Obscure Players That You Remember

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Wood's major issue was he would often run on body language alone, it was an instinctive habit he struggled to overcome - he was just as bad in Shield cricket apparently.

If any Batsmen played a front foot cover/mid-on drive or even a cut shot shot and then happen to take another half step forward, the said batsmen calling 'WAIT' or 'YES' was mainly irrelevant because Wood was already on his bike and run halfway there...!

My Dad picked this up pretty early in his career and said; look, look, if a batsmen plays something off his back foot, that idiot Wood barely moves at the bowlers end....

It was just a bad when he was batting, because again, if the non-striker walked towards him and Wood thought he wanted a run, he'd just take off....
 
Nah, he was a bespectacled hack.

I'm not giving leave passes to muppets.

People think guys like Geoff Marsh were better cricketers than they really were. That guy averaged 33 over his 50 largely unearned Tests. 4 tons in 50 matches opening the batting, FFS. It's guys like that who exposed proper cricketers like David Boon, Dean Jones and Allan Border to rebuilding jobs time and time again.

Yeah, they did their best but there is a list a mile long of complete clowns who got Test call ups and played far too much cricket at Test level. Bruce Laird, Graeme Wood and Andrew Hilditch were three more park cricketers who hacked their way through opening the batting during a very dark period. I know we were gutted by World Series Cricket but some of these guys were absolutely terrible.
Re graeme wood. Complete campaigner off field too. He was at our district club one day watching his son play against us. At the time he was one of the higher ups at Swan brewery who sponsored the WACA and grade cricket. He noticed on the bottom shelf nearly out of view there was a 6 pack of tooheys old that we kept for some old boys to drink. He said if it wasn't removed there would be a please explain coming from the WACA and Swan Brewery. ****wit
 
Wood's major issue was, he would often run on body language alone, it was an instinctive habit he struggled to overcome - he was just as bad in Shield cricket apparently.

If any Batsmen played a front foot cover/mid-on drive or even a cut shot shot and then happen to take another half step forward, the said batsmen calling 'WAIT' or 'YES' was mainly irrelevant because Wood was already on his bike and run halfway there...!

My Dad picked this up pretty early in his career and said; look, look, if a batsmen plays something off his back foot, that idiot Wood barely moves at the bowlers end....
That is the most f**ked thing ever lmao. Wood was a deadset rabbit caught in the headlights when the run was on alright. Like the worst cognitive dissonance you ever saw. Half of him wants to run the other half wants no part of it.

He must be terrible to live with. "You want a beer Graeme"?
"Yes"!!! ........"No"!!!!
 

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I'll never forget the YouTube clip of him scoring (an admittedly wonderful) century against Pakistan and running two or three of his partners out by calling a single and reneging on it. As wood was walking off to applause one bloke verbally abused him in the stands and wood stopped and tried to confront him. IMHO if you score an international ton at home and one of your own supporters wants to fight you afterwards you must be a pretty poor runner between the sticks
That ton looks like it was against the West Indies mate. Must have been a fair innings with their bowling attack and Australia only made about 170. Good commentary from Bill, when Wood confronted the spectator: "That's a bit foolish Graeme, just keep walking."

 
That ton looks like it was against the West Indies mate. Must have been a fair innings with their bowling attack and Australia only made about 170. Good commentary from Bill: "That's a bit foolish Graeme, just keep walking."


Yea that was the one. Wood looking like he wanted to go on with it in the stands lol. IIRC Ian chappell said wood's got his second victim of the day after the second runout, and that his batting partner would be quite within his right to let him know exactly how he feels in the dressing room
 
That is the most f**ked thing ever lmao. Wood was a deadset rabbit caught in the headlights when the run was on alright. Like the worst cognitive dissonance you ever saw. Half of him wants to run the other half wants no part of it.

He must be terrible to live with. "You want a beer Graeme"?
"Yes"!!! ........"No"!!!!

Roger Woolley was my first real cricket coach at grade level many many years ago and was livid if he ever saw any of us being run-out. His 3 simple rules were:
1. Ball goes behind batsmen, watch ball, your call
2. Ball goes in front of batsmen, watch batsmen, his call
3. Always use WAIT! or YES! for calls, anything else is unacceptable
 
Roger Woolley was my first real cricket coach at grade level many many years ago and was livid if he ever saw any of us being run-out. His 3 simple rules were:
1. Ball goes behind batsmen, watch ball, your call
2. Ball goes in front of batsmen, watch batsmen, his call
3. Always use WAIT! or YES! for calls, anything else is unacceptable
Yep that's what most of us got taught. You'd wonder who wood's coach was?
 
Yea that was the one. Wood looking like he wanted to go on with it in the stands lol. IIRC Ian chappell said wood's got his second victim of the day after the second runout, and that his batting partner would be quite within his right to let him know exactly how he feels in the dressing room

Yep, that's classic Wood, trying to react to the other batsmen's intentions, rather than watching the ball and making a call.....
 
It said WA.

There are a few articles about him on google and youtube footage of him bowling to Viv Richards who has said he was one of the quickest he ever faced.
yeah, but footage was English domestic cricket so that in itself did nothing to make me think he was Australian which was context of where his name got brought up in relation to previous post of mine. But this I found makes it far more clear... "Spencer was born in Nelson, Lancashire, in 1972, and his family emigrated to Perth when he was five " so yeah, must have played some Shield cricket so good get as obscure as completely escaped my memory in our domestic scene.
 
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Did anyone notice the batting card at the end of the runout king's video?

1. Wood, 2. Stumpy Laird, 3. John Dyson, 6. Rick Darling.
Obviously couldn't squeeze Hilditch, Wayne Phillips and Steve Smith in as well.

Makes you understand how we ended up with Boon and Geoff Marsh opening in the Tests. Looks like we tried most regular state openers and they either had a narrow peak or no peak. Then you factor in rebel tours...
 

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It's interesting how most of Australia's fastest bowlers from the early 90's were short AF.

Spencer, Holdsworth, Shane George, Denis Hickey (probably more late 80's though) and a couple others who's names escape me right now
 
Classic Bill Lawry. "Someone in the crowd has suggested to Graeme Wood that his running between wickets isn't all that flash".

Or the dulcet tones of R Benaud during an 78/79 Ashes test when Graeme Wood ran out Rick Darling (for about the 10th time):

"Oh dear, well Darling really left stranded in no-mans land there! That could be an interesting discussion in the dressing rooms later?"
 
yeah, but footage was English domestic cricket so that in itself did nothing to make me think he was Australian which was context of where his name got brought up in relation to previous post of mine. But this I found makes it far more clear... "Spencer was born in Nelson, Lancashire, in 1972, and his family emigrated to Perth when he was five " so yeah, must have played some Shield cricket so good get as obscure as completely escaped my memory in our domestic scene.

It's surprising you don't the drug saga with Malcolm Speed at WA & Victoria was big news at the time for most Australian cricket followers.

 
It's surprising you don't the drug saga with Malcolm Speed at WA & Victoria was big news at the time for most Australian cricket followers.

Do not remember it. Probably will not remember Sam Murray much in a few decades times either. Drug saga stuff seems a common thing now with WADA, ASADA..
 
I don't remember this guy, but I read about him in a stats book when I was a kid: Rodney Redmond from NZ.

'He scored a century and a fifty in his only Test, against Pakistan in 1972-73, giving him a Test batting average of 81.50. His century included 5 successive fours off a Majid Khan over and came at almost a run-a-ball.[1][2] He also played two One Day Internationals. He was picked for the 1973 tour of England, but showed little form, having trouble with his contact lenses, and was not chosen for the Tests.[3][4]'

His first class average was 33.69, so I guess it could be argued that he was never gunna be a Test star
 
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I don't remember this guy, but I read about him in a stats book when I was a kid: Rodney Redmond from NZ.

'He scored a century and a fifty in his only Test, against Pakistan in 1972-73, giving him a Test batting average of 81.50. His century included 5 successive fours off a Majid Khan over and came at almost a run-a-ball.[1][2] He also played two One Day Internationals. He was picked for the 1973 tour of England, but showed little form, having trouble with his contact lenses, and was not chosen for the Tests.[3][4]'

His first class average was 33.69, so I guess it could be argued that he wasn't a superstar robbed of further opportunities

The poor man’s Andy Gaunteaume
 
Oooh, good triva. One-Test Wonders :D


Notable examples
As of October 2019, there have been 447 players who have only played one Test match.[7][8] Some of the best performances by these players are:
About one in eight Test cricketers are only picked once.[1] Occasionally, one-Test wonders have been recalled to Test cricket after a gap of several years. One example was Ryan Sidebottom, who was recalled for his second Test in 2007 after his debut in 2001.[19] Coincidentally his father, Arnie Sidebottom, was a one-Test wonder.[20]

Darren Pattinson is an unusual one-Test wonder in that he played a single Test for England, while his brother James Pattinson had a more successful Test career with Australia.

As of May 2007, fourteen one-Test wonders have also played in a single One Day International for their team.
[16]
 
Was looking through South Africa's list of leading test wicket takers and stumbled across the raging bull that was Monantie Hayward. A tearaway quick who should have had more success than he did due to a crap attitude.

Remember he came to Australia with big wraps on him but we sent him packing with his tail between his legs after only a couple of tests. Was genuinely quick though (mid 140's iirc)
 
Was looking through South Africa's list of leading test wicket takers and stumbled across the raging bull that was Monantie Hayward. A tearaway quick who should have had more success than he did due to a crap attitude.

Remember he came to Australia with big wraps on him but we sent him packing with his tail between his legs after only a couple of tests. Was genuinely quick though (mid 140's iirc)

I don’t remember there being much wrong with his attitude, just a complete lack of bowling intelligence
 

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