Queenslander!

In rugby league, it has been a great week for Queensland. The annual 3-match series with New South Wales is now level, following a 30-6 win by the Queenslanders. This is exciting for a number of reasons. It sets up a 'decider' in a few weeks time. But there's more to it than that.


The game itself was a wonderful experience (particularly for Queensland supporters). Throughout the history of the State of Origin contests, Queensland is perennially the underdog and this match was no different.

Many said that (in game one) Queensland was lucky to go down by just a point (17-16) and that they had been massively outplayed by the "Blues". With the side for game two considered to be even weaker, due to injuries, some experts (particularly those south of the border) were calling this the weakest Queensland team ever.

The other thing that is consistent throughout State of Origin is the 'Queensland spirit'. It's what keeps Queensland in the contest. It doesn't matter if everyone is writing them off. It doesn't matter if the opposition is huge. It doesn't matter if they have more experience.


Queensland, at their best, just go at 100% and do everything they can. They play well as a team, support each other, and never give up. It's truly an inspiration.

ps. The last time a Queensland team was labelled 'the worst ever' was in 1995. Queensland went on to win that series 3-0.

Socceroos - A Comeback Win

It was with much jubilation that i watched Australia's match with Japan in the World Cup. Of course, most of that jubilation was crammed into the last ten minutes, as Australia scored 3 quick goals to turn a potential 0-1 loss into an inspiring 3-1 win.

A day or two later (the days seem to blur when sleep is just slotted in between soccer matches) i was talking to a friend about the match. We talked about how exciting the match was - and how it was impossible to go to sleep afterwards - even though it was around 1am in Australia. We came to the conclusion that - apart from the great result - it was the circumstances that made it so unbelievably exciting.

If Australia had scored those three goals early in the first half, held a 3-0 lead for the majority of the match, and conceded a consolation goal right at the end, it would still have been 3-1, but somehow not quite as heart stopping. For some reason, winning means so much more when it's preceded by an hour of staring down the barrel at a loss.

Referee!

Last week i was watching the final of soccer's Champions League. It was quite an exciting match, and after Arsenal had taken an early lead, Barcelona came back to equalise, and then to win the match 2-1.

After the game (ie. immediately after) Arsenal complained about the refereeing, claiming that one of Barcelona's goals should not have been allowed, and that Barcelona were allowed to get away with unfair play.

Whether or not these claims are true - I don't know. I'm not an expert on soccer refereeing, and don't claim to be. I am interested more in what wasn't said than what was said.

Earlier in the match, Barcelona managed to get the ball in the net, but were denied a goal. Also a questionable decision - but in Arsenal's favour. In their assessment of the referee, this incident seems to have gone unnoticed.

I find it interesting that as human beings we tend to pay much more attention to the times when we don't get what (we think) we deserve - and not so much attention when we get what we don't deserve.

In life (as in soccer) some things go for us, some against us. We can get upset over the things that go against us - and become angry and bitter (no offence, Arsenal). Or we can appreciate that there are just as many 'fors' as 'againsts', that these things generally do balance out - and get on with the game. Personally, I reckon "Play On!"

Up to the Challenge

In recent cricket matches there have been some exceptionally high scores by some teams. It started off with Australia breaking - in fact smashing - the world record for the highest team total in a one-day match. Their total was 434. Until that day no-one had even made 400.


Of course, that record lasted just 4 hours, as South Africa replied with 438 to win one of the more amazing - and perhaps bizarre - games of cricket in recent memory. [scorecard]

And then in the final of Australia's national cricket competition, Queensland declared their innings closed at 900, to defeat Victoria by an innings an 354 runs. A greater margin would be hard to imagine.

So what's the reason behind this sudden run of high scores? What takes Australia from being bowled out for 93, to breaking the world record? How did South Africa manage to surpass such an amazing score? How does Queensland make the highest score ever made in an Australian cricket final?


We could put it down to small cricket grounds or poor bowling, but there's always been a plenty of each of those. I reckon the answer lies in motivation. Australia had trailed 2-0 in that 5 match series. Determined to win the series, and having clawed themselves back to a 2-2 scoreline, it was vital to make a big total - lest all their efforts be in vain.

For South Africa, who had led the series 2-0, it would be heart-breaking to let it slip. The challenge had been set. They knew that to win the match they would have to perform at a level far above that which had ever been required before. And they did!

Queensland, with players away in that Australian side, also had to perform well above their average if they were to win the final. Parts of the state had also been savaged by Cyclone Larry - and the players dedicated their performance to the victims of that disaster. The result was a massive innings in which four players exceeded 150 - the only time this has ever happened in national or international cricket.


So it would seem that phenomenal feats are possible when we put our minds to it. So why doesn't this happen more often. Is it that we (as human beings) are generally slackers? Or is it that under exceptional circumstances we can summon up the strength, focus and determination to do things that would otherwise be impossible? I don't know the answer. I'm not sure i ever will. But i'll tell you this - it certainly makes for entertaining cricket!

Frame of Mind

Saturday night i was watching my favourite footy team play. Now it's been a little while since they have had a win - especially against quality opposition - and it showed.

Despite having the ability to do great things, they just didn't have the confidence to try things out. As a result, the attack was somewhere between conservative and tentative. I am sure that after a bit of success the team will play much better - not through any increase in skill, but just because of confidence.

Later i realised that i can be the same way. People can sometimes tell when i'm not feeling myself, because of the way i act. I'll talk less, and if i do say something it will be very short - sometimes sarcastic. When i'm feeling feeling positive and confident, there'll be a bit more chatter, some stories and some jokes. Granted, the jokes aren't that great (mostly the type that your dad might come up with) but they're there. It's amazing the difference that frame-of-mind can make.

Ready to go?

The other night i was having a chat with some friends and we had been discussing that shark attack that had happened several weeks ago.

Apparently the victim (on her way to into hospital) said that she was "at peace" and ready to accept her fate. We discussed whether we could say the same. The answer seemed to be unanimously "No" - although some of us did feel that we would be more ready now than at particular times in the past. Or, for that matter, times that may be still to come.

It was at this point that it struck me how similar this is to a cricket innings. Nobody actually wants to be dismissed, although every innings must come to an end. There are times when getting out would be tragic, and there are times when it would be slightly less heartbreaking.

There are times when we can accept being dismissed, and times when we are forced to accept it. We don't seek to be dismissed, but it will happen anyway. All we can do is to make the absolute best of our time at the crease.

A Run of Success

During the recent winter olympics, i saw an interview with Australia's gold medallist Dale Begg-Smith, in which he was asked that standard 'what's it like to win a gold medal?' type of question.

To the interviewer's surprise, the response was calm and simple - "it's good". However, when asked to "take us through" that final run, he enthusiastically described minute details, and was obviously excited about doing a great run with no mistakes.

I can't help but think that this is a really healthy attitude.

A gold medal depends entirely on the results of the other competitors - particularly in Dale's case, where he was not the final competitor to take part. Having already completed his runs, should Dale judge himself as a success or failure, based on whether the Norwegian can go 1/100th of a second quicker or slower?

I think not - and Dale seems to agree. Perhaps true success, in sport or in life, has little to do with comparison. Perhaps true success is as simple as doing the best you can do, and being the best you can be.