KEY POINTS:
This cricket World Cup has been a tournament for the aged.
This isn't a veiled reference to the epic nature of the event which, like a Caribbean dope smoker, has been too spaced out. Rather, it's a tribute to the geezers whose maturity and composure have allowed them to dominate like an old bull hippo refusing to surrender its mating rights.
While 30 once signalled the end of the line for a sportsman, cricketers continue to flourish in the twilight traditions of WG Grace and Don Bradman. At the current World Cup, two 31-year-olds, Kiwi Scott Styris and South African Jacques Kallis, top the batting averages while Kallis, Matt Hayden (35) and Sanath Jayasuria (37) have scored the most runs.
The leading bowlers are New Zealand's Shane Bond (31) and Australia's Glenn McGrath (37).
With such statistics, the question must be asked: Is 31 the new 21?
It certainly seems that way. Post-30 comings-of-age are all the rage. In cricket, witness the renaissance of Criag McMillan, who came back with a bigger ticker and a bigger bum.
In league, Ruben Wiki led the Kiwis to arguably their greatest victory - 24-0 over the Kangaroos in 2005 - when he was already an old man in a young man's sport.
In rugby, it's hard to go past the renaissance of the sport's renaissance man, Anton Oliver. He loves art, he poses nude, he's fast again.
If you want more proof that 31 is the new 21, look at outstanding Chiefs halfback Brendon Leonard. He's 21 and looks 31.
On the global stage, cyclist Lance Armstrong won five of his seven Tour de France titles after 30.
At 34, Zinedine Zidane was arguably the best player at last year's World Cup and the grumpiest.
Perhaps that's the key. Harnessing the grumpiness as irritable male syndrome sets in.
Or is the secret to geezer success the fact they have children, other commitments, they understand there are more important things in life? Perhaps they believe they have less to lose or prove because in their minds they can say: "I'm old, people think I should be in slippers. Now, where did I leave my keys?"
Things like the whereabouts of their keys or a receding hairline can preoccupy men so much that a task, such as a game, is a minor distraction. Hence their talent shows naturally.
Then again, their determination can be greater because they have to work harder to stay in shape.
Perhaps post-30 success is nothing new. At the age of 72, Sweden's Oscar Swahn won silver in the running deer double-shot team shooting event at the 1920 Olympics.
And let's not forget Emil Zatopek. The great long-distance runner used the famous Fartlek* system which in his homeland of Czechoslovakia wasn't a funny word at all.
He Fartleked his way to Olympic glory in Helsinki in 1952, winning the 5000m and 10,000m before lining up for the marathon - an event he'd never run before. Zatopek did this at the age of 30. After that, he earned the right to Fartlek and be grumpy.
* Fartlek, which means play in Swedish, is a training method of intermittent sprinting and jogging.
Manu Michael Fay
One story that slipped under the radar recently was Sir Michael Fay and David Richwhite handing ownership of the Manu Samoa rugby team back to the Samoan Rugby Union.
Sir Michael, famous for heading New Zealand's first America's Cup challenge in 1987, will continue to be an advisor to union on a voluntary basis, while Fay Richwhite will continue to sponsor team.
Their sponsorship was low profile and yet they have put nearly $5 million into the national side since 1995.
While some will feel it's good that Samoan rugby isn't run by rich whites, sport in the islands is undergoing a new form of colonialism.
Samoan soccer is being courted by German soccer (Samoa was once German Samoa) which wants to set up development programmes in Samoa and Papua New Guinea, following the lead of England which is working with the Solomon Islands and Fiji.
Other big nations seeking South Pacific talent had better get in quick. They won't want to be left working with Easter Island as they've got big heads.
Rugby love
Every rugby fan needs a Love XV - the players who you rate for reasons that often no one else understands. And it's been a big weekend for my Love XV.
Both Roy Kinikinilau and Brendon Leonard scored hat-tricks in in Hamilton while flying bogan Jason Eaton (left) scored a 40m intercept try. It's especially easy to love big Roy because I think he may lie about his weight (the media guide says 107kg). Elsewhere in the Love XV, Junior Pelesasa, the Auckland-born midfielder, had a good game for the Force, while the newest member, Chiefs hooker Aled de Malmanche deserves his place for having a surname similar to hit 1980s kids TV show The Munch Bunch.
Swimming alert
New Zealand swimming's elite and Rodney Hide will compete in the King of the Bays race off Auckland's North Shore today. The 2.8km swim starts at Milford at 11.30am and the top swimmers will emerge on Takapuna Beach around noon.
The world's fourth-ranked 200m butterfly swimmer Moss Burmester and eighth-ranked 200m medley swimmer Dean Kent are competing and, with Rotorua teen sensation Kane Radford absent, the race is wide open.
Triathlete Terrenzo Bozzone is also making a comeback after his bike crashed into a car in October. Helen Norfolk and Melissa Ingram are favourites in the women's event.
The Sovereign New Zealand Ocean Swim Series deserves some coverage and has lured some big fish. Act leader Hide needed something to fill the dancing void and has continued to shed kilos. TV3 newsreaders Hillary Barry and Carly Flynn may be a bit lost without an autocue, while Rosie the Labrador will be swimming in her fourth King of the Bays.
And kudos to 81-year-old Lew Prentice, of Warkworth, who along with Hide, Barry and Rosie will contest the 2.8km race. Flynn and actor Shane Cortese will swim the 750m race at Takapuna Beach at 10.15am.
It's hoped that dropping water temperatures will mean the event won't be plagued by male streakers.
