Given O'Donnell is averaging 15 with the bat, and striking at 106, it's hardly proven to be a successful strategy so far.
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2024–25 NZ domestic season
- Thread starter ataraxia
- Start date
wellAlbidarned
International Coach
yeah the trend in the IPL is having a couple of designated "spin hitters" to float in the batting order to dissuade teams from trying to slip in cheap overs like this, but the smash hasn't caught on yet
jcas0167
International Regular
Or maybe Pat Cummins's long lost brother?
Good crowd today.
I've just finished a conversation elsewhere asking about why SS crowds are so low, comparing to the likes of the BBL.
Firstly, Auckland has a similar population to Adelaide, so the sheer scale of crowds should be tuned down. This is before you even consider the nature of NZ domestic sporting crowds or the relatively lower profile of SS historically. I saw through the BBL stats for this season & saw the average attendance of just under 23000. If you scale that down to NZ's population, you get a rough average of 4500, which is probably a solid crowd at most venues & probably sells out a few.
I've just finished a conversation elsewhere asking about why SS crowds are so low, comparing to the likes of the BBL.
Firstly, Auckland has a similar population to Adelaide, so the sheer scale of crowds should be tuned down. This is before you even consider the nature of NZ domestic sporting crowds or the relatively lower profile of SS historically. I saw through the BBL stats for this season & saw the average attendance of just under 23000. If you scale that down to NZ's population, you get a rough average of 4500, which is probably a solid crowd at most venues & probably sells out a few.
I saw a really good point in Dylan Cleaver's substack/newsletter, where he had a quote from an unnamed high-ranking NZ sporting administrator. They said part of the issues with no Test cricket and very little international cricket in Auckland, our biggest population base, is they get out of the habit of going to the cricket.
Sport is habitual, anything in life is habitual. If you're a season ticket holder for the Warriors, Blues, Auckland FC whatever, you go each week without thinking about it. You buy merch, you post about it online, you talk about it, you keep going in the future. You're a marketer's dream. But young kids, families, people in Auckland haven't been able to go to a Test in nigh-on 7 years unless they drive 2-3 hours south. There's no momentum to it. That's a massive hindrance to cricket in this country. If you love or hate Auckland, it NEEDS a proper stadium and enough games.
So god knows how you're supposed to get a groundswell of interest in a sport where you don't see the big names in Super Smash much, you really don't get them much at international level, either. Hell, they're lucky cricket is free to air on TVNZ. Imagine if it was on SKY, there were bugger all games in Auckland and our team was struggling? People would just lose interest.
Big Bash no doubt has more money but it also has better ideas, and benefits from more fervour around the sport in that country, which is because it's run better...not because of its size or anything else.
There's absolutely zero - zero - reason you can't get people to grounds on match day. Look at Auckland FC.
wellAlbidarned
International Coach
yeah can't understand why Auckland can't cobble together a slightly larger Hagley style oval for tests - it doesn't need to be an Eden Park level undertaking. I guess nimbys/conflicting visions?
Bahnz
Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
There was a proposal last year about establishing a 20,000 capacity dedicated cricket venue in the Auckland CBD.
Victoria Park test cricket proposal revealed - NZ Herald
Would be amazing if it happened, but as far as I'm aware it hasn't gone anywhere in the last 12 months.
Victoria Park test cricket proposal revealed - NZ Herald
Would be amazing if it happened, but as far as I'm aware it hasn't gone anywhere in the last 12 months.
HeathDavisSpeed
Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
My understanding is also that Auckland always under-delivers attendances per capita compared to other major centres such as Hamilton, Wellington or Christchurch. This may be a historic thing, but it is still by far the biggest city in the country. Some of that underperformance might be the location of Auckland's major venues - which are clearly hard to access for many Aucklanders.
Anecdotal evidence being when I went to Eden Park (!) to see Auckland vs. Northland in the NPC and there were more fans of the Taniwha there than locals.
Anecdotal evidence being when I went to Eden Park (!) to see Auckland vs. Northland in the NPC and there were more fans of the Taniwha there than locals.
wellAlbidarned
International Coach
The classic NZ cycle
"there's insufficient infrastructure to support such a project"
"we're not going to build more infrastructure because there's insufficient demand"
Immenso
International Vice-Captain
The easiest and cheapest professional sports venue to create is - a boutique test venue.
Very little barriers to building one.
Apart from the Auckland Cricket Association's ties to the the moo-laa generated by Eden Park rugby and concerts.
Funny how attractive an allegedly white elephant is to own. Must be some favourable terms where it is all sunshine, little liability
Very little barriers to building one.
Apart from the Auckland Cricket Association's ties to the the moo-laa generated by Eden Park rugby and concerts.
Funny how attractive an allegedly white elephant is to own. Must be some favourable terms where it is all sunshine, little liability
RossTaylorsBox
Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Coincidentally
www.rnz.co.nz
'Turn it into a retirement village': Inside the war of words over Eden Park
A battle has broken out between the two stadium visions vying for Auckland's future. Ahead of a crucial decision due in March, Chris Schulz enters the fray.
www.rnz.co.nz
Immenso
International Vice-Captain
Yeah.Coincidentally
'Turn it into a retirement village': Inside the war of words over Eden Park
A battle has broken out between the two stadium visions vying for Auckland's future. Ahead of a crucial decision due in March, Chris Schulz enters the fray.
I think that confirms my suspicion that the 'white-elephantiness' of Eden Park is grossly over-stated, if not outright fibbing.
I hate it as a cricket venue, though.
But in the greater debate of Auckland stadiums, the talk of demolishing it because it is a 'white elephant' and replacing it with a multi-billion dollar inappropriate designs around the waterfronts are just usually dumb and means that nothing ever happens.
The only viable option is:
- Eden Park as a football and concert venue (but probably retaining the multi-sport versatility of the retractable seating for the short-strait-boundaries T20 internationals, yuck).
- And develop another park developed into a Hagley style oval. My preference would be Victoria Park by a country mile. Truck the historic wooden grandstand at the Outer Oval down to Victoria Park, build up some grass embankments, and build a single new modern grandstand, and then eventually some light towers. (Basically, that Populous proposal, but add the wooden grandstand as well)
Auckland can't even manage the equivalent of an Alan Border field, Junction Oval, North Sydney Oval, Bankstown Oval .... shame on them ...
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As a more general thing, I've always had the feeling SS has never been invested in much as a product, whereas the BBL for instance has been an identifiable product from the beginning. When you're as far behind the 8 ball as SS is because of the history of neglect, you've got to make up ground fast. Were the first few seasons even televised? The earliest clip I've found was from the 7th or 8th season, & it wasn't fully televised until a few years ago (you can knock Spark all you like, but I'll always respect them for that).
Auckland is just a massive mess, & because it's home to 1/3 of us, it really holds NZ back. I think a Victoria Park/Western Springs-style venue is what is needed, anything smaller just isn't good enough.
thierry henry
International Coach
We're just rehashing old debates here, but Eden Park is honestly an ok stadium and not that hard to get to. There seems to be some sort of vested interest in portraying it as buried deep in suburbia when it's practically city fringe and located in a relatively busy area in terms of bars, restaurants etc (albeit admittedly not as much as being right in the CBD proper). I think because it doesn't perfectly cater to anyone's specific needs (too small for cricket, stands too far away for rugby) there's a tendency to exaggerate the issues with the location, facilities etc.
Anyway whatever, I agree we should be able to whip up a boutique test match venue easily enough and it's poor form that we haven't.
Anyway whatever, I agree we should be able to whip up a boutique test match venue easily enough and it's poor form that we haven't.
It's not so much about the OK stadium part as it is that NZC clearly don't want to use it, and it's affecting their main supporter base. To have one T20 (and an absolute hiding, not that NZC can control that) by March at your biggest population base is outrageous.
thundaboult
International Debutant
he needs to have a couple of good t20 games ffs
NZTailender
I can't believe I ate the whole thing
Considering the ridiculous depth of the Canterbury bowling attack and relatively decent batting lineup, what would a rest of NZ XI look like? Bearing in mind you can only use legit current SS players, with guns for hire out elsewhere like Conway and Williamson not eligible.