NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Sport

The controversy which won't go away: Aussie cricketer reveals truth in catch scandal

NZ Herald
31 Dec, 2019 07:00 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Greg Dyer holds the ball following the edge from Andrew Jones. Photo YouTube

Greg Dyer holds the ball following the edge from Andrew Jones. Photo YouTube

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

As if humiliating our current side isn't enough.

The Australian cricketers are trying to wriggle out of a controversy which is said to have wrecked the test career of a player 30 years ago.

Apart from the underarm incident, there is no more infamous moment in trans-Tasman cricket than the Greg Dyer no-catch in 1987.

It occurred during the MCG test when Australian wicketkeeper Dyer was awarded a leg side catch from Andrew Jones' bat, when replays clearly showed he dropped the ball and regathered it.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

One of Dyer's team mates, fast bowler Mike Whitney, has now claimed it was the umpires who got it wrong, not Dyer.

The stain on Dyer was so great that the incident played a huge part in his international career quickly coming to an end, Whitney told Fox Sports.

"I'm at fine-leg when that happened, so I watched him dive across to the leg-side and it was pretty much right in front of me and I couldn't quite see but I thought he caught it," Whitney reckoned.

"So he ended up with the ball in his hand – this is never spoken about – and he looked at Dick French, who was at square leg, and basically said 'I don't know if I've grabbed that or not' and Dick French nodded and then nodded at Tony Crafter, who then put his finger up.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

READ MORE:
• Ultimate challenge: The big issue the Black Caps can't fix
• Cleaver: How Brendon McCullum revealed Black Caps' biggest problem
• Mr Fix-it: The Black Caps' secret weapon for final test
• What went wrong: Williamson's 'grim' response after MCG mauling

"I've never heard anyone talk about that.

"They all say Greg Dyer dropped the ball and then claimed the catch. He never claimed the catch at all. He held it up at the square-leg umpire, who nodded and said 'yes' and then nodded to Tony Crafter.

"They've never mentioned the umpires that they made a mistake because there was a camera angle that showed it hit the ground and then rolled back into his glove and he didn't really know."

Discover more

Sport|cricket

Ponting's surprising Team of the Decade

31 Dec 08:22 PM
Black Caps

Australia coach's cheeky dig at Black Caps

01 Jan 06:35 AM
Black Caps

The Aussie moment which left Black Cap in tears

01 Jan 07:00 PM
Black Caps

'Truly special': Australia captain's touching tribute to Black Caps

01 Jan 09:00 PM

After initially lauding the catch, TV commentator Tony Greig quickly opined: "Dyer has claimed a catch which doesn't look to me as if it was one,

Dyer's opposite Ian Smith, now a top commentator, didn't see the non-catch live.

"I saw replays afterwards. It didn't look good. We were a bit disappointed about it. It just wasn't clean and it got a bit ugly," Smith said.

"It didn't look good and it was replayed so many times that it proved conclusive in the end."

Umpire French is infamous for giving Craig McDermott not out to a rock solid lbw appeal as Australia clung on to save the game and win the series.

But he can probably be forgiven the Dyer incident, despite Whitney's claim.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Many observers would argue that Dyer indeed knew he had spilled the ball and rather than informing the umpires – whose view would have been obscured by his dive - he hoped they had not noticed.

Dyer - who went on to become the Australian Cricketers Association president - may prefer to let sleeping dogs lie, so it is hard to know whether he will be grateful to Whitney or not.

Whitney, who was captained by Dyer in the New South Wales team, said it was "pretty much the end of his (Dyer's) career".

"He played a couple more games and it just finished him. People calling him a cheat and a liar.

"We turned up the next day after that and there's this big sign at the MCG: 'Dyer's a liar.'

"I felt really bad for him, and it wasn't really his fault. He didn't know whether he caught it cleanly."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Save

    Share this article

Latest from Sport

Sport

'Devastated': Liverpool star Diogo Jota killed in car crash aged 28

03 Jul 08:38 AM
Premium
Opinion

Gregor Paul: The All Blacks' bold selection shake-up to become 'killers'

03 Jul 03:42 AM
Motorsport

'Got to dream': Paddon hopeful of launching WRC team

03 Jul 03:00 AM

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Sport

'Devastated': Liverpool star Diogo Jota killed in car crash aged 28

'Devastated': Liverpool star Diogo Jota killed in car crash aged 28

03 Jul 08:38 AM

Spanish media report the Portuguese forward died alongside his brother.

Premium
Gregor Paul: The All Blacks' bold selection shake-up to become 'killers'

Gregor Paul: The All Blacks' bold selection shake-up to become 'killers'

03 Jul 03:42 AM
'Got to dream': Paddon hopeful of launching WRC team

'Got to dream': Paddon hopeful of launching WRC team

03 Jul 03:00 AM
‘Shown their class’: Robertson backs All Blacks rookies for French debut

‘Shown their class’: Robertson backs All Blacks rookies for French debut

03 Jul 01:00 AM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP