I don't rate Ronald McD hugely, but...

[King Elvis]

Surely even he is a better option than North?

In better nick with the bat, and, like North, the selectors can justify his selection by his bowling (which'd go alright on the Gabba), and they don't have to worry about bringing anybody under 25 in the side.

Thoughts?

[courtjester]

I'm on the bandwagon mate.

He provides the exact thing we need with the ball, and he's in ripping form with the bat.

[Doodlesweaver]

I wish he played for New Zealand, he'd have played a lot of tests and been one of their stars. They like those sort of players who can bowl accurately and offer some muscle with the bat and we don't.

[dan warna]

>north and smith on current form...against the TEST team :D

[Selective Retention]

Ronnie showed that he was even more out of his depth, batting wise, at international level than North is.

A suggestion I heard on SEN would make more sense. Some guy called in and said that if Hauritz is only being played as a containing spinner, pick Ronnie to bowl stump to stump instead as the team was winning when Ronnie was playing that role.

Expanding on that call you could then pick Smith at #6, Haddin #7, Ronnie #8. Smith could then be picked as what he is, a batsman with wicket taking ability as an occassional spinner.

[lemmon]

Would be really useful at test level, we have a lot of holes and as a jack of all trades he could do fairly well in plugging a lot of them. Can score quick runs or dig in, bowls economically and pick up his two or three wickets an innings on most tracks and would be just about the best slipper in the test side. We dont have 11 stars, the glory years are over so why not pick a bloke who will be a solid contributer and a reliable character?

[gbatman]

he can bowl, line, length and to a field. He can also move the ball in the air and off the wicket. He'd be a great selection. Plus he has come of age with his batting.

[Caesar]

I think it's more a testament to how crap North is than how good McDonald is that we're talking about this.

Despite his blistering form of the last two weeks, there are plenty of players I'd pick for a lower middle order berth before McDonald - his teammate Dussey, for starters. With Watson in the side I just don't think his bowling is worth the tradeoff.

[mediumsizered]

Ronnie showed that he was even more out of his depth, batting wise, at international level than North is.



I think this is probably a fair comment for Ronnie's first couple of Tests, but his last innings against South Africa springs to mind, an innings in which he batted with a positive attitude from the first ball & knocked up a fairly quick 60+. Since that innings his batting for Victoria has also seen a far more attacking/positive approach, hence why he is now regularly knocking up tons.

McDonald wouldn't be the worst selection in the country, given his current form, but I can't see the selectors giving him the nod as they wouldn't see him as a front line batsman & I doubt they would select him as a front line bowler, batting at #8. A shame because the Gabba wicket would suit his bowling & if the current La Nina conditions continue, the weather is going to be quite steamy during the Gabba Test, with the ball doing quite a bit for those who know how to exploit such conditions.

[nineteen eighty]

Would be really useful at test level, we have a lot of holes and as a jack of all trades he could do fairly well in plugging a lot of them. Can score quick runs or dig in, bowls economically and pick up his two or three wickets an innings on most tracks and would be just about the best slipper in the test side. We dont have 11 stars, the glory years are over so why not pick a bloke who will be a solid contributer and a reliable character?

Well said! If we go back to when we won the series against the saffers, AM was a solid contributor with ball and bat. With him out of the team, we no longer have the ability for him to come on and take a wicket or 2...something that North does not do anymore.

He deserves a recall over North...based on FORM!!!

[krisholio14]

People forget Ronnie looked 'out of his depth' when he first started at State level too.

People also don't seem to rate him because he's not in the explosive all rounder mold that Aussies seem to prefer.

But there are few handier cricketers going around, and he's a positive addition to any side.

[aussie1st]

Wouldn't compalin if he was picked. I'd love to see him in another game before being selected so picking him in the Ashes squad is the only way. Then if he can hit another 100 I'd have him in there over the collapso pair or Clarke if hes injured.

[nineteen eighty]

Wouldn't compalin if he was picked. I'd love to see him in another game before being selected so picking him in the Ashes squad is the only way. Then if he can hit another 100 I'd have him in there over the collapso pair or Clarke if hes injured.

Whilst in previous post I said that I would have AM in the team I certainly would not be picking him as a replacement for Clarke if Clarke is injured. AM is a handy addition to any team but not as a key #4 batsman. He is a role player and that is as an allrounder coming in at 6 or 7 and bowling as 4th / 5th change.

[amer]

McDonald looked fantastic against the Saffers last year. I'd play him over Hauritz.

[The Governor]

Andrew "Ronald" McDonald was a key member of the South African test series in South Africa last year and he was omitted from the test matches against England last year. He can bat at number 6 and perform the stock bowling role where he can dry up the runs from one end in the mould of Paul Reiffel.

And, his bowling would be handy in Brisbane and Perth. People do forget that Australia won the Sydney test match against South Africa and the 1st 2 test matches against South Africa in South Africa last year when he was in the side!!

I would love him to be in the side and he could easily slot into the number 6 position. His recent shield scores this summer suggests that he his batting has matured and he knows his game to the back of his hand.

We can play Watson and McDonald in the same side. Hence, McDonald would have to make way for Marcus "Graeme Wood" North. As Damien Flemming wrote in today's Age, Glen McGrath can score 10 runs against a quality test attack whilst North struggles.

Here is another revised TEST XI for Brisbane.

Simon Katich
Shane Watson
Ricky Ponting (CAPTAIN)
Usman Khawaja
Michael Clarke
Andrew McDonald
Tim Paine
Nathan "Horror Pie CHUCKER" Hauritz
Mitchell Johnson
Peter Siddle
Doug Bollinger

[King Elvis]

Haha, did Flem say that?

Legend, should be a selector.

[BarneyBent]

Haha, did Flem say that?

Legend, should be a selector.

He didn't quite say that. What he said is that if North gets past 20 or so, you can jot down a hundred, but he'd be more confident of McGrath making 10, so he wasn't totally bagging him.

[Jimthegreat]

Ronnie showed that he was even more out of his depth, batting wise, at international level than North is.

A suggestion I heard on SEN would make more sense. Some guy called in and said that if Hauritz is only being played as a containing spinner, pick Ronnie to bowl stump to stump instead as the team was winning when Ronnie was playing that role.

Expanding on that call you could then pick Smith at #6, Haddin #7, Ronnie #8. Smith could then be picked as what he is, a batsman with wicket taking ability as an occassional spinner.

As far as being out of his depth, there's been many a gun batsman who struggled early on in their career. Our entire batting line up from when we were world champs were all dropped at one stage. Steve Waugh to 3 years to make a century. How bad were Watson and particularly Symonds early on. Hard to make a judgement after 6 innings.

[aussie1st]

Whilst in previous post I said that I would have AM in the team I certainly would not be picking him as a replacement for Clarke if Clarke is injured. AM is a handy addition to any team but not as a key #4 batsman. He is a role player and that is as an allrounder coming in at 6 or 7 and bowling as 4th / 5th change.

Well he still would be coming in at 6 or 7. Either Hussey or North would fill the void. Even if we brought in a replacement they would be coming in from 6 so nothing has changed on that front.

[Jimthegreat]

Andrew "Ronald" McDonald was a key member of the South African test series in South Africa last year and he was omitted from the test matches against England last year. He can bat at number 6 and perform the stock bowling role where he can dry up the runs from one end in the mould of Paul Reiffel.

And, his bowling would be handy in Brisbane and Perth. People do forget that Australia won the Sydney test match against South Africa and the 1st 2 test matches against South Africa in South Africa last year when he was in the side!!

I would love him to be in the side and he could easily slot into the number 6 position. His recent shield scores this summer suggests that he his batting has matured and he knows his game to the back of his hand.

We can play Watson and McDonald in the same side. Hence, McDonald would have to make way for Marcus "Graeme Wood" North. As Damien Flemming wrote in today's Age, Glen McGrath can score 10 runs against a quality test attack whilst North struggles.

Here is another revised TEST XI for Brisbane.

Simon Katich
Shane Watson
Ricky Ponting (CAPTAIN)
Usman Khawaja
Michael Clarke
Andrew McDonald
Tim Paine
Nathan "Horror Pie CHUCKER" Hauritz
Mitchell Johnson
Peter Siddle
Doug Bollinger

Almost! Just have to give Siddle that @rse for Hilfenhaus and Harris could well come in for Bollinger, who might not be ready yet, fitness-wise. Siddle and Johnson in the same team means not winning the Ashes. No pressure. Johnson needs pressure at the other end to really succeed. No chance of Siddle doing that. He has Hilfenhaus and Harris in front of him IMO.

Could go with the rest of the team though.

[dumb]

probably still a bit young for the selectors to pick him. would probably prefer david hussey, who could also help arrest a possible slide in our fielding standards as well.

thought mcdonald would have played ODI's by now though...

[BarneyBent]

McDonald should be in and around the ODI squad. Is he in our best team? Debatable, and I'm leaning towards no, but he could have at least got some experience.

If he keeps batting like he has been at Shield level, then he should definitely come into contention for the Test squad/team. I wouldn't have him in the team just yet, but there's no doubt he's playing very, very good cricket right now, and if he can show consistency with it across the year, then he's every chance of translating it to Test cricket and being a very valuable player.

That said, if he was selected for the Gabba ahead of Hussey/North, or even Hauritz, I wouldn't complain. I'd have some reservations, but I'd also be pretty excited to see how he goes. Same with White, Ferguson and Smith.

[Doodlesweaver]

McDonald should be in and around the ODI squad. Is he in our best team? Debatable, and I'm leaning towards no, but he could have at least got some experience.

If he keeps batting like he has been at Shield level, then he should definitely come into contention for the Test squad/team. I wouldn't have him in the team just yet, but there's no doubt he's playing very, very good cricket right now, and if he can show consistency with it across the year, then he's every chance of translating it to Test cricket and being a very valuable player.

That said, if he was selected for the Gabba ahead of Hussey/North, or even Hauritz, I wouldn't complain. I'd have some reservations, but I'd also be pretty excited to see how he goes. Same with White, Ferguson and Smith.

Why not? I would have had him in the team for the Ashes 09. Not playing him in England made about zilch sense with his bowling style, and considering he had bowled so smartly up till getting the elbow, I have always felt he was hard done by. He may have got more confidence with the bat as he went along, he obviously has some talent. And he is a good fielder, more reliable a catcher than North from what I've seen.

I've never understood why people think he is so gash, the English press (as they so frequently do) made embarrassing fools of themselves bagging him during the SA tour and in the lead-up to the Ashes, even though he had a better bowling average than some of their frontline attack. It infuriated me that a player who had really done all and more that was expected of him was tossed aside so easily, when some players do so much less than is reasonably expected but we can't appear to do without them. With the Aussies, if you are in the club, you are in the club and it seems some people are never in.

[BarneyBent]

Why not? I would have had him in the team for the Ashes 09. Not playing him in England made about zilch sense with his bowling style, and considering he had bowled so smartly up till getting the elbow, I have always felt he was hard done by. He may have got more confidence with the bat as he went along, he obviously has some talent. And he is a good fielder, more reliable a catcher than North from what I've seen.

I've never understood why people think he is so gash, the English press (as they so frequently do) made embarrassing fools of themselves bagging him during the SA tour and in the lead-up to the Ashes, even though he had a better bowling average than some of their frontline attack. It infuriated me that a player who had really done all and more that was expected of him was tossed aside so easily, when some players do so much less than is reasonably expected but we can't appear to do without them. With the Aussies, if you are in the club, you are in the club and it seems some people are never in.

Main reason why not yet is because in his brief Test stint his batting was simply not up to scratch, and his bowling was little more than handy. He performed OK, and was economical, but based on that form he demands a spot neither with bat nor ball. Now, his bowling seems much the same, but his batting at FC level seems to have stepped up a notch. That's great, and if he can keep it up, and prove that he's "come of age" with the bat, then he'll be an invaluable asset at Test level. But, his previous form with the bat, both at Test and FC level, must count against him until he has proven he has put that behind him.

Basically, Khawaja and Hughes have performed with the bat from the outset of their careers, and are in equivalent form recently (though McDonald's form has been truly special over the last fortnight), and so are rightfully ahead of him.

But once again, I wouldn't complain if he was in the Test side, and he has been remarkable for Vics recently. In my mind, he's not knocking at the door yet, but he's sprinting as fast as he can down the corridor to get to it, if that makes sense. :o

Oh, and also, with Starc now to miss the Australia A match, he may get the call up as a third seamer. Wouldn't really be a properly balanced side, Paine would bat at 9! But Australia A isn't really about winning, it's about giving players a chance to show what they've got, and if McDonald puts in a good showing, it may catapult him into contention.

[western royboy]

McDonald was in y team before he made runs because he performs the lockdown role in the bowling departmanet that has been missing in recent times since both he and Stuart Clark were sayonared. We have had an unbalanced attack for well over a year.

I don't care if it's not him but we need someone in the bowling line up who can tie it up.

At the minute we don't.

For the record Macca would be one of the nicest guys that you could ever meet and I wish him all the best for a recall.

[benny_cousins]

Ronnie showed that he was even more out of his depth, batting wise, at international level than North is.

A suggestion I heard on SEN would make more sense. Some guy called in and said that if Hauritz is only being played as a containing spinner, pick Ronnie to bowl stump to stump instead as the team was winning when Ronnie was playing that role.

Expanding on that call you could then pick Smith at #6, Haddin #7, Ronnie #8. Smith could then be picked as what he is, a batsman with wicket taking ability as an occassional spinner.

The reason he couldn't score runs for Australia is because he was coming in at 8 and not getting a chance. He's averaging 93 with the bat this year and you wanna throw him in at 8 again.

[nobbyiscool]

there are plenty of worse players in the squad than ronald...

i didnt agree with his selection in south africa, but with his current batting form, and with our lack of stump to stump partnership bowlers, i reckon he'd be a great selection.

we havent got a decent spinner, so dont pick one - mcdonald could add something really interesting.

[Caesar]

The reason he couldn't score runs for Australia is because he was coming in at 8 and not getting a chance. He's averaging 93 with the bat this year and you wanna throw him in at 8 again.
Six innings for 1 n.o. when batting at 8 doesn't really indicate that a lack of chances was his problem.

I'm not opposed to him being back in the side at some point, but let's get some perspective. His recent patch of form, stellar though it is, has really been over the last fortnight or so. Given his prior Test and FC record with the bat I'd really like to see him keep it up over a sustained period before getting too excited.

Right now I'd rather take White if a vacancy arose. I think he should be in the squad at the expense of Ferguson.

[Tyberious Funk]

Simon Katich
Shane Watson
Ricky Ponting (CAPTAIN)
Usman Khawaja
Michael Clarke
Andrew McDonald
Tim Paine
Nathan "Horror Pie CHUCKER" Hauritz
Mitchell Johnson
Peter Siddle
Doug Bollinger

Not bad, but I'd prefer;

Katich
Watson
Ponting (C)
Clarke
Khawaja
Smith
McDonald
Paine (K)
Johnson
Hilfenhaus
Bollinger

I thought McDonald was a poor selection the first time around. But wouldn't be disappointed if he was selected given his current form.

[dumb]

harder to pick him now after the hand injury... said it was broken? sounds like he could be in for a spell on the sidelines.

[Groucho]

harder to pick him now after the hand injury... said it was broken? sounds like he could be in for a spell on the sidelines.

I heard a month.

[krisholio14]

Whatever, it's ****ed all round.

Ronnie can't take a trick this week.