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Nate Robinson blocks Yao Ming

5'9" guard Nate Robinson climbs up, and up, to block 7'6" superstar centre Yao Ming, in one of the plays of the week. Never mind the body check and subsequent eye-poke Ming wore during the play, as the commentator points out: "that's a clean block."

The Haka Controversy

Graham Henry, some guy from the Welsh Rugby Union, and Richie McCaw have their say...

Did I score or what?

Mark Lewis of the Cardiff Blues takes a flying headbutt to the side of the face as he goes in for a try, and gets knocked senseless as a result. The first thing he asks when coming around: "Did I score or what?". Legend.



(Love the Welsh commentary, and good to see ex-Cantab boy Benny Blair helping set up the try with a nice little in-pass).

Japanese yo-yo champion: Takayasu Tanaka

Because we don't have enough yo-yo coverage here on the Dropkicks...

Whoops

What happens when you employ the Dumb & Dumber as your stretcher-bearers...?

Wales v. Canada: 17 November - video highlights

With the All Blacks taking on Wales this weekend at Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, how are the Welsh shaping up? Here's some highlights of their most recent international, against Canada, which they won in convincing fashion: 61 - 26.

Soundtrack by good 'ol Shirley Bassey...

Dick of the Week Alert! EMI Records.

Is there anyone left on the planet that the major-label music industry hasn't pissed off yet? Latest victims: sports fans. From ABC Sports...

Giant music publishing company EMI has threatened legal action against Australian sporting fans group The Fanatics.

EMI says The Fanatics' Ashes songbook breached copyright because it included altered lyrics to songs such as Go West by the Village People and Daydream Believer by The Monkees.

I mean, really, can you even apply copyright to 'altered lyrics'? Especially ones as good as these (sing to the tune of Daydream Believer)...

Cheer up Michael Vaughan,
How bad must it be,
To a be a poor pommie whinger,
And you're watching on TV?

Brilliant.

Fanatics founder Warren Livingstone was equally baffled by EMI's actions, and said the group had removed the songs from its website and was considering what to do with 100,000 booklets that have already printed.

We need to work out whether we have to shred these or whether we can in fact hand them out outside the ground. We're giving them out for free so it's a little bit astounding actually. We're just a supporter group, we're just trying to have a little bit of fun and so to have this action from EMI seems pretty heavy-handed.

Too right. What next, suing Liverpool supporters for singing "Ferry Cross the Mersey"? EMI - Dicks of the Week? Stong contenders so far.

UPDATE: EMI are still dicks, but at least they're backing down in this instance. The Fanatics songbook apparently isn't in breach of copyright (as we suspected), and is now available for download from the Fanatics website. Nice one.

Episode 33

The latest podcast is now up!

Direct to you from the floor of Triple T's new abode, because he has no furniture, the Dropkicks bring you more rugby and sporting action than you can shake a stick at. From around the world: Rugby World Cup qualifiers; November Internationals; Athlete of the Week; a new inductee into the Sporting Hall of Infamy; the Movember Competition and a Last Word...

Episode 33 (right click, save target as...)

Leon Washington - flipping the bird, or not.

As mentioned in the Episode 33 podcast, the 'controversial' Leon Washington sports trading card. The Washington Post picks up the story...

A Bowman "Signs of the Future" autographed card, issued by The Topps Co. Inc., features a photo of Washington from the waist up in his green Jets jersey with his arms folded across his chest -- and appearing to make obscene gestures with each hand.

Washington said yesterday that there was nothing naughty about the photo, which was taken during a shoot with Topps a few months ago. He said he was making an "E" with both hands to honor his home town, but some fingers are hidden under his armpits.

"All it is is that I'm from the east side of Jacksonville -- that's my community," Washington said. "It looks funny, but maybe I should've taken the picture a different way. That's all it really is -- nothing more than that."

The apparent obscenity has increased the popularity of the card, which is fetching nearly $100 on eBay, and Topps is offering collectors the chance to return the card and receive another in its place after saying its release was an oversight by editors.