Costcutting at Fox Sports? Month old boxing match replaces live Test cricket coverage

Cricket followers who are looking to check out the form of Australia's next Test opponents Sri Lanka will need to be glued to the box tonight, because it's the only day (of five scheduled) when Fox Sports, which has traditionally relayed the full live UKSky TV coverage of England's home Test matches, will be showing live coverage of the first Sri Lanka - England Test.

And the cricket isn't being replaced by live coverage of other sport: on Friday night Fox Sports 1 has scheduled (see http://www.foxsports.com.au/tvguide), a boxing match fought last month followed by a two hour kickboxing documentary and repeats of AFL games. Not one minute of live coverage there.

Terry Jenner dies

Terry Jenner has died at the age of 66. The Advertiser/ Adelaide Now report includes a video of him in action with the ball.

Yet I remember him best for his gutsy 74 on a damp Adelaide Oval pitch in the 1975 Ashes Test against Derek Underwood in full flight his element (Derek never flighted the ball much but he earned his nickname "Deadly" on a turning wicket).

In between his first class playing days and his later rise to coaching eminence Jenner lived a somewhat chequered life, which included trouble with the law and at least one season playing in the Adelaide Turf CA (though not with or against me).

Update 27 March

Ian Chappell has written an excellent appreciation of TJ for Cricinfo

The sun also rises

Adelaide Oval decision day

Well, at least for SACA members, only about half of whom, according to Adelaide Now/ The Advertiser , are expected to vote either by proxy or at this evening's Special General Meeting which will, we are told, determine the future of the Adelaide Oval.

The issue has been widely canvassed in the local media, including the online Indaily and
the News Ltd outlets: Adelaide Now has just posted , complete with misidentification of the speaker ("Ian Ravenscrost" should be "Ravenscroft"), a last minute plea for a Yes vote.
I have some serious misgivings, notably

• whether the cost (which will certainly be greater than the already revised amount) can be justified

• whether the market for AFL (especially in the light of the recent TV rights deal and the decline of Port Power) and cricket (the recent upgrade accommodated everyone - including those with free tickets - who wished to attend the Ashes Test) will justify the upgrade, and

• whether cricket which, for all its relatively small local support, gives Adelaide Oval (and thus Adelaide) global recognition and ambience (eg this), will be sidelined over time: the suggestion that Sheffield Shield matches will be moved 12km to Glenelg when SACA has previously indicated that a refurbished Adelaide Oval No2 would be used concerns me.

To judge from the amount of heat (and light) the issue has generated in the local media it will be difficult to get the 75% of the votes cast in favour of the special resolution required for SACA to join the AFL interests in a Stadium Management Authority.

What is more likely is that there'll be a majority of less than the required 75%. This will presumably launch Plan B, or C...or Z.

So I'll go to the meeting, listen to what is said, and cast my vote. At the moment I'm leaning, despite my misgivings above, by voting in favour.