Brett Geeves vs Darren Lehmann - the fall out

[undertaker]

It is this article below that has caused controversy in the media, and subsequently led to Lehmann not only rebuking Geeves, but also de-friending him on Facebook/Twitter:

http://www.foxsports.com.au/cricket...a/news-story/b4a7b98443eabca77df5412b2a188911

Geeves has written some very good articles for Fox Sports in the past (his most renown being his experience on the 2009 tour of South Africa), and I agree with what has been expressed in the article above.

Cricket Australia tried to use 3 ODIs and 1 T20 vs Sri Lanka as preparation before the 2010/11 Ashes and we all know how that ended up for the Aussie side...I fear the same mistake is being repeated this summer, with no red ball (i.e. Sheffield Shield) experience just before leaving Australia to prepare for the tour of India in Dubai. Will be interesting to see what the preparation schedule will be before next summer's Ashes series. I still have no idea why we are playing a T20 series vs Sri Lanka in the few days leading up to the 1st test, where all the marquee players will be. It will be very difficult for CA to promote this useless T20 series (the only exception will be the T20 in Geelong, which will be the first international game of cricket played there).

Also, how Renshaw was going possibly going to be excluded from the tour of India is a farce as well. I have absolutely no idea what's going on at Cricket Australia (whether it's James Sutherland, or Pat Howard, or Darren Lehmann etc.), but there's something in the Australian dressing room that hasn't been right for quite sometime.

 

[Twizzle]

He goes on to say this

Call me old fashioned, but give me the phenomenal performance of anyone against the red ball over the strong power game of some basher in the shorter forms.

But then he says

Losing Glenn Maxwell to national duties is better than losing him to being suspended for foolish behaviour. Geez he can play though and I would take him to India.

f**king hypocrite

 

[TheParraboy]

Scheduling is a farce

Warner agrees as well

http://www.espncricinfo.com/india-v-australia-2016-17/content/story/1076800.html


Leave the t20 shit for domestic comps and world cup. Absolutely no need for these 3 t20 v SL this summer.

 

[Twizzle]

good on these guys for speaking up about the scheduling, should make Sutherland at least take a bit of notice

 

[Bazal]

good on these guys for speaking up about the scheduling, should make Sutherland at least take a bit of notice

Lol.The only thing that merkins notices is the bank balance

 

[hineyrulz]

Lol.The only thing that merkins notices is the bank balance

Spot on Baz, he's all about Da Benjimans and how fat his bonus is.

 

[hineyrulz]

And Pathetic from Lehman, not a Geeves fan by any means but to say he can't have an opinion because he wasn't a great player is BS and a cop out.

After what he said about Renshaw he should STFU for a while or he will only look more stupid.

 

[TheParraboy]

Boof is on the BBL tonight, hope he doesn't stoop own to a Warne or Chappelli level

 

[undertaker]

He goes on to say this

But then he says
f**king hypocrite

My apologies, should've pointed that out when I wrote my post and agree with you re:Maxwell.
I was mainly focusing on the scheduling issue and comments re:Renshaw.

And Pathetic from Lehman, not a Geeves fan by any means but to say he can't have an opinion because he wasn't a great player is BS and a cop out.

After what he said about Renshaw he should STFU for a while or he will only look more stupid.

The bigger question is: what the hell was Lehmann thinking when he chose to go public with that statement? I mean, the nature of the statement is mindboggling enough given Renshaw's good form this summer, but to go public with it sends mixed messages and damages team morale and trust even more. Renshaw will now have in the back of his mind that Lehmann subconsciously doesn't want him in the side.

I'm glad someone in the media has shined the spotlight on this issue, as I had a feeling this was going to go 'straight through to the keeper', like many other aspects involving Cricket Australia.

 

[hineyrulz]

The bigger question is: what the hell was Lehmann thinking when he chose to go public with that statement? I mean, the nature of the statement is mindboggling enough given Renshaw's good form this summer, but to go public with it sends mixed messages and damages team morale and trust even more. Renshaw will now have in the back of his mind that Lehmann subconsciously doesn't want him in the side

Agreed, its stupidity from a bloke who should be under far more pressure than he is.

 

[undertaker]

...

 

[Incorrect]

I'm glad someone in the media has shined the spotlight on this issue, as I had a feeling this was going to go 'straight through to the keeper', like many other aspects involving Cricket Australia.

Where Wade would have dropped it no doubt....

 

[Twizzle]

Comment from ‘my bunny Boof’ highlights everything wrong with Australian cricket: Brett Geeves

• 6 minutes ago
• BRETT GEEVES@brettygeevz
• Source: FOX SPORTS

DARREN Lehmann. Known larrikin. Subscriber of the national hierarchical code.

On Monday, I felt the repercussions of what happens when you step out of line and lose sight of your official standing in the code as a player who does not feature on a Channel 9 lithograph.

In response to my article that questioned Lehmann’s message in the media that Matt Renshaw was no guarantee to hold his place as a starter for the opening test in India – even though his last innings was a beautifully crafted 184 on a turning SCG wicket – he offered up this as a warning that I was to shut it.

“I don’t listen to Brett - he wasn’t a very good player”

Darren Lehmann is no fan of Brett Geeves as a player... or columnist.Source: News Corp Australia
Have you ever been to India and experienced the ugly way in which the traffic flows?

The size of your vehicle, in India, will determine the ease in which you commute around its crowded streets.

When you step back and watch it, it’s ugly, yet flows with a beauty that suggests everyone knows their role.

Dogs give way to humans. Humans give way to rickshaws. Rickshaws give way to cars. Cars give way to buses. Buses give way to trucks. And everyone gives way to the elephants and cows that roam the streets as they are untouchable gods.

This principle provides the foundation for the nations cricket code.

Grade players and its coaches give way to second XI players by laughing at their meek jokes and listening to their name dropping of state-based players and coaches while they add ‘c**k’ to the end of every sentence.

I do hope it is explained that this is not how to interact with people in the real world.

They are like the player from your club who comes back from his three-month league stint with a broad Cockney accent. It’s fake, and you hate him for it.

Second XI players give way to those that have played first class games.

They lurk around the change rooms hoping to be invited to the exclusive lunch, coffee, golf and FIFA club of the first class players.

By loitering long enough, they may also be gifted a pair of season old pads and gloves or be given a bat that is deemed not worthy of first-class standard and described by the first class player as ‘putrid, c**k’ by failing the all important flick-the-middle-with-your-fingernail-rebound Test.

They know this effective testing mechanism through shared knowledge of an Australian fringe player telling the story of how Sachin tests his bats.

First class players give way to Australian players - quite literally.

For the first time in Sheffield Shield history we saw Doug Bollinger replace Mitchell Starc in the middle of a game so as not to overload Starc’s body with too many overs before the home South African series.

Doug? Well he got the indignity of wearing that bright orange vest that screamed on the day “Today I’m just a pawn in the chess board of the code”.

Sure, lets disrespect Shield cricket some more, because who cares if the guinea pigs get hit by a pink ball at night time.

And then there are the Aussies. Periphery vision not required. The metaphorical elephants and cows; who can only receive opinion and media attention from those who were statistically better players than them.

The Australian cricket team chills out after a hard session in Delhi.Source: reuters
Breaking this down; we are looking at the 10 media commentators that represent the BBL and Channel 9.

Unfortunately for the ABC guys, they provide far too much information on the cricket and,

with their lack of suits, tatts and hair product, they just don’t fit the mould to be taken seriously.

Cargo shorts, backpacks and the use of their experiences of life away from the game to provide intelligent musings are for Dungeons and Dragons nights at Gerard Whateley’s house.

Because that’s what people who didn’t play cricket at Darren Lehmann’s level do.

The roll out of this structure in Australian cricket is to ensure that those with minimal impact at international level know their place.

That they have an understanding that their domestic and grade careers make them hacks that can provide little to the game moving forward.

It’s imperative that no one strays away from their standing and when acknowledged by a higher ranking player or coach they will be granted access to one nod, in agreement, and one meek smile through the pain of their burning soul.

Brett Geeves in action at training with the Australian cricket team in 2009.Source: News Limited
So of course Darren Lehmann thinks I am an average cricketer.

It’s ingrained in him as a defense mechanism to either call me a s**t bloke or a s**t cricketer. Yet all he has unwittingly achieved is provide us with an example of the types of attitudes that still exist in our game: a recognition that the foundation for the code is real and that the views of anyone that didn’t play at a higher level than ‘Boof’ should be mocked, ridiculed and sent to the wasteland of internet-based journalism; regardless of the depth of knowledge, experiences and fact provided to support the view.

It is a completely flawed thought process and one that provides credence to my views that the AFL are a long way ahead of cricket when it comes to its coaching pathways and how it has embraced a number of different knowledge banks that aren’t from the elite player range.

As for Geeves v Lehmann? Well I know you are wondering.

In the two Shield games we played against each other he averaged 29 and I got nine wickets - including Boof’s scalp twice.

In four one-day games, where I took six wickets at 22, he averaged 31, and I got him once – and didn’t get to bowl to him in two others as he was already dismissed.

So across the four games I got to bowl to him, I dismissed him three times.

The code was made to be broken.

Anyone got bunny ears?

http://www.foxsports.com.au/cricket...utm_medium=Facebook&utm_campaign=FoxSportsAus

 

[Twizzle]

and so it continues

 

[undertaker]

Agreed, its stupidity from a bloke who should be under far more pressure than he is.

I believe Lehmann's contract was recently extended to the end of the 2019 Ashes tour.

Looking at the ICC future tours programme, there's a lot very crucial series for Australia between now and then:

http://icc-live.s3.amazonaws.com/cms/media/about_docs/547c2a4d42a86-Copy of Copy of FTP 2015 to 2019 as at Nov 2014.pdf

- tour of India (4 tests)
- home Ashes (5 tests)
- tour of South Africa (4 tests)
- tour of Pakistan (3 tests)
- World Cup in England
- Ashes tour

I'm not sure if I can see Lehmann lasting the distance over the next 2 1/2 years.

On a positive note, good to see that we are finally playing Bangladesh (in the Top End this August) and Zimbabwe (July 2018) in test matches. Haven't played Zimbabwe since 2003 and Bangladesh since 2006. Those will be fantastic series to inflate the averages of our batsmen and bowlers. Don't laugh! After all, 176 of the chucker's 800 test wickets came against Zimbabwe/Bangaldesh combined from 25 test matches.

 

[Patorick]

Torn.

I'm kinda with Lehmann on this.

Geeves is a really good writer though. Clever and funny, AFL references aside.

 

[undertaker]

Comment from ‘my bunny Boof’ highlights everything wrong with Australian cricket: Brett Geeves

• 6 minutes ago
• BRETT GEEVES@brettygeevz
• Source: FOX SPORTS

DARREN Lehmann. Known larrikin. Subscriber of the national hierarchical code.

On Monday, I felt the repercussions of what happens when you step out of line and lose sight of your official standing in the code as a player who does not feature on a Channel 9 lithograph.

In response to my article that questioned Lehmann’s message in the media that Matt Renshaw was no guarantee to hold his place as a starter for the opening test in India – even though his last innings was a beautifully crafted 184 on a turning SCG wicket – he offered up this as a warning that I was to shut it.

“I don’t listen to Brett - he wasn’t a very good player”

Darren Lehmann is no fan of Brett Geeves as a player... or columnist.Source: News Corp Australia
Have you ever been to India and experienced the ugly way in which the traffic flows?

The size of your vehicle, in India, will determine the ease in which you commute around its crowded streets.

When you step back and watch it, it’s ugly, yet flows with a beauty that suggests everyone knows their role.

Dogs give way to humans. Humans give way to rickshaws. Rickshaws give way to cars. Cars give way to buses. Buses give way to trucks. And everyone gives way to the elephants and cows that roam the streets as they are untouchable gods.

This principle provides the foundation for the nations cricket code.

Grade players and its coaches give way to second XI players by laughing at their meek jokes and listening to their name dropping of state-based players and coaches while they add ‘c**k’ to the end of every sentence.

I do hope it is explained that this is not how to interact with people in the real world.

They are like the player from your club who comes back from his three-month league stint with a broad Cockney accent. It’s fake, and you hate him for it.

Second XI players give way to those that have played first class games.

They lurk around the change rooms hoping to be invited to the exclusive lunch, coffee, golf and FIFA club of the first class players.

By loitering long enough, they may also be gifted a pair of season old pads and gloves or be given a bat that is deemed not worthy of first-class standard and described by the first class player as ‘putrid, c**k’ by failing the all important flick-the-middle-with-your-fingernail-rebound Test.

They know this effective testing mechanism through shared knowledge of an Australian fringe player telling the story of how Sachin tests his bats.

First class players give way to Australian players - quite literally.

For the first time in Sheffield Shield history we saw Doug Bollinger replace Mitchell Starc in the middle of a game so as not to overload Starc’s body with too many overs before the home South African series.

Doug? Well he got the indignity of wearing that bright orange vest that screamed on the day “Today I’m just a pawn in the chess board of the code”.

Sure, lets disrespect Shield cricket some more, because who cares if the guinea pigs get hit by a pink ball at night time.

And then there are the Aussies. Periphery vision not required. The metaphorical elephants and cows; who can only receive opinion and media attention from those who were statistically better players than them.

The Australian cricket team chills out after a hard session in Delhi.Source: reuters
Breaking this down; we are looking at the 10 media commentators that represent the BBL and Channel 9.

Unfortunately for the ABC guys, they provide far too much information on the cricket and,

with their lack of suits, tatts and hair product, they just don’t fit the mould to be taken seriously.

Cargo shorts, backpacks and the use of their experiences of life away from the game to provide intelligent musings are for Dungeons and Dragons nights at Gerard Whateley’s house.

Because that’s what people who didn’t play cricket at Darren Lehmann’s level do.

The roll out of this structure in Australian cricket is to ensure that those with minimal impact at international level know their place.

That they have an understanding that their domestic and grade careers make them hacks that can provide little to the game moving forward.

It’s imperative that no one strays away from their standing and when acknowledged by a higher ranking player or coach they will be granted access to one nod, in agreement, and one meek smile through the pain of their burning soul.

Brett Geeves in action at training with the Australian cricket team in 2009.Source: News Limited
So of course Darren Lehmann thinks I am an average cricketer.

It’s ingrained in him as a defense mechanism to either call me a s**t bloke or a s**t cricketer. Yet all he has unwittingly achieved is provide us with an example of the types of attitudes that still exist in our game: a recognition that the foundation for the code is real and that the views of anyone that didn’t play at a higher level than ‘Boof’ should be mocked, ridiculed and sent to the wasteland of internet-based journalism; regardless of the depth of knowledge, experiences and fact provided to support the view.

It is a completely flawed thought process and one that provides credence to my views that the AFL are a long way ahead of cricket when it comes to its coaching pathways and how it has embraced a number of different knowledge banks that aren’t from the elite player range.

As for Geeves v Lehmann? Well I know you are wondering.

In the two Shield games we played against each other he averaged 29 and I got nine wickets - including Boof’s scalp twice.

In four one-day games, where I took six wickets at 22, he averaged 31, and I got him once – and didn’t get to bowl to him in two others as he was already dismissed.

So across the four games I got to bowl to him, I dismissed him three times.

The code was made to be broken.

Anyone got bunny ears?

http://www.foxsports.com.au/cricket...utm_medium=Facebook&utm_campaign=FoxSportsAus

Another humorously read. I'm sure Lehmann will be thoroughly impressed with it, especially the bit about being out 3 times to Geeves after saying “I don’t listen to Brett - he wasn’t a very good player”

 

[undertaker]

Torn.

I'm kinda with Lehmann on this.

Geeves is a really good writer though. Clever and funny, AFL references aside.

Give me Geeves over Gerard Whateley any day of the week. Whateley is another Victorian stooge who has somehow been incorporated into the higher level of ABC's cricket coverage after Roebuck/O'Keeffe/Mitchell/Morphett were no longer at the ABC. His complete lack of cricket knowledge was on display during the test series, let alone his grating voice.....argh!

 

[Incorrect]

Give me Geeves over Gerard Whateley any day of the week. Whateley is another Victorian stooge who has somehow been incorporated into the higher level of ABC's cricket coverage after Roebuck/O'Keeffe/Mitchell/Morphett were no longer at the ABC. His complete lack of cricket knowledge was on display during the test series, let alone his grating voice.....argh!

As I posted at the time, my favourite part of Whateley's commentary during the Tests was when he asked Dirk Nannes if Ben Hilfenhaus was worth considering calling up for the Sydney test if the selectors were to rest Starc and/or Hazlewood.... even though, as it was quickly pointed out to him by Simon Katcih, Hilfenhaus retired from 1st class cricket nearly a year ago.... Of course he brushed this embarrassing revelation aside by suggesting it was a joke.... He is completely out of his depth calling cricket

 

[JJ]

This Geeves fella is the goods. Writing his thoughts, and calling out bull shit where he perceived it (and in some cases where it undeniably lays)

Great stuff, don't have to agree with everything he says but seems much if its worth a read