View Full Version : Drop Marto Memories
Crooked Rain
4 Jan 2005, 00:38
It was this time last year when I'd come to this forum to read a plethora of drop Damien Martyn threads. Hey I was one who said drop him as well. He did deserve to be dropped, I still can't believe he's still in the one day side ahead of someone like Bevan. But times have changed and he is now one of our gun Test bats.
I do wonder though had players like Bevan and Matthew Elliot been given as many chances as Marto would they performing like guns as well today considering the standard of world attacks are getting poorer by the year. And what will ever become of poor sods like Katich and Love? Not "one of the boys" I guess, never had a chance.
Onya Marto, but boy you were lucky.
leonmagic
4 Jan 2005, 00:43
I'd drop him tomorrow if I was incharge.
Onya Marto, but boy you were lucky.
Yeah, pretty lucky to be crucified by the Australian selectors in 93/94 after being blamed for Australia's loss to South Africa. Gee, that was a stroke of good fortune to be placed in cricket exile for years for a bad shot when you are 23.
If you want someone who had a lucky test career, look no further than Mark Waugh. Saved our bacon TWICE in his whole test career, once again Windies with his brother and the other in SAfrica with 118. Other than that he consistently crumbled when we needed him most. At least he looked stylish though.
Crooked Rain
4 Jan 2005, 02:37
Yeah, pretty lucky to be crucified by the Australian selectors in 93/94 after being blamed for Australia's loss to South Africa. Gee, that was a stroke of good fortune to be placed in cricket exile for years for a bad shot when you are 23.
.
Just about all of the current Aussie batsmen went through the same type of thing early on in their careers - never given a real chance to establish themselves. I guess once you do get establised, you're hard to drop, unless you're Bevo in the one dayers.
I'd drop him tomorrow if I was incharge.
You're a goose.
You're a goose.
Easy, hes a magpie supporter
superstar
4 Jan 2005, 10:24
Martyn was extremely fortunate not to be dropped last year. His form had been very ordinary, and there were alot of quality batsman making runs at state level.
As it turned out, the faith shown in him was justified with a superb 2004. But i've got to agree - he was very, very fortunate.
Disgustipated
4 Jan 2005, 10:30
Drop Martyn, bring in the Hussey of the Victorian variety the kids were crying.
Whatever happened to the Messiah Hussey? May have caught the Craig Howard virus, a mild case of the yippes.
pav_is_god
5 Jan 2005, 00:42
The same people were also calling for Langer's head...
red+black
5 Jan 2005, 00:46
Drop Boof.
Hang on, they already did.
Crooked Rain
5 Jan 2005, 00:55
I still nod off when Marto comes into bat during a one dayer. I guess coming in after Gilly and Ponting is a hard act to follow.
Marto was at his most interesting in the one dayers when NZ devised a plan to get him caught out around gully. I remember one game where he was caught in that area off a no ball. The very next ball he couldn't resist himself and was caught again - this time he had to go. His bowling was more interesting than his batting in the coloured clothing.
He is now a gun test bat, so who am I to be slanging him off. Good luck to him.
I'm just dirty Martin Love and Elliott were never given a decent go.
Punt_Road_Roar
5 Jan 2005, 09:25
I'm just dirty Martin Love and Elliott were never given a decent go.
Australia's dominance over the past 10 years shows that those 2 players werent required or good enough.
Elliot has had a couple of chances, look at his last effort against Sri Lanka pathetic !!
Well done Martyn, stick it up em !!!
Magpiespower
5 Jan 2005, 09:54
The same people were also calling for Langer's head...
Beat me to it.
They'll be the same idiots calling for Hayden's head in a few months (it's already started in The Herald with calls to rest him from the one-dayers.)
And because Clarke hasn't posted a century this series, he'd be in danger too according to Big Footy 'experts.'
There's more stupidity shown on these cricket boards than anywhere else on BF. And that's saying something!
BTW, Bevan and Elliott, along with Blewett, had ample opportunities to impress. You know what? They didn't.
If anything, Bevan should consider himself lucky to play as many tests as he did. He robbed Boof of 18 tests IMO.
Blue Boyz
5 Jan 2005, 10:31
My dad used to say it was harder to get out of the Australian test team than it was to get into.
ie if the selectors have faith and belief in you, they will stick with you long after your form sometimes deserves.
sinepari
5 Jan 2005, 10:57
My dad used to say it was harder to get out of the Australian test team than it was to get into.
ie if the selectors have faith and belief in you, they will stick with you long after your form sometimes deserves.
And thats how it should be
johnnyhoward
5 Jan 2005, 16:09
Drop Martyn, bring in the Hussey of the Victorian variety the kids were crying.
Whatever happened to the Messiah Hussey? May have caught the Craig Howard virus, a mild case of the yippes.
You can't keep belting tons left right and centre. It's impossible to keep form when you get no reward for it. It's happened to all the Victorian players. They deserved to get an international spot, but when Marto was in poor form, there was no way he should have been kept. If Hussey got a go on the international circuit, he would have taken his opportunity, but he's lost a lot of motivation since last year.
johnnyhoward
5 Jan 2005, 16:16
And thats how it should be
then why not give Elliott the chance to show what he can really do? He was unfairly dropped in '99, and his shot in Sri Lanka had him at no.3 (wtf?). Like Martyn, we have all seen what he is capable of at first class level (which is arguably a stronger competition that Test cricket considering some of the p*ssweak teams floating around), a class batsman. He's made 3 Test tons in his limited opportunities, a wasted talent.
red+black
5 Jan 2005, 17:44
No doubt Martyn should have been dropped, and his form in 2004 actually proves the point. The guy scored 6 centuries last year, yet in his entire career before that had only managed 5 centuries. Obviously, he had been vastly underperforming. But there's no question about his place now though. Arguably, he was very lucky to not get dropped for a single game.
No doubt Martyn should have been dropped, and his form in 2004 actually proves the point. The guy scored 6 centuries last year, yet in his entire career before that had only managed 5 centuries. Obviously, he had been vastly underperforming. But there's no question about his place now though. Arguably, he was very lucky to not get dropped for a single game.
Red+black is spot on.
Didnt he still average 42 in 2003 anyway.
Crooked Rain
6 Jan 2005, 00:24
You can't keep belting tons left right and centre. It's impossible to keep form when you get no reward for it. It's happened to all the Victorian players. They deserved to get an international spot, but when Marto was in poor form, there was no way he should have been kept. If Hussey got a go on the international circuit, he would have taken his opportunity, but he's lost a lot of motivation since last year.
Same can be said of Love. Never given a decent shot, just like his mate Stu Law.
Nobody can tell that Martyn didn't deserve to be dropped for at least one game be it one dayers or Tests. He kept his spot even during rotation.
Kenny_01
6 Jan 2005, 01:25
I don't agree that he should have been dropped. While he wasn't getting 100's, he was getting starts nearly EVERY innings, hence the decent average. It was only a matter of time until he turned it around, which I have said it all along.
One of our greatest strengths is our stability and if we were dropping players every time they played a poor series or two, we wouldn't be half the side that we are now.
One of our greatest strengths is our stability and if we were dropping players every time they played a poor series or two, we wouldn't be half the side that we are now.
Yep, agree.
Its a fine line between stability and getting complacent, but at the moment one of the main reasons the Australian team dominates is it has bout 5-6 individuals who when in form, are awesome with the bat.
The fact that those batsman intermittently go through good periods and bad periods isn't really as big a deal as some people seem to think it is. With batsmen as genuinely classy as Hayden, Langer, Martyn, Ponting and Gilchrist, you can virtually guarantee that whilst one or two might be in a form slump, one or two others will simultaneously be in world beating form-So now when Hayden has had a bung series its not a big deal, simply because Langer and Martyn are playing awesome cricket. 6 months down the track, one of those other batsmen will be in crap form, and likely Hayden will be carrying the side.
larrikin
6 Jan 2005, 10:24
Didnt he still average 42 in 2003 anyway.
Yes, but don't let facts get in the way of the story........
The guy's likely to win the AB medal so we can't call on him to be dropped now, so let's reflect on when we could. Bloody rediculous
yeah i agree. Martyn's form was down but he wasn't shocking for any long period of time, he still made starts, the odd 50.
There's different levels of descent into poor form - someone like Taylor for instance in his long slump was painful to watch - looked like a sitting duck out there and was relieved to last to double figures. Martyn was never that bad.
Should never have been dropped and correctly wasn't (just don't be digging up any old threads where DIG's calling for his head!)
johnnyhoward
6 Jan 2005, 21:11
There's different levels of descent into poor form - someone like Taylor for instance in his long slump was painful to watch - looked like a sitting duck out there and was relieved to last to double figures. Martyn was never that bad.
Well, in the VB series, when the pressure was mounting he was in that kind of slump, not having any confidence.
Maybe I sound a little bitter because of the double standards by the selectors. Their decision paid off to keep Martyn in, but class players like Bichel, Elliott, Love should have been given more of a run and most likely they would have refound their confidence.
larrikin
7 Jan 2005, 14:48
Well, in the VB series, when the pressure was mounting he was in that kind of slump, not having any confidence.
Maybe I sound a little bitter because of the double standards by the selectors. Their decision paid off to keep Martyn in, but class players like Bichel, Elliott, Love should have been given more of a run and most likely they would have refound their confidence.
Why do people kleep bringing up Elliott. He's had heaps of chances.
21 tests for an average of 33.48 isn't going to crack it...
red+black
7 Jan 2005, 18:22
Didnt he still average 42 in 2003 anyway.
At a time when guys like Gilly, Haydo and Punter were averaging 60, 80 and 100 respectively. Remember this was a guy batting in the prized number 4 position, hadn't scored a century for over two years and had never scored one batting at 4. He was scoring centuries at the rate of 1 every 8 tests, yet since his below standard 2002-3, has since scored them at the rate of 1 every 2 tests.
That said, no one has enjoyed his stellar 2004 more than myself, but I'd like to think that no one's position is guaranteed, and that that message is conveyed to the players. What if he didn't score a century in 2004? Still keep him in?
How many thought that Healy shouldn't have been dropped for the Brisbane test a few years back?