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As it happens: Aus v SA, T3, D1

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 29 November 2012 | 23.33

Final farewell ... Ricky Ponting will play his final Test in Perth. Source: Daniel Wilkins / News Limited

Be part of history as one of Australia's greatest ever cricketers plays in his final Test match at the WACA.

The stakes couldn't be higher as Australia and South Africa lock horns with the number one Test ranking on the line and the great Ricky Ponting to honour.

If you can't get to the ground or to a TV screen you can still stay across every ball by joining us on Friday for day one of the third Test with our live and interactive blog starting from 12.30pm (EDT).

Don't miss a ball - bookmark this page and return at 12.30pm (EDT) Friday for what shapes as an enthralling day one of a pivotal Test match.


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Power post shocking $4mill loss

Financial disaster ... Port Adelaide post an operating loss of $4 million in 2012. Source: Simon Cross / News Limited

Port Adelaide's year from hell in the AFL took a savage financial toll, with the beleaguered club recording a staggering loss of more than $4 million.

The Power blame the consolidated operating loss of $4.12 million on their poor onfield results.

Port's grant of $2 million from the SANFL cut their final operation loss to $2,117,071.

"This result is a long way from where we want to be,'' said Power chief executive Keith Thomas.

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"This year started positively, but early losses - albeit against some very good teams - quickly again impacted on our corporate, membership and game day returns.

"Coming off a very poor 2011, we feared further underperformance would have an adverse effect on the key revenue streams of sponsorship and membership.

"Unfortunately that's how it turned out.''

Port only managed five wins and a draw, finishing 14th, and they sacked their coach Matthew Primus during the season.

There were also several changes at board level, with television personality David Koch taking over as president and former federal senator Amanda Vanstone also becoming a club director.

The club was also rocked by the tragic death of player John McCarthy two months ago in Las Vegas while on an end-of-season trip.

Thomas stressed Port's financial problems were due to revenue issues, adding that they had kept costs under control.

"It is very clear you cannot compete in the AFL without investing in footy and doing everything you can to stay in touch with the bigger clubs,'' he said.

"We have put in place what we believe is an outstanding football structure for next year and beyond, led by our (new) senior coach Ken Hinkley.''


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Aussie sevens teams eye Dubai glory

On the charge ... Pama Fou (C) is one of the few Aussie boys returning from the Gold Coast. Source: AAP

Dubai plays host to the second of nine legs in the men's IRB Sevens World Series this Friday and Saturday, and it's also the start of the Women's World Series.

Australia is represented in both the men's and women's draw as the world's top sevens talent continue the long build-up to the 2016 Olympics in Rio.

Just like his Wallabies counterpart Robbie Deans, Aussie Sevens Coach Michael O'Connor has also had his share of bad luck on the injury front.

Senior players like Captain Ed Jenkins and Jesse Parahi have been ruled out along with playmakers Alan Fa'alava'au, Lewis Holland, Jacob Taylor and league convert Shannon Walker.

In fact 12 of the 22 contracted Sevens players are on the injured list, so O'Connor's job this week in Dubai and next week in Port Elizabeth is not an enviable one as he tries to make a bunch of youngsters competitive.

He has five 19-year-olds in the 12-man touring squad. Just four players, Sean McMahon, Will Miller, Jordan Tuapou and Pama Fou are backing up from the opening event on the Gold Coast in October.

Greg Jeloudev, Damon Anderson and Cameron Clark are returning from injury, while Junior Laloifi, Peter Lee, Nick Malouf and Jack Grant are set to make their debut.

Con Foley will captain the side in Jenkins's absence and while the team has a development feel about it, they do have what appears to be a favourable draw.

Australia are in Pool D with France, Canada and the USA, so if the youngsters can click from the outset they have a good chance of at least advancing through to the top  eight and the Cup quarter-finals on day two.

It will be valuable experience for the young men and hopefully O'Connor will have a full squad to choose from when the series heads to Wellington in February, followed by Las Vegas, Hong Kong, Tokyo, England, Scotland.

Then it's onto Moscow for the Sevens World Cup next June.

Meanwhile, Dubai is the first of four tournaments in the new Women's World Series. Australia coach Chris Lane has also named a new-look side with four uncapped players included. The experienced Rebecca Tavo will captain the team.

12 nations will compete with Australia in the same pool as the Netherlands, France and the United States.

Catch live coverage of the day two action on Fox Sports from 4pm (EDT) Saturday.


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Bottas gets Williams seat

Driver change ... Valtteri Bottas and Pastor Maldonado will pilot Williams cars in 2013. Source: Greg Wood / News Limited

Finalnd's Valtteri Bottas attempted to lower expectation levels after being named as the replacement for Bruno Senna in the Williams Formula One team next season.

Bottas, a test driver for Williams since 2010, will join Venezuelan Pastor Maldonado next season after the British team announced their driver line-up for 2013 on Wednesday.

Driver Team Pts
1 Sebastian Vettel (GER) Red Bull 281
2 Fernando Alonso (ESP) Ferrari 278
3 Kimi Raikkonen (FIN) Lotus 207
4 Lewis Hamilton (GBR) McLaren 190
5 Jenson Button (GBR) McLaren 188
6 Mark Webber (AUS) Red Bull 179
7 Felipe Massa (BRA) Ferrari 122
8 Romain Grosjean (FRA) Lotus 96
9 Nico Rosberg (GER) Mercedes 93
10 Sergio Perez (MEX) Sauber 66
11 Nico Hulkenburg (GER) Force India 63
12 Kamui Kobayashi (JPN) Sauber 60
13 Michael Schumacher (GER) Mercedes 49
14 Paul di Resta (GBR) Force India 46
15 Pastor Maldonado (VEN) Williams 45
16 Bruno Senna (BRA) Williams 31
17 Jean Eric Vergne (FRA) Toro Rosso 16
18 Daniel Ricciardo (AUS) Toro Rosso 10
19 Vitaly Petrov (RUS) Carterham 0
20 Timo Glock (GER) Marussia F1 0
21 Charles Pic (FRA) Marussia F1 0
22 Heikki Kovalainen (FIN) Carterham 0
23 Jerome d'Ambrosio (BEL) Lotus 0
24 Narain Karthikeyan (IND) HRT F1 0
25 Pedro de la Rosa (ESP) HRT F1 0

Williams team principal Frank Williams described the 23-year-old Bottas as "quite simply one of the most talented young racing drivers I have come across" in a team statement, saying he expected "great things" from him in the future.

However, Bottas said it might be the second half of next season when he starts to show what he is capable of.

"I had a little factory talk with Frank and I said to him "thanks for the pressure", Bottas said in a conference call.

"Being successful in the future is my own goal and I want to compete against the best in the world and one day be the world champion.

"Pastor is going to be a really strong team mate. It's his third season in the Williams car. If in the second part of the season I can match him or better him it would be really nice but I have a lot to learn."

While he will be a rookie, Bottas will be no stranger to the Williams set-up, having been given the use of Senna's car on Fridays at most of this season's races.

A protege of McLaren's double world champion Mika Hakkinen, he has been groomed by Williams over the past two years and his lap times during practise sessions have turned heads.

"I have been in most of the Friday sessions and that has been perfect preparation and gave me a chance to prove what I could do in the car," Bottas said.

"I'm really happy the team gave me the opportunity for that."

The accident-prone Maldonado was rewarded for winning this season's Spanish grand prix, the team's first race victory since 2004, with a third year at the team.

"In Pastor and Valtteri we have two of the most exciting talents in motor racing and I am especially excited about what 2013 can bring for Williams," Williams said in a statement.

"Pastor has always demonstrated remarkable pace and this year has seen him mature as a racing driver. Valtteri is quite simply one of the most talented young racing drivers I have come across and we expect great things from him in the future."

Bottas was even being linked to McLaren as a possible replacement for departing 2008 world champion Lewis Hamilton.

"It has always been my life-long dream to compete in the Formula One world championship," he said.

"To do so with one of the most legendary teams in the sport is incredibly special."


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Roar's ACL participation in doubt

In doubt ... the Roar don't have an automatic spot in the Asian Champions League. Source: Jono Searle / News Limited

Brisbane Roar's participation in next year's Asian Champion's League is in the balance after the A-League was stripped of one of its automatic allocations in the competition.

The Asian Football Confederation on Wednesday announced the A-League would be left with one automatic spot and a qualifying position - a decision made at an AFC executive committee meeting in Kuala Lumpur.

The 2013 allocation compares to previous years where the A-League was given two automatic spots plus an additional qualifying position.

The Roar secured their spot in the 2013 champions league competition by defeating Perth Glory in the 2011-12 A-League grand final.

However, due to the first allocation being given to the premiers, Central Coast Mariners, the Roar will now be subject to a qualifying campaign to confirm their spot.

The rule change also eliminates the possibility of a fairytale run from the third placed A-League side - a feat accomplished by Adelaide United in the 2012 Champions League, where they were knocked out in a thrilling quarter-final clash with Uzbekistan club side Bunyodkor.

In a statement released by Football Federation Australia on Thursday night, Head of the A-League, Damien de Bohun, said the AFC's decision was disappointing.

"It's important for us to maintain a strong presence in the ACL through the Central Coast Mariners' direct participation and the strong prospect of Brisbane Roar also qualifying," de Bohun said.

"Our real focus and that of our Clubs this year is the Hyundai A-League, the consolidation of the 10-team competition and continuing to build on the exciting start to this season."


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Pup: What will I do without Ricky?

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Leaders ... Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke have been through a lot together. Source: Phil Hillyard / News Limited

This is one of the toughest days of my cricket career.

To stand in a room at the team hotel with all the players and support staff and listen to Ricky Ponting say this will be his last Test made me feel numb.

Ricky struggled to finish what he was saying and we were all equally emotional.

I felt the same way at my press conference after training and struggled at times to talk about him.

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Ricky is the last player in the team who began before me. He has been such a huge presence in Australian cricket it's going to feel strange walking out to play Sri Lanka next month without him in the team.

I believe that Ricky is one of the greatest players ever to represent Australia and the best batsman I played with.

He has done so much for cricket not only in this country but around the world.

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As far as I'm concerned his greatness is not just measured in statistics and achievements, as magnificent as they are.

Greatness to me is longevity. To be able to ride the highs and the lows and he's certainly done that.

There are so many moments in matches, so many highlights which show what a great player he was, but for me he exemplified the model cricketer with what he did off the field.

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Every day he turned up to training wanting to get better. Ricky Ponting never just went through the motions. Of all the hundreds of training sessions I spent with him I never saw him waste a moment.

He left no stone unturned to be the best player he could be day after day and it showed in his performances.

He did so much the world never saw.

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The time he gives his team mates, the advice he offers, the help he gives you at training, he picks you up when you are down, he gives you a kick up the backside when you need a kick up the backside.

As a leader I learnt a lot from him. The one thing that sticks in the front of my mind is that Punter always said to me you've got to make sure you're leading from the front and scoring plenty of runs.

He made it clear that was the easiest way to earn the respect of your tea mates.

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That's the one thing he did as a captain. He was always one of the best performers.

His dedication to the game of cricket is unbelievable. He loves the game as much as anyone I've played with.

To me Ricky's as much Mr Cricket as Mike Hussey. Not only does he know who's performing well in international cricket, he knows how my club team has gone on the weekend.

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A lot of people has asked me what it was like becoming captain with Ricky still in the team after long and success leadership career.

It's been great. He's supported me like no other.

He's always been there for me whether it's on the field or off the field.

There hasn't been one day where there has been any sort of discomfort. It's been the opposite.

I think our friendship has grown throughout my career. Being vice-captain under him for a couple of years certainly played a big part in that.

He gave me a good insight into what it was like to captain Australia. His door is always open and I think out friendship is well and truly beyond the game of cricket.

Cricket will be the poorer if Ricky does not stay involved somehow.

Cricket Australia must do everything in their power to keep him involved for as long as we can.

For all that he has done Ricky deserves a fairytale finish. It would be great if he walked out and scored a hundred where he made his Test debut 17 years ago, Australia win the Test match and we go back to being the number one team in the world.

Ricky's retirement has given us more inspiration to give him the farewell he deserves.


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Blues pull off the steal of the night

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 22 November 2012 | 23.34

Tory Menzel ... a steal for the Blues with their first pick on Thursday night. Source: Sarah Reed / News Limited

Carlton landed the coup of the draft snaring freakish goalkicker Troy Menzel at pick No.11.

Rated by some as the second-best player in the draft, Menzel fell into the hands of the Blues who were prepared to take the risk on his injured knees.


Who did your club opt for? We have every pick for every club from this year's national draft.


Menzel, the brother of Geelong's Daniel Menzel, had radical LARS surgery as a 16-year-old, which was enough to scare off rival clubs.

As recently as last week Greater Western Sydney were toying with taking the Central Districts left-footer with selection two or three. 


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GWS clean up, Dogs take a chance

The top 10 ... Greater Western Sydney cleaned up at the top of the draft. Source: Wayne Ludbey / News Limited

Greater Western Sydney have taken Victorian midfielder Lachie Whitfield with the No.1 pick at the AFL national draft.

The Giants also had the next two picks at Thursday night's function at the Gold Coast Convention Centre, with which they snared another midfielder Jonathan O'Rourke and key defender Lachie Plowman.

Whitfield is a 184cm, 77kg 18-year-old, long touted as the likely No.1 pick.


Who did your club opt for? We have every pick for every club from this year's national draft.


He won the Larke Medal as the best player in this year's under-18 national championships and is highly regarded for his elite endurance and precise kicking on both feet.

O'Rourke is also a 184cm 18-year-old Victorian, boasting great, speed endurance and classy ball use by both hand and foot.

Plowman is a 192cm backman with great composure.

As expected, Melbourne Demons, who had the No.4 pick, swooped on South Australia's Jimmy Toumpas, a quick, hard-working midfielder who played in a senior SANFL premiership as a 17-year-old last year.

The Western Bulldogs had the next two picks, first plumping for tall utility Jake Stringer.

The Dogs were not put off by the fact that 191cm, 94kg Stringer missed the entire 2011 season with a badly broken leg.

They then took 189cm long-kicking left-footed midfielder Jackson Macrae.

Port Adelaide added ferocious tackling, hard-at-it 188cm midfielder Oliver Wines with their top pick (No.7).

Brisbane Lions added some attacking power, with 187cm South Australian forward Sam Mayes at No.8.

Richmond went for aggressive, solidly-built midfielder Nick Vlastuin at No.9, with Essendon's father-son pick, tall forward Joe Daniher, rounding out the top 10.

In other notable first-round selections, Carlton swooped on freakishly talented forward Troy Menzel at No.11.

The brother of Geelong's Daniel Menzel, Troy would most likely have gone higher if not for the fact he had a LARS knee reconstruction at age 16.

West Australian quick, agile midfielder-forward Joshua Simpson, who threw recruiters a surprise when it was revealed in recent days he fathered a child early this year, gets to stay in his home state after being taken by Fremantle at pick No.17.

Collingwood picked up the man regarded as the outstanding ruckman in this year's draft pool, 202cm South Australian Brodie Grundy.

Richmond also added ruck depth, taking lightly-framed 203cm Victorian Liam McBean with their third choice, No.33.

North Melbourne, who had failed to strike a trade deal with Port Adelaide for Victorian defender Ben Jacobs, drafted him at pick No.37, making Jacobs the first recycled player taken.

The Giants, who had a total of six picks inside the top 27, went for bigger players with the last three of those, taking 194cm utility Kristian Jaksch (No.12), 194cm defender Aidan Corr (No.14) and 198cm forward James Stewart (No.27).

Reigning premiers Sydney Swans used their first pick, No.22, on 22-year-old, 189cm midfielder Dean Towers, from VFL club North Ballarat.

Losing grand finalists Hawthorn used their first selection, No.28, on quick 193cm forward Tim O'Brien.

Hawthorn re-drafted their 2008 premiership forward Michael Osborne, who is working his way back from a knee reconstruction.

Along with Jacobs, North Melbourne took two other recycled players, former Sydney-listed 23-year-old, 200cm ruck prospect Daniel Currie (No.56) and 20-year-old ex-Gold Coast midfielder Taylor Hine (No.62).

The Kangaroos had earlier taken 18-year-old medium forward Taylor Garner with their first pick.

Melbourne, who had used the trade and free agency period to recruit several AFL-experienced players, added more experience by taking a 25-year-old, Matt Jones, from VFL club Box Hill, with their fourth selection (No.52).

Adelaide Crows, whose first pick did not come until No.62, after giving up their earlier selections, used that choice on 19-year-old Tasmanian 194cm rebounding defender Sam Siggins and their other on agile 185cm Victorian forward Rory Atkins.


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Kallis available as batsman only

Injured South African allrounder Jacques Kallis may not play again in second Test against Australia. Source: AAP

CHAMPION South African allrounder Jacques Kallis will feature again in the second cricket Test against Australia - but only with the bat.

Kallis, who took two wickets in three overs on Thursday, sustained a grade one hamstring injury which forced him from the field on a grim opening day for the tourists in Adelaide.

The 37 year old will bat for the visitors but has been ruled out of bowling for the remainder of the match. It was still up in the air whether he'd be available for the third Test in Perth.

Australia amassed 5-482 in what South African coach Gary Kirsten termed a "beating" for his side.

The Proteas lost paceman Vernon Philander pre-match, the fast bowler unable to bend when getting out of bed on Thursday.

Scans revealed no more than a lower lumbar muscle strain and the Proteas are confident he'll be available for Perth.

"Losing Jacques to a type of injury he has never had in his career was a tough one," South African coach Gary Kirsten said.

"He was a little bit sore and I think he made a wise decision, as soon as he felt a twinge he got off the park quickly."

Fast bowling spearhead Dale Steyn also left the field for treatment on a tight hamstring but returned to action.

The Proteas were heading back to the drawing board after Australian captain Michael Clarke (224 not out) plundered another double-century and opener David Warner (119) and Mike Hussey (103) also scored tons.

Kirsten, strangely, said South Africa "bowled well to Michael Clarke this Test match, as we did the last one" when the Australian leader made an unbeaten 239 in the drawn series opener in Brisbane.

"Maybe where we are fault is our thinking," Kirsten said.

"We looked at him closely in our preparation for this Test match, we need to go back and look again to see what we can do.

"We certainly tried one or two things we felt could work, it didn't go our way.

"I guess we need to go back and look at what else we can do - but there is very little that you can do in terms of your strategies.

"We will try different types of strategies, plan A, plan B, even to plan C, and if they don't work you go back to plan A and start again."


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'Scared' Warner smashes demons

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Scared ... David Warner overcame his fears to notch a devastating century. Source: Sarah Reed / Fox Sports

David Warner said he was scared facing Morne Morkel on the first day of the Adelaide Test, but he certainly didn't show it.

2nd Test - Adelaide Oval

22 November 2012 - Day 1, Session 3

Australia 1st Innings

M. Clarke 224 243 39 1 92.18
M. Hussey 103 137 9 4 75.18
D. Steyn 17.1 1 62 1 3.61

Warner treated Morkel and the South African bowlers with contempt on the opening day of the second Test blasting away the cobwebs and answering questions about his suitability as a Test opener.

The powerful Warner clobbered 119 from 112 balls with 16 boundaries and four sixes, before Morkel eventually had him caught at slip.

Morkel fired a couple of decent bouncers at Warner, but more often than not he watched the red ball hit the fence, finishing with 2-128, the best of the Proteas bowlers.

Warner and Michael Clarke piled on an electric 155 to take the game away from South Africa before they could even blink.

The Australian captain said that Warner had battled some mental demons since his failure in the first Test at Brisbane.

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Encouraged to play his natural game, Warner cleared his head at training during the week and came out on the opening morning and smashed the Proteas all over the ground.

But he swears he wasn't always comfortable.

"Morne bowled a very fast spell to me and those three bouncers he bowled me in that one over I was a bit scared at one stage,'' Warner said.

"For my preparation for this Test, credit goes out to the net bowlers. I faced them and they bowled themselves into the ground.

"I sorted it (poor form) out in the nets and today it came off for me.

"My game is to go out there and try and score. For a session there they bowled too short and I ended up swinging the bat a little bit.''

The left-hander had received great support from senior teammates Ricky Ponting and Clarke earlier in the week.

Ponting said it was only a matter of time until Warner carved out a record similar to Adam Gilchrist before him.

Warner had scored more than 30 just five times in 17 Tests leading into Adelaide.

But right from the get-go on Thursday, Warner stuck to his philosophy of "see the ball, hit the ball''.

At one stage during the first session, he stood at the other end as opening partner Ed Cowan (10), Rob Quiney (0) and Ponting (4) fell within the space of 15 deliveries to make things precarious at 3-55.

But Warner fearlessly continued to follow his instincts.


Don't miss Fox Sports live blog of day two at the Adelaide Oval


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