Andrew Symonds

No

... by Australia, and there was a lot of Andrew Symonds-based antics going on behind the scenes.

Um, but funny story about that game, Australia, Bangladesh, right? Um, ridiculously, when I was trading the cricket for, for Stan James back then, the rules were if you wanted to get your bonus, you had to win a certain amount of money, and that was a finite number.

If you won that amount of money, you got your bonus.

Mark Waugh, I'm sure he has grassed a couple, but I just can't picture them, whereas I can, in my mind's eye see some snicks that, yeah, Steve, Steve Smith, um, put under the carpet.

Uh, Ricky Ponting and Andrew Symonds, uh, by stretch.

A great fielder.

Yeah.

Uh, and-

Yeah

... and Andrew Symonds has been given a bit of love on the text.

Great hands, yep.

If not, uh, the best way of asking us questions is via the Patreon, which is on Good Areas podcasts.

Like PJ has, who says, "If the Brummie-born Andrew Symonds doesn't move to Australia and plays for England, does he become a Flintoff type of legendary cult hero, or does he end up as a Ronnie Irani?" It's a fascinating one because if he goes into that '90s, I don't know, shitosphere, like does he get the enshittification of English cricket at that time and doesn't become it? The only other thing I would say though is I wonder if English cricket was so bad, would he have got a better run in say, limited overs cricket? He doesn't play that long for Australia because their team's so good and he doesn't quite fit what they're looking for.

Uh, you know, we've done whole shows on this, me and Varun have looked back and we just think that Andrew Symonds was held back and could have been a much better player.

Had he been in a weirder setup, he might have done that.

The other one, PJ, is the West Indies.

He's born in Brum, but I think his parents were West Indian, and then was adopted.

I think I've got the whole story right, and then moved to Australia.

Um, so if he goes back like Brendan Nash, I can't think of anyone else who's done it, but like, uh, like someone like Brendan Nash who moved back to play for the West Indies, would we have got a Chris Gayle-like version of Andrew Symonds? I think that's also possible.

Mark Waugh was my favorite batter.

I loved Andrew Symonds.

Um, followed the mighty Bushrangers.

Had a soft spot for the, for the Bulls, li- l- I liked their maroon uniforms.

So that was probably more me.

Same with a guy like Andrew Symonds.

He was just so fun and relaxed and casual.

As hard a marker on himself as anyone if he didn't deliver.

Best player you've coached, is that Steve Smith?

Uh, no. Andrew Symonds.

Oh, wow.

Yeah.

You know, I coached him at the Heat.

He was a pretty good player.

I, I've been fortunate enough to coach some really good players, but Andrew Symonds was the one bloke that just put the team first each and every day.

Um, he would do anything to win the game, uh, and he was dynamic.

... to future stars.

I reckon Andrew Symonds had one of those cards made about him, and I think Brad Williams did as well, which talked about his express pace and that shock of blonde hair, uh, and that bustling action to the crease, uh, and all the rest of it.

And, like, this is kind of the same time that he's getting his opportunities.

Um, that time on a, uh, start where he was playing club cricket in '93, '94 with Melbourne, as Simon Cook was as well.

You know, and in this case, David Saker, who I mentioned the other day, and Brad Williams making their first class debut in the same game against- Right ...

Matty Hayden, Trevor Barsby, Martin Love, Stuart Law, the captain, Allan Border in his final season, Jimmy Maher, Greggie Rowe, um, who we haven't had on the pod necessarily, but he has been on the feed through the greatest season that was.

Michael Kasprowicz, big Carl Rackemann, who I reckon this was his last season as a professional as well, and, and Andrew Symonds was the, the 12th man.

So proper, proper roll off the tongue, legends of a great era in Shield cricket.

Um, diving to his left when they hit it behind square.

Andrew Symonds I've got number three.

I think an incredible all-round fielder, boundary riding.

Yeah.