Problematique

There's nothing quite like a a batsman playing a perfect cover drive off a googly between mid-off and cover for a 4.

As I said earlier, if Swordfish (BLC/BLC 2005) made it we could have a really impressive game on our hands. But I hope that whichever studio makes it cares about the sport...

I think the team behind the original Brian Lara Cricket (now Swordfish studios) would do a great job (they also did Brian Lara 2005 which was a great game despite the graphical flaws and a few gameplay omissions. Got the AI pacing right though!) I'm sure that a few studios would be willing to have a crack at it as there is a market for it.

With the current sales in the UK and Australasia I really hope that a cricket game is on the cards. Whether it be part of the Brian Lara Cricket series (although considering how 2007 was such a big step back from 2005 I'd hope not...) or from a smaller, dedicated studio (hopefully) I think this could translate very well onto the console. There's definitely the scope for 1st person batting (although maybe in advanced modes only) and it'd be damn satisfying putting a drive right through the covers with the Wiimote. Bowling could be slightly more conventional (placement cursor, power meter, use of buttons etc.)...but perhaps using the orientation of the Wiimote could dictate spin/cut/swing. Fielding could be possibly done using a throwing motion although controlling the fielders might be more difficult (considering that the game would probably be easiest without nunchucks). Cricket's a hard game to code. But if there's a dedicated studio it could be pretty damn good. Thoughts?

Why the edited Sunburn lyrics? Teehee. The original ones...Just like a virgin blows. Happy birthday!

Exeter College (Oxford). We were playing cuppers and happened to be the only team with no Irishmen in it :p I played on the left, around midfield and half back.

Yep, I've played for my college before.

From a fiscal point of view Heidfeld would be the right choice for Ferrari, Raikkonen is slightly more talented but must have cost them a bomb. I'm a Mclaren fan...Kimi was unlucky in his few seasons not to have a more reliable car...but this year I'm really impressed by the work the engineers have put in to make one which works. Not that great a fan of Alonso though...I don't find him a particularly exciting driver tbh. It'd be more interesting with someone like Kubica or Heidfeld there.

He's always been unlucky...he started off in Sauber paired with Kimi who overshadowed him despite his talent. But it seems he'll do some good things in the near future.

Yeah, I only started watching in the last 20 laps. I feel for Kubica though because he's a very talented driver...hope this doesn't set him back. Great to see Lewis having a solid drive and it was nice to see Heidfeld and Wurz on the podium. I don't think Wurz has been up there since his days at Mclaren so congrats to him. Heidfeld too, he's been quite unlucky so far in F1 and he has a lot of talent. The BMWs aren't looking too shabby this season.

+1. Well, not the greatest sport ever but it's pretty high up my rankings. Comparing the two sports isn't particularly constructive considering they're so different even if they do share a common ancestor. And all it does is produce a lot of bullshit from both sides of the argument (not all of it, but some of it). In the end having played most of the types of football in the world I know which ones I like best both as a spectator and as a player. And I genuinely find rugby the most satisfying and football the least. But in the end it's all subjective. A lot of the people I know who dislike rugby don't like it because they don't understand it and as a result just see it as a lot of dumb, breeze-blockish men running into each other (although rugby players on the whole seem to be pretty intelligent despite what rugby drinks may tell). I see the same thing with American Football. EDIT: to the person who said that the NFL is much more physical than rugby...don't go there. I can guarantee you that someone like Jason White or Ben Cohen could hit you as hard as Brian Dawkins or Joey Porter. Rugby's mentality for tackling is to make sure you get your opposite number to ground, dislodging the ball comes second. In American football which is much more possession based many players are tackling to dislodge the ball...plus they can lead with the shoulder which is banned in rugby. Also in American football you know that the whistle will blow once you've made the tackle. Passages of play in rugby can go on for ten minutes and there's very little time in which to catch your breath. So if you put monster hits in all the time you're going to be pretty fucking knackered and not getting to the rucks. This is exemplified by one of the toughest drills I've ever done. Four tacklebags on each corner of a rectangle (1,2,3,4). For three minutes, your coach calls out numbers in quick succession and you have to hit the corresponding tacklebag. This is done at full speed. It's agonisingly painful...but it shows that in rugby you shouldn't waste your energy putting in a huge hit when getting the guy down will do. Of course, putting in a big hit every so often is good, but it's certainly not required for every tackle.

Rugby is structured, yes, but then broken play makes up a lot of a game as well. To be honest though I do prefer the structured, more forwards orientated Northern Hemisphere game to the faster paced, running Southern Hemisphere game. Mostly because I was brought up on it as well as the fact that there's an appalling number of missed tackles in the Super 14 (and here the ethos is to make every tackle count). Anyway, my point is there is nothing more satisfying than going through 15 phases to score a try in a rugby match. Because you know that every forward has done their bit to get there. Team spirit in rugby - as far as I have seen - is much more prevalent. Especially in the forwards, but also in the backs to keep the shape. Football is also a team sport but not to the same extent as rugby I guess. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T126TYBorhA

In game violence or fan violence?

Yeah, but the essence of the game is the same. I was always puzzled by the fact that AFL is played on a cricket pitch all you do is churn up the wicket! :p I watched a bit of an International Rules game once. One of the Aussies clotheslined a GAA player. What a ****. Edit: I think Moria's got it spot on. Referees are respected by every man on the pitch in rugby. You can't really say the same thing for football.

Hurling is a little too silly for my taste :p but yeah, Gaelic football is a hell of a lot of fun. I've only played it a few times but it's pretty easy to pick up. Aussie Rules is just Gaelic Football x silly :p I've never played it but I've watched it a bit. It's slightly mental. American football is great once you understand it (which takes a lot of time...) but I'm at the stage now where I really appreciate the more technical side...

Hmm. Imo when it comes to various incarnations of football: Rugby Union >> American Football > Gaelic Football > Rugby League >> Football I've played rugby now every year for 12 years. Naturally it's my sport of choice. I just can't get excited over football. Plus there's too much in it which pisses me off no end. Don't even let me get started on the diving. I've seen a couple of entertaining matches, sure. But it's never drawn me as much as the above sports (in both watching and playing). Gaelic football is what normal football should be, if only for the contact (tackles must not involve arms :p ie shoulder charging. Some of my biggest tackles ever have come in Gaelic Football)

Hmm, I guess there's more violence on account of sexuality at state schools due to the chav population. In my experience of boarding schools it wasn't until 6.2 when it stopped being such a crime for being gay even though it was looked down on. People were really quite nasty about it but it never extended to violence.

Well. I went to an all boys boarding school. People don't generally come out until Uni/40s around there...there's just such a homophobic atmosphere (including from those who later turn out to be gay). It's just the fear of being different which leads to suppression. I'm bi...not many people knew at school but there were a fuckload of rumours which is difficult to deal with in such a close environment. But hey, as long as you stick to your true friends it's ok. All things said though I only really want a relationship with girls at this point in time because they've worked out best for me before.

Word. It's easy once you've practised it a few times, after a while you can kind of spot it straight away. It's uncanny.

Play a healthy mixture of rugby, badminton, American Football and Gaelic Football. But don't go to the drinks. They're a killer.

Was :p sorry about the pedanticism. Eevilmurray...I don't quite see what you're trying to do here. I mean...great, you don't like Jeff Buckley. Everyone's entitled to their opinions. But you're just shit stirring. And you're not doing it particularly well either. Hmm. Awesome.

Wo0t. Prelims starting Monday. Inorganic and Organic I can do fine. Physical and maths are a nightmare. I learnt on Monday that I have to know quite a bit of quantum. Which made me shit myself a little. Whoops.

5x^2 + 27x + 10 Basically I do trial and error for these in my head... (5x + 2)(x + 5) You keep the same constants in the factorised form (regardless of the coefficient of x^2) and then just fiddle about. It's not the most efficient way but it works.

Nobody cares about what you think on this thread. So really...stop wasting server space like a good boy and leave.

Jeff Buckley...Grace is one of my favourite albums of all time. Plus the Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk sound great too. Simply one of the best voices to ever grace rock. And I love the way that Matt Bellamy and David Caggiari continue his legacy in their vocal styles. RIP Jeff...