Cricket and Footy

I'm very happy that Sth Africa is leading Australia 2/1 in the current test series and has set a target of 612 for Australia to win the fourth test and level the series. Not likely as there are only four sessions in which to do it, as if. I have no comment to make that can add anything to the recent ball tampering controversy. All I can say is to repeat that I have barracked for whoever it is Australia has been playing for many years, right back to the Waugh captaincy era when the rot set in. It has been no surprise that the team finally disgraced itself totally. Let's hope this can be a watershed and our national team can rebuild sportsmanship and humility into their philosophy.

 Football. I listened a little bit to the commentary on 3LO on Sunday. It was most refreshing to hear Stan Alves, ex Melbourne captain and Nth Melbourne premiership player, and St Kilda coach. Stan was a bit of a hero of mine in my later adolescent years, the late sixties. As a wingman at Melbourne he held his own and even excelled against the strong opposition of the day at Richmond and Carlton. He was fast and skilled with real spring in his boots and kicked with precision.

Stan gave me one of my fondest football memories, a humourous one. I think it was 1972, a MFC practice game. The previous year Melbourne recruited "Diamond Jim" Tilbrook from Sturt in Sth Australia. I think he may have come over mid or late season with huge publicity surrounding his debut, in which he kicked four goals from memory but was pretty quiet for the rest of the season. There was big publicity about him the following season with expectation very high once he'd had pre-season with his new team and had settled in. With a mate, I think it was Ian Sinclair, we went to a Melbourne practice match which in those days were played at the Albert Park ovals. It was an intra club game as they just about all were back then, and there were two teams, one in red jumpers, the other in blue. It was a mix of experienced and young hopefuls all trying to impress to get a game in round one. There was hardly any crowd and we were on the wing where the ball came close to the boundary right in front of us. Stan, was engaged in a struggle for the ball, outnumbered by opposite jumpers. "Diamond Jim", on the same team as Stan, came thundering in, huge chest, muscles and eyeballs bulging, and barged through. He was so desperate to get a kick he paid no mind to jumper colour. Stan went arse over and landed prostrate not more than 10 feet in front of us. Tilbrook took off with the ball and kicked it. Stan drew his knees up inside his arms and just sat there for a few seconds watching the play. Then shaking his head he said with exasperation, "SHIIII....IIIT."

Diamond Jim played 50 odd games for Melbourne but never displayed the South Australian form that saw him a pivotal member of the Sturt team that won 5 premierships in a row '66-'70. Stan's last season at Melbourne was 1976, Bob Skilton's last year sa coach, when they narrowly missed the finals by percentage, I think beating Collingwood at Victoria Park in the last round. Nearing the end of his career Stan took up an offer to join Nth Melbourne and played in their 1977 premiership. I was so happy for him when he leapt excitedly from the stage with his medallion after the presentation.

Stan was a brilliant footballer, and I still love his style and comments on the radio.