I’m watching the rugby league in Australia. More involved in it than ever. We cancelled our Foxtel (= Sky I think in the UK) subscription at the beginning off the pandemic business (looking at our budget), so I watch the 3 free -to-air-games each week (out of 8 altogether).
Rugby Union – separate NZ and Australian Super Rugby comps, none on free-to-air, so not following them. There will be test matches later this year but no idea who will broadcast them.
Cricket – wrong time of year here in Australia – have read about England’s recent matches but there’s no live broadcast here. England won the current Twenty 20 series 2-1 vs Australia, and Aus won the first ODI. I’m curious about whether the Melbourne Boxing Day Test will go ahead in Melb – that would be a massive change here in Australia.
The net result of the Brave New World is that I watch a lot less, certainly don’t spend time flicking through the sports channels.
How about you?
Just put on Fulham v Arsenal, may not watch all 90 mins. Will watch Liverpool v Leeds this afternoon. Also the delights of a Women’s Major in golf this afternoon, PRO14 rugby union final and some cricket tomorrow. Back to normal! (Except for crowds).
(Excellent streaming service DAZN in Canada providing all but the golf, pretty good for about 12 quid a month).
Yep DAZN occupied a lot (too much?) of my time lately. Great to see some cricket here in Canada
Yes, was even watching the West Indies T20 competition (CPL) earlier this week. Guyana all out for 55, St Lucia knocking off the runs in 4.3 overs, must have been one of the shortest professional cricket matches ever.
All the cricket and then today at 3pm Port Vale vs Crawley on iFollow.
Mate you are still here!
Like you the cricket is the only thing I watch.
Looking forward to Norwich City becoming Championship winners again this year.
Tour de France en route to Lyon. Bliss. I had a lie in this morning, allowing myself just enough time to prepare breakfast and settle down in front of the telly as the riders rolled out of Clermont-Ferrand. A lizard is my only distraction. It got into the lounge and is making rustling noises under the sofa.
Might dip into the Liverpool Leeds game later.
Snooker and only snooker – mostly on catch-up.
The world championship? If so, do not under any circumstances, miss the final frame of the semi-final between Wilson and McGill. Unbelievable!
Can one go a month or so without knowing a result?
Will watch US Open Tennis Women’s Final tonight – Osaka vs Azarenka. Looks like being a cracker.
Sundays mean a Women’s Super League match live on BBC red button or sports website. I’ve been following women’s football for years now and the quality gets better and better. Shame the refereeing doesn’t.
Festival of the Boot.
Had the misfortune of watching my Aussie Rules team get caned, again, this afternoon.
This evening I watched the Melbourne Rebels get knocked out of the Rugby Union finals.
Hoping for better things tomorrow when the Melbourne Storm play in the rugby league.
BTW @Mousey
I now subscribe to Kayo and use Chromecast to watch it on TV. Effective and cheaper.
@Junior-Wells Yes I’ve thought about Kayo. We’ll see what happens when the cricket starts – it’s a bit of a shitfight atm between CA and Seven and Foxtel as to who’s broadcasting what.
In the meantime a little bird gave us a Foxtel login so all good for now!
@Junior-Wells and @Mousey this has nothing to do with sport, but I just stumbled on the amazing Kanopy (https://www.kanopy.com), which has a huge selection of movies and docos, mostly indie/world etc, but also a few classics eg Chinatown. All you need is a library card – to register all you do is type in the number and you’re in. Completely free, funded by libraries and universities. There’s an app for phone/tablet, and can stream to tv if you have an Apple TV or similar.
We have that in Canada, limited to 4 films a month though
10 in Oz…:)
Hmmm
Had a thorough browse @mikethep – Appropriately has a good catalogue of Aussie films. the music stuff is pretty good. rewatching RudeBoy is first on the list. Worth checking out @Mousey .
@Dai the limit here is 10 per month.
And your weather is better too …
Yep a big fan of Kayo, works suprisingly well, good interface and smart tech. Ditched the Foxtel box in January and haven’t looked back! Junior what’s your footy team? Must be North, Hawks or Bombers surely?
Can yiu explain a bit more about Kayo?
We fly to Alice at the end of the month, and I’m exploring all our TV options.
@sitheref2409 You fly to Alice? As in Alice Springs? That’s big. Are you on top of all the rules re quarantine, limited arrival nos etc?
Sydney – limit of 350 passenger arrivals per day;
Perth – limit of 525 passenger arrivals per week;
Brisbane – limit of 500 passenger arrivals per week;
Adelaide – limit of 500 passenger arrivals per week;
Melbourne – 0 passenger arrivals.
Hope you’re going business class…
Yeah. The move has been pending for a while now.
The flights are booked, and yes, Business unless something changes.
2 weeks quarantine in Sydney, and assuming the current trend sticks, NT will have opened back up to Sydney arrivals to straight to the house instead of another 2 weeks…
@Sitheref2409 Kayo is Foxtel’s budget online streaming service for sports only. Can watch on phone via app, computer or as discussed throw to your tv via chromecast or similar. Not sure if you can log in by using the search engine on a smart TV.
Can have 2 people for the one account.
@sitheref2409 Wow, welcome to the Oz mini-Massive! I have many questions, but won’t hassle you with them.
Quarantine is very weird (being a Brit I wasn’t used to men/women with guns knocking on my door) but OK if you have opening windows/balcony. I was on the 8th floor with a balcony and a view over the river, so lucky. Food veers between so-so and completely inedible, but UberEats is your friend, as is Dan Murphy for booze. Might want to think about a Woolworths/Coles order too, if only to get decent fresh food and stuff like salt/pepper – and a sharp knife. (Mrs thep brought me care packages, but I assume you won’t be so lucky.) Good luck!
Thanks for the tips. That actually answers a couple of the questions that I had.
If I had to guess at your unspoken questions (and really, they wouldn’t be a hassle) we are moving with the US Air Force (civilians) to the base in Alice for about 3 years. It wasn’t ever on the top of my list of places I ever wanted to live, but Sharon got the offer, and it came at just the right time for me professionally, so why not? Quiet town, simple life…
Aha, Pine Gap! There’s a series called Pine Gap on Netflix that may amuse you…
Further to tips, I took a bottle of whisky and a bag of my favourite coffee + cafetiere in my checked baggage. (You get a small carton of milk every morning.) If I’d thought about it I would have taken a sharp knife and some proper cutlery too, maybe even some plates/bowls. Gets depressing eating out of takeaway containers all the time.
Quiet Town, simple life, yes. Bloody hot…up in the 30s already, and it’s only the beginning of spring.
I shall mention these tips to SWMBO – thanks.
@dadwardo – Join in the chorus. I am a Kangas man. Wooden spoon seems likely which in some ways is good – better than getting to ninth or tenth , or being cannon fodder in the first round of the finals. At least we get some high draft picks.
F1 Qualifying. The Tuscan track looks good, but I fear it may be another procession tomorrow.
Starting watching SoccerAM on SkyOne this morning, and then remembered why I stopped watching a couple of years ago- it’s very dull, and the jollity feels forced.
Match Of The Day later – a slight return to some sort of normality
F1 has benefitted from so many races being close together. Wears the engines out quicker and results in fewer ‘adjustments’. We are also in the presence of greatness. I never thought Schumacher’s records would be threatened, let alone beaten. Hamilton is in a zone that only a few humans per generation get anywhere near. With Ferrari struggling, things are very interesting behind the front row of the grid.
Happy to see another team – Racing Point – fighting for the top places. I think they may only get stronger with Aston Martin backing.
Verstappen is pushing the Red Bull further than the car should achieve – what a driver he is.
But Hamilton is relentless, even given the advantage the Mercedes has over the rest, he’s untouchable. Even Bottas – in the same car – has trouble keeping up with him.
Precocious talent when he came into F1, got a bit boorish for a while, but now is surely (and rightly) one of the greats
Another win for Hamilton. Now, he’s just one behind Schumacher. But what a race it was! Lots of chaos and when the chips were down, Bottas missed his chance.
At last I understand your taste in music! You actually think Formula 1 these days is “interesting”. Hand me my chamois gloves
Two weeks in a row of chaos and upset….and Gasly goes from winning to DNF….
I haven’t read anything yet – is Bottas getting the retrospective blame for the pile-up?
I think Bottas was recognised as the cause of the bunching up, but it’s a fairly standard thing to do on a re-start. The blame seems to be with the drivers further back trying to anticipate the start and not allowing for someone backing off at the last second.
F1? I thought the OP was asking about sport?
Of course “who can drive the fastest” is a sport.
Mind you, so is “Who can wee the highest”, but it’s not on television so much.
Are you talking monocoque?
Usually, I’m told.
Had the Tour on – I don’t often have the chance to watch the live coverage but it’s great. It is a little like watching test cricket.There are phases when not much is happening and the commentators (brilliant on ITV) are yakking away about all sorts of random stuff to fill the time. But what you see is the way things unfold step by step, and then moments of utterly thrilling drama; in particular it was another awesome stage finish today. It’s a really great Tour this year.
The world’s greatest annual sporting event, well presented and commentated upon by people who know and love it. There isn’t a better pundit on any sport than David Millar – reads a race brilliantly and talks so eloquently. You also get France in all its glory. What’s not to love?
Can’t bring myself to be that bothered about the return of the Premier League. Great to see a 4-0 away win for Harrogate Town on their League 2 debut though.
Have enjoyed the cricket coverage this year (TMS and BBC TV highlights). Could though, be improved by the removal of the empty vessel and ego on legs that is Michael Vaughan though. He really is an utter knob.
I am not a bike person and find it pretty tedious. Nothing much happens for about 5 hrs. I suppose they have different tests to worry about this year than the usual ones. Greatest annual sporting event? I would go for 6 nations if that counts, obviously Le Tour impresses as a crazy endurance task though.
* was great when a Welshman won though!
Nothing happens for 5 hours? Today’s stage lasted 5 hours and was constant action and intrigue. There’s always about 6 or 7 different races going on at the same time if you pay attention. Chess on wheels.
Greatest annual sporting event is not an opinion. It’s a fact.
No, it’s an opinion.
That’s more like it, Dai! You are Wrong and The Count is Right. And that’s not an opinion, that’s a fact.
Absolutely agree about Millar – one of those rare pundits who is genuinely informative about what is going on and the tactics behind it. The ITV team as a whole is probably the most enjoyable sports commentary team on the box at the moment. Their daily podcast is terrific and often very funny as well.
I used to be a total sports nut, there was no sport I couldn’t enjoy and I spent way too many hours in front of the telly watching other people being athletic while I reached for another snack…
After throwing out my TV I don’t watch any sport at all, unless it’s an Olympic year – and this year I was secretly relieved that they cancelled the Olympic Games, which I normally look forward to immensely, so I think I may be getting over that bug as well.
There are only two sports that I still miss and would love to follow, if it wasn’t so complicated to do without a TV and/or streaming services. My two favourite sports of all time, both absolutely nuts: AFL (Aussie rules) and the PBR major league tour (bull riding). Never a dull moment in either. I look forward to watching these again when I’m finally retired and have all the time in the world to waste! 😉
Watched the cricket yesterday. Australia were falling to pieces at 120-something for 5 (or 5 for 120-something if you’re an Aussie) and I nearly texted a crack to a mate about how they were collapsing, but thought better of it. I then went to the GP and when I came back I seemingly watched a different game. I had tickets to the England v Australia 20-20 match Headingley this summer, good seats too. I don’t have much luck. Last summer I had tickets to day 5 of the Headingley test, day 4 being the greatest day of test cricket, like, ever. Day 4 tickets were £75 though, whilst day 5 tickets were only £15. And I am a Yorkshireman, after all.
Today I watched Stocksbridge Park Steels v Stalybridge Celtic on the red button on the BBC. Stocksbridge is only a couple of miles away from me, so I’ve been a few times and keep and eye out for their results, whereas I went to Stalybridge last summer for a pre-season game against Bansley and decided that it beats Fulham as the loveliest setting for a game of football. Seriously, if you live in the north take the chance to go there and sit behind the dugouts for the best view. It’s as if they made a clearing in a forest and put a football ground there. Me and a mate are groundhoppers, although we’ve dropped from the 92 club to the 90 club until we get to Harrogate and Barrow. We’re going to finish the Conference and Conference North next. I much prefer going to the smaller grounds and like to attend a few games at each of Barnsley’s non-league grounds each season. We had much better days out at places like Accrington, Hartlepool and, especially, Exeter, where we finished the 92 and we’re very well looked after by the club, who even presented us with special shirts on the pitch at half time (an Exeter supporting mate set that up). I never thought I’d be watching Stocksbridge v Stalybridge live on the BBC though.
Then from 3pm until just after 4:30pm I broke the world swearing record trying to get the Barnsley v Luton game on the TV, laptop or iPad. Reds season ticket holders are given a code to access all the home games on iFollow, which other clubs are also doing. Except I don’t think that iFollow anticipated tens of thousands of people trying to log in at the same time. I eventually got it working just after the only goal of the game on 71 minutes. As it went in our net I’m not too bothered. But I saw enough in 15 minutes to see that we still haven’t worked out how to break down big physical sides. I just watched 15 minutes of us doing our best to give them the ball around our own box, their centre backs just lapping up every attempt we made to get near their goal, and Luton players diving and feigning injury to ‘old man’ our young team out of the game.
And now I have the Liverpool v Leeds Ladies game on, or at least it looks like a ladies team with all the man buns on show. When I say watching, it’s on, but without the sound (Deadbeat and St. Hilaire are providing that) and I just look at the goals really, which I keep missing with no hysterical commentator to draw my eyes to the screen. I don’t like top level football any more because of the cheating and the greed, so I don’t watch it as a rule. But I was keen to see Leeds get a tonking today, only it’s not really turning out like that. And fan my brow if I haven’t just looked up and noticed I’ve missed another goal. Dirty Leeds had better not win this. I’ve had a really bad week, so a 7-0 Liverpool win was supposed to cheer me up…
And now I’m watching the boxing. There are some positives to your wife buggering off and leaving you, aren’t there!
What boxing, Paul? Didn’t know there was any tonight.
It’s on BT Sport. Been a few decent, if unspectacular fights so far, but a. good one coming up now – Mark Heffron v Denzel Bentley for the European middleweight belt. And then Anthony Yarde v Dec Spelman.
Just watched the Yarde fight. He flattered to deceive against a past-it Kovalev, I thought. And blimey he could do with a trainer/training regime that involves stuff like sparring.
The Police versus the Army. Brute force and ignorance.
Have watched a lot of the cricket this summer and it has been enthralling in the main. Will no doubt watch Spurs tomorrow sometime, but will probably watch the cricket again live.
Right now, College Football because we’re living with the in-laws.
By choice?
A LOT of rugby, both codes.
All the NRL games that air over here – which is probably the same three that Mousey gets.
SuperLeague.
Pro14.
Premiership Rugby.
SuperRugby AU.
Super Rugby Aeoteroa.
I’ll start the Premier League tomorrow. Which is when the NFL will probably start in Casa Inlaw.
Both codes of rugby? Unless you are Austrailian, is that allowed?
Flippant answer: I’m a rebel maaaaaan.
Serious answer? The League is, on a game to game basis, better to watch. Handling and kicking are oodles better, and more ball in play.
As a Union Coach, there’s so much to learn from the League running lines. I thoroughly enjoy it. TBH, had I grown up a Leaguie, I’m not sure I’d ever have followed Union.
Just discovered iFollow thanks to this thread, and had the dubious pleasure of seeing Southend United getting walloped 4-0 by Harrogate Town in the latter’s first-ever EFL match. Harrogate’s fourth goal was the absolute softest I ever seen given away by a supposedly professional football team. Bunch of dullards. Bottom of the league by the end of September is my prediction, and there or thereabouts until the end of the season.
I can’t get excited without crowds and, cricket aside (which has been excellent – thank you West Indies, Pakistan, Ireland and now, Australia), have been paying lip-service to this weekend’s football fixtures.
It appears that many are going to their local football and cricket clubs, as Arsenal or Middlesex are not an option. My old local football team in East London got their biggest ever crowd last week.
Yesterday, we went to cricket for a 12.30 start, went through the gate to see the Reserves play football (in front of a crowd the 1st XI. often don’t attract), and caught the end of the cricket at 5. In a little village, including players and officials, there must have been upwards of 350 people on site throughout the afternoon. Last season it would have been about 150.
Tuned in for last 20 minutes of Liverpool V Leeds who are everyone’s favourite second team now it appears.
Getting psyched up for the Pride of Anglia’s first league game of the season against Wigan. Stupid midday kick off.
Pride of Anglia? Norwich played yesterday (and won)?
2nd favourite team? Dirty Leeds will never be that around here. TBH, Newcastle are the only club I loathe more, and they’ve been pretty entertaining while Ashley has been in charge.
Best thing Leeds have done in recent years was paying us double what we paid for that overrated tart Bamford.
He’s looking good value though. He is definitely not clinical but his work rate dispels the tart persona. He’s decent now that he plays in a team with a game plan.
Maybe my original comment was a little harsh, although he has always had the air of the workshy fop about him. He had a strange history at Boro. Came in on loan in the season we completely bollocked up the play-off final under Karanka and did very well. Had disastrous loan spells at Norwich and Burnley, then we bought him for £5 million in the dismal season we had in the PL under Karanka, who appeared not to want to use him even though he was brought in on his watch. Hardly played under Monk, and Pulis used him at the end of that season when he scored hatfuls, but completely excluded him the next season. When Leeds came in bidding £10 million, we snapped their hands off.
Nice to hear that he actually has a discernable workrate these days. I think that’s probably why Pulis didn’t fancy him – he wasn’t the right sort for Pulisball and often seemed to wander around the pitch aimlessly.
His work rate is excellent. His first season he was a little light weight but did ok. Second season he appeared fitter and stronger and had improved a lot in attitude. He seems to be a player that needs to have the manager believing in him. He doesn’t score enough but he does put a shift in and he chases defenders down and is a pain in the arse for them. I rather like him.
Never forgiven him for his time at Norwich. “I shouldn’t be here, I’m too good to be here, you don’t expect me to run for that do you?”
Well he probably had a point…
I never understood why he went to Burnley, or why they wanted him. He’s not the sort who was ever going to fit into the loathsome Dyche’s utilitarian sub-Pulis method.
A great start – in a playoff place already!
Ah but. Remember the start of last season!
Yes indeed – but that seems like such a long tine ago now and a whole different world.
I’m sure Ipswich will remain reassuringly disappointing though.
We weren’t actually that good yesterday. Defence needs to sharpen up ( apparently we are reliant on a Colchester Utd signing who has been out injured for months.) and should have scored more. Drinan looked ok before he was subbed off for that pudding Norwood who didn’t look interested. Midfield shaping up though it’s a big season for Dozzell and Teddy Bishop. Again.
I knew someone would bite! Any Soham Town fans here?
Think you’ll find Wroxham started their march towards the FA Cup Final yesterday…
Is Roys still in existence? ‘The out of town shopping experience.’ I remember buying David Gray’s White Ladder there. My parents lived up the road in Stalham for a while.
Not quite…https://www.roys.co.uk/
I’ve got my mojo back for the Premier League … Tottenham 0, Everton 1.
This is going to be very messy.
Sit back and enjoy.
There goes our season then. Those glory days under Poch seem a lifetime ago….
Has Hepworth reprinted his “Will Mourinho be the first Premier Manager to be sacked?” piece from a few years ago?
OK, no trophy, but a fairly consistent run of “Champions” League football, a likable manager, and a reputation for being an entertaining side with plenty of English players on board …
Come on, own up, who on earth thought Mourinho was a good idea?
What were they thinking?
If Mourinho was as rude to me as he was to the journalist after Sunday’s defeat, I’d break the 6 foot rule.