Set permanent WACA Test date

Good timing is the essence to great cricket.

That ethos is relevant not only to the men swinging bats but also to those pushing pencils in the Cricket Australia planning office.

Setting fixtures is a tough job. You need a fondness for figures mostly found among accountants, a clairvoyant's crystal ball and the diplomacy of Bill Clinton to acquiesce the requests of stakeholders.

This week Perth hosts the third Test between Australia and India. While there is talk that five-day cricket is ill - although as pointed out at The West this week there seems to be more people asking "who said Test cricket is dead" rather than "Test cricket is dead" - there is great anticipation for the WACA Ground contest.

A Michael Clarke triple century, a couple of wins and the prospect of seeing Sachin Tendulkar create history can have the effect on the sporting psyche. Local cricket couldn't be happier with the lead-in.

But wouldn't it be easier to market - and better for fans - if the annual Perth Test was played at the same time of the year, every year?

Praying to sporting gods in 2012

Sorry Santa. This request for a bunch of presents goes to the gods of sport - Winnius, Loseus and the Great Draw.

The hard working team at Sports Grunt don't just want a bunch of gifts on one day. They need to be spread out over the 366 days of 2012.

And, yes, it is a leap year, so there are 24 extra hours of sporting joy to be had.

So you patron saints of the athlete's foot, answer these prayers for a bumper season in the New Year.

Here is our short list of wants.

They aren't too great and we don't expect all to be granted.

But a few would be nice.

WA soccer glory is for all

It has become a strong trend in this office on Monday mornings in summer.

With little or no AFL news - although those days are fewer as the league commands the spotlight with or without a ball being kicked - sports tragics need something else to talk about after the weekend.

In recent years the sports topic du jour during this period has been the English Premier League.

Today was no different.

As soon as a couple of features writers had been scanned through security, they were talking about David Silva's winning goal for Manchester City over Arsenal. Or they were discussing another touch of skill by Wayne Rooney.

And that is a problem for Australian soccer.