http://www.thepunch.com.au/author-bios/luke-robert/ The Canberra Raiders 1989 rugby league grand final win emotionally scarred Luke Robert, a studiously solid -built kindergarten kid from the South West Slopes of NSW. His beloved Balmain Tigers were beaten in extra time - on the buzzer no less. After becoming a Raiders fan in 1990 - an obsession with sports began. Luke has a soft spot for sports’ ability to continually impact societal change and marvels at the absurdity of American sports. A Sports Media graduate from the University of Canberra, Luke contributes to The Canberra Times entertainment supplement ‘FLY’, where he covers bands who detour off the Hume. He has covered the ACT Brumbies for Sportal and currently maintains a blog dedicated to Sports|Culture http://www.litresofink.blogspot.com. Luke plays in the Canberra punk-rock band Hoodlum Shouts and is a recent self-confessed twitter-addict. en Copyright 2012 The Punch penberthyd@newsltd.com.au penberthyd@newsltd.com.au Fri, 10 Feb 2012 02:00:13 +0000 Fri, 10 Feb 2012 02:00:13 +0000 Politics, opinion, world news, sports news, latest news, views, Barack Obama, Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard, Nathan Rees, Malcolm Turnbull, Peter Garrett, Barnaby Joyce, Australian, federal politics, opinion polls, election, The Punch, thepunch, punch ExpressionEngine 1.6.7 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss 15 http://www.thepunch.com.au/images/punch-logo-rss.png http://www.thepunch.com.au/ 144 70 Politics, political opinion, world news, sports news and the latest news and views updated live, daily on The Punch - Australia's best conversation. Search The Punch keywords http://www.thepunch.com.au/search/ http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/us-left-hanging-on-the-words-of-the-billion-dollar-man/ The Decision has been made - LeBron James will spend his foreseeable future playing in South Beach Florida, hooping for the Miami Heat in the National Basketball Association. James, an Akron Ohio native whose decision to leave his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers after seven seasons has shattered Cavs fans - James has copped a blasting from Cavs owner Dan Gilbert here – and is the most significant transaction of an American athlete since Shaquille O’Neal left the Orlando Magic franchise for the L.A. Lakers in 1996. The magnitude and the bizarre nature of The Decision will be felt on two fronts: how the next five to ten years play out for the Miami Heat and ultimately the NBA; and how the international sporting media reflects on its own behaviour during this unprecedented episode. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Luke Robert) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/us-left-hanging-on-the-words-of-the-billion-dollar-man/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/us-left-hanging-on-the-words-of-the-billion-dollar-man/#item3516 Fri, 09 Jul 2010 05:01:12 +0000 Luke Robert | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/a-simple-rule-that-could-transform-sport-in-australia/ Would Australia’s sporting mainstream benefit from the introduction of a Rooney Rule? In 2003, America’s NFL introduced the Rooney Rule to provide legitimate opportunities for minority candidates. The rule, named after Dan Rooney, owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers franchise and a strong advocate for the rule’s introduction, requires all NFL teams to interview at least one minority candidate for any vacant head coaching or front office position. Concurrently the Fritz Pollard Alliance was established to identify candidates, submit names for vacancies and to prepare prospective applicants for the interview process. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Luke Robert) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/a-simple-rule-that-could-transform-sport-in-australia/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/a-simple-rule-that-could-transform-sport-in-australia/#item2184 Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:55:29 +0000 Luke Robert | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/i-bet-you-wont-believe-whats-going-on-in-the-bowls/ News broke yesterday afternoon that the New Zealand bowls’ four (yep, bowls) tanked a game in the Asia-Pacific championships in Malaysia last month. Reports state that as a result of NZ’s poor performance, the Canadian side failed to progress to the championship playoffs. One Black Jack has been stood down as a result despite denying the match-fixing allegations. No word on how the NZ economy has reacted to the news or if Prime Minister Key is donning his whites in preparation of a statement from the Blockhouse Bay bowling green. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Luke Robert) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/i-bet-you-wont-believe-whats-going-on-in-the-bowls/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/i-bet-you-wont-believe-whats-going-on-in-the-bowls/#item1254 Fri, 18 Sep 2009 18:40:49 +0000 Luke Robert | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/canberras-standing-up-to-the-afl-cash-grab/ Today I am a pleased lil’ constituent. ACT Minister for Sport Andrew Barr is standing firm as negotiations with the Australian Football League, for the right to host AFL games at Manuka Oval, become crotchety. Until recently the negotiations had been unfolding akin to a Beckett script – the AFL thrust into the superior ‘Godot’ role while the Minister slipped obediently into a plausible translation of the masters of mundane, Vladimir and Estragon. The AFL’s asking price, a hefty $800,000 for the right to host two top flight fixtures, is a $436,000 increase on the current two-year deal which expires this year. The AFL is justifying the cash grab by suggesting that two pre-season and two competition games held in 2008 generated $1.13 million into the ACT economy. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Luke Robert) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/canberras-standing-up-to-the-afl-cash-grab/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/canberras-standing-up-to-the-afl-cash-grab/#item924 Sun, 16 Aug 2009 18:20:08 +0000 Luke Robert | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/sending-out-an-sos-for-australian-basketball/ It was Mailer who wrote of Muhammad Ali’s pursuit of n’golo. Applied to the Rumble in the Jungle participant, the Congolese word for ‘force’ was a chase for ego, status and strength. In Mailer’s words ‘It is not the n’golo you have, but the n’golo you are denied that excites the harshest hysterias of the soul.’ As a basketball disciple and universal sporting fan, I hope Basketball Australia has taken on the n’golo creed in its revamp of the National Basketball League. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Luke Robert) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/sending-out-an-sos-for-australian-basketball/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/sending-out-an-sos-for-australian-basketball/#item702 Wed, 22 Jul 2009 18:35:30 +0000 Luke Robert | Author bios | The Punch