About Tim Gavel
Sports commentator with ABC Grandstand for over 30 years Tim Gavel has called a range of sports including NRL, Super Rugby, Wallabies, Rowing World Cups, Rugby World Cups, Socceroos, Matildas, Opals, Boomers, WNBL, NBL, International Netball, Men's and Women's one day international cricket, Big Bash, World Volleyball League for Fox Sports, Rowing World Cup and National Championships for Fox Sports and the 2000 Paralympics.
All Articles
Sport
If speculation is anything to go by, the Brumbies have been on the verge of extinction at least a couple of times in their 25-year history. There has been the constant talk of a potential merger with the Melbourne Rebels. Thankfully that was put to bed by Rugby Australia last year. Prior to the Western Force being omitted from the...
Sport
As the Raiders prepare to return to Seiffert Oval for the trial against the Roosters later this month, it’s worth reflecting on its significance for the team over the years. Ricky Stuart vividly remembers as a young boy waiting outside the change room at Seiffert for the Raiders players to emerge after a game hoping for an autograph. Later in...
Sport
In the current era of professional tennis, it is hard to imagine a 13-year-old girl playing in the main draw of the Australian Open. For Helen Gourlay, it seemed like a natural progression. As a 12-year-old she was the top open women’s player in Tasmania. But in her debut at the Australian Open, Helen was drawn to play Margaret Court,...
Sport
In 1997 a group of Canberra Raiders players, led by Ruben Wiki, David Furner and Brett Finch, rallied to help one of their own. It wasn’t a fellow player, but the beloved team mascot, Tony Wood, better known as Victor the Viking. Tony had suffered stroke-like symptoms, known as Conversion Disorder, and was admitted to hospital. While he was in...
Sport
There was a time in the 1980s and '90s when Russell Stewart was better known on London's streets than in his home city of Canberra. When he walked into a pub in England, there was instant recognition. That’s not to say that he didn’t have a profile in Australia as he rubbed shoulders with fellow elite athletes such as Rob...
Sport
In 2021 the Canberra Raiders will be bolstered by the return of key players coming back from injury and the emergence of several promising juniors, meaning the Raiders that take on Wests Tigers in next year’s opening round could feature as many as five changes from the lineup that ended the 2020 season. From the Raiders side which went down...
Sport
As Dan McKellar prepares for his fourth season at the helm of the Brumbies, he has already amassed a well-earned reputation as a future head coach of the Wallabies. Wallabies coach Dave Rennie wanted McKellar to be his assistant, taking charge of the forwards for the 2020 campaign. McKellar says he was keen to take on the dual roles of...
Sport
Every year for the past 20 years I reckon I have asked Garry Quinlivan why he returns each season as the Brumbies assistant manager given it's a volunteer role. “It’s the boys,” he says. He loves being around them; he loves the banter. “Nothing gives me more pleasure than seeing the players develop individually and as a team,” says Garry....
Sport
Following a succession of ducks to launch his first-grade cricket career with Queanbeyan, Peter Solway briefly earned himself the nickname ‘Olympic Rings’. Peter was only 15 years of age at the time and says four or five ducks wasn’t an ideal way to start, but he says he wasn’t overly concerned, nor was captain-coach Garry Samuels. In the ensuing years,...
Sport
Five months ago, Glen Turner was diagnosed with an incurable blood cancer. To suggest that it has rocked his world is an understatement. It takes a fair bit to unsettle Glen. A tough New Zealand-raised rugby league player, he is as uncompromising as they come. But as he begins to talk about the impact the diagnosis has had on his...
Sport
A few months ago Caroline Buchanan was hurtling down the mountain bike trail at Stromlo at 50 km/h when she crashed. She knocked herself out and woke up alongside a smashed helmet. She also found herself back at Canberra Hospital for a series of tests. They had plenty of records to use for comparison. Caroline had spent two-and-a-half years in...
Opinion
This has been the craziest season on record, eclipsing even the madhouse that was Super League in 1997, and that's saying something. Both the Super League and the COVID-impacted 2020 seasons were bizarre for different reasons. Super League was destructive and divisive, with the club’s players and supporters often at odds over the direction the Raiders opted to take as...
Opinion
Over the past 30 years or so there have been three perennial issues about Canberra which refuse to die. The top issue that has resonated for as long as I can remember is the cost of petrol in Canberra compared to almost anywhere else in Australia. Various explanations have been given for Canberra’s high comparative petrol price but none really...
Sport
Ack Weyman only missed two games of his son, Michael’s, rugby league career in Australia. This was a fair effort considering Michael was a schoolboy prodigy, captaining the Australian schoolboys before playing 141 NRL games for the Raiders and the Dragons. He also played in four Origins and a test for Australia. After a stint with Hull in the UK,...
Sport
In the wake of the 30-10 loss to the Melbourne Storm in the preliminary final, there was a certain amount of despair among Raiders fans. They came so close to another grand final appearance. Not that this season was a disappointment. Far from it. With an injury toll that had seven first graders on the sidelines for much of the...
Sport
Leading into last night’s Dally M awards, no Raiders player had won the top award for the NRL player of the season in 25 years. And it was widely speculated that the drought would continue with the Panthers’ Nathan Cleary the red-hot favourite. Heading into the final round there was a three-way contest for the award between Cleary, Clint Gutherson,...