEC SAI RUS ALO PIA HAM HUL
Lap 52 – Fernando Alonso is nine seconds behind George Russell in 6th. But catching at four seconds a lap according to TV. Sadly Alonso’s Lap 52 is only 1.3 seconds quicker than Russell. So maybe fast enough for 6th?
Lap 54 – Guanyu Zhou is given some fresh tyres to have a bit of late race run. He overtakes Kevin Magnussen for 14th.
FINAL LAP – the TV cameras pick up Max Verstappen for the standard last half a lap honour as he cruises to yet another win, but first in China. Something about a Rd Bull in a China Shop could be added here. Behind that lame pun is Lando Norris’ fine second place.
FINAL ORDER (Across the line) – VER NOR PER LEC SAI RUS ALO PIA HAM HUL
Here we go through the field and highlight the very best (Great) of the race, and the plodders, the over-ambitious, the out of luck, and simply hopeless (Grape).
These points get added to our Driver of the Season scores. points for a great nomination, and -5 for the worst or grapest driver in the pack. Then it is +2 /-2 for honourable or dishonourable mentions.
THE GREAT-EST – MAX VERSTAPPEN
Pole, win, Sprint Race win and an extended Championship lead. Wash, Rinse, Repeat. Max Verstappen makes it look so easy. And it probably is for him. Didn’t get fastest lap. Can’t have everything. This time.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
LANDO NORRIS – A sprint race pole (forget about dropping it on first lap of that) and a very solid actual Grand Prix continues a good season. Second place and keeping Max Verstappen is a decent effort and a worthy reward.
SERGIO PEREZ – A solid race weekend of next best will keep the vultures away from his seat for a few more races yet.
FERNANDO ALONSO – Continues to out-perform the car. And defy his age. Thank god he has been re-signed for two more seasons. And pit late for new tyres.
NICO HULKENBERG – Points in his car is a good effort.
DANIEL RICCIARDO – Out-qualifies his team mate. Sort-of out races him despite another crap start. His team mate is punted off after the first safety car. This is after being better than Tsunoda in the sprint race. The fact he dropped a pile of spots after the second restart and retired after being slammed from behind by Stroll is a bit of a downer, but progress none-the-less. My, how long we have sunk for some good Ricciardo news.
THE GRAPE-EST – LEWIS HAMILTON
Knocked out in Q1 qualifying, made slow progress during the race. Probably not where he wanted to be. Ended up in the points after spending half a race complaining about how bad his car was. Our guess is he’d rather be in a Ferrari. A few points not enough to save him from the race weekend.
DISHONOURABLE MENTIONS
YUKI TSUNODA – Outqualified by his team mate for the first time this season. He did get ahead of him in the race after Ricciardo ran a long first stint.
LANCE STROLL – Thrashed in qualifying but Alonso (who reports say was being talked about being pushed out by some Aston Martin sources). Then is OK in the race until he runs up the back of Daniel Ricciardo before the Safety Car leaves. Aston Martin truly wasting a second car.
VALTTERI BOTTAS – A retirement to cap off obscurity. Pity, we like his new Aussie influenced attitude.
Was it a good race, loads of action, a tense ending, a surprise result or DNF, or just a big, fat, snooze-fest?
We rate the big race itself, so we know which races to go back and watch in the off season or one to simply remember the winner for the post season quiz nights.
ON TRACK ACTION – 5 / 10
Enough Safety Car and differing pit stop strategy to break up the race nicely enough.
ANY SURPRISES? – 3 / 5
A few Safety cars for interest, breaking up the Red Bull dominance. A good mix of contenders behind the Red Bulls. But ultimately a Red Bull display.
SEASON IMPORTANCE – 2 / 5
Red Bulls are faster than everyone. Sergio Perez being a good guide. The race is on for second this season.
ENDING 5 / 10
Thank god for Fernando. Alonso on fresh tyres offers something at the end. Like he usually does. Outside of that, some backmarker overtaking scraps.
OVERALL RATING 15 / 30
Fair to say it was a decent race. Did we miss the Chinese Grand Prix since 2019. Probably not. Will we remember this one. Probably not.
2024 F1 Season Power Rankings
Stay tuned for our Power Rankings from the race soon as it is currently being calculated and will be ready on Monday.
The 2021 Village Cricket Season Starts
PRISTON,UNITED KINGDOM - MAY 2: An aerial view of cricket being played on the Priston Cricket Club field in the village of Priston, on May 2, 2021 in Somerset, England. The easing of COVID-19 restrictions has meant the gradual return of normality in some areas of life, including amateur sport, which was halted during the previous lockdowns. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)
A former junior cricketer has made a comeback through the Queensland Warehouse competition.
Adam (28) hadn’t played cricket in over a decade after a disappointing end to his junior days.
“I was 17 and a super-keen cricketer. While I couldn’t bat, I loved bowling my leggies and wanted to be the next Warney,” said Adam. “But at the end of my last season of juniors, I asked my coach if I should try out for grade cricket. He told me I ‘wasn’t good enough, I’d struggle to make a fifth-grade side, and I’d be wasting my time even trying.'”
A devastated Adam stopped playing cricket and sold his gear. While he still loved watching cricket, he filled his competitive urges by playing touch football, basketball, and soccer over the next decade.
“I missed cricket but didn’t think it was worth trying if I couldn’t play grade. I knew the longer I didn’t play, the harder it’d be to get back into it. So I didn’t bother.”
But after-work drinks with a new co-worker back in February gave him the push he needed.
“I started a new job in January and Steve and I clicked. I knew he played in the Warehouse comp and that he loved playing social cricket with his mates,” said Adam. “One Friday night, we were having drinks and he said his team (Surprising Declarations) needed a fill-in for their one-dayer on Sunday. At first I said ‘no’, but Steve said I’d just field and bat number 11, and he’d shout me drinks after the game. So, I played. It was only one game.”
The game didn’t start well for Adam. While he bought a cheap box, he had to borrow pads and gloves as he went out to bat #11, with Surprising Declarations 9/120 after 40 overs.
“I didn’t get any bat on the first three balls and was bowled on the fourth. I thought ‘here we go again! The team’s going to be angry and tell me not to bother coming back!’ I half-considered jumping in my car and driving home to save myself the embarrassment.”
But Adam was pleasantly surprised.
“They gently teased me and said it wasn’t my job to score runs and not to worry about it. That relaxed me.”
While Surprising Declarations lost heavily, Adam had fun in the field.
“Steve put me at fine leg and I had fun running around protecting that area. I didn’t get a catch, but I stopped a few balls. And it was funny hearing all the boys geeing each other up when they made a mistake. Clearly nobody cared much if you screwed up. As long as you put the effort in.”
He even got a bowl as the game headed to an early finish.
“Amazingly, the old action I had at 17 came back, but my first three balls were awful. But once I settled down I started to land them and even turned a couple. And Steve shouted me some drinks after the game, as promised.”
To his surprise, Adam was selected the following Sunday, and decided to take it more seriously.
“I spent most days after work down at the nets, getting used to bowling leggies again and trying to spin the ball hard. My shoulder’s sore, but that’s ok.”
The hard work paid off, with Adam taking two wickets as Surprising Declarations won by six wickets.
“The first wicket was a short ball that was hit to cover, but the second wicket was a nice leggie that turned a bit and was caught behind. That felt good. And I didn’t have to bat, thank God.”
The good news is Adam is continuing with Surprising Declarations as they start their winter Warehouse season next month.
“I’m having fun playing cricket again. I’m working on my leggies and getting my fitness up so I’m ready to go for the winter comp. I also bought some new pads, gloves, helmet, and a cheap bat. I wish I hadn’t listened to that stupid coach and stopped playing cricket, but I can make up for lost time.”
The Gurgler presents stories of the Park Cricketer, where we explore the lower reaches of the great game of cricket from the suburban ovals and rural grounds across Australia.
