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Incidents

Home Private Life The Team On Tour Todd on cricket Incidents Great Moments Ad and Damo do Melbourne	Warwick Todd has been involved in more than his fair share of incidents over the years. And they have more often than not landed him in big trouble. That's what has made him such a special character! In the following excerpts, Toddy explains some of the more publicised incidents: "The match was a good one, marred by only one unfortunate incident (or two, if you count the fact we lost). It involved myself and a rather abusive English spectator who lunged at me as I was leaving the field. Instinctively I raised my bat, more out of self defence than any desire to hit him and, to my surprise, I hit him. Not only was I acting in self defence, if you look closely at the photos you'll see I was actually off the playing field when the altercation took place, therefore removing it from ICC jurisdiction and making it a private matter between me and the deceased".
		"Whenever I'm dismissed I always make a point of either cursing loudly, knocking over the stumps, glaring at the umpire or tossing my bat. Sometimes all at once. Frankly, I think you owe it too the kids watching. That said, expressing disappointment at getting out can sometimes land you in hot water. A match against South Africa at the SCG last year springs to mind. I was given out in pretty dubious circumstances and as I was heading off the field, I kicked one of the South African's helmets about 10 metres in the air. Result: a $10 000 match fine. And I was forced to apologise to Adam Bacher, who was wearing the helmet at the time. So you've gotta take care".
	"I knew this would be a valuable chance for me to show some form leading up to the next test... I'm pleased to say I wielded the willow today with power, aggression and timing. I'm not so pleased to say pretty much all of this wielding took place in the Aussie dressing room after I was given out lbw for 5". "Facing the possibility of being dropped is every cricketer's worst nightmare (that, and having a tax audit)... Then came the announcement that was to change my life. "Swampy began by saying he and the other selectors still believed in me and that there was definitely a place for me in the team. Same speech they once gave Dean Jones... Apparently I'm seen as a disruptive influence. That really hurt".	"I wielded the willow today with power, aggression & timing". This led to Warwick Todd announcing his retirement from international cricket in '97. The ACB released an edited transcript of the retirement speech: "Ladies and Gentlemen, having served Australia for over 12 years with pride and distinction it is with deep regret that I now announce my retirement from international cricket. I would like to thank my friends, family and playing colleagues for the enormous support they have given me over the years. However, I would like to tell the selectors and the Australian Cricket Board to go and get ---".
Back to top	Of course, that was not the last we would be seeing of Toddy. Before long, he was asked if he was prepared to pull on the pads again and represent Australia. He said yes, and after a tour of India was selected for the Commonwealth Games squad. Australia ended up with silver, but as Todd recalls, the real dramas did not begin till later that night: "Well, I won't dwell on the details. Most of them are a bit of a blur anyway. But we blew it. We came that close to a gold medal and then let it slip through our fingers. "After the official medal ceremony was over we quickly regrouped and decided to head downtown to drown our sorrows with a few cleansing ales. However, back at the Games village word was out that there had been some political unrest in the capital and all athletes were being advised to stay well away. But we figured there couldn't be too much harm in visiting a few pubs so we grabbed a fleet of taxis and headed off for a quiet night on the town".

The quotations and pictures on this page are excerpts from the collection of Warwick Todd Diaries. I have only compiled them and created the page for the benefit of the fans. I, in no way, profit from this website.
'The Warwick Todd Diaries', 'Warwick Todd - Back in the Baggy Green' and 'Warwick Todd Goes the Tonk' are available from all leading book stores. Thank you for visiting my webpage and reading this.