The Gurgler 2020 Sporting Year Review

2020 was a year like no other in sport and life, and although most would like to forget it as soon as possible, we’d like to share our Gurgler 2020 Sporting Year Review.

Our Gurgler 2020 Sporting Year Review will run through the moments in the sporting calendar that captured our interest.

Not all will be mainstream or interesting, and we have probably forgotten a few key moments as well, but like most of 2020 it will do.

1995 QLD ORIGIN TEAM AWARD FOR BEST UNDERDOG

WINNER – 2020 QLD ORIGIN TEAM

Not since 1995 have Queensland named such a Franklins No Frills side to take on NSW in State of Origin, while the Blues were close to full strength. Cue the canny Wayne Bennett to take over as boss, and he duly secured a 2-1 series win courtesy of winning the first and third games. Cameron Munster was ultimately the difference featuring in the winning teams of Games One and Three, and missing after two minutes in the Maroons Game Two loss.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

WYCOMBE WANDERERS – One of the smallest clubs to make the second tier Championship with a budget that was a fraction of the rest of League One in 2019-20. Better still, they weren’t even in the playoff places when the League One season finished, but got bumped into the top six when the final tally was decided by average points. The playoff final win led to one of the great pitchside interviews with Gurgler Person of the Year nomination Adebayo Akinfenwa.

ATALANTA – Underdog team from Italy made it to the quarter finals of the Champions League. despite not winning any of their first three group games. They came within a few minutes of knocking out PSG in the Quarter Final too.

PENRITH – Although the missed out on Grand Final glory, the way they went through the NRL season with their long winning streak was certainly unexpected, and few fans outside of Storm supporters begrudge them the premiership either.

THE IPSWICH TOWN AWARD FOR MOST MEDIOCRE SPORTING TEAM

WINNER – IPSWICH TOWN

Always Ipswich Town.

After being relegated to the third tier for the first time in over 60 years, Ipswich started off the 2019-20 season in style leading the third tier for a few months. But as the games got harder, the points tally dwindled. Around Xmas of 2019 Ipswich had declined from the top few spots but for some reason re-signed the manager that took them down for another five seasons despite their form just before being ordinary. The fall was almost complete when the season stopped, as Ipswich finished outside the top six. Further evidence of mediocrity happened when average points were worked out and Ipswich went even further backwards. Needless to say the fist half of the 2020-21 is showing plenty of signs of more mediocrity.

THE EVEL KNIEVEL AWARD FOR DEATH-DEFYING MOMENT OF THE YEAR

WINNER – ROMAIN GROSJEAN

Simply put, the crash Romain Grosjean endured during the Bahrain Grand Prix would have killed him three different ways a few decades ago. How he survived was testament to the safety standards of today’s F1 cars and luck.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

EUROPEAN FOOTBALL FRIENDLIES – What a great idea to try and fit in three friendly internationals in a two week period across Europe at the height of the second wave of Coronavirus. Quite lucky that no player died from the illness, because plenty were affected, including a lot big names.

THE SPORTING MEH OF THE YEAR

WINNER – NO 2020 OLYMPICS

2020 saw a lot of cancelled or postponed sporting events, the biggest of which was the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

Whilst the postponement of the carnival of obscure sports that can’t survive on their own was big news as the event was moved, ultimately we didn’t care at the time, and even less so now. 

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

NO EURO 2020 FOOTBALL – also moved to 2021 and not really missed as all the major football competitions resumed in its place.

CAMERON SMITH PLAYING ON OR NOT – The  will he retire or won’t he retire got really boring throughout the year, and worse still is not yet resolved.

BIG BASH – Maybe it’s just us, but the Big Bash this year is hardly capturing the imagination. And that’s not just because the local side Brisbane Heat are hopeless, but a lack of stars or interesting local players is causing us to meh the Big Bash for 2020.

THE EEYORE SPORTING DISAPPOINTMENT OF THE YEAR

WINNER – ROMAIN GROSJEAN

For purely selfish betting reasons Grosjean wins a second category. An 80-1 five leg multi was placed during 2020, of which the fifth leg was for Grosjean not to finish. Given the wet and cold track, and a few safety cars potential, and Gorsjean’s inability to avoid other cars or barriers, we thought he was a special. Sadly for our selfish reasons he drove the race of the year and scored his first points in 400+ days.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

BRISBANE LIONS NOT MAKING THE AFL GRAND FINAL – The Brisbane Lions were great in 2020 for an instant AFL bandwagoner, but what shame they missed the most golden of opportunities to play in an AFL Grand Final at the Gabba. Likely to never happen again, which is a real shame.

NO QUEENSLAND CUP – While rugby league in Australia got started again in the NRL, the Queensland Cup was halted after the first round. That hurt our love of local rugby league with hills and cans of beer. It also hurt our love for the PNG Hunters, although we did see their traditional win over Souths at Davies Park.

BRENTFORD – Brentford are a second tier Championship club who had every chance of making the Premier League. Could have gone up automatically by finishing second but choked after the restart. Then they made the playoff final against Fulham and lost. A shame because they sold some of their better players, and it would have been a most welcome side in the Premier League.

THE TOMIC SPORTING JERK OF THE YEAR AWARD

WNNER – NOVAK DJOKOVIC

It just feels right that the sporting jerk of the year comes from Tennis. 

Although he is nicknamed The Joker, there wasn’t much funny about the Serb in 2020. His tennis tour in the height of the first wave of Covid may have been well intentioned originally, but the partying and general togetherness gave just about everyone involved Coronavirus. Then he injured a linesperson in the US Open due to a tantrum and was disqualified.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

BUZZ ROTHFIELD – A rugby league journalist who appears not to like rugby league. Rarely anything positive to say, and if there is an stained pair of rugby league underpants to air, it is usually Buzz who is first.

CHANNEL NEIN – It only took a few minutes of the NRL Grand Final coverage to realise how much Channel Nein suck. Happily since losing the cricket, one only is required to watch the Nein for 320 minutes plus extra time each year.

THE ANTI SEPP BLATTER SPORTS ADMINISTRATOR OF THE YEAR

WINNER – PETER V’LANDYS

Took rugby league administration by the scruff of the neck after year or piddling Todd Greenberg and Peter Beattie. Got the NRL back before most other major sports, with rule changes thrown in as well. No committees needed, just one man kicking arse and making the right decisions.

THE SAVIOURS OF THE SPORTING YEAR

WINNER – THE NZ WARRIORS

Further to the above, the NRL season would have been thrown into jeopardy if the NZ Warriors didn’t selflessly decide to based themselves in Australia for the restarted NRL season. And they did a magnificent job, threatening to make the top eight at some stage. And looks like they’ll have to do it again in 2021. Heroes.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

KOREAN K-LEAGUE – When there was next to no football, the Korean League started and was a great avenue for football and real sports betting in a time when there was little sport on offer.

BUNDESLIGA – Similar to the K-League, the German Bundesliga was the first major European football league to kick off, and while it is always great value in general to watch, it was even more so when the Premier League and other league were still a while off restarting.

E-SPORTS / E-RACING / E-NYTHING – When there was no sport, there was computerised version of some. The motor racing was the best fun, the V8 Supercars E-Series did the best by recruiting current F1 hotshot Max Verstappen to a race. Any port in a storm we say.

FOX SPORTS/KAYO – Loads of replays and old footage to get the sporting fan through the lack of on field action.

THE DALE SHEARER SPORTING PERSONALITY OF THE SPORTING YEAR

WINNER – ADEBAYO AKINFENWA

Regular readers of this website will know our love for the great man. Approaching 40, he was a major part of minnows Wycombe going into the Championship. But to be fair, he mainly won because of the below interview.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

LEWIS HAMILTON – A person to get to like, but few could doubt his commitment to life and fairness off the track and his dominance on it.

MARCELO BIELSA – Leeds Utd manager won promotion for the fallen EPL giants at the second time of asking, Nicknamed El Loco, he watches games on the sideline on top of an upturned bin, and his football is among the best to watch by any team in any league.

THE LEFTORIUM SHADENFREUDE OF THE YEAR

WINNER – BRISBANE BRONCOS BY FANS OF EVERY OTHER NRL SIDE

First year of finishing last in the NRL, and didn’t everyone love it. The Broncos deserved last this season and the banter against them for years of dominance.

THE ALTERNATIVE SPORTING UNIVERSE MOMENT OF THE YEAR

WINNER – NICK KYRGIOS ON HIS HIGH HORSE AND WINNING

You know the world has become a strange place when Nick Kyrgios becomes the voice of reason. Most of his views based around Novak Djokovic, whose work is outlined in the Sporting Jerk of the Year.

THE SECOND SEASON SYNDROME OF THE YEAR

WINNER – SHEFFIELD UNITED

Few gave the Blades a chance of staying in the Premier League in 2020 after their promotion, but survive they did and in some style. The 2020-21 season has started off badly with Sheffield United on just two points after 16 matches. Compared to 2019-20 at the same time Sheffield Utd had scored 22 points and were sitting eighth, just two point behind fifth placed Man Utd.

BEST NUDE FORMER No.1 GOLFER OF THE YEAR

WINNER – GREG NORMAN

Always Greg.