New Zealand v Australia ODI Betting: Have good neighbours stopped being good friends?

Bat and ball / Frank Gregan / 08 March 2010 / Leave a Comment

Martin Johnson squares up to Scott Styris in the recent ODI with Brad Haddin eventually stepping in to act as peacemaker

"Trans-Tasman rivalry has always existed, there have been some belting incidents in the past (the Chappell brothers gave a whole new meaning to the term underhanded!) but New Zealanders are usually quick to forgive and forget. This time however, there seems to be a slow fuse burning."

Frank Gregan discusses how the previous good relationship between Australia and New Zealand on the cricket field has all of a sudden turned to animosity...

Whilst rummaging around iTunes trying to find a track or two to make my daily jog with a limp a bit more bearable I stumbled across the classic - 'It's not easy being green' - ah Kermit the Frog, a much underrated musical genius!

Like many other creative types the Frog lacks perception of the real world, being green might be difficult but it's much better than a lot of curses that are bestowed upon one at birth. Being English for example!

We English are hated in the sporting world and for some reason the most venomous critics are our near neighbours, the Gaelic clans from North of the Border, across the Severn bridge and from the Emerald Isle. If you don't believe that, stand in any bar on your holidays this summer in Tenerife, Turkey or Tenby and listen to the roars from our Irish, Welsh and Scottish friends when England's opponents score during football's World Cup.

It's probably just a classic case of 'what goes around, comes around' and the price that we have to pay for our forefather's liking of raping and pillaging! But does it have to be like that? Do all near neighbours have to wish a plague of locusts on each other?

The answer is "no" and proof of that can be found eleven and a half thousand miles away as New Zealand and Australia do battle on the cricket pitch. These two countries know how to get along. Matches between the two sides are always ultra-competitive out in the middle but both sets of players and supporters have a genuine mutual respect. The Kiwis have never considered themselves to be anything other than Australia's equal even though the Aussies bait them about being nothing more than their seventh state. The Kiwis have no chip on their shoulder, just a huge desire to win.

It therefore came as something of a shock when after an altercation during the first ODI between Scott Styris and Mitchell Johnson, the Kiwi crowd and players didn't let it go and move on. The crowd gave Johnson the bird during the second game and the players seem to be picking up the vibe. It was a very unsavoury incident with Johnson showing that he's not the brightest when he tried to headbutt the batsman who was not only carrying a club (his bat), but was wearing a crash helmet!

Trans-Tasman rivalry has always existed, there have been some belting incidents in the past (the Chappell brothers gave a whole new meaning to the term underhanded!) but New Zealanders are usually quick to forgive and forget. This time however, there seems to be a slow fuse burning.

Brendon McCullum has added his two penneth claiming that the strained relationship is for the good of the game. "I don't think it's a bad thing to be honest. It shows everyone watching how much it means to us." There is a huge divide between banter and bodily harm and the Kiwi wicket keeper/batsman has lost the plot if he thinks the conduct of the two players was acceptable.

The third ODI is tomorrow and with the series level it should be a cracker. These days there never seems to be any value prices about the Australians winning in the shorter format but if you have been following them lately, you are probably reading this on your yacht in the Caribbean courtesy of your winnings! Australia are [1.41] with the Kiwis priced at [3.45] and the recommendation is to back New Zealand. They are a very big price when you consider how close the two games to date have been.

Whatever happens, let's hope that Kiwis don't develop a chip. As a nation they have punched above their weight for years but more importantly they have done it in style. They have no need to be bitter and twisted nor to vent their anger at the Aussies. That's what we English are for!