Sporting Declaration: Good riddance to the Supercars race

Like many Novocastrians, I've welcomed this week's news that the annual V8 event has been cancelled for next year and have my fingers crossed that it will never return.

I'm not anti-motorsport. I'm not a fan, but I just have zero interest.

I have no issues with those who enjoy the smell of burning rubber and the deafening rumble of a highly tuned engine. Just go and blow your gaskets somewhere else, far removed from smack bang in the middle of the greatest city on earth.

There are three things that annoy me about the Supercars circus rolling into town.

First and foremost, it divides the city, literally and metaphorically.

The erection and dismantling of the infrastructure surrounding the track seems to drag on for months, causing disruption for anyone who wants to visit - let alone live in - that part of the city.

Any consideration from City of Newcastle to those who are the most inconvenienced, in particular East End residents and business owners, seems begrudging at best.

"Stop whinging", is the vibe. "This is good for the city, so don't be selfish."

That inevitably leads to an "us and them" mentality. Those in favour of the Supercars, and those against.

It has become Newcastle's version of the Voice referendum, or the Brexit vote in the United Kingdom. An idea that, however well-intentioned, has backfired and created such acrimony and angst it outweighs any potential benefits.

Despite all the spruiking from council about the financial windfall and tourism boost it provides for Newcastle, I'm more inclined to believe Neil Slater, the owner of iconic restaurant Scratchleys, who said a few years ago the Supercars organisation had a remarkable capacity to "extract every dollar and keep it for themselves".

"They're like a vacuum cleaner," he said. "They hoover up every dollar available."

Secondly, I find it hard to believe how bloody-minded council have been about insisting the Supercars event is a win-win situation for all of us, despite all the evidence to the contrary. Last I heard, councillors are elected to represent the people. Yet a recent "community-consultation" survey revealed that 59 per cent of 11,000 respondents opposed the race.

Maths was never my forte, but that strikes me as a fairly comprehensive rejection. Yet council appeared determined to plough ahead regardless, with an inexplicable enthusiasm to sign a new five-year Supercars extension.

Last but not least, I will resent every dollar of ratepayers' hard-earned that is directed towards the Supercars while ever Newcastle's elite-level sporting facilities are not only embarrassing, but disgraceful.

It's now 10 years since we hosted a Sheffield Shield cricket match at No.1 Sportsground, simply because it doesn't comply with professional-level standards.

In recent years, we've been leapfrogged by smaller outposts such as Coffs Harbour and Albury as Big Bash League venues.

There has been no NBL basketball played in Newcastle since the demise of the Hunter Pirates in 2006 - it's a bit hard when the roof at the decrepit Broadmeadow stadium has been known to leak. We don't have an proper indoor aquatic centre in the region, and our No.1 tennis complex at District Park has been a long-term eyesore.

I'm well aware that council can't be expected to upgrade all these amenities on their own. The state government's so-called "sporting and entertainment precinct" remains a figment of the imagination.

But maybe, just maybe, if council devoted as much time, energy and resources into lobbying for the type of sporting facilities a city of this size deserves, as they have invested in the Supercars, we'd have half a chance.

If the powers-that-be want to leave a real legacy, then get these things built, whatever it takes. It shouldn't need any survey to confirm that's what people want.

OF all the stupid things David Warner has said and done over the years, it's probably well down the list.

Nonetheless, I can't help wondering if the veteran Aussie opener is in denial after his dismissal against Sri Lanka in the World Cup match this week.

If you missed it, Warner had scored 11 off five balls before he was rapped on the pad by Sri Lankan paceman Dilshan Madushanka.

Umpire Joel Wilson raised his finger after a confident appeal, and Warner immediately reviewed the decision. The video technology indicated the ball was clipping leg stump, so the third umpire upheld Wilson's decision, and Warner begrudgingly trudged off, remonstrating as he left.

I realise the technology is not 100 per cent accurate, but it looked pretty adjacent to me.

Anyone who has played any level of cricket will know the disappointment of copping a dodgy decision. In my case, it used to happen nearly every week.

But I reckon if the ball-tracking simulation confirms you're out, there's not a lot of options other than to cop it sweet.

Yet a day or so later, Warner was still sulking and made a remarkable statement about holding umpires to account by keeping a running tally of their decisions.

"Players' stats go up on the board as you walk out to bat," he said. "When they announce the umpires, I'd love to see their stats come up on the board as well. The NRL does it. I think the NFL does it. It's a great thing for the spectators to see as well."

And on he went, sounding increasingly like a disgruntled City and Suburban pub cricketer with each sentence.

"You definitely know which umpires are going to give those 50-50 ones when it hits the pad, and that's where from my perspective it gets frustrating," he said. "There's no bias in anything. It's just that you feel that as a player sometimes."

The phrase clutching at straws springs to mind. Given that Warner turns 36 next week, is coming off a disastrous Ashes and has scored one century in his past 44 Test innings, perhaps he should be more worried about his own statistics.

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