Rugby Imortalised & a state of riot

I had to work in the evening, as I sometimes do. On this day I spent many hours wandering around the park. This is just one of many photos taken. It is a picture of a statue to a famous rugby player who looks out over the rugby fields in Centennial Park, which is near my work in Paddington, Sydney. You can tell I am not from here. I do not know if it is union or league. Like a good Mexican, I say rugby instead. Also, I am completely at a loss to explain the significance of the statues around the base of the player. Maybe it has to do with the mascot of his, unknown to me, team?

These statues make you wonder how long they will be there and in the end who will remember. Is it not interesting that in Australia we produce statues of sports stars rather than of "beloved" overlords. I dare say this is a good thing, though I do remember some scientists bemoaning the fact that Australia could be a great scientific country, if only it put the same effort into science that it puts into sport.

I am not going to say much on the next topic, that of riots. I still remember a time in my youth when living in Singapore and there were race riots over in Malaysia, where many of my relatives still live. At least here they are not chopping up people with machetes. But rioting seems much more common in NSW than elsewhere in Australia. It would be good if someone produced some stats. I think on car number plates they should replace NSW - the premier state, with NSW - A state of riot.