Netball

Better late than never. While I've had some success in getting letters published in daily newspapers (including once in the South China Morning Post when in HK for a week) I seem to have lost the knack of writing for the SMH. And really only about half of my AFR letters get a run. So my new policy is to blog any unpublished letters. This one was sent the Wednesday after the Sydney Swifts mighty win in the CBT Grand Final.

I am extremely disappointed in the SMH and its readership over the coverage the paper gave the Sydney Swifts mighty Grand Final win. They have become the first premiere sports team to go through a season undefeated since St George in 1959 and the only one in the era of national competition.

Did their photo make the front page? No - look in sport. Front page of the sport section? No the sixth page.

Meanwhile, on Monday, there are the Swans on the front page for scraping into fourth spot to make the finals.

Perhaps the paper is right to ignore women's sport judging by the lack so far of any protesting letters. Of course, they too may have been simply confined to the "unimportant bin".

And full marks to Senator Kate Lundy as the only actual Minister or Shadow Minister for Sport in attendence. Even the Commonwealth Bank let down the show - not sending the CEO Ralph Norris but some bloke from marketing whose job title sounded like second assistant to the janitor.

Probably a bit unfair on the poor guy from the bank (and a reason for non-publication) but Ralph Norris should have done better.