SA Footy

Just wondering if anyone out there has any interesting stories on Rick Darling, former Aussie test cricketer.

I'm MCing an event at which he will be guest speaker and would like a bit of extra info.

I have located a wiki spot devoted to him but that's it.

Also, it's worth noting that Shannon Darling is his daughter. She featured in Inside Sport recently.

he did sh!t job at running ATCA and paid no respect to the junior compeition IMHO.

Thanks for that. I'll maybe refrain from talking about that one.
A glowing reference though!

Off memory his daughter is unreal

I can just see your post-coital conversation RB.

RB: You're a great shag Darling.

Dogwatcher wrote:Just wondering if anyone out there has any interesting stories on Rick Darling, former Aussie test cricketer.

I'm MCing an event at which he will be guest speaker and would like a bit of extra info.

I have located a wiki spot devoted to him but that's it.

Also, it's worth noting that Shannon Darling is his daughter. She featured in Inside Sport recently.

Ask him about his last A Grade game of cricket. Playing for Kensington against Port Adelaide he had his box (the old pink, very breakable variety) smashed into pieces by one very fast Shane George....i think common sense prevailed for Warwick after that!

Rick in captaincy mode?

Push in the Back wrote:

Dogwatcher wrote:Just wondering if anyone out there has any interesting stories on Rick Darling, former Aussie test cricketer.

I'm MCing an event at which he will be guest speaker and would like a bit of extra info.

I have located a wiki spot devoted to him but that's it.

Also, it's worth noting that Shannon Darling is his daughter. She featured in Inside Sport recently.

Ask him about his last A Grade game of cricket. Playing for Kensington against Port Adelaide he had his box (the old pink, very breakable variety) smashed into pieces by one very fast Shane George....i think common sense prevailed for Warwick after that!

That's a beauty! I'll keep that.

Ron Burgundy wrote:Off memory his daughter is unreal

Personal sighting RB, or in IS?

Dogwatcher wrote:

Push in the Back wrote:

Dogwatcher wrote:Just wondering if anyone out there has any interesting stories on Rick Darling, former Aussie test cricketer.

I'm MCing an event at which he will be guest speaker and would like a bit of extra info.

I have located a wiki spot devoted to him but that's it.

Also, it's worth noting that Shannon Darling is his daughter. She featured in Inside Sport recently.

Ask him about his last A Grade game of cricket. Playing for Kensington against Port Adelaide he had his box (the old pink, very breakable variety) smashed into pieces by one very fast Shane George....i think common sense prevailed for Warwick after that!

That's a beauty! I'll keep that.

Mate he worked for CSIRO for a long time - perhaps ask him what its like to watch grass grow!!

Ask him about his footy as a kid. He was a very good player. I presume you have all the usual stuff covered;
- running with Graeme Wood
- heart stopping and being revived by Bernie Thomas in the Test v Poms
- Kerry Packer ringing him up and trying to get him to WSC

Dogwatcher wrote:

Ron Burgundy wrote:Off memory his daughter is unreal

Personal sighting RB, or in IS?

I have seen her out and about, but not that personally!

His son played cricket at Goodwood last year and batted fairly well. Sam his name is. Scored a ton in a partnership of 230-odd.

rogernumber10 wrote:Ask him about his footy as a kid. He was a very good player. I presume you have all the usual stuff covered;
- running with Graeme Wood
- heart stopping and being revived by Bernie Thomas in the Test v Poms
- Kerry Packer ringing him up and trying to get him to WSC

Cheers, Rog, didn't have the Packer story.

As far as footy goes, there will be a fair focus on that. The show is his footy club's 100th anniversary. Within six months he went from being a Ramco premiership player to test cricketer.
Imagine that today?

Darling partnered David Hookes when he scored 100 in 34 balls against Victoria in 1982, so there's something else to ask.

spell_check wrote:Darling partnered David Hookes when he scored 100 in 34 balls against Victoria in 1982, so there's something else to ask.

Hookes 100
Darling 7?

McCurdy - too scared to bowl on the stumps and invented negative wide of the wicket bowling until Hookes sledged him and pointed at the stumps?

Good old Hookesy. My two favourite batsman as a youngster were Viv Richards and David Hookes. I used to love watching the Sheild on TV and marvelled at Hookes, Flipper and Tim May sending down over after over on a dead flat Adelaide track and getting 7 for 100 odd. I remember Hookes' and Flippers massive stand against the Tassies and chasing down 500 to beat Queensland. David Hookes could have been Australia's Viv Richards but unfortunately he didn't really go on with it.

regards,

REB

Darling was on 10.

The scoreboard read:
Darling 10
Hookes 102
Extras 8
Total 120

Back when Rick first came down from the Riverland and made the South Australian team, he and I played basketball in the same team. It would surprise nobody to learn his strength was the fast break. He had tremendous leg speed.

Anyway, he was the most nervous pre-match person I ever knew. Sometimes he'd be out in the toilet dry reaching with nerves. I wondered about if he was that way before a local basketball game, what was he like before he went out to face Lillee, Thomson, or the West Indian quicks?

On the morning Rick made his maiden 1st class century for SA against Victoria in Melbourne, we all agreed that Rick wouldn't take the field the next morning. Sure enough he didn't .. read into that what you will. All I will add is he was very fond of a beer back then

Perhaps if you want to embarrass him, dig up information on all the times he got hit or injured on a cricket field. He was incredibly injury prone. The most serious being when he nearly swallowed his tongue on Adelaide Oval.

I played cricket with him for a while in the LOA turf "Legends" comp, for Kensington. That would have been in the late 1990s. Darren Cahill was in that team for a while too, Nugget Reece ran the drinks, Captain was Darrell Schraam (ex SANFL umpire) and Wayne Schmaal (ex Norwood player) also played. Sometimes it was hard to concentrate when you were batting with blokes like Darling as your batting partner! He was still wearing a helmet when we were playing in that comp. I ran in to him again a couple of years ago at Adelaide Oval - out the back of course. And yes, he still loves a beer and still loves his cricket.