Hodge lashes out

[Bacon]

FRUSTRATED Victorian batsman Brad Hodge has lashed out at an alleged NSW bias in Australian cricket.

The Herald Sun has reported that Hodge blames a NSW-bias at the highest level over the past decade as the reason he has only won Australian squad selection six times despite amassing mountains of runs.

And he also has criticised the Cricket Australia policy of allowing wives and girlfriends to join touring parties, claiming it has had a divisive effect and isolates players who have not had partners overseas.

Hodge, who has been denied an Ashes squad spot and a place in one-day squads despite being the heaviest scorers in Sheffield Shield in recent seasons, blames a Sydney-centric bias that many others from interstate have long suspected.

But he also points out it goes to within the change rooms of the Australian team.

"I guess every time that I was on tour I was a threat to someone else from a different state,'' Hodge was reported as telling sports radio SEN.

``I was looking to take someone else's spot. So they had allies and friends in that particular squad.''

The comments from Hodge, which are hardly likely to do him any favours with Cricket Australia, indicate that he has accepted that at his age - over 30 - he is not in calculations as having a part in the future make-up of the national team.

He says the situation goes back to the time he broke into the Australian side against the West Indies in 2005, scoring a double century later that season against South Africa in Hobart

"For example in 2005, Simon Katich was struggling. So the chances were, if I was to bat, I was going to take his spot in the middle order,'' he said.

"And that's the reality. But the reality is that it was only me as a Victorian apart from (Shane) Warne, but we also had five or six, seven or eight New South Welshmen in that squad.

"When you're not high up in the ranks, these people speak volumes about you in training and around the selection table and with the selectors.

"When you've got an opinion of a Brett Lee or a Michael Clarke ... or a Glenn McGrath, their opinion matters most.''

He also said that young players without a regular partner were left isolated when wives and girlfriends arrived, often to their disadvantage in a foreign environment.

"Take Shaun Tait for example,'' Hodge told SEN.

"Shaun Tait was a young guy in the West Indies ... whilst everyone else had their families and friends over there ... Shaun Tait was left there on his own.''

"Unfortunately for Shaun, he was stuck in his hotel room.''

[Swanky]

Sounds familiar to me....

[David]

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[Warney888]

Hodge is one of the best players to not have had an international career. I met up with him the other day and he is pretty dissapointed that he was overlooked for the ashes. I think there is definitely a spot in the team for Hodgey.

[rcon]

Hodge is one of the best players to not have had an international career.

Wow Warney, guess you were a bit distracted during this period? Must have been off shooting commercials!

http://www.cricinfo.com/australia/conte ... /5674.html

[Warney888]

Hodge is one of the best players to not have had an international career.

Wow Warney, guess you were a bit distracted during this period? Must have been off shooting commercials!

http://www.cricinfo.com/australia/conte ... /5674.html

What I mean is his appearances in international cricket have been sporadic. He clearly should have been selected ahead of certain players and I feel he would have fit into the team at any time over the last decade.