Luke Alfred

Luke Alfred lifts the covers on South African cricket and its struggle to reinvent itself after years in the international wilderness. The author presents the facts, as exposed to public scrutiny, from an insider's perspective.

Inside South African Cricket

Lifting the Covers

Since South Africa’s readmission to world cricket in 1991, the Proteas have played in six World Cups (and four World T20 tournaments) and have been knocked out in all of them. The reasons range from the weather and misreading the Duckworth–Lewis table to being outwitted on the field itself. In the most recent tournaments, though, they have shown a scandalous lack of nerve in the pressure-cooker of international knockout cricket. Drawing from interviews with the major protagonists and behind-the-scenes officials, The Art of Losing recreates the drama of these matches. With fresh anecdotes, stories and insights, it also attempts to explain why World Cup failure has become a habit. Does the problem lie with coaching, with communication issues, or with a lack of independent thinking among the players? Is it the product of a pampered professional environment, or of the South African schooling system? The Art of Losing will ruffle feathers but will also attempt to explain the ‘choker’ tag that has become so widespread. Is it fair? The Proteas, after all, win a high proportion of their one-day matches and have some of the best cricketers in the world. Why, then, do they invariably fail to clear that final hurdle?

Why the Proteas Choke at the Cricket World Cup

The Art of Losing

Jonathan Wilson

James Montague

Scott Murray

Rob Smyth

Ann Tornkvist

Sergio Levinsky

Carl Worswick

The Blizzard is a quarterly football publication, put together by a cooperative of journalists and authors, its main aim to provide a platform for top-class writers from across the globe to enjoy the space and the freedom to write what they like about the football stories that matter to them. Issue Eighteen contains 20 articles in 8 different sections: ---------------- Outsiders ---------------- * The Turf War, by Ann Tornkvist - How the murder of promising footballer Eddie Moussa sheds light on Sweden's gang culture * The Agony of Doha, by James Montague - Despair at a World Cup qualifying tournament in 1993 proved the springboard for the rise of Japan * Out of the Shadows, by Peter McVitie - The remarkable rise of PEC Zwolle, the minnow who reached successive Dutch Cup finals * Porterfield's Legacy, by Robert O'Connor - His former assistant Tom Jones remembers how Ian Porterfield inspired Armenia's resurgence ---------------- Liverpool ---------------- * The Forgotten Full-Back, by Scott Murray - John Barnes, John Aldridge and Peter Beardsley dazzled, but Steve Nicol was key to Liverpool's 1987-88 title * Accidental Hero, by Shaul Adar - Ronnie Rosenthal played an implausibly important role in Liverpool's last title success * Farewell, My Lovely, by Dileep Premachandran - A fan who followed from afar pays tribute to Steven Gerrard ---------------- Foundations ---------------- * The Ball Game Bulganin, by John Harding - It's 60 years since Jimmy Guthrie led the Professional Footballs Association into the TUC * The Unacknowledged Filters, by Jack Pitt-Brooke - Uncovering the hidden world of the football translator * The Nietzschean Dream of Barcelona, by Uriah Kriegel - Luis Enrique found the perfect blend of Apollonian and Dionysian to reinvigorate Barca * Flight of the Ladybird, by Jonathan Wilson - A centenary celebration of the publisher whose history of football was a set text for generations ---------------- Polemics ---------------- * The Subscription Model, by Tsjalle van der Burg - Does putting football on pay television really make economic sense? * A Convenient Culprit, by Luke Alfred - Is Steve Goddard really the only man to blame for South Africa's match-fixing scandal? ---------------- Women's World Cup ---------------- * Settling the Score, by Glenn Moore - The USA won a third title as the women's game confirmed the huge strides it has taken ---------------- Copa America ---------------- * The 99-Year Wait, by Jonathan Wilson - Under Jorge Sampaoli, Chile discovered a pragmatic edge to win their first trophy * Shifting Plates, by Sergio Levinsky - What the Copa America told us about the balance of power in Conmebol * The Unappreciated Genius, by Sergio Levinsky - After another defeat in a final, the Argentinian public is losing patience with Lionel Messi * The Caravan of Death, by Carl Worswick - El Estadio Nacional, where the final was won, played a central role in the aftermath of Pinochet's coup ---------------- Greatest Games ---------------- * Manchester United 2 Liverpool 2, by Rob Smyth - Premiership, Old Trafford, 1 October 1995 ---------------- Eight Bells ---------------- * Head Boys, by Naomi Westland - A seleciton of football-playing heads of state

The Blizzard - The Football Quarterly: Issue Eighteen

Luke Alfred

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