Cricket: Beyond a Boundary remembered fifty years on

Half a century after the publication of one of the great books about sport, C.L.R. James' Beyond a Boundary, his wife Selma, a respected author, has written a piece in The Guardian remembering the book's writing and its impact. Beyond a Boundary is not just about cricket, it is about culture, history and society and how they are inextricably entangled with the game. It is essential reading, not only for fans of cricket, but for anyone interested in the role that sport can play in national identity and culture.

Cricket: Australia's woes

As bad as England have been on their current tour of New Zealand, Australia have been worse on their tour of India. This does not mean that England have bragging rights, especially if they lose the test and the series in Auckland tonight. However as Greg Baum of The Age runs the rule over Australia's tour and analyses their problems, England are at least clear of many of the uncertainties that are plaguing their rivals. Nonetheless, both teams' struggles, in a double Ashes year, suggest that they will not be vintage series, at least as far as the standard of cricket goes, although that does preclude them from being exciting.

Great comebacks

Europe's Ryder Cup comeback brings back memories of other great golfing moments, notably the USA's identical feat in 1999. It also brings back memories from other sports. Here are five classic non-golfing comebacks:

1999: Rugby World Cup semi-final, France vs New Zealand

The greatest rugby match of all time? The All Blacks were favourites for the tournament, whilst France had been largely unimpressive, reaching the semi-final despite not playing any of the other big guns, but looked pumped-up from the start, belting out the Marseillaise and scoring an early try. However New Zealand exerted their control, and France's inability to tackle Jonah Lomu left them 24-10 down. Then Christophe Lamaison kicked two drop goals, and the French sparked into life, seizing the momentum as only they can. Time and time again they flew forward, scoring three tries and 33 unanswered points, while the shell-shocked New Zealanders never regained their composure, only scoring again when it was too late. Unpredictable as ever, one week later, an emotionally spent French team was unable to conjure up the same magic, losing the final to Australia.

1999: Champions Leaguefinal, Manchester United vs Bayern Munich

For all their domestic dominance in the nineties, Manchester United had failed in Europe. Finally reaching the Champions League final, they looked poor without the suspended Paul Scholes and Roy Keane, and trailed Bayern 1-0 as the match entered injury time. The German bench was already celebrating, when a United corner caused chaos in the Bayern penalty area. The United players looked as panicked as Bayern's but Ryan Giggs' scuffed shot found its way to Teddy Sheringham, who equalised. Munich were stunned, and seemed unable to react when, moments later, another corner was flicked on by Sheringham for Ole Gunnar Solskjær to score the winner. With 90 minutes up, the game seemed lost, yet United were champions, combining with the league title and FA Cup wins to complete a treble. Alex Ferguson's post-match comments said it all: “football, bloody hell.”

2004: American League Championship Series, Boston Red Sox vs New York Yankees

Carrying the weight of 86 years of failure, the 2004 Red Sox went 3-0 down to their bitter rivals. No team in major league history had come from 3-0 down in the playoffs to take it to a seventh game, let alone won the series. Entering the final inning of game four, the Red Sox were losing, and an 87^th year of hurt seemed inevitable. Then Dave Roberts stole a base, and scored the tying run. It took until a twelfth inning in the early hours of the morning for David Ortiz to hit the winner. Boston then went on a run of dramatic wins, each an epic in its own right. The highlight was Curt Schilling, pitching in game six despite the blood oozing out of his surgically repaired ankle and through his sock. Completing a 4-3 series victory in Yankee Stadium seemed to exorcise 86 years of demons, and a week later the Red Sox won the World Series, lifting the curse of the Bambino.

1981: England vs Australia, third test match, Headingley

After a dismal start to the series led to Ian Botham's resignation as captain, England found themselves in trouble against their old enemies. Asked to follow on 227 runs behind, bookmakers famously offered odds of 500/1 on an England victory, but carefree batting from Botham and inspired bowling from Bob Willis secured a historic win, the first by a team following on since the 1894. In 2001, India pulled off the same feat, again versus Australia, no less remarkable, and to date, only the third such win.

2005: Champions League final, Liverpool vs AC Milan

Milan had won the tournament two years prior, and finished second in Serie A, whilst Liverpool had struggled through a difficult season, finishing outside the top four. Three-nil up at half time, Milan were already celebrating in the dressing room. Rafael Benitez changed his formation, adding an extra man in midfield, and Liverpool responded with three goals in the first fifteen minutes of the half. The Italian side still had chances, but were too flustered to take them, whilst Jerzy Dudek was having the game of his life in the Liverpool goal. Despite experience of winning a shoot-out in the 2003 final, Milan crumbled when it went to penalties this time, scoring only two. Dudek's save from Shevchenko secured Liverpool's fifth title and first since 1984.

Honourable mentions:

1995: Indiana Pacers vs New York Knicks

Down 105-99 with 18.7 seconds remaining, Indiana's Reggie Miller scored eight points in 8.9 seconds, and the Pacers held on.

2001: Australia vs British and Irish Lions

Humiliated in the first test, and losing at half time in the second, Australia's rugby minds took control, whilst their more abrasive characters put the Lions off their game. Many argue the series turned on Nathan Grey's cynical elbow to Richard Hill's face, which removed the Lions' best player.

2012: Manchester City vs QPR, Premier League

City secured the title in dramatic last minute fashion thanks to Edin Dzeko's 92^nd minute equaliser and Sergio Aguero's 94^th minute winner.

Feel free to add your favourite comebacks in the comments.

Hansie Cronje: Ten Years On

Currently available as a podcast on the BBC website and on iTunes is 5 Live's recent documentary about Hansie Cronje, broadcast to commemorate ten years since his death. It is a timely moment to revisit the Cronje story, after a winter which saw three Pakistani cricketers convicted of spot fixing in a 2010 test match, Essex's Mervyn Westfield convicted of a similar offence in a county match, and the announcement of a new ECB initiative to tackle the threat of match fixing in the English game.

The most striking item in the programme was how little we still know about what went on in that period. Journalist Neil Manthorp mentions a series of bank accounts that were allegedly linked to many prominent cricketing figures, yet the investigation into those accounts was shut down after Cronje's death. These accounts had been previously mentioned in a television documentary, 'The Captain and The Bookmaker', made by political journalist Peter Oborne. This film was also critical of the report by the King Commission, which had investigated Cronje's crimes in the immediate aftermath, accusing it of being insubstantial.

Both programmes interview Marlon Aronstam, the bookmaker behind the infamous 'leather jacket test match' between South Africa and England in 2000. One thing that Oborne's documentary gets out of him is the suggestion of an ongoing relationship between Cronje and the bookie after that test match, but no details are forthcoming, nor is this elaborated on in the 5 Live documentary.

Aronstam's testimony is clearly difficult to trust, but what is alarming is the notion that the authorities only scratched the surface. Will this investigation ever be resurrected? The suggestion that dozens of other major cricketers were involved in match fixing but got away with it, would undermine an entire decade's worth of international matches. Perhaps most worrying for the game in the future is the thought that whatever bookmakers or gamblers were involved in these accounts were never identified publicly, leaving them free to continue their efforts.

This is, of course, pure speculation, based on an investigation that was terminated. But unless it is proven that those mysterious bank accounts are a myth, or were unrelated to match fixing, the doubt will always linger. That is perhaps Cronje's greatest crime against cricket: creating a nagging suspicion, that seems unlikely to be lifted any time soon.

Cricket and Baseball: A Shared History

A new exhibition at Lord's looks at the history of cricket and baseball, highlighting their similarities and comparing their development. The BBC website has a five minute audio slide show of some of the exhibition's main attractions, and which brings to mind Ed Smith's fascinating book, 'Playing Hardball' which explored this ground further, and which can be highly recommended to fans of either sport, or anyone who is curious about the way that different sporting cultures evolve.

Cricket: The Most Expensive Over Ever

Courtesy of Cricinfo, comes the story of the most expensive over in the history of first class cricket, which went for 77 in a domestic game in New Zealand twenty years ago last month. An extension of the logic behind declaration bowling, or buying a wicket, the plan was hatched by the captain of Wellington in order to persuade Canterbury to chase their total, and keep the Wellington title challenge alive. One of the more unusual footnotes in the history of the game, reminiscent of the time that Brian Rose of Somerset declared in a limited overs game with the score at 1 for 0 off one over, the the article is well worth a read.

Cricket: Afghan Success Part II

Following on from Afghanistan's qualification for the World Twenty20, as blogged about last week, the Guardian's weekly cricket roundup, The Spin, has a good piece about the various contributors from the cricketing world who have helped them get to where they are today. As the author Andy Bull points out in the comments below the piece, the team itself should get the bulk of the credit, but there are many people from the international community who have pitched in, and their work deserves some attention as well.

(Also in the comments is a fantastic response from one reader to the idea of Brian Blessed playing Mike Gatting in a film: "WHAT? Gatting's ALIVE!". Well it amused me anyway.)

Elsewhere in The Spin is the remarkable tale of New Zealand's Ewen Thompson and the kebab which hospitalised him, but not before he bowled 10 overs with it stuck in his throat. Much like the story of Afghan cricket, you couldn't make it up.

Cricket: Afghan Success

A week that began with an underdog success story, the New Orleans Saints, ends with one too, as the Afghan cricket team has qualified for the World Twenty20 championship which takes place in the Carribbean this April.

Afghanistan's cricket team is a rare feel-good story for that country in recent years, and is the subject of a documentary due to be shown on British television screens this year. The team was formed in 2001, having spread into Afghanistan through the Afghan refugees who took up residence in Pakistan during the Soviet invasion that began in 1979.

Fans celebrate their side's World Cricket League Division Three title

The side has quickly risen through the ranks of the minor nations of international cricket, and although it failed to qualify for the 2011 World Cup, ODI status was secured, and a place at the Twenty20 championship will give Afghanistan's cricketers a first taste of the big international stage. The resulting boost in attention should lead to more funding and greater support, ensuring that the team's upward trajectory continues.

Amongst all the political struggles in international cricket and the squabbling over money, it is nice to be reminded that sport has the power to unite and bring hope in some small way. This month's cinema release of 'Invictus' should teach us that much. Afghanistan's cricketers may be a long way from being able to host major nations at home, but are on the verge of giving the rest of the world something else to associate with their country than war.



Many Afghans learned the game in Pakistani refugee camps

There is an obsession at cricket's highest levels with breaking into big markets such as the USA or China and getting Olympic recognition, yet the sport has always expanded along cultural lines, and Afghanistan has the potential to be a future powerhouse of the game. To do this, it will of course need the security situation to stabilise but it will also need support from the ICC and the international community, and it is surely a more credible target for cricketing expansion than any other nation. Given the rise of cricket in a short space of time, the country's population, and its cultural ties to Pakistan, there is a real opportunity for the game's authorities to not only expand the game, but to make a difference to a country and offer its people something to be proud of. That is surely worth diverting some effort from the latest round of squabbling over the Champions' League.

Cricket: Development vs Tradition in Samoa

There's a fantastic piece on The Guardian's website about the growth of cricket in Samoa and its clash with kilikiti, the distinctively local sport that evolved out of a previous attempt to introduce the game to the country in the 19th century. As Andy Bull, the writer, points out, we're used to hearing about the clash between modernity and tradition in the cricket world, especially when Twenty20 is involved, as it is here, but this particular clash has a unique flavour.

The links in the article are also worth looking at, particularly this video, which gives the viewer a proper look at kilikiti:

Cricket: The Greatest Female Cricketer of All Time

Before today I'm ashamed to say I had never heard of Betty Wilson, but reading her obituary, it is clear that she was a remarkable cricketer, and quite possibly the greatest female cricketer of all time, as you would expect from someone who was compared to Don Bradman. In fact, she went one better than her fellow Australian by being a superb bowler as well, completing the then-unheard of feat, in male or female test cricket, of scoring a century and taking 10 wickets in the same match in the 1957-58 series against England.

A test average of 57.46 with the bat and 11.80 with the ball is a remarkable achievement in any form of the game, no matter what the standard, and although the women's international scene may not have been as well developed as it is now, those figures demand respect. Indeed she gained that respect, becoming the first woman to be inducted into the Australian Sports Hall of Fame. There's a brief interview with her from a couple of years ago on Cricinfo, which does not reveal that much, other than a single-minded and driven individual, as one might expect.

Highlights of the Decade: Cricinfo's list

Cricinfo has published a list of the best cricketing performances of the 2000s (parts one and two). The performances they have chosen are certainly classics, but have they missed anything? Feel free to add your thoughts.

Cricket: Cricket on Ice

Looking at this article on Cricinfo, it seems that cricketers around the UK have missed an opportunity to get some unseasonal play in during the recent cold snap. During the winter of 1878-9, keen players around the country seized the chance to hold an impromptu winter season.

Matches took place on skates, and some surprisingly good scores were posted, alongside some more predictably bad ones, and there was enough action taking place for Wisden to report on the scene in the following year's edition.


There has seen plenty of sledging, but not in a Steve Waugh way

In reality, there probably was not enough ice in the south for this sort of game this winter, but in the north of England, or in Scotland, it might have been briefly possible. There was thick enough ice for some curling to take place, although plans for a big match were abandoned. Still, the idea is worth remembering for future winters. It would certainly be a memorable day's cricket.

Press round up

Courtesy of The Observer: Ten technical innovations that changed sport.
An interesting list which harks back to a different era, one of independent, and often amateur, innovators. It is hard to imagine many of the sports mentioned without the equipment in this list.

Photographer Tom Jenkins chooses his pictures of the decade.

Eddie Butler rounds up England's selection options for the Six Nations, with the squad due to be announced on Wednesday. He proposes some interesting ideas, including the suggestion that Delon Armitage might play at centre, although the obsession he shares with other pundits about playing Jonny Wilkinson at inside centre I think overlooks Wilkinson's lack of dynamism. Even if the inside centre is picked as a second fly-half, he still needs to be able to offer traditional inside centre traits, such as crash ball options, which Wilkinson does not. Similarly, Courtney Lawes has become the darling of several leading journalists, but he cannot get into the Northampton team at lock, and is not an obvious pick at blindside flanker. One excellent performance against Munster and Paul O'Connell brought him to national attention, but he needs more performances of that standard before he plays for England.

Meanwhile The Times looks at the risks of eye-gouging, and the importance of Julien Dupuy's disciplinary hearing to the future of the game.

Simon Barnes looks at the ball-tampering row engulfing England's tour of South Africa, and points out the hypocrisy of blaming bowlers for all the game's ills (I'm not sure about the taking of a wicket as the "ultimate point of arousal" mind you).

Mike Selvey suggests that South Africa should be careful what they wish for before they instruct the groundsman to prepare a result pitch for the final test match which starts in Johannesburg on Thursday.

Highlights of 2009: England's New Stars Shine at the Oval

In the end, it was all so simple. Win the toss, bat first, then bowl the opposition out with a sizeable deficit, post an improbably high target with two and a bit days left, bowl them out with plenty of time to spare. One suspects that for England, an Ashes victory will never be as easy as that though. Yes, with hindsight it seems so simple, but this was a series that twisted and turned, and although it lacked the sense, present in 2005, that this was cricket of the highest quality, the 2009 Ashes would earn its own place in history as another series of compelling high drama.

England's win secured the Ashes in dramatic fashion

The ten-day gap between the fourth and fifth tests turned out to be the best marketing tool that anyone could have dreamed up, something administrators would do well to heed in light of the number of back-to-back tests in modern schedules. The media was filled with speculation about selection, particularly the England number three position vacated by the out of form Ravi Bopara. Would Mark Ramprakash, the great unfulfilled talent of his era alongside Graeme Hick, earn a fairytale recall? Should Marcus Trescothick come out of retirement for a swansong? Should Ian Bell, another man under pressure, retain his place? Amazingly, given the havoc that constant chopping and changing had wreaked upon past England sides, some pundits advocated a complete gutting of the middle order to reinvigorate a team that had been humiliated in the third test at Headingley.

As it was, the selectors chose the man they had been lining up for the role, the form player of the domestic scene. Despite his South African accent, Jonathan Trott would be cast as England’s saviour.

In any event, two stars were born at the Oval. Trott looked composed in his first innings, as England struggled on a difficult pitch, and was unfortunate to be run out for 41. England fans were initially disappointed with their first innings total of 332, but with each passing over it became apparent that on this pitch, it would be a competitive score. It looked even more competitive after the Australian reply, when Stuart Broad, heir to Andrew Flintoff’s role as all-rounder, came to the fore in his predecessor’s final test match. In a possibly career-making performance, Broad took 5-37, all of them top order wickets, and suddenly England were in the driving seat.

Stuart Broad seized the momentum for England on day two

Broad’s performance was the moment his career came into focus, as his potential suddenly turned into achievement. Bowling at a good pace, with a disciplined line and length, and an ability to bowl wicket-taking deliveries on a pitch that responded to him, he seized the moment, and the initiative. For an afternoon, a sort of mania overtook the Oval, and every time the tall Englishman ran in to bowl, anything seemed possible. The feeling was reminiscent of Kevin Pietersen’s assault on Brett Lee’s bowling on the final day at the Oval four years prior, a sense of momentum inexorably shifting.

Then it was over to Trott, whose nerveless second innings century brushed all the selection controversy aside almost effortlessly. Combined with Andrew Strauss’ second half-century of the match and some quickfire cameos from the tail, including a Flintoff farewell knock, England now had a commanding lead on a deteriorating pitch.

Australia dug in manfully as Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke fought for all they were worth. However, with Broad establishing himself as England’s new all-round star, Andrew Flintoff gave the younger man one final lesson in seizing the initiative, running Ponting out with a jet-propelled throw. It was now a matter of if, rather than when, England would win. Steve Harmison, for possibly the last time for England, and Graeme Swann, fresh from a quickfire 63 with the bat, and after a summer in which he had become a bona-fide match-winner, did the rest.

Flintoff celebrates Ponting's run-out with his team-mates

The final five wickets fell in only eight overs, making what had been an attritional fourth day seem strangely surreal under the August sun. England had won the Ashes at for the second time in four years, and like the previous win in 2005, it had been a series that had reminded the world just how compelling test cricket could be. It was not a definitive series, Australia were no longer the world’s best side, and England were not about to fall into 2005’s trap of thinking that they had arrived. However, the home nation had seen new stars emerge, and both nations could look forward to a rivalry that seemed as intense and competitive as it had ever been.

Highlights of 2009: England's win at Lords

The odds were against England before the second Ashes test match at Lords. In the twentieth century, England had only beaten Australia there once, in 1934. In the twenty-first century, England had lost two out of two at Lords to Australia, even in the historic Ashes win of 2005 a win at the home of cricket proved one curse too many in a series where curses had been lifted one after the other. England had been hammered in the first test at Cardiff, their bowling appeared impotent and their batting lacked the assurance of their Australian counterparts, only hanging on for a draw by the narrowest of margins. On the eve of the test, England’s talismanic all-rounder, Andrew Flintoff announced that he would be retiring from test matches at the end of the series.

Strauss led by example on day one

Yet from the moment Andrew Strauss won the toss and elected to bat, everything went right for him, and by the end of the match, the captain was building a reputation as a different kind of talisman to Flintoff, as he and Alistair Cook scored a record-breaking 196 runs for the first wicket. Whilst the Australians did fight back, the English bowlers followed their captain’s example, and swung their way through a batting line-up that had appeared untouchable days earlier. In the second innings, all the English batsmen pitched in, and left the visitors with an unprecedented 522-run deficit.

From this point onwards, it became Flintoff’s test match. In the cold light of day, his career was never quite the success it might have been. For three years from 2003, he was the finest all-rounder in the world, but injuries restricted him outside of that period, and even at his peak, he never quite accumulated the runs, and particularly the wickets that one might have expected. However, given the fitness problems that would dog him for the rest of the summer, Lords would turn out to be his final moment of glory, and what a moment it was. He may not have been consistent throughout his career, but Flintoff always had a knack of coming to the fore at the crucial moment. A vicious opening spell of fast bowling took 2 for 9, removed both openers and put the visitors on the back foot. When the other bowlers could not match him, Michael Clarke and Brad Haddin led an impressive Australian rearguard action that created the smallest glimmer of hope for their team, but the following morning, with history to be made one way or the other, Flintoff removed Haddin. Graeme Swann then dismissed Clarke, and Flintoff took two more wickets to secure a five-wicket haul and a place on the Lords honours board, leaving Swann to wrap up the victory.

Flintoff enjoying one final moment of history

The bare facts do not do justice to Flintoff’s effort however. He was not really fit to play by this stage, bowling through an injury that should have put him on the sidelines, and yet he was not going to let the pain deny him his moment. Pushing himself through a hostile and focused ten-over spell, he created a bittersweet spectacle for England fans: a glorious moment of sporting pleasure; but also a moment that had come too infrequently, and which would surely never be seen again. For that afternoon however, the cricket world belonged to Andrew Flintoff for one last time, and it was fitting that he used it to make his mark on history, breaking England’s curse at Lords.

Highlights of the Decade: Best of the Press

A round up of various end of the decade lists:

Deadspin's best pieces of American sports writing of the decade.

The Guardian picks its six best moments, six best footballers, six best goals and top ten rugby matches. The paper also takes a fascinating and damning look at the state of English football's finances over the last ten years.

Comedian and Cricinfo blogger, Andy Zaltzman gives part one of his cricketing highlights.

NFL Network runs down the top ten performances of the decade.

Highlights of 2009: England and Australia draw in Cardiff

With numerous end of the year and end of the decade lists floating around, it is time for Corinthian Spirit to jump on the bandwagon with its moments of 2009 and of the decade. Keep an eye out for these between now and 31 December, and to get the ball rolling, here is a highlight from 2009.

For English sports fans there was no bigger event in 2009 than the Ashes, and what a start the series got off to in the unlikely setting of Cardiff. No-one knew what to expect from the series, with an Australian team full of unfamiliar faces arriving on these shores, whilst England were still rebuilding following a winter of discontent. Predictions before the series covered all eventualities.

Both sides take the field on day one

The first four days were enjoyable, albeit unremarkable. England posted a reasonable score on a dry and dusty wicket, before Australia batted superbly to make England’s total look inferior, and their bowling impotent. Then came day five, which showed that test cricket, under attack from Twenty20, still has the power to grip like no other. England collapsed, surely spelling defeat. Then Paul Collingwood dug in, shepherding the lower middle order and the tail, all of whom made small but valuable contributions. Collingwood’s resistance typified his entire career: endeavour and fight over talent, as more gifted, but less reliable batsmen came and went.

When Collingwood was finally removed after 344 minutes, there were still over 11 overs left in the day, and only James Anderson and Monty Panesar stood between Australia and first blood in the series. Panesar, picked for his bowling on a spinner’s wicket, had been a disappointment, and had shown little aptitude with the bat throughout his career. Yet from somewhere, he and Anderson found reserves of concentration. As each ball, and then each over passed, Australian frustration grew, not helped by English time-wasting tactics. Meanwhile, England’s fans, who had earlier written their side off, were bit by bit, ball by ball, daring to hope again. As the hope rose however, so did the tension. What had seemed like a foregone conclusion was now a real contest.

When the end came, there was relief and frustration depending on where you looked. Against the odds, a couple of English underdogs had survived, despite their team mates’ failings. Test cricket had produced another classic encounter that would live long in the memory. The fuss and speculation about the finale would run for days, and the English had scored an improbable psychological blow, as their opponents seemed confused about their inability to find a knock-out punch. It set up cricket fans around the world for another series that would fascinate, and like this match, go right to the wire.

Cricket: Shane Bond

When Shane Bond announced his retirement from test cricket this week, it brought to an end a career that despite lasting eight years, only saw him play 18 matches, and never saw him fulfil his considerable talent, arguably through no fault of his own.

After a slow start to his professional career, only emerging after a stint as a policeman, Bond burst onto the international scene against Steve Waugh’s dominant Australia side in 2001-02, and immediately showed that he had the pace and class to be a match-winner against the best batting line-up in the world, as the Kiwis shocked their hosts and the South Africans in the one-day series. It was largely the same story whenever he took the field for his country, as Bond was arguably the premier fast bowler in the world when active, in a decade when there was ultimately a distinct lack of genuine pace bowlers of real quality. Witness his 6 for 22 against the Australians in the 2003 World Cup, a tournament they otherwise dominated, or his 13 wickets in the 2007 tournament.

Bond bowling in the 2007 World Cup: an all too rare sight

Nonetheless, his chances of making a lasting impression on the game were ultimately stymied by injuries and politics. Injuries largely removed him from international cricket from 2003 to 2005, and following a successful comeback against Zimbabwe that year, taking 13 wickets at 9.23, including 10 for 99 in the second test, he was again injured for another nine months. Various other injuries restricted him until 2008 when he signed up with the rebel Indian Cricket League, recognising that his was never going to be a long career, and that he needed to gain what financial security he could from it. Pressure from the Indian board (BCCI) meant that he was excluded from appearing for New Zealand throughout this time, a ludicrous position which deprived cricket fans around the world from seeing arguably the best fast bowler of the era in his prime.

Released by the ICL, Bond returned to New Zealand colours this year, and after another match-winning appearance against Pakistan, taking 5 for 107 and 3 for 46 in a 32 run win, he broke down again, and like Andrew Flintoff, came to the realisation that his body was not up to the rigours of test cricket.

Bond celebrates a wicket against Sri Lanka

Bond will continue to play limited overs cricket for his country, and will hopefully showcase his talent on that stage for a few more years, but it is sad that the best years of his talent were lost to injury, and absurd that nearly two of them were lost in order to protect the commercial interests of the BCCI. Perhaps the saddest fact of all is that no-one appeared to be protecting the best interests of Shane Bond, the New Zealand team, or cricket fans around the world.

The Worst Sports Kits in History

This week, Edinburgh Rugby unveiled a spectacular new kit to be worn in their Magners League and 1872 Cup match-ups against Glasgow, and it got me thinking about some of the worst sports kits of all time.

There are ten here, but dozens that I could have included. Whilst there’s no accounting for taste, there appear to be some universal rules about what makes a kit truly terrible: attempts to make kit that fans can wear as casual gear (they’re going to wear it anyway, what difference does it make?), luminous colours, brown, grey, all goalkeepers’ kits since 1990, colours that sports teams don’t usually wear (there’s a reason everyone opts for blue, red, black etc…), anything from the ‘70s, anything ‘modern’ or for the ‘youth’ market (or a marketing man’s idea of what that is).

Take a look at this list and suggest some shockers of your own.

Denver Broncos: 1960-62 (1962-96)

As a part of this year’s celebrations of 50 seasons since the American Football League began (originally a rival, it merged with the NFL in 1970), the original eight AFL teams have been wearing throwback uniforms in selected matches. Unfortunately, this has meant a renaissance for the hideous brown and mustard yellow Denver Broncos kit, which was so unloved that when it was ditched after two seasons, it was burned at a public bonfire.

The Broncos then changed to their ‘classic’ bright orange jerseys with powder blue helmets. Not a great look either, but at least it wasn’t brown. Is it coincidence that the Broncos only broke their Super Bowl duck in 1997 when they changed to navy blue? Probably. Still a wise move though.

Scotland rugby team: 1998-2000

In 1998 some bright spark decided to replace Scotland’s traditional white change strip with a bright orange one. Thankfully it didn’t last. This kit was so terrible, that hardly any pictures of it can be found on the internet. But try as they might, the Scottish RFU can't pretend it didn't happen.

Stade Francais: 2005-present

Stade President Max Guazzini has, to his credit, turned a lower league side into one of Europe’s biggest rugby clubs. However, he is also a shameless publicist. Since 2005, he has committed he club to a new shirt every year, often the work of fashion designers, and incorporating the brightest colours possible. It has worked, Stade’s kit regularly gets headlines around the rugby world, but it is a shame that their old jersey, navy blue with red lightning bolts, has been forgotten.

Manchester United: 1995-96

This infamous grey kit took the blame when United lost 3-1 to Southampton in 1995. The players claimed that they could not pick each other out from the crowd, resulting in a 3-0 deficit at half-time, when they changed to their third strip and pulled a goal back, but it was too little, too late. The fact that they usually play in front of thousands of fans all wearing replica kits, presumably making their red shirts hard to pick out, was never raised.

(Picture: Umbro/Flickr)








England football team: 1996

What is it with Umbro and grey kits? After the Manchester United debacle, they decided that what England fans wanted was a kit that would go well with jeans. Nevermind that England’s traditional red away kit was worn in the 1966 World Cup final. One semi-final defeat to Germany in Euro ’96 later, and red was reinstated.

(Picture: Umbro/Flickr)










New Zealand cricket team: 1980s

The 1980s, the early years of coloured kits in cricket. Each side needed a colour and an identity. New Zealand’s idea of an identity? Beige.

To be fair, it has enjoyed a renaissance as an ironic look for the Kiwi answer to the Barmy Army, the Beige Brigade, and the national side seemed to enjoy wearing beige as a one-off for a Twenty20 match in 2005, but for all concerned, I think it’s best left to the fans.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 1976-1996

The now legendary ‘creamsicle’ uniforms were worn by the Buccaneers for the first twenty years of their existence. This period saw them produce the first winless season of the Super Bowl era, and it took them 26 games over two years before they won a game. Even the picture of a Buccaneer on the helmet looked more like a camp cavalier. This ignominious history earned them the nickname, ‘the Yuks’, which was not helped by their horrific uniforms. Like the Broncos, they changed their colours, and within a few years, won a Super Bowl.

What’s even more mystifying is that they brought the colours back this year for a game against Green Bay. Unlike the former AFL teams, who had a reason to be wearing throwback jerseys, the Buccaneers had none. That said, it did bring their first win of the season, maybe unsurprising, given that their opponents were presumably playing with their eyes closed.

Cameroon football team: 2004

First they tried sleeveless shirts in 2002, but FIFA banned them. Undeterred, Puma decided to push their luck and produced an all-in one kit for Cameroon’s 2004 African Cup of Nations campaign. FIFA, realising that this heinous crime against football was the most important issue that they had to face, and more threatening to the fabric of the game than controversies over drugs, club debt, the trafficking of young players or video technology, banned it again, and deducted points from Cameroon’s World Cup qualifying campaign. Although the points were later returned, never let it be said that FIFA don’t clamp down on the big problems in the modern game. Aesthetically, this kit is fine, but one that costs its side six points is not worth the trouble.

Goalkeepers: since 1990

Goalkeepers have a rough deal. Whilst the outfield players grab all the glory, they are pilloried for making one mistake. Meanwhile, those pesky outfielders also went and reserved all the good colours, leaving some shockers for their colleagues between the posts. England ‘keepers of the '90s fared especially badly, though Mexican goalie Jorge Campos is right up there with them.

Denver Nuggets: 1980s

US sports teams produced some shockers in the '70s and '80s, but this ticks my box for anything attempting to look ‘modern’.

Cricket: Usain Bolt vs Chris Gayle

Judging from this footage from a recent charity match, Usain Bolt has more presence and effectiveness on the cricket pitch than many of the current West Indies team.