The Dropkicks -

Wendell Sailor retires from drug fund

Hadyn — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:25:31 +1300

On-again off-again rugby league player Wendell Sailor has announced that he will retire from the game he gave up to play rugby, which he was forced to stop playing because he was doing drugs.

Since completing his ban for testing positive to cocaine, Sailor became a model player, saving his money for when he retired so he could really go on a binge. At this time Sailor has not announced any plans for a new income stream to fund his drug habit, though many similar athletes find media work both an easy source of income and an easier source of Class-A items.

Murray Mexted: Man of the People

Hadyn — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:19:57 +1300

He was just saying what we were all thinking, because that way he didn't have to think for himself. Murray Mexted, mentally incapable television rugby commentator, was pulled from the commentary team for the Air New Zealand Cup final after he made critical comments about the NZRU.

Mexted said he was sent a letter (which is an ancient form of email) from Sky "pointing out that the NZRU was a commercial partner of the network and Mexted should 'refrain from being critical'".

I'm of two minds here:

Mexted was hired to give commentary on sport, part of that commentary should be criticism of the way that sport is run on and off the park (whether he was right or wrong is another argument).
I can't stand Mexted and the commentary of the final was that much better for him not being there.

So let me reconcile these two thoughts by saying to Murray: "Don't let them push you around! Get out there and be a man, stand up those fat cats! Say what you want about anyone: the NZRU; Samsung; Steinlager; Sky TV. What are they going to do? Fire You?"

Quickest. Football Goal. Ever.

Naly D — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:21:54 +1300

Game Review - FIFA 10 [PS3]

Hadyn — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:34:03 +1300

This year I have had the privilege to review two of the best sports games I have ever played.

The first was The Bigs 2, though unlike Naly I play it on the Wii where pitch curve and speed and batting timing and upstroke are controlled by actually pitching and swinging.

The other is FIFA 10. I have never played a football game that looks this good, plays this good and is equally joyous and frustrating to play.

Players who have played previous titles will quickly pick up the controls and the nuanced shooting system (you really just want to tap that shot button). And after watching the vague tutorial videos you’ll be juggling the ball and taunting your opponents in no time.

But the best part of FIFA isn’t the gameplay. The load times are a complete non-issue as the game lets you play a one-on-one with the goalkeeper while the game loads around you. And the soundtrack is fantastic dub/reggae dance hall tracks mixed with nouveau new wave tracks like Peter, Bjorn and John. So good in fact that I went to iTunes and bought some of the songs.

And while we're talking sound, the game comes with sound tracks from a bunch of different languages. So when you're bored with the whinging British commentators you can switch to the much more entertaining Spanish, French, Portuguese or Germans. It's always a barrel of laughs to hear "Goooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaalllllllllllalalalalalalallllaaaaaaa!!"

Like many EA games this season (including the terrible NBA and NHL titles) FIFA has a season mode that is live updated with real stats and like those other games you have to pay for it (though my NBA game came with a free redeem code, so maybe you don’t have to pay for that one).

If you have one of those new fandangled HD TVs you’ll be quite impressed with FIFA, or maybe you won’t because you’re a smarmy git. I don’t know.

Two Huge Plays from College Football

Naly D — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:42:34 +1300

You can hear them from here

Naly D — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:06:40 +1300

Everyone's talking about Dan Carter's tackle on Martin Roberts from the weekend. Was it high? Was it too aggresive? Should he be banned? It's a non-issue to me.

As a winger I hate cheap shots. Spear tackles are enough to have me screaming at the telly and there were some very, very terse words thrown the way of Sitiveni Sivivatu last week. But Dan Carter's tackle on Martin Roberts on the weekend was not as incredible as the Welsh media has been made out. There're a few things to consider here;

1. Carter's original hit was around the shoulder. As the arm wrapped around Roberts, he did connect with the head, yes. But a side-on tackle is impossible to make precisely.
2. There was no malicious intent from Carter.
3. Aside from the potential of danger, this was a fucking incredible tackle. The fact that Carter had the prescence of mind to hit Roberts around the chest so he couldn't get an offload was fantastic, but the force he hit with was outstanding.
4. Roberts failed to protect himself. If he'd been looking around instead of suffering white-line fever he would have been able to brace for the hit. The only reason it looks as bad as it does is because he wasn't expecting it, and he milked it after he landed, I think.
5. Context. Had this been in a Tri-Nations match, or had it been that tackle but 50m back up the field or the teams reversed, would the outcry have been the same? Hell, what if it had been Roberts on Ma'a Nonu? [I did see a couple of neck-shots on Nonu through the match]

And it wasn't as bad as either of these [from a 'non contact' sport] anyhoo.

Speaking of white-line fever, the reason this is getting so much attention in Wales, I reckon, is as a smokescreen because the Welsh team sucked arse in that game. They were as good as the Blacks in turning over the ball in the ruck, but couldn't do anything with it. That one forward who looked like he belonged in Nirvana was awesome with ball in hand [and out of it] but the rest of the team looked like they were just there to make up the numbers. They constantly kicked the ball away [and oh my word, wasn't Zac Guildford amazing? I swear, he was great at doing exactly the same thing that Joe Rokocoko and Sitiveni Siviavtu have been doing for the last three seasons. Fielding kicks, tackling and getting back on defence, playing as a third centre and chasing kicks. Lets all rave on and on and on about him, because he's brought so much to the team!] and didn't look like having the away team worried - except on the interception, which has somehow not gotten much attention [maybe if it had been thrown by L.McAlister it would have] despite the fact anyone could have forseen that wrap-m2 pass coming. Even a lock.

Conversely the All Blacks had the opposite problem. On two occasions they missed out on scoring a try because the team stopped playing as a team and everyone was desperate to score a try. Nonu's decision to straighten up and go for the line, ignoring a two-man overlap, was slightly forgiveable as it's an attacking play the Blacks use often, but the final push for the line in the game was an absolute farce.

Wales have gone backwards from last year. Does that mean that the game against Australia will feature two teams in decline?

Players who had pearlers though were Conrad Smith, Cory Jane, Jerome Kaino, Dan Carter [of course] and Jason Eaton, who I was surprised about. I would like to see Jane at fullback and Mils rested against Italy though, with Smith and Guildford on the wings, just to get a glimpse at what can happen. Because while Mils did have a couple of runs in that game, they never really went anywhere.

On another note I want to talk about the Air New Zealand Cup final and my love-him/hate-him player, Colin Slade. Slade had a brilliant first half, but was really inconsistent overall and that is symptomatic of his season, I think. I'd rather see you on the wing, really. And sucky, Wellington. Though at least we get more people to watch our finals.

New Sport Tue-err... Thursday: Speed Skating

Naly D — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:18:49 +1300

This week's NST is a sport which was brought to my attention by my sports history lecturer - speed skating. He was discussing the sport, saying that New Zealand consistently does well at international level but the sport often escapes mainstream profiling.

Speed skating is, tactically at least, similar to road cycling.
From Wiki

Skaters tend to form packs or "pacelines" (also called "pelotons") in which skaters line up behind a lead skater, thereby saving energy by skating in his draft. Sportsmanship requires that skaters in the paceline share the duty as paceline leader. Those who never "take a pull" at the front will likely find other skaters tacitly working together to defeat them.

It can be held indoors, similar to ice speed skating, or on a road course.

As a side note, in looking up this sport I found that one of the best in NZ, Reyon Kay, was actually the form above me when I went to high school in Paraparaumu. So there you go.

I couldn't find a documentary the likes of those in recent weeks, so I've just added short clips of teams from around the world.

If you're interested in finding out more about inline speed skating, check out http://sktenz.org.nz or head along to the NZ Speed Skating Championships at Manawatu Arena Stadium between Jan 5th and 9th.

Fun at Home: The DIY Chris Rattue Article Kit!

Naly D — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:52:16 +1300

From: Rattue, Chris
Sent: Wednesday, 4 November 2009 1:26 PM
To: Editing Staff
Subject: To cover for my leave

Hi guys, I'm on holiday for the next month - I'm going to finish painting the house. Since the All Blacks are on tour at the moment, that means my faithful readership will go without their dose of the Rat for a while... Or not! I've decided to share with you all the secret of my writing success. Here is the template I use to write all of my articles;

The quality of All Black rugby has reached a new low on its [insert metaphor for decline]. Last night I watched an absolutely [abysmal/farcial/pisspoor/average/out of their depth] team playing one which was truly at the top of their game. And the latter team most certainly was not the ones in the black jerseys. Handling errors defined the match, particularly those of [Ma'a Nonu/Luke McAlister/Whoever has the least caps/a winger] which cost us many attacking opportunities. The forwards were outmuscled and outclassed at the set piece and it really brought into question what the [insert movie reference involving three people] of Graham Henry, Steve Hansen and Wayne Smith are doing with this side.

It was clear to all and sundry that there were only two things holding this lacklustre side together. Firstly, the [insert reference to obscure battlefield leader]-like leadership of Richie McCaw kept the team in the hunt, particularly after a few gutsy penalty calls. Secondly, the [insert reference to revered rugby back]-like skills of Dan Carter kept the backline moving forward despite its own best efforts.

But no matter what the scoreboard says, this is a team which is clearly suffering from [insert obscure negative medical term here]. The NZRU is continuing to [pay for/pay penance/suffer] its decision to allow [insert glowing commendation(s) until near word limit] coach, Robbie Deans, to escape their mighty clutches and head to Australia.

I look forward to reading what I have 'written' when I get back. Hehehehe!

PS: All you fuckers stop linking me to that video of Robbie singing the Australian anthem.

PPS: Steve I know you took my cup this morning you cock. Put it back on my desk by 3pm.

Violence and Sport: What's Wrong With America?

Caleb — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:47:33 +1300

This video was taken during this weekend's game between the University of Florida and the University of Georgia. The gouger is Brandon Spikes. As the video clearly shows, he went fishing inside the helmet for an eyeball. Coach Urban Meyer weighed in on it this week.

"There's no place on the field for that. We're going to suspend him for the first half of the Vanderbilt game."

Excuse me? The first sentence suggests that this is a serious offense. The punishment, however, is nothing. Vanderbilt is so poor they might have rested him for that many snaps just to make sure he was fresh for next week. A half? Against Vandy?

When you look at the media stink over this year's Heineken Cup Semi and Schalk Burger's punishment for his offense against the Lions, you see the difference between rugby and American football. I fear you also see the difference between the USA and the rest of the world. The sports talk radio guys I was listening to earlier today were suggesting this is a non issue. Gouging just happens when you play football. They made South African coach Peter DeVeilliers sound like a bleeding heart. The reaction by many gridiron analysts in the American media is basically, "Its a tough game. Quit if you don't like it."

While I enjoy physical sport as much as the next guy, there are limits. As more information comes in about the life altering injuries NFL players receive (particularly acute, early cases of Alzheimer's) I start to wonder if the days of the gladiators are returning.

Rugby is a great sport because of the civility that it tries to maintain. While the record is not perfect, the media and controlling bodies still get upset about eye gouges and cocaine use. The scandals that "rocked" rugby this summer might have been ignored in the USA sports media. We just accept that the athletes use drugs and rip out other peoples' eye balls. We are in the midst of praising Alex Rodriguez for a World Series performance less than 9 months after we found out that he cheated with performance enhancers.

The trend toward callous disregard for athletes here in my home land is disturbing me a bit, and I hope we see a return to the values that have attracted me so much to rugby and international sport. I also fear as the injury tolls become more severe that rugby is starting to turn a blind eye to important player welfare issues. I don't want to be an alarmist, but we do have to be realistic. We all like a good tackle, but not at the expense of someone's life. Or eye.

Eastwood's SA Rugby Film

Caleb — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:46:50 +1300

I just found this trailer over on Apple's film trailer website. It is for Clint Eastwood's new film about South Africa's victory at the 1995 Rugby World Cup. While I am not sure I am going to be able to sit through two hours of a Springbok love fest or Matt Damon trying an Afrikaner accent, I am excited about it. Particularly in a place like the USA where many know little about rugby, any publicity is good publicity.