Flem274*
123/5
NZC don't shoot for the stars at all; they shoot their own feet. While the underlying message of my original post was go for it, in the post I slammed (and have slammed in the past) the cherry picking of talent. I have always been against giving the best resources to a few Chosen Ones and telling the rest to **** off. That attitude gets sports into the exact position cricket is in today.
I actually wouldn't bother with a long term goal at all for this team, just a long term dream which is domination. There would be one goal and it would be very short term: win the next test. If you end up in a position where you can't win or don't need to risk a loss to go for the win, draw the test. Achieve that goal every single time and we will get somewhere.
Milne averaging 32-33 would be a disappointment. His long term dream should be to be the best bowler in the world and I'm sure Bond is stoking that fire. His goals will be to establish himself in international cricket and contribute to New Zealand test wins.
Kids registrations being affected by 45 all out is a really long bow to draw. Kids sign up because Mum and Dad tell them to get the **** out of the house and take them down to the local cricket club. McCullum batted first not because of any star shooting but because he lives in a world where rights to aggression is a thing. I don't understand your criticism of trying to pick the best possible bowling combination either because if bowlers aren't being selected to win tests then why are they there at all? You may as well pick eleven batsmen.
I did not and will never say positive fluffy thinking alone will get us anywhere. I have always said the opposite. Dreaming without application leads to standing still. Critical self examination and improvement coupled with a deep slow burning passion to be the best is what you need to be successful, and both of those things are discouraged by the culture of mediocrity which sees nothing wrong with averaging 30 with bat or ball.
Every batsman and every bowler should aim to be an all time great. No exceptions. Not everyone will achieve this, in fact very few will, but 100% of people who don't try fail.
The fact is New Zealand has a lot of issues which can be fixed by doing the work and the excuses given don't stack up to any kind of scrutiny.
I actually wouldn't bother with a long term goal at all for this team, just a long term dream which is domination. There would be one goal and it would be very short term: win the next test. If you end up in a position where you can't win or don't need to risk a loss to go for the win, draw the test. Achieve that goal every single time and we will get somewhere.
Milne averaging 32-33 would be a disappointment. His long term dream should be to be the best bowler in the world and I'm sure Bond is stoking that fire. His goals will be to establish himself in international cricket and contribute to New Zealand test wins.
Kids registrations being affected by 45 all out is a really long bow to draw. Kids sign up because Mum and Dad tell them to get the **** out of the house and take them down to the local cricket club. McCullum batted first not because of any star shooting but because he lives in a world where rights to aggression is a thing. I don't understand your criticism of trying to pick the best possible bowling combination either because if bowlers aren't being selected to win tests then why are they there at all? You may as well pick eleven batsmen.
I did not and will never say positive fluffy thinking alone will get us anywhere. I have always said the opposite. Dreaming without application leads to standing still. Critical self examination and improvement coupled with a deep slow burning passion to be the best is what you need to be successful, and both of those things are discouraged by the culture of mediocrity which sees nothing wrong with averaging 30 with bat or ball.
Every batsman and every bowler should aim to be an all time great. No exceptions. Not everyone will achieve this, in fact very few will, but 100% of people who don't try fail.
The fact is New Zealand has a lot of issues which can be fixed by doing the work and the excuses given don't stack up to any kind of scrutiny.
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