DAVE: Hi boys, since the last time we spoke the world of Australian cricket has become a lot poorer due to the deaths of Rod Marsh and Shane Warne. It’s unbelievable and a lot of people, right around the globe, are still in disbelief. Let’s start with you Lachie, when did you find out and what was your reaction?
ROD MARSH AND SHANE WARNE
LACHLAN: I knew Rod Marsh had gone to hospital with heart issues, and I found out about his death through socials, but then on Saturday morning my dad woke me up with the news that Shane Warne had passed away as well. I thought I was still asleep and dreaming to be honest. You don’t expect someone like Shane Warne to die; you think they will live on forever. I was totally shocked.
DAVE: Yeah you’re right mate, it’s a bit like when Steve Irwin died, he was larger than life, and I remember when David Hookes died, he was front and centre on radio and was a big part of people’s lives as well…it’s just a shock more than anything when they’re gone, and all three of them went suddenly. What about you Tyler?
TYLER: The thing with Warnie is that I was quite young, and didn’t get to see the best of his cricket, he retired when I was seven or eight. I didn’t live through his greatness, only through his commentary and things like that. I was trying to look at the score from the Pakistan test and noticed the message below the score…and I honestly thought someone was taking the p… It’s hard to believe that not long before he sent a condolence tweet to the Marsh family, and then he was gone himself..
DAVE: Not everyone loved Warnie, I did, but love him or dislike him he had an immense amount of knowledge stored up and when you throw Rod Marsh into the mix as well…wow…we’ve lost two amazing people who thought about cricket a little different to the rest. Tyler, do you agree it’s a big blow to Australian cricket moving forward?
TYLER: For sure, but think about sport in general over the last three years. What did we do in 2019 to deserve this. We’ve got a global pandemic; we lost Kobe Bryant to basketball, Dean Jones, amazing sporting icons, and now there’s a world war in the making as well. I don’t know who stepped on a butterfly in 2019, but if you were born in 2018 you’d probably be pretty disappointed with what you’ve seen so far.
DAVE: Do you two young blokes remember Rod Marsh and his legacy?
LACHLAN: When I think of Rod Marsh…I think straight away…caught Marsh bowled Lillee, but no, I don’t remember his cricket that much.
DAVE: For blokes my age, Rod Marsh was one of the heroes we grew up with, with the Chappell’s, Dennis Lillee, they were our absolute heroes. Marshy and Warnie were similar in many ways I think. Marshy, while playing, puts a bet on the opposition, England, to win a test match, and he drinks the most beers on the plane trip to the UK. Marsh and Warne, their off-field antics are almost as legendary as their on-field achievements. What about highlights boys, are there any that stick out for you two?
TYLER: As I said, my recollections are probably a bit different, and I don’t think this is a highlight, but one thing that is entrenched in my mind is the fight Warnie had with Marlon Samuels in the Big Bash Derby. Some of the words that were said during that exchange, which can’t be repeated here, have actually been used as the name for a group chat for my school of friends (laughs).
LACHLAN: The obvious ones are the Gatting ball and the 700th wicket at the MCG, but the one that sticks out for me is the first season of the IPL, he’s the first non-Indian captain of the Rajasthan Royals in 2008 and leads a young group, not rated by anyone, to the first ever title. He was more of an enabler of men, he made them do it. I think when we look back at Warnie it’s like Shakespeare’s words in a play, you don’t look at the individual words but you should look at the whole thing as a collective. He messed up at times, but then he did something like donate his Baggy Green to the Bushfire Relief. When you roll his life up it’s a beautiful thing.
DAVE: Shakespeare might be in your mind Lachie, but I have a few other characters that I would use to describe him. With the ball in hand he was like Merlin the Magician, at times he was like the naughty school kid up the road, and then at other times you would just giggle to yourself and think about the opportunities he had that not many other knockabout blokes would get. Seriously, some blokes look at Hugh Hefner and admired the life style he had, well Warnie had that sort of feel about him and a bit more as well. Love him or not, we would all have to agree there was only one Shane Warne…they definitely threw the mould away when they made him.
TYLER: How many leg-spinners are around now, compared to 30 years ago…he made leg-spin cool again. In my junior cricket there were leg-spinners galore, because everyone wanted to bowl like he did.
DAVE: He transformed the game, like Gilchrist did for wicketkeepers, and we can’t say that about too many players in cricket history. As for the legacy of Marsh and Warne, to me Marsh’s legacy is not just his playing career, but how he had his fingerprints all over what would become one of the greatest teams that Australia has ever produced…through his work at the Cricket Academy in Adelaide.
As for Warnie, having the Great Southern Stand named the S.K. Warne Stand is pretty incredible, but what do you blokes think his legacy is?
TYLER: I’ll relate this to basketball. Michael Jordan made basketball relevant and cool, and everyone knew who he was. When it comes to cricket, that’s Shane Warne, he put cricket on the map on a global scale, not just in cricket playing countries, but everywhere, and cricket has him to thank for that.
LACHLAN: When I think of Shane Warne, I go beyond the glitz and glamour and think of him as an advocate for hard work. That might seem a little strange, but the amount of work he must have put in to master his craft would have been incredible. Hard work, dedication, and giving cricket a boost, for me they’re his greatest legacies. I heard that if cricket was played in America, he would have been the biggest star ever and that would have been great to see.
DAVE: Boys, I barrack for Collingwood and when you see a player like Buddy Franklin, Tony Lockett, Jason Dunstall, and Dustin Martin now, you wish they were playing for your club. As Australians, we had Warnie, and every other country wished they had him. He was one of us, the most special and unique cricketer in the world was one of us and that made us all feel pretty special I think. We were lucky he was on our team.
CRICKET FINALS
Alright boys, a change of pace now. Local cricket finals are upon us…Tyler, in the competitions you cover, how are you feeling about the finals series and what’s to come?
TYLER: I’m very excited about the finals series; you get the best players stepping up at the most important time of the year. A team that I’m really excited about is Casey South Melbourne, entrenched in the top-four, they’ve got momentum on their side, and you never know what could happen in finals. I think they can go all the way if they get some steam up. In the DDCA, it’s been a fascinating last few weeks, with last year’s premiers, Hallam Kalora Park, not making finals, and Berwick and Springvale South didn’t play on the weekend, they got washed out, and the winner of that was going to finish top two and earn a double chance. They don’t play, Narre South do play, and now Springvale South not only miss out on a double chance, but now have an away elimination final. The rain hurt them…on their home track.
DAVE: What’s your premiership prediction?
TYLER: You can never go past Buckley Ridges, they play so well, they manage to keep scores low on their home ground and chase them down comfortably. Berwick, if Andrew Perrin and James Wilcock, their opening pair that is way too good for local cricket, if they get their tails up they are going to be awfully hard to hold out. It’s finely balanced at the moment. And just back to Casey for a second, they have St Kilda this week, virtually a state team; if they get past them this week…look out!
LACHLAN: For me it’s DDCA Turf 2. Heinz Southern Districts (HSD) finished fourth but I think they’ve got a bit of belief in them at the moment and they might surprise a couple of teams in finals. Cranbourne, they’ve been equal with Parkfield, they’ve got Peter Sweeney who won the medal, so they’ll be hard to stop. And in the VSDCA, Endeavour Hills is looking good, they get Dilshan back from a Legends Tournament in Dubai this week, so hopefully everyone can pitch in and they get the job done.
DAVE: It’s a bit strange that we’re talking about Dilshan returning from Dubai to play for Endeavour Hills. (Boys laugh)
TYLER: I was watching the cricket last night, India and Sri Lanka, and I’m watching (Lahiru) Thirimanne take first ball against Jasprit Bumrah. I was watching thinking this is weird, four weeks ago you were playing for Endeavour Hills.
DAVE: Alright, prediction time boys, Lachie who wins the DDCA Turf 2 premiership and a man of the match prediction as well please.
LACHLAN: Parkfield and Matt Goodier for the medal.
DAVE: Tyler? C’mon, you got the Wookey medal winner right.
TYLER: Thanks for mentioning that Dave…Buckley Ridges and Mahela Udawatte to make a ton.
DAVE: My main comp is WGCA Premier.
TYLER: I’m not making a prediction here (laughs).
DAVE: Nor should you, you put the mozz on poor old Tom Hussey at the start of the season, saying he would make 1000 runs. That hasn’t quite come to fruition, but Tyler I think your man Hussey is back to his brilliant best. I tipped Tooradin to win the flag in our pre-season predictions and I see no reason to change my mind. They win it, Hussey makes a ton on grand final day and becomes – not the way you intended it Tyler – the name that we all remember when the grand final stumps are locked away.
TYLER: (With arms raised) Yes…this is your prediction now Dave…not mine!
