Pathetic article! Saying that Hansie Cronje is an "Arrogant, ruthless, actual or spiritual cheat." is ridiculous. Yes, he made a mistake which may have tainted the game in some peoples eyes, but did he take the fall for so many others? I feel he was used as an easy way to target an issue that is probably much more widespread than any spectator could imagine.

agree with the afrikaaners insecurity issue. Infact most players who complain about the quota system are the ones who are mostly fringe white players with very little contribution (eg. Dipenaar, Nel, Van der waath etc). Ashwell prince is any day a better batter than dipenaar and so is loots bosman and no one can argue about maks. His commitment to the game is unparallel. Hashim Amla has himself proved to be a handful.So my advise for these afrikaaners is that now they have to learn how to compete instead of moving to sub-standard leagues in England and whinging about their plight.

Wow, how self righteous. Yes, what Cronje did was indefensible and an affront to the sport, but he was also a human being and deserves better than this attempt to de humanise him by treating him as someone who doesn't deserve to be named or the forgiveness we have extended to so many others who have damaged the sport. He is merely the one who fell the furthest and deserves our pity, IMHO.

And as for your last paragraph, you can't find room for the match fixers of the sub continent, the current administration of the ICC who pander to Zimbabwe, and of course the ZCU itself who are waging a racial war no less insidious than what occurred in apartheid South Africa?

I was interested in that you mentioned Jardine btw. I'm Australian but the more I learn about him the more I can see to admire (along with all his faults) because he didn't do anything I couldn't imagine Border or Waugh doing to win the Ashes (Ponting wouldn't be able to inspire men to follow his directions that far).

I can't believe you can put Jardine and Cronje in the same bracket. If it is because of the deliberately intimidating bowling in the Bodyline series, you'd have to add Clive Lloyd and Viv Richards for the way the West Indies bowled in the 80s. But somehow "Chin Music" has been romanticised and Bodyline is abhorrent. Perhaps you could mention Courtney Walsh bowling around the wicket to Devon Malcolm, that most capable of batsmen and repeatedly hitting him in the ribs.

How about McCullum twice running out batsmen celebrating with their batting partners?

For all the talk about the freedom Hansie was given, I think the author has been given way too much journalistic freedom in this article. To claim that Hansie's dishonesty was race-based is a remarkable claim - tabloid stuff really.

Hansie's failure was evidence of the very Christian faith he proclaimed, that man is not inherently good as commonly purported in our modern secular humanism. However, the same faith proclaims the hope of redemption and of forgiveness - a hope this author could well ingest in his scarred outlook on life.

Hansie Cronje is a hero. He opened the worlds eyes. If not for him we would still be wide eyed and innocent in believing "close finishes" were just that ...

Wow is the word. What a pompous, ill-informed piece of drivel. I want the 3 minutes it took to read this piece of c*** back. Hansie was most certainly guilty - but he was never anything more than a tiny bit player in the bigger picture. If your loyalty to cricket is that paper-thin, I suggest you start writing about something else. Or better still, try something completely different as a career.. perhaps book-making.

Remorse usually saves one from the gallows. Hansie Cronje (and I proudly spell his name) showed remorse and took the fall for many others who got away. While his actions cannot be condoned, he has been tried, convicted and sentenced. You dont need to be Mother Teresa to forgive. Some, like Mr. R** S**** don't have the he

Hansie was moron and i despise him. But to try bring race into it is crazy. Your article was rubbish. Gibbs is an idiot as well, his list of mess ups is as long as honours board at Lords. Finally saptarshi don't speak about things you don't know, the quota system is going to have extremely negative long term implications for cricket in SA.

Cronje was greedy full stop. I fail to understand that his actions were racially motivated as implied in the article. Being an Afrikaner did not contribute (nor detract) from Cronje's actions. One can not of course deny Afrikaners role in apartheid, but please remember that many Afrikaners are contributing to nation building and affirmative action in sport through clinics, bursaries for black players etc. Articles like these only reinforce the stereotype of Afrikaners as racists.

Hanse Cronje was a cheat and a liar and his coercion of two young players was disgusting. His sobbing for forgiveness and the assertion of his faith was despicable and an insult to his faith.

Unanswered questions remain. Some people knew what had happened and kept quiet about it. Some are still in cricket as players or coaches.

Well Dave, The indian fixers Azhar and jadeja were banned for life so you cannot say that they were pardoned. Hansie too was given the same punishment. So in no way has he been treated wrongly (he wasn't hanged to death was he?)If anyone was let off with a slap on the wrist it were Messers Shane Warne and Mark Waugh but I understand CA's desperation as without them the australian team would be the whipping boys like in the 80's. Please read Rohit Brijnath's article on Azhar and then maybe you will stop complaining. Also always dont drag the sub-continent into your mess. Its ur mess and you have to clean it

lay off of cronje... his sad demise, professionally and then that of his life cleansed the game of the stain of match fixing. I think its about time we put that behind us.

Saptarshi - oh defensive one... last time I went to Newlands or Wanderers or Lords for that matter, I don't recall sitting next to rows of bookies in the stands taking bets on everything from the outcome of the entire match to whether the guy two rows in front is wearing a hairpiece or not.. Its a particularly sub-continent phenomenon, so please at least take ownership.

This article is a very narrow & negative targetting of Cronje.While Cronje was to be blamed for the mess he got into it is not only him who was involved. There were others who were equally and may be more involved than him but got away. In that sense he has been only just one of the symptoms (may be a high profile one)and match fixing would have been prevailing with or without him. So to put him as only person that cannot be forgiven is too much. Also attributing a racial spin to his motives can only be speculation. Nobody but Hansie would know the true reason. But that is besides the point. What he did was wrong (irrespecive of his motive) but it does not deserve such strong reaction. He also inspired the SA team and was a great leader if you leave this issue out. Let us also talk about his good qualities and forgive his negative ones. Forgive but dont forget should be the principle here.

Was this article written by a real journalist? If you are a senior lecturer in journalism as is claimed, I see disaster in sports journalism in the future. Geoffrey Boycott's mother could have written a better article. Get off your Whiggish high horse and stop your own racism against Afrikaners. The least you can do as an alledgedly resposible journalist is to get the spelling right. ('Afrikaners' is spelt with two and not three a's - basic stuff). At least most of the commentators on this article seem to have more sense than the 'journalist'.

Cronje was someone you "hesitate to dignify as a 'man?'" He may have been dishonest and weak, but he wasn't a murderer, rapist, drug dealer, or anything else that can detract from his humanity. Why not throw in anyone who plays cards or bets on the horses as inhuman?

And I also fail to see what race has to do with it. Indians have also been found guilty of match-fixing, as have Warne and Waugh- both white Australians. Then again, some people think all Australians are racist as well, so why not make assumptions about white South Africans too?

Just one more observation- I wonder how many people would exclude Cronje from a Greatest South African ODI XI based on his conviction? Probably quite a lot, but his record as a cricketer (particularly as a one-day cricketer) speaks for itself and he should at least be considered, if not included.

Rob, do you really think that it was only Cronje, Azhar, Malik and Jadeja? Is that what you honestly feel? You being in close proximity of the game should know better. And what about his unnatural death....a coincidence? Hansie Cronje paid his price...it's time to forgive.

I agree wholeheartedly with the article.
He was a cheat, and worse than that..far far worse. He was a hypocrit. Hiding behind his"faith" while lying through his teeth. He was a microcosm for all that is rotten about religion.

Cheating is a rotten thing to do, but to rely on a pious reputation to try and get away with it sickens me.

Warne and Waugh should have been banned also. Their crime was of the same ilk, even if they did not try and play the "god" card in there defence.

It is astonishing how people forget one thing.. HC was man enough to admit his guilt.. contrast that with the other protagonists in the whole shoddy affair (Azhar, Malik, Manoj P) who till this day maintain their "holier than thou" attitude and what you get is double standards of the extreme order. I for one believe that what HC made was peanuts compared to what guys like Azhar made during this period (after all, most of the stink finally emanated from the sub continent). A white man's burden??!!

i am proudly South African, non White, i think Hansie was our best captain for a long while. people may bend to the will of the Satanic Dollar but everyone is flawed and for me he will always be a tragic hero. your piece on him is terrible, you obviously don't live in SA or you will know that when he was captain, the team was supported by all race groups, not just Afrikaners, even my 70 yo gran knows who he was before his fall from grace!!!

Attacking Rob for the racial element of his piece misses the point: the BBC4 documentary introduced it. I also saw that documentary - it was pieced together evidence but it made sense and was compelling. The SA team meeting, when HC asked the entire squad about throwing a game for money was extraordinary. But, from this meeting, HC was able to prey on the insecurities of the black players in the squad - Gibbs and Williams - and gain their complicity. Rob's description of this process as HC's "fiefdom" is a good one - not really racist but deeply cynical: they were vulnerable and so were his targets. The fact HC admitted to giving them $15k each when he should have given them $25k is a revealing footnote to his story. Still, he never actually fixed a match, though not for trying. The Centurion game was still a great game: that was the fix – that a result was possible at all – but not the result itself. The tragedy is, as Rob says, that such close matches are now treated with suspicion.

saptarshi,

Considering that my idol is Sachin Tendulkar and I was supporting India against Australia the whole time they were over here (and had a rather large debate with my team captain when I got stuck into Ponting's lack of sportsmanship in Sydney) I don't think I have too much bias against the subcontinent but I can see the stain of corruption that suffused the cricket there for a long time. That, however, was nothing to do with race or culture, but simply because cricket in India especially attracts more money than anywhere else and where there is so much money there is always corruption. My criticism of the article was due to it singling out Cronje as the arch villian of corrupt cricket. Please, put away your victim mentality and grow up. BTW, anyone who knows anything about Shane Warne would know he is incapable of fixing a match. Stupidity though, yes. Not trying? Never.

Eric Savage,

I wish I had written that comment. Bravo.

Absolutely ridiculous article.... hesitate to dignify as a “man”? Hansie may have let us all down in the end. But to forget his whole career, and contribution to cricket is not fair.

Great Article Rob."To him, the game was no longer the same, no longer as captivating or trustworthy, no longer as worthy of his love and devotion"
These words sum up what I had felt at that time when I heard about Mohd Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja. As a great admirer of Azhar, I was shattered and crest fallen. Perhaps, as a teenager then growing into manhood, it opened my eyes and exposed me to the cruel realities of life.
"Forgive H***** C*****? When I’m 64, maybe, but not yet. Not by a long chalk."
Well, you know what Rob, I felt the same way about Azhar for a long time. But as I have grown older, I observe my own frailities and tolerate those of others around me better. And then one day, I got to incidentally watch the highlights of that Capetown partnership between Azhar and Sachin again: I was transfixed anew into a magical world - those silken wrists, those impossible angles, that timing.wow! Let me remember him finally as that great magician -the flaws have been punished enough

I think there are two strands in this article that perhaps have got mixed. There is no doubt that venality and dishonesty has no particular colour or race attached to it, and that men/women across the world have succumbed to the attraction of money easily made. To that effect, saying that Hansie was affected by a racial background seems to trivialize the issue. However, there is perhaps merit to the argument that Hansie felt that the young coloured players were most susceptible to such enticements. In that aspect, surely race, and the background in SA played a role. Finally, I really do not see any sense in de-humanising a person as this article has done. Yes, what he did was utterly wrong, yes people like Azhar (I remember watching a shy 19 year old debut in Eden Gardens and win hearts instantaneously) made a generation more cynical via their greed, but there are far more henious crimes that are going on today that deserve such censure, more than a weak person who succumbed to greed

Saw the D'Oliveira documentary that followed this one and that left an even worse taste in the mouth. The fawning to Vorster’s apartheid government by the MCC and Douglas-Home was staggering. So was Cowdrey’s promise to Dolly that he would tour South Africa come what may, after the latter had just made his (customary-for-an-ex-South-African) 158 against the Aussies during the crucial fifth test at the Oval, only to renege on this promise hours later. And all self-deluding talk of cricket and (racial) politics being two completely separate things that ne’er should come together. Sad how times and circumstances change but how the powermongers react does not. It’s an uneasy parallel but the cynicism of using “Cape coloureds” (in Dolly’s case) or Transformation black players (in Cronje’s case) merely as pawns in a game is sadly as real and as disappointing now as it was then. We need to learn from these events before we can “put them behind us”…

That was a very poor article. What ever Cronje did, it was a mistake, but of course it was a pretty big one. Still, to dehumanize him becauseof it? Like Freddy Ribiero said, you are not Mother Teresa to forgive. Cronje has already been punished. As a professional journal writer, you should be as biased against a person/player as you obviously are against Hansie Conje. Do you know what he was thinking when he fixed that match? He might have made a genuine mistake, a mistake that when he lokked back on it, he would have wanted to undo it. Nect time you write about a cricket player, do not be so biased.

It's 6 years later. Hansie is dead and still you feel the need to chastise him. What a sad, pathetic human being you are Mr Steen. Or should I call you Jesus, because you have clearly never made a mistake, lied or cheated to get something. You may argue it was a smaller scale, but it's the same anyway. Sin is sin any which way you look at it. I have met the great Hansie Cronj and he was one of the most remarkable gentlemen I have ever met. He made a mistake, but had the nuts to admit it and take his punishment. The fact that you have to continue writing about him 6 years after his death, clearly shows you have nothing better to do. By the way, you want to be a eral man? Forgive him. Remember, To err is human, but to forgive, divine.

a) Cronje confessed his guilt because he was caught on tape by the Indian police.
No other reason.
b) Cronje as the captain of the team was in no position to be insecure.
Even if by some amazing turnaround he'd lost his spot in the team (and that was extremely unlikely) he'd have made a fortune on the speaker circuit (iirc that's what he was doing between cricket and death).
c) as to the unnatural death, he died in a plane crash. Apparently having hitched a ride on the plane after his normal flight was cancelled. Hard to arrange in those circumstances.

I belive the article is nothing but bull crap.. Hansie made a mistake and he payed for it..... For all that i still consider him one of the best players of cricket...be it one dayers or Test matches... Apart from the fact that he was the best captain that i have ever seen....

The bloke fixed cricket matches, Rob, he didn't go out on a killing spree. He also admitted his guilt and was punished accordingly. It could be implied from your utterly cold-hearted assessment that he deserved to die young and tragically, as if it was his comeuppance, which is a reprehensible view to take about a man who tried to affect the result of a view games of cricket. It is a game, remember; it's not the be all and end all of human existence. Anyone would think that match-fixing was all Hansie's idea and it would never have happened without him! There are umpteen guilty parties out there who have never admitted their guilt and are conveniently ignored here.

Frankly this article says rather more about you and your humanity than Cronje.

To Keyzer Soze...
"Hansie Cronje is a hero. He opened the worlds eyes. If not for him we would still be wide eyed and innocent in believing "close finishes" were just that ..."

Assuming your tone wasn't sarcastic, Cronje was a cheat nothing more nothing less and its not as if he walked into the ICC HQ and poured his heart out. He was found out because the Delhi police presented clinching evidence. The very fact that Gibbs and Boje continued with their careers is ample evidence that neither the ICC nor the UCBSA did anything concrete to throw out the people involved.

Mayb a lady's point of view is needed here: I am an SA supporter, but mostly, a cricket supporter. (& not of this rubbish T20 stuff, but real Test cricket) I, in no way, condone what HC did, but give the man his dues: he was a worthy captain, and made the most of a team which was initially, on their return to the international arena, rated as the 'underdogs'and which he transformed in2 1 which could compete with the mighty Aussies - and that despite all the racial quota systems in place which has meant that the some of the best cricket players in SA are not able to play for their country and are instead (and who can blame them) heading for greener pastures in the UK. (& B4 I get comments saying that I am a racist, it must be noted that I am a person of colour, myself) There wil always be corruption in cricket - simply because of the fact that the actions/performance of 1 player in the team can drastically alter the state of the game- But that doesnt mean I'll stop watching ;-)

For someone who is a Senior lecturer in Sports Jounalism R.. S.... you are a sad individual and a disgrace to your profression! I cannot bring myself to type your name!

"someone I hesitate to dignify as a “man”, someone on whom I hoped I would never waste another word.To be honest,I can hardly bring myself to type his name.So please forgive these brief thoughts on the subject of H***** C*****."

You ask for "forgiveness" for writing this drivel about someone who made a mistake, paid his dues and is now sadly dead.
He was a "man", someone who you probably wouldnt have the guts to say to his face what you write here. Why is it worse because he was a Christian?
So you ask for forgiveness, but he cannot!

May I remind you of a certain Michael Atherton, captain of England, caught clearly on TV cheating and then sitting facing the world on camera denying all this.
What about Cricket Australia catching their own players "cheating" and then hiding the truth from the rest of the world

Another crass and spineless piece of journalism. You could become the press secretary for the ICC, or for the boards of India, Pakistan, South Africa or Zimbabwe if you continue to write this drivel though. By the way Mr Steen, in the big scheme of all things, your 'forgiveness' for anyone counts for nothing!

Mr Steen, you don't heal a wound by stabbing it repeatedly with a sharp stick then filling it with honey and fire ants. Possibly the best thing you could do is to forget about what Hansie Cronje did a decade ago, what Jardine did 7 decades ago and what Grace did 150 odd years ago and take up something productive like deboning chocolate frogs or finding out where the seedless grape came from.

After so many years after his death you come out and attack him like is not human at all. You should be ashamed of yourself. Whats worse is that you are a lecturer, some who is well educated it would seem. Cronje was a man who admitted his mistakes, on a global scale. He was prepared to pay the price for what he had done. Next time you write biography, think about what you are writing, because it seems you have no professionalism at all.

Excellent Article. I also saw the documentary yesterday and believe me I am carrying the same feeling for Hansie as you are. Even though Cronje confessed, it was very difficult to hate him. But after watching the documentary it is very much clear that he was not the role model i thought he was. He was just a manipulator. He manipulated the game and people's perception about him.

Excellent Article. I also saw the documentary yesterday and believe me I am carrying the same feeling for Hansie as you are. Even though Cronje confessed, it was very difficult to hate him. But after watching the documentary it is very much clear that he was not the role model i thought he was. He was just a manipulator. He manipulated the game and people's perception about him.

Hi,
I also watched the documentary last night and I think it is important to note that SOuth African cricket is not plagued with the racism that you all think it is. Cronje (pre-match fixing) was well-liked and respected by black cricket fans too. The only person who has really had a good whinge about transformation in SA cricket has turned his back on SA cricket and now plays for England.

I think that we ought to research fully what is going on in SA cricket before believing everything in a documentary. Black people also want to see the best team win.

It is only politicians that push for quotas. Without quotas there are already great black and coloured players in the team: Makhaya has been our best bowler, Ashwell Prince is a good batsman, Zondeki is in the form of his life, Bosman made Pakistan look like an average cricket club, Thandi Tshabalala is coming through, Amla, Ngam etc etc.

I agree that Cronje screwed up, but I think it is wrong to bash the good things he did before.

Enjoyed your article, until the inevitable white SOuth African bashing had to occur. Yes, we are all a bunch of insecure cowards, cowering behind our 6-foot walls because we can't accept the reality of a black government. That's why Hansie Cronje cheated, not because he was greedy, or an insecure individual, but he was representing all the insecurities of white South Africans in general, and Afrikaners in particular.

Can we all for once stop harping on about apartheid, and just llok to the future.

What a man you are Rob, Hansie like all of us is human. We ALL make mistakes in life and MOST dont have the balls to fess up and tell the truth. Hansie did..making him a better man than you'll ever be. It's a shame what Hansie did but before that he was one of the best crickters in the world..and if he could have gone on without match fixing im sure he would have stayed on top for quite a few years but your narrow vision doesnt seem to see that. I doubt youre a 'glass is half full' kind of guy...

I think you far too harsh... although I see there's hope when your 64. To talk on the cricketing aspect, what he did hurt the game but please... He wasn't the first and probably wasn't the most lucrative... I could probably fish out a few that might be worth looking into... He was the big catch, the great fall... and the rallying point to round up a few more minor fish. In the great moral aspect, forgiveness is always important... what he did was wrong but we've done so as well and today we have former rebels and so-forth, who've killed 100's and 1000's getting into politics and being "legitimate" politicians all for the cause of peace?! and some of us even vote for them... I think Hansie is a legend, a tragic legend for His fall... He's team transformed the game in a sense during their time and I'll be proud to always remain a fan.

Dear Rob
I don't want to be like HC, but just like you. Any advice on how I could manage to become like you.
I came to read about cricket and don't know what I read, but I have been enlightened and want to change now.
Your true follower

Rob - you also messed up, paragraph 4 has a 'Cronje' in. Pity you didn't read your article twice, as you may have seen how skewed it is, seemingly forgetting all the other 'criminals' who have poked their noses into cricket. Feeling touchy about something it seems - did you lose money on one of Cronje's games?

I cannot come to terms with folks calling Cronje 'great', 'remarkable', 'leader' etc

When the name 'Hansie Cronje' is used, the first image evoked will be that of 'match-fixer', a term lower even than that of 'body-line'.

Leaders dont fix matches. Period. Never call him a great leader ever again. It undermines the credibility of the rest of your post.

Not to excuse the other match-fixers, but there is a reason why Hansie garners greater attention than the rest. He was in the highest rung of public trust than the others. An established captain. Of a team coming out of the wilderness. From a country emerging from a most hateful political policy. Dragging youngsters into his web. And hypocritically pouting his 'What would Jesus do ? ' religion.

Unfair as it may be, not all match-fixers garner equal notoriety. The Captain of an emerging South Africa is in the worst possible position to indulge in this kind of activity.

I have tried to read everybody's comments on the matter, and as people do, we all have our own opinions. The fact of the matter is, that match fixing has always and will always be part and parcel of all sport.Hansie still holds one of the best records as South African Captain, so what does that say about the rest of the teams around at that time? As for the quota system(problem), all we need to do is take a look at how fantastic the Zimbabwean team has been doing since the likes of the Flower's, Streak's, Campbell's etc stopped playing, they now find themselves playing in our domestic league. As far as I am concerned, the best players should represent your country, nobody is owed a place in the national team, otherwise I am also owed a call up. The quota system is reverse apartheid, and unfortunately there isn't too much we can do about it. We as South African's are obviously very slow learners, Aparheid never worked and neither will the quota system. As will be seen on the sportsfield

I like when Cricinfo "reports" on Cricket. However, when they publish these opinion pieces by their stable of "journalists" - most of whom have played no cricket of any consequence whatsoever - Cricinfo is exposed for what it is : an amateur enthusiast's fan site. This guy Steen is totally sounding off, and at a dead man no less. And to go to the extent of comparing Cronje to Grace and Jardine? Obviously a slow news day in the world of Cricket.

Gosh, that's pretty harsh. As a black West Indian, I have a deep suspicion of South African players myself, but even I can't agree with you.

You say:
"It was C*****’s refusal to help the transformation/integration process – or even acknowledge that it was important - that did most to fuel the anger and cynicism that ultimately allowed him to take money and gifts from Marlon Aronstam and others."

How? If as a racist holdout and captain he was able to successfully stymie the transformation process, why would he be angry? After all, he would have gotten what he wanted. And what does anger over South Africa's race problems have to do with taking money from an Indian bookie? That is a pretty tenuous link there, Mr. Steen.

As for putting Douglas Jardine in Cronje's company - that is again harsh. Jardine did nothing dishonest or cheating - he urged his bowlers to hit Bradman in full view of everyone. As Bedwell said, if you are going to criticise Jardine for that, criticise Lloyd as well.

Frankly, I never understood the hullabaloo over it. As a West Indian I have NO SHAME about what we did. Boo-hoo, people got hit. So what? It's fun to see actually.

If you can't stand the heat, haul ya tail and if you can't handle short-pitched bowling, don't play the game. Why should a bowler have to accommodate his deliveries to pamper a batsman? That is and has always been ridiculous.

The English should never have been ashamed of Jardine - he was a pioneer.
Just a pity they forgot their own history when they tried to stifle West Indian potency with the two-bouncers rule.

Ha ha.. I wanted to laugh on this article but I couldnt - Since by mocking "The Man" Hansie Cronje (Not H***** C*****) it would've hurt his poor soul. Last time I checked he didnt kill Mr. Steens family... So I dont think he did anything to deserve this kinda treatment. True, he was involved in money laundering, he might even have been involved in match fixing... who knows. But he had what I call "B*****" to admit his mistake. Just consider this, if he didnt admit his mistake, he would probably have gotten away with it. And also this whole match fixing scandal would've been buried then and there. Yes, he made a mistake - But the last time i checked everyone is human.

As great cricket lovers who have followed this game for many years and sacrificed so much time and energy and emitions to watch this great game, we should forgive him, forget about this episode and move on... Thats called Life..

GET A LIFE MR. STEEN...

What did Grace do that was so bad? Your article needs work...

To all those who curse Steen, I say, it is his ideals, his illusions Cronje broke. He has full rights of expression of his disillusions. Use your mouse to navigate away from this page if Steen's expression of disgust is too rich for you to digest. To me Cronje will forever remain a mediocre batsman and poor bowler who I admire for playing within his limitations and overachieving. Slightly more significantly, a poor captain who saddled the talented SA team with the "chokers" tag. Not worth wasting any emotions on.

"I can hardly bring myself to type his name"?? !!That is childish. Hansie Cronje was the only one who admitted his wrong doing. I have lost respect for the writer and for cricinfo as well for letting such trash on their website

Dave, can you really imagine a modern day captain forcing a bowler to stay on the field when badly injured, and to bowl off one pace, as Jardine did to Larwood? Do a bit more research buddy.

I think you have to much time on your hands. Get a life and get over it. You were not very good at sport as a kid were you?

My comments are to Rob & the others who think they know what SA is all about. You speak about Hansie's actions as an Afrikaaner as if you yourselves are one. What do you know about growing up in pre and post-apartheid SA and seeing a childhood hero of yours (black & white)fall so dramatically and undignified from grace. To sit amongst your friends & stand up for him, convinced he would never do such a thing, only to find out that he has forever changed the way you see the game you loved. That hurts!! But then to read what Rob- all the way from 'Brighton' & knows what it's like to be an Afrikaaner, has to say about a man who I respected, admired & had dreams of playing alongside, but who ultimatley hurt us, is another knife in the chest. Rob- you sound like a jilted woman who cant get over being dumped by her married lover. Rather come out & say that HANSIE hurt you than hide behind your pretend disdain for Afrikaaners. It's ok, we've all been hurt, maybe Shane & co. can give you a hug

stop writing articles save everybody's time

Have you forgotten Wasim Akram ?. The guy probably fixed more matches and made far more money out of it,than Hansie ever did.

i remember the day the news leaked about cronje, i was devastated. he was a cheat and a liar, and he tried to blame the devil too!

that said, he was the fall guy wasn't he. others, who were not prosecuted by their home cricket boards, did the same as hansie did and got away with it, read: waugh, warne.

if you think hansie is the start and the end of it rob, you are sorely mistaken.

Oh dear, Mr. Viljoen: spelling is indeed important. Did you mean "allegedly" and "responsible"? Basic stuff, I would have thought. Stones and glass houses come to mind.

Hansie finally admitted he had lied and cheated only after denying all knowledge and being forced into a corner by KK Pauls' telephone tapes. When it became very clear that there was full and undeniable proof.
He phoned Ali Bacher on April 11th and confessed that he had not been entirely honest.
He didn't even have the grace to accept his punishment. He moaned about it immediately, and issued writs claiming it was unlawful, and later an afadavit for "restraint of trade".

But far worse, was his pious "holier than though" attitude - which remained with him the whole time.

Staggering self conceit in the face of massive hypocrasy is a blend of character traits I find difficult to reconcile.

I'm sad he is dead, but glad he was banned. It is as it should be.

Considering his (very modest) stats he will be remembered dually for the tragic manner of his death, and for the fact he was a proven cheat. Not for his cricket skills.

It is a sad legacy, but no less correct for that.

HANSIE CRONJE still has thousands, if not millions of loyal fans after everything he has done and six years after his death. Why? Becuase he was a great man. Mr Steen is the classic example of back office mediocracy. Did he watch a movie to see how a "journalist" should be? If he wants to create a stir and get a reaction from the rubbish that he writes - he shouldn't make it so blatantly obvious. Please. It's an insult to our intelligence.
We will support HANSIE forever!
And we will forget this amateur, wannabe writer after this article.

I must admit, without exaggerating that this is one of the worst articles i have ever read on match-fixing. Mind you match-fixing has been existing even before HC was born and flourishes today. I have been crying hoarse that it is evident even in the IPL, albeit the motive was different - the mutual benefit, as against selfish and personal gains in the past.

"All too credible was the theory that C*****, as captain, had grown too powerful..."
This is one statement which I completely agree with, though I haven't seen the documentary you've mentioned. After going through the King Commission I was shocked to see that a team meeting was called in 1996 to discuss whether they should throw a match... A TEAM MEETING! It was rejected but surely that affected the team members of integrity (the fact that we never heard of any action immediately after this is also telling). Yet for 5 more years this team played extremely well under his leadership, sorry, this is just too hard to comprehend. During this time he asked Strydom to throw a match, discussed the feasibility of throwing a home test with Symcox, the list goes on and on! Then there are his phone calls instructing teammates not to mention the sums of money. Many say "he took the fall" and deserves some credit for this, perhaps this a testament to how powerful he continues to be to them.

An insecure writer trying to uphold moral integrity by showing someone else down.

Hansie Cronje was just a scapegoat.
He was the best thing to have happened to South African Cricket from 1992 to 2002.
A great leader, because of him, the game became better, and also the match fixing scandal came to the fore.
He was made a scapegoat for something at least 40 cricketers had done before him - Akram, Malik, Azhar, Jadeja to name a few. In fact it was an issue which had been openly discussed in the South African team meetings before the scandal - telling us that moral integrity was not as big a deal for them as it was made out to be. Everyone fixed matches in the '90s.

I'm afraid I never quite felt the same way as you did about Cronje. I just remember a top class batsman a bowler of decent medium pace and an inspired captain.

I see you teach at Brighton. Is this another left wing bashing of the capitalist system and the fear that it may one day invade the chivalry of sport and cricket in particular? If so look to the IPL.

Firstly, it seems to me that somehow the frustration over Kolpak players, South Africa's inability to put together an Aussie-like combination for a long time and a temporary takeover of the author's soul by Jesus (or whosoever he believes in) have resulted in this awful piece or crass.
The Indian subcontinent has for long seen the game being run as a fiefdom - the lord makes the rules and changes them to fit himself in. Jadeja, Mongia, Azhar, Salim Malik and a myriad others were guilty but Azhar and Cronje did not have any godfathers and got screwed over. Fine enough, they erred and they were penalized. To dehumanize them is absolutely attrocious.
What I fail to understand is why isn't there a similar diatribe against Waugh and Warne. Post his IPL success newspapers have glorified Warne and excused his faults. I feel even Cronje deserves to be given credit for his excellence on the field even if we never pardon him for his "sins" - at least now that he is no more.

Cronje schmonje. There have been a few comments on the quota system tho': 'reverse apartheid', 'look at zimbabwe', 'the proof is in the pudding [sik]', 'long term effects'... Well, it is NOT like zimbabwe, who may have been saved by a more open approach to quotas (as condoned by Flower). The proof in the SA pudding is double-edged, the players of color who have made it to the national team have on the whole performed at the level (while others - Mckenzie, Dippenaar, Hall, Hayward - poor run was tolerated longer) or been dropped; Adams, Zondeki, Kruger, Tsolekile as soon as form faded. On the other hand, it has started a wave of impatient, SA 'A'(+-) cricketers heading for the money. The long-term (side-)effects will indeed be problematic considering but then what would they have been playing for in a presumably white SA side (remember, selection is OPINION based)? A meritocratic SA side they were proud of? So, reverse discrimination? Yes, I think so! Am I sorry? Yes,...that it is vital

I think you can add Greg Chappell to that list for the underarm bowl, doesn't get much worse than that. Unfair to add McCullum, its not his fault that the non-strikers don't pay attention to what is going on around them.

To Rob:
You say your love of cricket has been, quote, "polluted" by Jardine, WG Grace, Cronje, and something to do with something that happened to Basil D'Oliveira in 1968-69 (I am unfortunately ignorant of this event as I have never heard of the player).

It seems the Cronje incidents are the only recent ones on this list. Therefore, I am unsure why you were still a fan of cricket by the time Cronje was exposed. This pollution you perceive that Grace & Jardine were responsible for must have been known to you before.

That is, unless you are relatively young and it took time for you to discover your animosity towards Jardine & Grace. In which case, I again do not understand why, after being gobsmacked by Cronje when news of Cronje's indiscretions came to light, you did not abandon cricket then.

Your article reads like an obituary to your own love of cricket. I am unsure why you did not wash your hands of cricket years ago and why we readers were subjected to this vitirol.

I wasn't planning to comment on this article or the comments, but both Paul Clarke and Pierre Marais have forced me too. Paul, you speak of modest stats... I think just maybe you should go back and have another look at his stats as a captain. Not very modest.
And Pierre... Hansie might have a few hundred fans left, but he was not a great man in the end. He was a cheat. We will not support Hansie forever. We have a new captain now. Please join the 21st century.

Hansie was a cheat. We will never take cricket as seriously again.
The UCB, to the best of my knowledge, is the only cricket board to have a full and appropriate examination of any match fixing case. Well done UCB.
For your next article Rob, maybe you can tell us why Shane Warne only got one year's suspension for doping when every other sportsmen gets a two year suspension.

Hansie is dead and gone! You are attacking a man who can't defend himself! If he was alive, you wouldn't have the guts to stand up to him and say the stuff you wrote.
And, he already paid for what he did! What he did was wrong, but he paid his punishment!! He admitted to his mistake!!

Spot on Rob. The guy was a cheat whose actions tear at the fabric of the game. It just shows the effect of parochial nationalism that some people could still consider him to be a hero despite his actions proving that he cared more about money and himself than his country and the sport he was supposed to be an ambassador for. I could be forgiving if he had made any attempt to incriminate those higher up the chain, but any remorse seemed totally feigned.
And, to the wilfully ingnorant amongst us who wish to compare Cronje's actions with Warne and Mark Waugh, please try to understand that Warne and Waugh were never convicted of fixing a match. Writing that they were does not change that fact.
And Niels Colesky, Shane Warne got one year because he was not detected with performance enhancing substances in his system. He was found guilty of taking a masking agent. And he wouldn't even have been tested if he'd played for most other countries, but he served a suspension unlike the pakistanis

andrew schulz,

"How about I go get a real cricketer, a Queenslander". That's a paraphrase of what Border said to Dean Jones when he was vomiting and fouling himself in his epic innings against India.

Border and Waugh both played through injury, they never expected more of their team than they did of themselves, neither did Jardine (who I believed top scored when his team was faced with Bodyline themselves).

He kept Larwood on as a statement to the Asutralians, not out of cruelty to Larwood.

Ganesh, you fail to mention Azhar, Jadeja, Kapil, Prabhakar and many others in Indian team who fixed more matches than Akram ever could. And if you think the current crop of players are any cleaner then what can I say ? Betting has moved underground, it has not been eradicated.

Apparently, R** S****, you have not read the full text of the report on Match-Fixing and related malpractices, October 2000 presented by the Central Bureau of Investigation, India.

Because if you did, you would not have singled out HANSIE CRONJE. Everyone please read that full report (do a google search). Hansie threw himself at the mercy of the King commission and he got punished with a life time ban. Now that his life is ended, it means he has served that sentence. He has squared it with the house. You have no right to talk about him like that. Azhar got a life ban but the ban was lifted in 2006 and was even honored during the ICC Champions Trophy. Manoj Prabhakar got a life ban but that was lifted too and he has served recently as the bowling coach to the Delhi Cricket Team. Everybody is happy. Hansie might have deserved what he got, but now that he is dead, you better not bring him back to humiliate him.

Abhinav - Brilliantly put. Your opening sums the article and its intention perfectly.
Lets not make this guy any bigger by contributing more to this drivel.
Sorry for the offensive tone mate - We're just playing your game. You refuse to call a dead guy by his name, you deserve no better. Just think if you'd like it if somebody refuses to address you by your name after you are dead for one mistake - even after apologizing and paying up...
Easy mister. The pen is powerful. Dont bring personal opinions into the equation when playing to a global forum...

its staggering to see people calling cronje honest and upright. he confessed to his crimes, yes, but not because he felt guilty. he confessed because he got caught and had no other option. it's true that azhar, malik et al were also caught, but them being part of the match fixing ring, doesn't exonerate cronje.
and the amounts of money that cronje claims he got seems to be a pittance, compared to the money that is actually at stake when a match is played. so dont rule out the possiblity that cronje couldve lied in his 'confession' to make himself look better.
after all, as this comment thread proves, a martyr or tragic hero has a huge following.

I think its tragic how everyone blamed Hansie for what happened...Hansie admitted taking money but he never admitted fixing a match..i don't care what people think but his tragic death put the curtain down on his issue forever...i am definately, sure had he been alive we would have found more on what actually happened...More importantly he had the courage to own up to his mistakes and he sought forgiveness...and of all the people South Africans should be the ones who should forgive him....what he did for SA cricket is paramount....he made SA one of the greatest forces in world cricket...

The sad part is that SA Cricket was the one who dint stand by him....if he had just provided "information' and not fixed a match, didn't Mark Waugh and Shane Warne did the same in 1994? Yet their board hid the whole issue, called it a "judgmental error" and just fined their players...look at PCB...their 2 top bowlers were tested positive for a banned substance yet they played around the rules to get them unbanned!

To NATHAN:
Yep, you are right. Warne and Waugh were never convicted. But that is because, if you remember, the australian cricket board swept the matter under the carpet.
And Shane Warne being convicted of taking masking agents; why? what was he masking.
But hey, I am just being petty here... Shane Warne, Mark Waugh are not cheats. They are Australians and truth be told; Australians NEVER cheat.

The biggest crime is that Warne and Waugh got off scott-free for their relationship with bookmakers.
Giving pitch and weather reports, yeah right!!!!
Why doesn't Steen write about that????
And don't tell me making your brother bowl under-arm in the last ball of an innings isn't tantamount to cheating either.

Anyways i think this article has to be the worst article ever written about a cricketer....Hansie Cronje will be remembered as a great cricketer....true he made mistakes but who doesn't? But as many people have pointed out he was not a serial killer for Gods Sake...look at the tone in which this article is written...he was a sportsman and he made mistakes...more importantly he paid for those mistakes...took the blame and saved other heads and disgrace for SA Cricket and then died in a plane crash...and still you cant forgive him?

Hansie's legacy should be of a man who had the courage to own up to his mistakes...a man who served SA so well and made them proud...a man who was probably the best captain to ever play the game..! and he was and is loved by all cricket fans around the world...and anyone who thinks differently should read this outpour of comments from his fans..

Whenever I feel generous and upbeat I always read this post to top up my levels of annoyance and frustration with the world. As poorly written and argued as usual and (as always) jumping to a ridiculous conclusion that nobody asked for. Cronje and a number of other people did a stupid, greedy thing. Some of them got severely punished for it, but doubt there were some that got away with it. A life time ban and a destroyed reputation were fair and right and severe a punishment as they could have got. To suggest Cronje is not human, to refuse to write his name and say that he has ruined cricket is pathetic and as melodramatic a thing as I have ever heard.

R** S**** what a pathetic article, so much of it is factually wrong how on earth it was published in its present state who knows.
You have obviously never met Gibbs, if you had you would realize that he has no insecurities as alleged by yourself, he in fact went to Bishops which is a public school, in the British sense, Hansie went to Grey which is not, as alleged by you.
I am at a loss for words how a person can write an article and have employment doing so with out any facts apart from heresy.
Hansie was a South African hero, he committed mistakes, there is no doubt about that, however, due to his wrong doing major changes have been introduced. He was vilified by everyone, his actions ultimately cost him his life. leaving behind small children and a tarnished image. Hansie you are forgiven. R** learn facts

a) According to various evidence (testimonies, eye-witness accounts, minutes of meetings, etc.) outlined in the documentary Rob makes as the focal point of his article, Cronje tried on a number of occasions to fix matches and managed, for example, to make a game of the otherwise inextricably drawn Centurion Test against England for the bookmaker Aronstam. True, there is no actual evidence that he successfully fixed the result of a match, but he nevertheless made money out of similar such practices. He had over seventy shared bank accounts for this.
b) He admitted to using and abusing his position as captain to manipulate the junior black players in the squad in these attempts. More than anything, this is the problem many of us have with HC. But it's only with him, not all white South Africans. It's an over-reaction to think otherwise.
c) His effect on South African cricket is demonstrated by the dwindling numbers at test matches in the country since 2000. Another tragic consequence.

I don't need to add to the barrage of criticism levelled at this 'journalist', simply add my name to it. You are as bad as Mugabe blaming the whites for what is happening in Zimbabwe today.

If you cannot type someone's name (and choose to disrespect no one else really but your readers for having to suffer through your petulance) then perhaps you shouldnt bother writing about them.

Surely, Cricinfo can do better. Or can it? If you cannot get writers who are not amateurs then just stick to the scores and the ball by ball commentary that you do so well.

Hansie Cronje fell because he was greedy and he admitted that. It was never his intention to throw a game because he thought it as an easy way to make money. If he didn't produce the goods for the bookies would they go to the police? And that is, in my opinion, the big question that has never been properly answered: who blew the whistle? I think eventually, it was a bookmaker.

Another point is that Cronje was not the first. The Australians had been giving bookies info, but that was brushed under the table.

The Cronje revelation was a greayt opportunity to clean up world cricket, but they missed out. What should have happened was that every Test captain, Test umpire and national administrator should have sat down and spoken the truth together with a promise of amnesty for those who were involved with the bookies.

That opportunity has been missed and like Rob Steen I believe match-fixing still exists.

Wonder whether anyone monitors the bank balances of the players and umpire.

I don't believe I have ever read anything that was in poorer taste than this. I have always held Cricinfo in the highest regard, but I cannot believe that anyone would allow an article of this nature to be published.

Wow... not like he was the only one to do that. Warne, Waugh... to name a few suffered fines. But Cronje a lifetime ban. That's life - or now death. Hey, Hansie was no saint, but to blame him for everything that is now wrong with the game is just plain ignorant. But hey, it's your blog!

As a matter of credibility: journalists who do their homework properly are more believable. There is no Greys College, just Grey College. Johan Volsteed, the headmaster, also said "We will never condemn the man, only the action". If you need to slate somebody, at least be accurate.

Rob is largely correct.
I watched the programme last night, off tape, and it made a compelling case for Cronje being a complete c***.
He disrespected the game.
Forget the supposed contrition.
He undermined the trust of a nation, and all cricket folk in S.A. and beyond.
He is no loss.
His apologists on here are sadly misguided, I fear.
TI feel the most appropriate posts are from John D. Traynor, Paul Clarke and Nathan.

PS. I am astonished that in all the comments above, nobody has speculated on
- the rumour that his death was a 'convenient accident' for some
- that Bob Woolmer knew what was going on (see his admission in the programme re coming - albeit late - into the infamous hotel room team meeting in India)
- that Woolmer's death has not been adequately explained (the complete volte face once the UK government and it's pathologist got involved)

I rather fear there is a wider - and as yet untold - story to all of this

What a lot of RUBBISH!!!!!

There is obviously no one more biggotted or conceited than you. I used to enjoy reading some of your articles, but this is most definitely the last time I will ever read an article written by yourself.

All men make mistakes, all men deserve to be forgiven. He faced the music and paid the penalty for his crime in the end.

However I noticed the obvious racial undertones in this distinctly Anti - South African article. you seem to forget about the Indian Captain who introduced Hansie to the bookies in the first place (who BTW has had his life ban overturned now - in what way has he redeemed himself?)

Please stop writing such BS!

I have been an avid cricinfo reader for so many years and I can easily put this article as the worst piece I have ever come across on this superb cricket portal. What on earth was the writer thinking when he mentioned Hansie Cronje as H***** C****? May be he thought he should present this rather old story in a new manner; old wine in new bottle! He says he cannot type his name but he can do so much research on him? May be he also had an off day just like a certain H***** C*****

My word, it has been some time since I have read such a pathetic attempt to wind people up (or is that "create debate"?). I really have to question the credentials of someone drafting such a poorly contructed article. Why Cricinfo is giving a voice to someone with such dificient journalistic skills or with such a colossal chip on his shoulder, I don't know.

I have to add my voice to those who expressed their disgust about this article.
Hansie Cronje is indeed a fallen hero. He did great things, and he did bad things. But after reading your venomous hate-mongering I feel profoundly dirty, and its not because of anything Hansie did.
Your insulting implications concerning Afrikaners and also Christianity are also extremely biased and above all uninformed.

I hope Cricinfo will be professional enough to post an apology for running this article.

Mr. Steen ur looking to be pragmatic, sincere and things like that. Great abt that, but remember that great man made a mistake by accepting bribe due to some unseen circumstances (who knows what), but one shud admire and really appreciate Hansie for the fact that he confessed crime. WOuld u really have done the second part, now dont argue that u wud never attempted the first part to do the second. 50% of the sub-continent players in the 90's have faked genuinity and have let off stashing huge amounts and have settled has commentators or in the ICC.

Poor article. Both in facts and taste.
Talk about spitting on a dead man's grave. He made mistakes, was greedy, said he was sorry (I believed him) and was punished with his name tarnished forever as cricinfo’s 'todays yesterdays' bare's testament.
To dehumanise someone should surely be reserved for 'animals' who commit heinous crimes against humanity? I think there are more than enough comments above for you to admit your poor choice of words Rob. But I guess everyone is entitled to their opinions and if you feel Hansie's crimes deserve for him to be written about as you have, then so be it.
Regarding fallen heros, many of these comments say they just cant forgive him. Well I put it to you like this, one of my heros is Nelson Mandela. A beacon of light, a Nobel Peace prize winner and the very pinnacle of forgiveness...and yet if we can recall, he was a 'terrorist' who killed innocent people with bombs! If he and we can forgive those who sinned against us, how can we...cont

cont...not forgive HC for what is certainly trivial in comparison. I come from a country where the Truth and Reconciliation hearings brought about forgiveness. Most have forgiven Hansie and moved on. Rob, move on and please give your comments some thought before putting the mighty pen to paper. Your words, I am sure, are hurtful to some and downright insulting to others.
Long live cricket and thoughtful articles!

pretty poor to have a go at the afrikaner for this one - blatant racist attack, I agree with Doctor Alias surely Cricinfo can do better then this. Rob you mention williams and gibbs, what about boje & strydom? I believe dereck crooks was also recently mentioned (although cleared) - tranformation is politics - politics have no room in sport. by the way HC still arguably the most successfull SA skipper.... not bad for a match fixer! (really a poor article - badly researched an opinion is biased)

Amazing how there is a widespread belief thatCronje was not such a bad bloke, especially in his homeland. He was happy to reap the rewards of being a role model, but such was his greed that that was not enough. he stole from the game, both financially and in terms of its global image. What is worse, he dragged other, often younger and impressionable, players into his murky schemes. The tears and the confessions only came when he realised he had been rumbled. And as for his religious beliefs ... well, the proof of how importnat they were to him is best shown by his actions and not his words.

Sure, he did not murder anyone. But don't think for a minute he was anything other than a crook. To all those who complain that this article portrays white South Africans in a bad light, your anger should be directed at Cronje. He did the image of white South Africans far more harm than any journalist ever did.

What a ludicrous article. Extensively biased. Cronje after all was only a human being. He had made mistakes and was making amends for that before his sad demise. Some mistakes of his cannot lead to washing away his contribution to South African cricket. He was a brilliant captain and player.

Pierre writes: "HANSIE CRONJE still has thousands, if not millions of loyal fans after everything he has done and six years after his death. Why? Because he was a great man."

You have to be joking? He was a petty criminal who got caught with his hand in the till. He caused the whole image of South African cricket to be dragged through the mud. He's as much of a national hero as BJ Vorster.

Also, for those people calling Hansie a great captain there was a little device found too which he was using to communicate with his support staff. So maybe the reputation of being a great captain was reasonably "fixed" too.

I recall an ODI match where Hansie came in to bat after a wicket had fallen.

Almost immediately, he played a stroke that was perfectly timed to MISS the ball and got out for a duck.

He played his fans for fools.

Are you so hard-headed that you call him a hero ?

It takes a real man, with kahunas to admit when he is wrong. That's exactly what Hansie Cronje did. But hesitating to dignify him as a man and failing to even write his name in your article, is cowardly of you. Especially since Hansie Cronje is no longer with us. Do you have the kahunas to apologize for these statements or are you not dignified as a man either?

I feel about azhar the same way. It nauseates my stomach when i see him. But then if he has server his penalties, then its ok for him to be rehabilitated. Only regret is he never got behind bars!

I think Cronje is a real hero. He'd the guts to accept that he colluded with bookies.. For me he, having agreed to a guilt is washed off all his sin. However we in India have an example called Azzaruddin who was a master match fixer, but till date has never agreed to teh fact that he was a match fixer.

Ryan Acton has forgiven Mandela for 'terrorist' activities.

Have you forgiven Hitler ?

Think of Hansie as the lowest of the low amongst cricketers; akin to Hitler amongst humanity

I have always been a great fan of Cronje's batting and especially his captaincy. He was one of the best captains I've ever seen - the way he handled the team, the management and even the media. He was always very gracious in each post-match presentation ceremony I've seen (took of his cap, spoke softly and paid attention to the speaker). His batting was also aggressive, especially in ODI's - remember him whacking Warne out of the ground on more than one occasion using his slog sweep. These are the things that should be remembered about a person who had a tragic and untimely death.

I believe he had paid enough dues for his match-fixing misdemeanors. It's not fair to doubt his human character - even worse, based on racial terms. That's just preposterous.

Teams can just hope for such inspiring captains nowadays. Croje was one of the key men who made the South Africa team as it is today.

This article is somewhat hysterical in its tone. And to tar all afrikaners on the basis of what Cronje did is nonsense.

But what really captures my ire is the number of posters on here defendind Cronje and calling him a great man.

He was a cheat, a coward and a manipulator. He attempted to fix games and used young impressionable players to do so. He only admitted his guilt after he had no hope of covering the truth further. And he did it in a weasly way in order to escape full censure and to keep the money rolling in. At no time did he show any true contriteness, never did he accept that he'd been justly punished. And he felt able to do so because the many people like those above who to this day continue to defend the indefensible. And in all this he dragged his so-called faith through the mud, as he used it as a strut to what he evidently regarded as his inherent superiority over the rest of us.

In short, in response to something written above, I'd happily spit on his grave.

Too many strands.
Too many arguments that don't logically, or causally, follow or connect.

If the writer had stuck with 'Hansie Cronje committed a grave injustice to the reputation cricket' and left it at that all would have been well - but trying to make connections between this and his otehr points (or perhaps, barbs) failed miserbly.

Case in point: 'marginal white players'...poor old Andre Nel, what did he ever do to you: Nel's only crime is that he is a psychopath when playing, being white is not a crime (although some might think that judging by some of the rhetoric that emerges these days froma variety of sources)
Also, remember, marginalism can go both ways unless it's convenient to forget the way poor Jacques Rudolph was treated

Cronjie is dead and gone and whatever he has done, should be buried with him.
Don't forget that for a short while he breathed life into South African cricket!
Subra - Singapore

Hey Rob, I doubt if you are any better human than any low thinker from any community. All the religions in the world teach us about 'forgiveness'. How many of us follow this message? I would say you are among them who don't. And I have heard (not read since I am a Hindu) that bible says, "Judge not if you seek pardon for your deeds". (Sorry my words are not exact but I think this is the message)Ooops... what I did? I am judging you... O God !!!, forgive me for that.

I dont think anyone cares whether you forgive Hansie or not. Hansie was naive and stupid enough to be involved in something like that, but he was man enough to admit it, and he has paid for it with his life. We cant say the same about the Indians, the Pakistanis, the Australians who were also seen as involved- probably the other nations were involved as well. I think it requires a certain greatness to appreciate the good from the bad in a person- But I have memories of seeing Hansie Cronje play in tests, a batsman of character and talent and a very useful bowler. But what he ought to have felt bad about, was the potential that he had to be the leader of the leading side in the world in the nineties- which unfortunately he forfeited to the aussies.

If I played in a game without knowing that it was fixed by my captain, I would be bloody pissed. If the same game involved me representing my country, I would get sleepless nights.

If my captain admitted to doing that and asked the public for forgiveness, I would say he was a brave man. If he got killed for the same, I will shed more than a tear or two. Especially if he was Hansie Cronje. RIP.

I keep seeing Warne and M.Waugh named as match fixers comparable to Hansie. I suppose the great difference is documented evidence.

If you have phone taps, evidence from others that match fixing was discussed as an option, some evidence of a lack of cricketing performance, or some money changing hands (the $5000 to each ntowithstanding), then there is really not much to convict them on.

I can't prove they never fixed a match, just as much as any of you out there can prove they ever did.

First of all his name is hansie Conje man...why r u writing **** as if someone writes F*** you!....You should be ashamed of yourself by not mentioning a dead human being, let alone a cricketer like that..I am a pakistani and dont know many details about his match fixing allegations but after all he was a human being, made a mistake, which may be a huge one but lets not forget what he gave SA cricket before that...and anyways leaving cricket aside, he did not commit a murder or something that you are mentioning him like this in public after his death! he may have been made a mistake , a huge one , an unforgetable one but you are simply pathetic man!

Guys - I cannot explain faith, confession and forgiveness to you in a blog...
Myself and MANY others will always believe that HANSIE was a great MAN (not cricketer) because he stood by his faith, and nothing else, in his darkest hour. (when he got caught). He knew that God and his likeminded fans would forgive him and that is all that mattered.

Anyway - all this aside and fast forward into the 21st century - Smithy is captain and he rocks! :)

Hansie Cronje was a hero. Rob Steen is an a*s*h*l*.
Hansie's crime was disgraceful but Rob's is unforgivable. Forgive R** S****'s "journalism" ... not me.

Yes Cronje was guilty, but what about all the others players like Stewart, fingered by Chris Lewis. Lara, Warne etc. This cheating is a lot bigger than what only Cronje did.

Hansie Conje was a FANTASTIC Captain. I am from India and was born in 1976. I think he was teh greatest captain I have seen thus far. Steve Waugh comes only after...

Mark Waugh and Shane Warne were plain stupid!!! But what a bunch of players...

Who can forget Azhar's wrist shots or Jadeja's launch against Pakistan in Bangalore in the 1996 WC?

They have all paid for their sins... Let them be!

And yes, the sub-continent is responsible for all the match-fixing s**t and is very very shameful.

Rob, we cannot condone what Cronje did, but he at the very least apologized for it and is now dead. Give a dead man his due and let him rest in peace. This article is truly uncalled for.

Then again, we are all entitled to our own ridiculous opinion.

Unfortunately, we live in a world where one mistake defies a person. It's not in our nature to forgive anymore. What about the fact that Hansie exposed his wrong-doings himself? What about the fact that Hansie brought quality and professionalism to the game we so dearly love in this country where mediocrity seems to prevail a lot more? There are a lot of fallen heroes we can look back too but I can bet any fallen hero, in the end, achieved a whole lot more good than bad. Well it's in our nature to focus on negative things but I think that some people like yourself are just must better at focusing on the negatives than the rest of us. In the end Cricket is a game of lesson learnt and too be learned and move on.
I hope that someday this beautiful game we love will help you realize your potential to forgive and maybe help you do that before you're 64!

Maybe Cronje did something that might be considered wrong.
However here are some facts about ICC's umpires & match referees managed by Dave Richardson -
The beneficiary of all their umpiring errors are Australia, sufferers normally India / Pakistan.
The sufferers of all their match referee's penalties are Indians / Pakistanis. Identical / larger offences from Australian / West Indian cricketers are at worst - blatantly ignored, at best "understood".
I have documented all the instances of visible discrimination in response to a mail from Dave Richardson, but seen no improvement in the performance of his paid staff.
Sufficient circumstantial evidence to think Australia are paying & Richardson is receiving.
What I have typed here are facts.
In case Cricinfo / ICC require, I can forward all those mails to the ICC's anti-corruption squat for appropriate investigation & action.

If you cannot type someone's name (That to of a man who is no more) then author shouldnt bother writing about him.

Surely, I guess as a fan of Cricinfo, It can do better than writing an CHEAP article about a dead man..

Doesn't Cricinfo have an editor? Did the writer upload this article on the site on his own?

Who is responsible for this madness!

Well Mr Steen - looks like it's unanimous. You have written an awful piece of drivel which has successfully alienated your entire audience - if you ever had a very large one to start with. Needless to say, let me be the first to be the bigger man and give you the opportunity you clearly would refuse (the long dead) Hansie; and that would be to come up with some form of answer to this barrage of criticism you have created. That's if you ever want to be taken seriously on this forum again.

This is a senseless article. It is strange how even match fixing can be put down to racism, and become an apartheid crime. I wonder why the many other's implicated in cricketing match fixing scandals did it. Guess apartheid got to them as well..... Very poor article indeed.

Come on, sure Hansie made mistakes, but he was,after all, human!!!!!!!!! what does this mean? because he was a cricketer and also a Christian, he wasn't allowed to make mistakes? at least he admitted what he had done and was sorry about it! let him rest in peace!

I am disgusted by your lack of respect, was this article written by a sulky 12 year old girl?

You also fail to mention the REALLY interesting part of the documentary when the bookie implied that Bob Woolmer was in partnership with Hansie Cronje. ("Who attended the final meeting, when you know that then you know who else was involved"). Now that opens up lots more possibilities...

Posters who criticize Rob Steen's article should analyze their own pathetic posts. Reading through some of them, one would think H***** C***** was the greatest gift given to the game.

In fact, H***** is a nothing. A nobody. A blank space. A waste of time even mentioning him. The game is better off without him.

There are far more deserving cricketers worthy of mention than H*****.

This is why Rob refuses to write his name. And there's a reason why Rob writes for Cricinfo and you do not, which you should have figured out by now.

Hansie still has one of the greatest success rates in world cricket as ODI captain. Yes, he admitted his guilt, but somehow I doubt you can fix a match by winning it (Isn't winning the purpose of any competitive sport?).
Unless you can influence players on the opposing teams. he must have been extremely influential in international cricket!!

Hansie Cronje was an absolute disgrace and how anyone except one-eyed afrikaaners can defend this man is beyond me. I thought the documentary was illuminating, interesting and balanced, the first half was tribute to his character and diplomacy but showed the seeds of his downfall - too much power, weak management by messrs Woolmar and Bacher and the public's worship of sportsman that and its denial of their obvious flaws - (see some of the comments to the article). Rob Steen's article pretty much concurs with my opinion - Cronje was a cheat, a bully and a money-grabbing cad.

Rob Steen> Hanse may have been a cheat, but you're racist. One is a crime against sport; the other, against humanity. Following your example, I can now say that 1) you should never work as a writer again and 2) you have devalued Cricinfo for me in future.

Or not, since your view is plainly ridiculous.

Is that an Indian telling us Australia was the whipping boy of the 80's? Check your own team's figures: one win out of 43 Tests while Australia was going through its dark period. And Australia would still have been well clear at number one without Waugh and Warne in the late 90's.

real drivel! sometimes i think journalists (and i use the term looooosely) write stupid articles just to get a reaction from people. Rob probably thinks that with so many replies to this stupid article that he's made some sort of difference!! rob, grow up! you write well grammatically, but the content is really idiotic. HANSIE CRONJE RIP

There is no excuse for what Cronje did. However, I still feel he was a great captain. South Africa's win/lose ratio under Cronje was probably as good (if not better) as it is under Smith's leadership now.

You did not hide your hatred for anything South African, for our (unfortunate) history, the Afrikaner and pretty much everything associated with post-apartheid SA. If you want to do politics, go and write your drivel somewhere else. HANSIE CRONJE, despite his despicable act, was an icon in SA who faltered bc of a lack of pshycological support after he was cast into the spotlight as the "saviour" or "messiah" of our cricket. I have not yet read any article on this website condemning Azhar, Jadeja, Warne, Waugh, Malik or Akram's involvement with bookies or Atherton and Tendulkar's ball tampering as scathing as this piece. Just as many SA'ns need to move on and get over the past, so do many others around the world. Writing an informative piece on how he eventually was man enough to stand up for what he did is apparently beyond journalists. He was wrong, but he deserves better. Cricinfo is an exceptionally interesting site, just a pity that unobjective markets drive the content.

Rob, you are a waste, I think its time you get you nuts fixed. Man, I am an Indian, I dont care what the heck Hansie did, I only know that he was a great allrounder, and a shrewd captain, as far as the flaws are concerned, I am sure you are no saint

What happened to Warne, Waugh and pretty much any international captain? Nothing! They all got away with it. HANSIE CRONJE was the only one that faced the music and for that alone het should be forgiven. I don't think i can "forgive" you for writing this rubbish!

Such an outpour of support for Hansie! If Hansie were reading, he'd be grateful he's dead.

to all the supporters of hansie: get one thing clear people: hansie was not an upright, honest individual who confessed to his misdeeds because of his conscience or his faith. HE GOT CAUGHT. he got caught with irrefutable evidence. he was not mislead, did not go astray because of lack of psychological support or any other asinine reason. he was a greedy man who wanted to make a quick buck and sell his country out in the process.
An icon? get a non-deluded perspective people. he was a good cricketer, but that counts for little in the face of his crimes.
And comparing him to others whose names were linked to match-fixing is futile. While i dont doubt they were involved, none of them were caught with their pants figuratively down the way cronje was, and hence they got away.
stop eulogizing a man who had more privileges than most, but still wanted more any way he could get them.

I wish the IPL had been around in Hansie's playing days. Who needs to fix matches when you can just sign up for IPL and rake in the big bucks? lol

Hansie wasn't alone, but he took the fall. What he did was wrong but he accepted his mistake. Currently another player has been found guilty and yet he will not be truthful or accept that he did something wrong. COme on Marlon Samuels , be a man like Hansie.

I think you do protest to much. Is it because we know that match fixing is rife and have known for a very long time. HC as been dead for a long time now and match fixing as reared it's ugly head yet once again in the W.I. team. Will you be blaming HC for that as well. HC was a scapegoat because he was one of the very few found guilty and punished. This is not the rantings of a South African but an Aussie. It appears from the rest of these posts that the ones shouting the loudest and condemning are actually the ones that their countries managed to get away with it. Sorry if this post hurts other peoples feelings but the article calls a spade a spade so lets not be delusional about our own countries part in all of this.

Hey, holier than thou attitude guy, this article is B*** S***.
He did not murder, OK nor did he sell any honor or all that muddled stuff. There are far greater crimes committed by people on their family and country. He probably fixed a few matches and don't tell me that nobody has done in the past or present or even in future. Come on, if you do not know the spelling of Hansie Cronje, I can help you with that.

Cricket is a sport - if you have never been in SA DONT! make every Afrikaner out to be a racist. People that used to blow up train stations is now in parliament. As for guys going to play in the UK,if you have a bit more security go for it!
Rob Steen:are you a sports writer or the Pope;have you never made a mistake in your life???

H***** C***** did not make A (as in one) mistake.

Even if he was greedy, he should have at least insulated his crime from the rest of his teammates. That may have been forgivable.

Instead, he chose to drag several younger teammates, and in fact the entire team (with THAT MEETING) to his dirty deeds.

There are different degrees of crime and killing.

Therefore, dont think of this as A mistake.

This was serial match-fixing.

There is a lot of fuzzy, misguided responses to Rob's intelligent piece and anyone who uses Anonymous, or other handles without giving a name has something to hide.
Rob is giving his honest view on a murky, dirty subject which requires constant attention and whether it is Chan$ie Han$sie or anyone else at whom fingers can be pointed, malpractice is an evil and opinions as this need to be aired.

In writing the Fanie de Villiers biography, Fanie: Portait of a Fast bowler, published by Penguin India (2003),the following appears and mirror my views on the tainted subject:

"We all make mistakes but doing this, behind other players’ backs is like stealing from your family. What he did with (Herchelle) Gibbs and (Henry) Williams goes way beyond that . . . Only someone with a devious mind and no respect for friendship and team spirit can do what he did."

Too bad if you don't agree with this view, but how many of you were there to watch him lie at the Durban media conference?

R** S****, you need to take a chill pill.

Many posters here suffer from the Hansie Cronje syndrome, which quoted from another article :
__________________________________________________

Why, oh, why do so many South Africans suffer from an affliction I call the Hansie Cronje syndrome? The Hansie Cronje syndrome robs usually sane and nice people of all reason. They jump to the defence of scoundrels and fools, believe the most outrageous lies and defend the indefensible – merely because the person being criticised comes from the same racial or gender group that they do.

The Hansie Cronje syndrome really makes fools out of all of us. It allows politicians and other influential people to get away with the most dangerous and stupid behaviour and allow them to display that attitude so perfectly captured by Marx – that is Groucho Marx – when he said: “who are you going to believe, me or your own eyes?”

__________________________________________________

Cronje's story is a disgrace to the game, but it's far more than the story of one man. Of course, his disreputable actions would, as Mr Steen makes clear, be easier to forgive without Cronje's astonishing self-righteousness. But I have to agree with so many posters that Steen's article itself is also a disagreeable exercise in self-righteousness -- it’s so easy, but so distasteful, to write that way about the dead.

Meanwhile, the comparison of Cronje with Jardine is absolutely shameful -- what act of dishonesty has Jardine ever been accused of? Some of Jardine's team mates may have disagreed with his strategy and tactics, but it's scandalous to suggest that he should be compared with a captain whose acts fatally compromised the very basis of sporting competition. Jardine compared to a captain who took money _not to try_?! Now that really is a disgraceful insult to a dead man. Steen should be glad that libel action on Jardine’s behalf is impossible.

Like Rob I watched this programme. I wonder how many criticising him did the same? The programme wasn't about South African cricket or match-fixing per se, but about Cronje's role in the corruption of South African cricket.
Two things stood out for me:
1. He was cool (at best) towards the role of cricket in the transformation process.
2. He was a fraud.

As far as cricket is concerned his old head-teacher from the (privileged) Grey College summed it up: "I am no longer as enthusiastic as I used to be and this thing with Hansie has the most to do with this".

He has caused immense damage.

Well said Rob. Learning of HC's death is among my favourite moments of sport. A hypocritical liar to the end, he took many secrets to his grave and was evasive and vague to the King Commission. Good riddance.

Waugh and Warne weren't "convicted" of match fixing, they were found guilty of giving pitch reports to bookies - that's a bit different to what Hanse did.
Why the uproar about Handse? Maybe a lot of people were like me and liked him, thought he was a good guy, thought he was honest. He not only screwed things up for himself, but he made all of those who liked him feel like idiots.
Oh, and Jardine, even though I hate the thought of him (cos he was a Pom) was brilliant. He gets the utmost respect because he pushed the rules of the game in order to win - sure the rules were subsequently changed, but, I still have to admire the fellow.

I think i might have agreed with the majority here had i not watched the documentary. I was in shock at the things it mentioned (with credible proof). Hansie discussing at a TEAM meeting to throw a game??? WTF!!!...was that ever reported?? Hansie only approaching and pressuring colored players to alter their performances!!!...hansie opposing the integration of colored players into the team...its all beyond belief!!!

Ironically, if Hansie had never confessed, the world never would have believed a white South African captain and devout Christian, could have ever been capable of this, and those corrupt Indian policemen were stitching him up. Even more ironic is the fact that there most likely were never any tapes!

No he wasn't a murderer, or a rapist...but after watching documentary i realized he wasn't simply a human who made a mistake...he was a low life!

As an American I had to find some other nation to be a fan of, and that was South Africa, I am a die hard fan, always was, and always will be. I am from Cincinnati and grew up idolizing Pete Rose who is both legendary and infamous. He has more hits than any baseball player in history, yet he is not eligible for the Hall of Fame because he bet on baseball. That is a travesty! What does his indiscretion have to do with his accomplishments. While you all debate this issue, don't forget Hansie Cronje (I type it proudly) the skipper, the batsman, the bowler, the fielder. He is one of the greats of the game.
There is another lesson you can learn from the States, quotas just don't work. There have been some wonderful colored player in the squad and will be more in the future, but it has to happen naturally. Be more engaging of the colored youth in your domestic program, and great colored players will come along in time.

"Dear Rob"
I recently saw an American journalist that reminded me of you. He was interviewing a colored man who had spent double digit years in captivity on Robben Island. The journalist was furious with the man who refused to condemn the Afrikaners. He insisted that the man was owed justice against the perpetrators, as well as financial compensation. But the man said, "Then what? Then the white man retaliates, and so on. When will it ever end? It ends with me. Let it go."
Your dossier demonstrates a fixation with racism. If you look for racists everywhere, you will find them everywhere, real or immagined. Please, free South African cricket from your wonderland of bigotry and let it flourish.
I think you missed your calling writing about cricket. I think you would be perfect as a journalistic spin doctor for the Mugabe administration. Your remarkable knack for assigning blame is just what Bobby needs to villify whites, while his fellow coloreds suffer under his leadership.

Just a reminder to everyone that Cronje 'admitted' his faults only after being confronted with voice recordings of his conversations with bookies. Yes, Cronje was a skilled cricketer, and to call him inhuman is harsh, But what i cannot understand is that just because Cronje admitted his faults, is he to be forgiven. There was nothing proven about Azhar and Jadeja.So there's no point in brining India in this discussion.

I will always admire him, every body make mistakes and some get away with it and some pay high price for the their mistakes and he was one of them. He should now be publicly forgiven after his death and we should remember him for his fine work for his country and many memorable moments he provided in the game of cricket. I wish he be forgiven...

Rob, must have been a slow news week for you to come up with this sentimentalist sensationalist drivel. Extra credit for the melliflous use of the language to string together a neverending stream of literary diarrhea, but I for one have seen better journalism in all those rags purporting to show the exclusive photos of Angelina Jolie's baby bump. And to think that I actually looked forward to your articles!