Weekly Round-Up

In a shocking turn of events, I am actually going to write a post that is actually about sports this week!

Source: bbc.co.uk via Rachel on Pinterest

Last week England's cricket team became the number one test team in the world, after destroying the previous top team India. Alastair Cook was the star man with an amazing 294 runs. It's always great to see an English sports team succeed, especially when you consider that in 1999, England were sitting shamefaced at the bottom of the rankings. Here's to many more years at the top!

On to football, and the start of a brand new Premier League season. It came as much of a surprise to most that Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea all failed to win on the opening day - with all three teams drawing with underwhelming opposition (although we must give at least some credit to Newcastle, Sunderland and Stoke respectively). For your information, here were the results from that opening weekend:

Blackburn 1-2 Wolves

Fulham 0-0 Aston Villa

Liverpool 1-1 Sunderland

Newcastle 0-0 Arsenal

QPR 0-4 Bolton

Wigan 1-1 Norwich

Man City 4-0 Swansea

Stoke 0-0 Chelsea

West Brom 1-2 Man Utd

I guess you could look at this and predict an easy win for Manchester United this season (not that I would ever automatically rule out Man City...except I do), but I don't really believe that there's too much that you can learn from one round of matches, and I still believe anyone could win it.


Over in the United States, Robbie Keane has become the latest player to join the ranks of the MLS, by signing for L.A. Galaxy. Here's what he had to say about it: "I have always wanted to come and play in MLS so it's the perfect combination for me and a dream come true." Now as much as I love the MLS, I find it really hard to believe this statement. If it was indeed a "dream come true," then why on Earth didn't he come over earlier - some time before he turned 31? Come to think of it, why didn't he join Real Salt Lake or any other team here? I suspect that the "dream" lies in living in Los Angeles, rather than playing for their team...

Americans and the Weird Sports they Play

For a country full of people who make fun of perfectly normal things such as a five-day-long cricket match, they sure do play a lot of weird sports - and I'm not talking about baseball and American football.

Allow me to enlighten you.

Ultimate Frisbee

It never occurred to me that there was ever, or could ever be, anything "ultimate" about throwing a frisbee. This could of course be because any frisbee that was thrown by me is likely to find itself falling limply to the floor somewhere six miles east of where I had meant to throw it. Nonetheless it was incredibly strange to me, when I stepped foot upon these shores once again, to find out that, not only was frisbee an intense team sport here, but that people - especially people in Provo - were actually rather fond of it.

Still unsure of exactly how the rules work, it appears to be some kind of cross between netball and soccer; with a frisbee.

Kickball

All those hours after school spent watching Recess finally paid off, when I discovered that kickball is in fact a real sport. That people play. Competitively. Again, being a mostly inexperienced kickball player (as in, I have never seen or played in a game, ever), I can only gather something of the rules; but it seems to be baseball, but with a dodgeball.

Wallyball

This is a game that I had never even heard of until I played it. Volleyball, but in a sort of squash court, so that the balls can bounce off of the walls. Very strange.

So there you have it, three new games that I still have yet to understand. However, as I see it, the point of these is simply to have fun. And I'm always looking to expand my repertoire of fun. Anyone have a frisbee?

I Think it's Time for Another Video...

...so here's one. This is what happens if you fall asleep at the cricket.

SUMMER

Now that Chelsea can officially win nothing this season, following their crushing loss to Manchester United, and with the rugby and basketball seasons over, I feel it is time to turn attention to the best thing about the summer: summer sports! I must admit, there was a time in my life when I bemoaned the summer, and greatly mourned the close of Premiership football each year...how very young and foolish I was. I am here to tell you that there exists a magic formula in sport, and this is it - the sun. There is something so very special about those sports that are half about the result, but just as much about sitting in the sun, eating strawberries and cream, and watching a fine sporting contest.

Cricket

Doesn't this just look like the perfect day?

Many people struggle to understand the sport of cricket, with its long matches and complicated rules. So here's the Sparknotes version: the most runs and you win. Try watching a game of Twenty20 first, as it's more exciting and it's fun to see them wack the ball so much - that's how I got hooked. Americans always argue that higher scores in sports are better, so then cricket would be the perfect sport - run totals are always in the hundreds! Well except sometimes when England have an off day...

Tennis

Yes, I realise that tennis is going all year round, but the climax of the tennis season for many people is that wonderful tournament, Wimbledon. There's nothing like (Kent) strawberries and cream, sunshine, a struggling British hope, and lots and lots and lots of rain to make a great British summer!


Baseball

Now I won't profess to be a huge baseball fan...THIS is a huge baseball fan...

But I did stay up all night in 2004 to watch the Red Sox win the World Series...that's gotta count for something, right? Anyway, much like cricket, baseball is a sport that - for me - is best enjoyed casually, with a cool (non-alcoholic) beverage, and good company.

Athletics

Known in the United States as "track and field", athletics is getting a lot of exposure due to Usain Bolt, which is fair...because he can run the 100m in 9.58 seconds without even breaking a sweat. Anyway, despite the strangeness of having regular competitions of "I can run faster/jump higher/jump longer than you" or the triple jump (weirdest event ever, I have never understood where that came from), there is something really compelling about watching these competions and rooting for your country's athletes. I challenge you to do it (sometime other than during the Olympics) and not get hooked!

Circles and Spirals

So many things have happened recently that I have failed to comment on; as such, I will attempt to rectify this. Right now.

A lot has be said recently about BYU nationally and internationally because of the Brandon Davies incident. With BYU getting so much attention, it was a nice surprise to see that the vast majority of it was positive, such as this article in Time. Although I am devastated that this happened - putting a major dent in our NCAA championship ambitions (I know that may be going a bit far, but c'mon, it's just fun to say that we COULD have won it), I am glad to know that I go to a University that will stick to its principles, maintaining honor no matter the situation.

Speaking of honor, Noah Hartsock received an honorable mention in the Mountain West Conference awards for this season. Many of our players were included, including Jimmer as the MWC Player of the Year due in part to an amazing season.

An amazing season which saw the Cougars win the Mountain West Conference for their last season as a member of it; it was sealed with a win over Wyoming.



Did I say win over Wyoming? Well, seeing as we're on the subject, let's talk about the awesome flashmob performed by the amazing BYU student section in what was our final home game of the season.



While we're on the subject of home, I was more than shocked to find out that England beat South Africa in the Cricket World Cup after reaching a batting total of just 171. Usually when they produce the unexpected it's not a good thing...so this was a nice surprise!

But then, I guess the sporting world in England is always capable of producing strange occurrences (WARNING: man in mankini! Not for the faint-hearted)...



Curious sending off, but apparently it's in the rules of the game...honestly I think the guy did us all a favour! Judging by the stewards running around in the full version of this incident, I doubt they ever would have caught the guy by themselves. Since there were also two other sendings off in this match, I would suggest that this referee gets a job at Hallmark...cards are obviously his thing!

And so to finish it off, just a personal observation of my own. Why is it that whenever I go running in Provo, every yappy dog in the town comes out to annoy me from its front yard? I can't help but think, "really? I've had dogs that could swallow you whole!"

What's A Googly?

"Cricket (as explained to a foreign visitor)



You have two sides, one out in the field and one in.

Each man that's in the side that's in goes out and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out.

When they are all out the side that's out comes in and the side that's been in goes out and tries to get those coming in out.

Sometimes you get men still in and not out.

When both sides have been in and out including the not outs

That's the end of the game



HOWZAT!" - Anonymous





One sport that Americans - try as they may - cannot understand, is cricket. Indeed, there are many Brits who share the same frustration about a sport in which there is no net, no goals, and a match can last for five days - after which it may just be declared a draw after all! However, if you take the time to learn the basic rules of cricket and watch a few tests, you will find what I discovered... it is just as complicated as you had first believed! But boring? Far from it.

The first tactic adopted in converting an American to the ways of cricket, is to create some self-interest, "it's like baseball, but with only two bases, and many more home runs." In this respect, it sounds significantly more interesting than that great "American past-time" baseball. And the scoring is much the same. One point for a run - each time both batsmen run from one stump to the other - and four when it hits the boundary, with a massive six points when the ball leaves the playing area without touching the ground.

Of course cricket is a complicated sport, and I can honestly hold my hands up and say that I probably don't understand even half of it. One of the chief complications lies in the labels given to every aspect of the game - and there are many. Overhearing a conversation about googlies, yorkers, slips and gullies, could just as easily lead your imagination to a fantasy novel as cricket.

Regardless, the beauty of cricket is that one does not have to fully understand the game in order to enjoy the sport. A cricket match is a quintessentially English event. Only the most diehard will stake out a spot on the boundary, staying grounded until the five days are up; the rest of us will watch for a while, have a wander around (probably in search of food or drink), and most importantly enjoy the company around us. This is a necessary element of cricket, especially as a match can disintigrate with a spot of rain or decrease daylight.

Five days long, and no winner? Sure, but any Brit could tell you, it's the joy in the journey that counts.