Is McGrath one of Australia's five best cricket players ever?

[Matt79]

Originally Posted by Francis

1. Sir Donald Bradman
2. Shane Warne
3. Dennis Lillee
4. Keith Miller
5. Greg Chappell
6. Glenn McGrath
7. Steve Waugh
8. Allan Border
9. Tiger O'Rielly
10. Clarrie Grimmett
11. Ray Lindwall
12. Allan Davidson
13. Ricky Ponting
14. Richie Benaud
15. Niel Harvey

Interesting that you have no wicketkeepers there at all, if not Gilchrist then Healy or Marsh. Glvemen are a pretty important element of the team.

[Francis]

Agreed but truth be told there aren't many wicket-keepers who impacted a cricket game to such a degree as those men. If I were to pick the greatest wicket-keeper ever it would be Rodney Marsh. Ian Healey and Allan Knott are up there as well. I think Gilchrist wicket-keeping is very good, although he had plenty of hick-ups during the Ashes.

The only reason why Gilly is greater than these men is because he bats well. Nothing else.

[Sanz]

Mcgrath is in my top two Aussie players of all time.

1. Sir Don Bradman
2. Glen Mcgrath

[SJS]

No

[Top_Cat]

He's in mine;

1 Braddles
2 Warnie
3/4 Lillee/McGrath (depends on the day)
5 Chappell G

[FaaipDeOiad]

My top 5:

Don Bradman
Shane Warne
Dennis Lillee
Glenn McGrath
Greg Chappell


And the 10...
Adam Gilchrist
Keith Miller
Steve Waugh
Alan Davidson
Allan Border/Ricky Ponting (Border for now, Ponting perhaps when his career is done)

My motivation for putting McGrath in the top 5 is simply that, while he might not be Australia's greatest quick ever, you can't place him -far- behind Lillee. If Lillee is a shoo-in for the top 3, McGrath can't be out of the top 5. Miller is a bit stiff to be at number 7, and really you could move any of those guys around easily enough. Warne, Lillee and McGrath are the greatest bowlers Australia has produced, and Bradman, Chappell and Waugh the best batsmen. Miller was comfortably the best all-rounder, but I put him behind Gilchrist because the latter is a pushover for an all-time world XI in my view, while Miller perhaps loses out to Sobers and Imran. Obviously you could put guys like Neil Harvey, Bill O'Reilly and Clarrie Grimmett in there as well.

And my Australian all-time team, which definately includes McGrath...

Arthur Morris
Matthew Hayden (or Langer, Taylor, Simpson or any number of others in either opening spot)
Don Bradman (c)
Greg Chappell
Steve Waugh
Adam Gilchrist (k)
Keith Miller
Alan Davidson
Shane Warne
Dennis Lillee
Glenn McGrath

The only hard pick are the openers for me. Hayden's probably done enough now to cement his place there, but there's some others that deserve consideration as well.

[Francis]

I should also add that the people in my list have also made a special contribution to cricket and their team. On top of being a great player, Clarrie Grimmett invented the flipper. Allan Border effectively built a new champion team out of a bunch of young greenhorns and kept the traditidions from the Chappell era going. Tiger O'Rielly made spin fashionable in Bradman's time. Niel Harvey was up there with Sobers as one of the greatest players of spin ever (of course he doesn't come close to Sobers) and was an inspiration to people like Graeme Pollock. Richie Benaud may have been Australia's most intelligent and strategical captain. David Llyod said it best when he said Steve Waugh epitomises Australia cricket. People like Fred Trueman pattered themselves after Ray Lindwall as Lindwall has such a lovely flowing action. All are in there because they are great of course... and it's based on ability... but many also changed cricket and if Gilchrist changed cricket too, then he has competition.

[Ikki]

I think so, McGrath is top 5. As Faaip said, if you rate Lillee in the top 5, Glenn should follow pretty damn close.

[honestbharani]

He is easily one of the top 5 Aussie players I have seen.

[Matt79]

Originally Posted by FaaipDeOiad

And my Australian all-time team, which definately includes McGrath...

Arthur Morris
Matthew Hayden (or Langer, Taylor, Simpson or any number of others in either opening spot)
Don Bradman (c)
Greg Chappell
Steve Waugh
Adam Gilchrist (k)
Keith Miller
Alan Davidson
Shane Warne
Dennis Lillee
Glenn McGrath

I'd have
Hayden
Morris
Bradman
G. Chappell
Trumper
Gilchrist
Miller
Lindwall
Warne
Lillee
McGrath

With apologies to Harvey, S. Waugh, Border, etc etc

[aussie]

Originally Posted by FaaipDeOiad

And my Australian all-time team, which definately includes McGrath...

Arthur Morris
Matthew Hayden (or Langer, Taylor, Simpson or any number of others in either opening spot)
Don Bradman (c)
Greg Chappell
Steve Waugh
Adam Gilchrist (k)
Keith Miller
Alan Davidson
Shane Warne
Dennis Lillee
Glenn McGrath

The only hard pick are the openers for me. Hayden's probably done enough now to cement his place there, but there's some others that deserve consideration as well.

agree with most of it their, But Waugh i dunno he was superb but i would put someone like Border ahead of him since he faced a much superior bowling attack to Waugh during his career & had around the same average as him, so i'd go for him over Waugh & probably even Harvey.

With regards to your point about the opener i agree its though picking the best 2 it seems. Morris seems to be the only settled candidate while i've heard that Trumper was a really great opener, we've seen Langer & Hayden, their was Lawry & Simpson & Woolduff & Ponsford back in the bradman era, so its though picking out that position.

[SJS]

Its not easy to compare batsmen with bowlers but when I amke an all time Australian team, I dont think of McGrath as a certainity and thats why I say NO to the proposition. My team (which does change a bit from time to time) would be something like

1. Trumper
2. Morris
3. Bradman
4. Harvey
5. Greg Chappell
6. Miller
7. Lindwall
8. Oldfield/Healy
9. Orielly
10.Warne/Grimmett
11. Lillee

[howardj]

Originally Posted by SJS

Its not easy to compare batsmen with bowlers but when I amke an all time Australian team, I dont think of McGrath as a certainity and thats why I say NO to the proposition. My team (which does change a bit from time to time) would be something like

1. Trumper
2. Morris
3. Bradman
4. Harvey
5. Greg Chappell
6. Miller
7. Lindwall
8. Oldfield/Healy
9. Orielly
10.Warne/Grimmett
11. Lillee

Thanks for that, Neil Harvey.

Only one (even that's a maybe) 1985-present player?

[FaaipDeOiad]

Originally Posted by aussie

agree with most of it their, But Waugh i dunno he was superb but i would put someone like Border ahead of him since he faced a much superior bowling attack to Waugh during his career & had around the same average as him, so i'd go for him over Waugh & probably even Harvey.

What makes you say that? Waugh faced Ambrose and Walsh with massive success, also faced Wasim and Waqar, Donald and Pollock, and so on. Border and Waugh are similar players and you'd have to rate them fairly close to one another, but I don't see how you can claim that Border faced better attacks. Both of them played in periods where the ball generally held sway, and both excelled in the most difficult of circumstances against the best bowlers.

[SJS]

Originally Posted by howardj

Thanks for that, Neil Harvey.

You dont think he was good enough ?