Chipperfield shocked by honour

Honoured ... Scott Chipperfield is inducted into the FFA Hall of Fame. Source: Craig Greenhill / News Limited

Having a bar named in his honour at Swiss football powerhouse FC Basel used to blow Scott Chipperfield's mind.

Now the retired Socceroo has something else to get his head around after being inducted into the Football Federation Australia Hall of Fame.

Chipperfield, 36, looked shocked when he was honoured in Brisbane on Thursday along with fellow inductees, Matildas legend Alison Forman and long time administrator Alan Vessey.

It seems Chipperfield's head has not stopped spinning since leaving hometown Bellambi near Wollongong.

Working fulltime as a bus driver, Chipperfield still emerged as the key to Wollongong's back-to-back National Soccer League titles from 2000-01.

"As a joke I drove the team bus the last 500m to the Wollongong clubhouse for the fans," Chipperfield laughed when reflecting on their initial 2000 triumph over Perth after trailing 3-0.

Then the left winger's eyes were truly opened when he took up a left field offer from FC Basel.

"As a Bellambi boy I never thought I would leave the area let alone go to Basel probably because I had never heard of it before," Chipperfield.

"I am very happy I did."

No wonder - he helped spark a golden era for the Swiss heavyweights.

In his first season there they won the championship for the first time in 22 years.

Next season they qualified for the elite Champions League.

And on Champions League debut, Chipperfield scored in the first 45 seconds against Manchester United.

It couldn't get any better than this - or so he thought.

When his 11-year stint ended featuring six Champions League campaigns he emerged as FC Basel's most successful player, winning a remarkable seven league titles and six Swiss Cups.

His reward? "They named their bar after me, which was appropriate," Chipperfield laughed.

But of course Australians know him more for his Socceroos heroics in two World Cup campaigns.

In all, he earned 68 international caps over 12 years including the 2005 qualifying triumph over Uruguay that ended Australia's 32-year World Cup drought.

His only regret was not playing in the A-League although he kept his fingers crossed he would one day return as a coach - for a revamped Wollongong.

"But at the moment I have a life in Switzerland," said Chipperfield, who is a trainer for a fifth-tier club.

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BBL coverage receives top honour

Royalty ... Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan kick off the second edition of the BBL on Friday. Source:News Limited

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On the eve of BBL|02, Fox Sports' ground-breaking coverage of the first edition of the relaunched competition has won a prestigious Australian Sports Commission media award for 'Best Coverage of Sport by an Organisation - Broadcast Media'.

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The standout moment was Shane Warne's dismissal of Brendon McCullum, to a plan he shared via microphone with rapt viewers.

Fox Sports delivered live and exclusive coverage of all 31 matches of the inaugural KFC T20 BBL, delivering a number of ground-breaking broadcast innovations and bringing a new level of intimacy to the viewing experience.

The competition resumes on Friday night with Warne again miked up when Melbourne Stars meet Melbourne Renegades, and there will be several innovations to this year's coverage including FoxKopter and light-up stumps and bails.

The 2012 KFC T20 Big Bash League was one of the most successful properties ever on Fox Sports, driving viewing up on average 66 per cent across December and January compared to the previous year.

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The tournament drew an average audience of 282,000 across the season and set a new subscription TV ratings record for cricket, with an average audience of 478,000 viewers.

You can also see more of the action this season on foxsports.com.au with the latest video highlights during and after matches, and expert columns focusing on all aspects of the exciting competition.

Fox Sports also won an award for 'Best Profiling of an Athlete, Team or Coach - Broadcast Media' for the profile on former Wallabies back Julian Huxley.

Huxley was diagnosed with a brain tumour at the peak of his career and survived surgery to return to elite rugby - against all odds and professional advice.

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Mariners get tough ACL draw

Mariners ... cop a tough draw for the Asian Champions League. Source: Brett Costello / News Limited

Central Coast Mariners have been drawn against Guizhou Renhe from China, Korean side Suwon Samsung Bluewings and the winner of the Japanese Emperor's Cup which will be known on 1 January 2013 for next year's AFC Champions League.

The draw, which was made in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday, saw A-League champions Brisbane pooled in Group E, providing they beat Thailand's Buriram United in a play-off.

Should they succeed, the Roar will play against FC Seoul from Korea, Japan's Vegalta Sendai and Chinese outfit Jiangsu Sainty.

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Cook milestone puts England on top

Unstoppable ... Cook has made five tons on the trot as skipper. Source: AFP

It was a day of history in Kolkata as Alastair Cook became England's leading century maker, whilst guiding his side into a commanding position in the third Test against India at 1-216 to trail by just 100 at the end of day two.

3rd Test - Eden Gardens

5 December 2012 - Day 2, Session 3

England 1st Innings

A. Cook	136	236	19	1	57.63
J. Trott	21	67	3	0	31.34
Z. Khan	16	4	48	0	3.00

Cook moved out in front on his own on 23 Test centuries for England, eclipsing Wally Hammond Geoff Boycott and Kevin Pietersen.

It was a third Test century for Cook on the bounce, his fifth in a row as Test captain, and it also saw him become the youngest player to reach 7,000 Test runs as he and fellow opener Nick Compton capitalised on bowling India out for 316 by building a solid first-innings platform.

27-year-old Cook finished the day on 136 not out while Compton made his maiden Test fifty in their first century stand together, before he was trapped lbw by Pragyan Ojha for a solid if unspectacular 57 from 137 balls.

But at 1-165 England had already consolidated the fine work done by the bowlers on a decent deck for batting.

Cook was given an early lifeline when Zaheer Khan found an edge with the left-hander on just 17, but Cheteshwar Pujara dropped a relatively simple low catch at first slip.

From then on Cook was in more danger of being run out due to a collision with Compton than being outfoxed out by the Indian bowling.

India added 43 to their overnight score but 316 still looked short on a decent track, and Cook and Compton had few problems making it to lunch at 0-22 before pushing on in a second session that yielded 99 runs, few chances of a wicket and some distinctly average fielding from the hosts.

Cook brought up his 7,000th Test run with his 88th of the day, making him the youngest in history as he will not turn 28 until Christmas Day, and soon after he completed that memorable 23rd century with a paddle sweep for three off Ravi Ashwin.

Cook's century came off 179 balls and included 14 fours and a six, with his record still only taking him to 10th in the all-time list of Test centuries in world cricket, but with still plenty more years ahead of him to climb up those rankings.

Compton's innings ended the following over, with Ojha eventually getting the wicket after umpire Rod Tucker looked to at first shake his head before raising the finger.

Jonathan Trott avoided a third first-innings duck in a row to keep Cook company until the close on 21, with his record-setting captain unbeaten on 136 and England just 100 runs behind with plenty of time and plenty of batting in hand to press home their advantage.

Earlier, India added 43 to their overnight score, with MS Dhoni doing his best to frustrate England's bowlers as the hosts made it beyond the 300-mark to make a more competitive total.

The India skipper was the last-man out, as he fell to a great catch by Graeme Swann off the bowling of Steve Finn, but not before he had reached 52.

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Clarkie's 2012 Wallabies report card

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Job done ... The Wallabies will return in 2013 without the retired Nathan Sharpe. Source:AP

The Wallabies' 2012 season is finally over and now we can all move on and hopefully look ahead to bigger and better things next year.

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Let's face it, things need to improve or 2013 will be even more frustrating for fans.

The Wallabies receive a 'pass' mark from me simply because they won more than they lost. But the form wasn't good enough to win the Bledisloe Cup yet again, or the inaugural Rugby Championship. Their overall effort certainly won't be good enough to beat the British and Irish Lions next year either.

The Wallabies had nine wins, a draw and five losses. They started the year in second spot on the IRB rankings but finished one place lower in third. The gap between them and the All Blacks didn't narrow and they lost the Bledisloe series for the 10th year in a row.

Just like last season when they lost the opening Test to Samoa, the Wallabies fell at the first hurdle this year when they lost to Scotland in Newcastle.

Sure, there were some excuses. Key players were either injured or rested and it was a short preparation with a make-shift team, but I certainly didn't expect a first-up loss to a team that didn't win a match in the Six Nations.

The 3-0 series whitewash over Wales in June wasn't convincing with eight points separating them in Brisbane, two in Melbourne and just one in Sydney. There was no James Horwill, James O'Connor or Quade Cooper.

Kurtley Beale was injured for two Tests, but the side still had a reasonable look about it - on paper at least.

The two losses to the All Blacks were followed by two hard-fought victories at home against the Springboks and Pumas, but they were blown off the park in Pretoria when the Boks thumped them 31-8.

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Argentina is not an easy place to play, so the six-point win in Rosario gave us some hope for the third Bledisloe Test in Brisbane. By that stage the casualty ward was filling up. Horwill, Pocock, Genia, Kepu, Moore, Ioane, O'Connor, Alexander, Barnes, Horne, Cooper and Ashley-Cooper were all unavailable.

An 18-all draw with the world champions felt like a moral victory. At long last there was some well-earned optimism and new captain Nathan Sharpe challenged his men to remain unbeaten on the northern tour.

But as we've seen too many times now, the only consistent thing about the Wallabies is their inconsistency. Any hope of a clean slate on tour disappeared when a fired-up French team pulled off their second-biggest winning margin ever over Australia, 33-6.

For the fourth time in 2012 the Wallabies failed to score a try in a Test match.  They scored just one try in each of the next three games and despite beating England, Italy and Wales; they were held scoreless in two halves of the four Tests.

Australia had a very lean year in the try-scoring department, managing just 15 in 15 Tests. They failed to score 30 points or more in a Test for the first year since 1981. Yes, 31 years. They averaged 17.3 per game while conceding 20.2 per game.

But despite plenty of negatives, there were positives. With over 40 players used and 13 making their debut, our depth will be much better next year. Players like Michael Hooper, Sitaleki Timani, Kane Douglas, Liam Gill, Mike Harris and Ben Tapuai enhanced their reputations.

Nathan Sharpe's leadership and form in his swansong season was outstanding and he deserved to win the John Eales Medal for the second time. He led the stats in runs, lineout wins, tackles and minutes played. Not bad for a 34-year-old.

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No Wallabies were finalists for the IRB Player of the Year and realistically, only Sharpe would have been considered if they were picking a World XV.

Digby Ioane topped the charts for metres, tackle Busts and linebreaks, while Wycliff Palu averaged the most offloads. Five players shared the try-scoring honours with Rob Horne, Nick Cummins, Pat McCabe, Scott Higginbotham and Digby Ioane all getting two apiece. The rest could only manage five tries between them.

So as you check out my 2012 report card, remember that there was an unprecedented amount of injuries and debutants this year. With a bit of luck next year the Wallabies will be at full strength and ready to win back the support of the Australian sporting public. A series win over the Lions is not out of the question.

Overall rating: 6.5/10

Positives

The 18-all draw against New Zealand in Brisbane, four wins on the trot against Wales, back-to-back wins on home soil against South Africa and Argentina, and three in a row to end the spring tour.

Negatives

Lack of tries and inconsistency.

Coach rating: 7/10

Robbie Deans copped plenty of flak and yes some of it was warranted. But you have to remember that of the five Tests he lost, two were to the All Blacks and one each to the Springboks and France. They all finished the year in the top four on the IRB rankings.

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No other coach of a major rugby nation had to compensate for the amount of injuries the Wallabies suffered this year. It's hard to cover for the loss of three captains, the best scrumhalf in the world and James O'Connor who has more x-factor than anyone in the Wallabies squad, in my humble opinion. 

Deans was in a no-win situation against Scotland. With just one serious training session to mould a new combination that was missing big names through injury or rest, he was expected to win no matter what. Torrential rain in Newcastle didn't help his cause. I had never seen weather like it at a Test match.

2013 is his final year in the current contract. There has to be more tries scored or there will be no extension through to the next World Cup in 2015. Beating the Lions and winning the Bledisloe is a must.

Star performers

Seemingly out of favour at last year's World Cup, Nathan Sharpe bounced back to become Australia's most capped forward and the most capped lock in world rugby. He was voted the Players' Player of the Year and topped the stats in key categories. His leadership of an under-strength squad was outstanding.

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Adam Ashley-Cooper ended up in his best position at outside centre and while he didn't find the try line, he was "Mr Consistency" in the backline. He was second in metres, third in tackle busts and only Sharpe played more minutes than him. He's now played 53 of the last 56 Tests.

Berrick Barnes played his 50th Test in Cardiff and coming off a horror 2011 when he suffered his share of head knocks, he managed to play 13 of the 15 Tests this year. He showed his versatility playing 10, 12 and 15 and also scored 110 points. A good effort considering there weren't many tries scored and he didn't kick in Cardiff.

Emerging talent

Flanker Michael Hooper has to top the list. The 21-year-old featured in all but one of the 15 Tests and was a standout in most of them. He was third in metres, second in tackles and his work on the ball was impressive.

David Pocock showed his class with a top performance against Wales after a long injury break, but Australia now has another top-notch flanker.

Others that deserve a mention are Sitaleki Timani, Kane Douglas, Ben Tapuai and Nick Cummins.

Reinforcements

It's been a horror season on the injury front as I've already mentioned above, but I'll list them again because I can't wait to see them back in the gold jersey. James Horwill, James O'Connor, Will Genia. I'd like to say Quade Cooper and Israel Folau, but that might be a bit premature.

2013

The British and Irish Lions will be tough to beat as usual. England's win over the All Blacks at Twickenham and Wales' effort against the Wallabies will give them plenty of confidence. They'll be well coached by Warren Gatland and the Wallabies will need to be at full strength and at their best if they're to succeed.

The Lions will have a match against the Barbarians in Hong Kong on the way Down Under, and they'll have plenty of warm-up games before the first Test. The Wallabies won't have the luxury of a long preparation or a trial, so they'll need to hit the ground running.

The Lions tour will be huge and provide good revenue for the ARU. That series should have the Wallabies primed for The Rugby Championship and another crack at winning the Bledisloe.

All in all, it's shaping up to be a big year and I'm predicting that Rugby will regain some of the ground it lost in 2012.

Thanks for watching our coverage on Fox Sports and I look forward to your company in 2013.

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Brits getting active post-Olympics

THIS year's Olympics and Paralympics in London has led to record numbers of people in England participating in sport, according to a survey conducted by Sports England after this year's London Games.

Some 15.5 million people aged over 16 were playing sport every week, according to the survey conducted over 12 months to October - up 750,000 or 4.8 percent on the same period in 2011.

Since 2005, when the British capital won the Games bid, 1.57 million more people are participating in sport at least once a week, a 10.3 percent increase.

The sports funding and promotion body said the largest rise was among women, suggesting that the feats of Britain's female athletes such as heptathlon gold medal winner Jessica Ennis had proved an inspiration.

Most women were involved in cycling, netball, running, swimming and going to the gym.

Success in Olympic cycling, where Britain continued their domination of track events from Beijing and also saw its first Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins triumph in the time-trial, has spurred greater involvement among ordinary people.

Some 200,000 more people are now getting on their bikes once a week than in October last year, bringing the total number of people cycling to nearly two million.

Cycling, athletics, tennis, judo, swimming and tennis, in which Britain won gold by the likes of US Open champion Andy Murray, were among sports which had seen a "significant increase" in participation, the Active People Survey 2011/12 found.

Participation in disabled sport was also up - although at lower levels than among non-disabled people - after massive interest in the Paralympics that saw a record 2.7 million tickets sold and athletes performing in front of near capacity crowds.

The London Games were designed to "inspire a generation" but the survey suggested that work is still required to increase participation in sport among the 16-25 age bracket.

Only 30,000 more youngsters were involved in sport once a week than 12 months ago.

For the purposes of the survey, once a week participation in sport was defined as at least 30 minutes of exercise of moderate intensity.

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