Australia's shock win over South Africa in Saturday's Tri-Nations breathed new life into a series that was in real danger of fizzling out.

The Wallabies' 21-6 win not only stalled South Africa's seemingly unstoppable march to this year's title but also provided some much needed entertainment.

Most of the previous matches in this year's series had been reduced to a glorified kicking contest with all three teams resorting to the same tedious kick and chase tactics normally reserved for the nothern hemisphere teams.

In the seven games played by the southern hemisphere giants this series, only once has a team managed to scored four tries to earn a bonus point.

That was a week ago when South Africa beat a woeful Australia 32-25 in Perth, a result the world champions a commanding nine-point lead in the standings.

But just when everything seemed to be over, the combination of South Africa's comfortable position at the top of the table and Australia's desperation after losing four on the trot, helped produce a classic match on Saturday.

Although there were just two tries in the match, both scored by the Australians in the last 20 minutes, it was a game full of free-running rugby.

Both teams signalled their intentions from the outset, running the ball from deep inside their own territory, and opting for quick taps rather than the mundane practice of kicking for the line or goal.

Both teams had touchdowns correctly disallowed by the video referee in a frantic opening half while the Australians had a further two five-pointers denied by the upstairs official in the second term.

With the Australians leading just 9-6 in the last quarter of the game it would have been tempting for both sides to slow down the game and revert back to a safer style but to their credit they both continued to attack and the tries eventually came.

Australia fully deserved their win and it has revitalised their series, although they cannot win the title, while leaving the Springboks suddenly facing an anxious trip to New Zealand.

The Springboks still have their nine-point lead but the All Blacks have a game in hand, and a slim chance of pinching the title.

And because they need a bonus point, they have no alternative other than to attack the Springboks next week, hopefully setting the stage for an even better clash at Hamilton next week.

PHOTO: Australian Wallabies' Will Genia (C) kicks the ball from a maul against the South African Springboks during their Tri Nations rugby union test match in Brisbane September 5, 2009. REUTERS/Tim Wimborne

The new season hasn't even kicked off yet, but if the experts are right, it's already as good as over for nearly all the teams.

In the past 14 seasons, only three clubs have won the title with Manchester United, the Big Mac of English soccer, claiming nine championships, leaving Arsenal (three) and Chelsea (two) as the Quarter Pounder and Cheeseburger.

In the last four seasons, those same three clubs plus Liverpool, have filled the top four places to qualify for the lucrative European Champions League, leaving the remaining 16 teams* just hoping to avoid relegation.

While the matches themselves are anything but dull, there's no escaping the growing realisation that the championship is too predictable.

Manchester City loom as the team most likely to challenge the big four this season after opening their purse strings yet are still listed at odds of 15-1 to win the championship.

British bookmakers Ladbrokes are offering odds in excess of 150-1 for any other side winning with more than half the 20 teams at odds of more than 1000-1 and three clubs listed at 10,000-1, about 10 times longer than the odds on Elvis being found alive.

So, what can be done to make the English Premier League title more appetising?

Well, for starters, they could do worse than by looking at two of the world's most successful sporting countries that turned their back on soccer long ago and embraced more brutal forms of football.

The United States and Australia have both developed their own codes that dominate their domestic markets, captivating millions of people.

The National Football League (NFL) in America and the Australian Football League (AFL, Aussie Rules) and the National Rugby League (NRL) could not be any more different as sports but they all have one common ingredient that ensures their competitions maintain interest to the very end.

All three end their regular seasons with sudden-death playoffs culminating in a winner-takes-all final and the results have provided a smorgasbord of champions.

In the last 14 years, 10 different teams have won the NFL Super Bowl, while another eight have made the final.

In the same period, 11 different clubs have won the AFL grand final while each of the last eight NRL premierships have been claimed by different sides.

Now how much better would the EPL be if they had 14 or 15 teams still in contention for a place in the playoffs with two rounds to go instead of two vying for the title?

And how much interest would there be in a month long series of sudden-death matches that finishes with the last two surviving teams locking horns at Wembley with everything at stake?

The EPL's first-past-the-post system may have been good fare in the past, but everyone knows it's always better to save some room for the dessert.

* Amended after slip of the keyboard from Julian (let's be charitable here) suggested there were 22 teams in the league (see comments)

PHOTO: Manchester United's Wayne Rooney holds the English Premier League Trophy after they were crowned champions last season, May 13, 2007. REUTERS/Phil Noble

The selection of Australia's Ashes squad has compounded England's worst fears. This is a team more than capable of successfully defending the little urn.

There may be no Shane Warne, Adam Gilchirst or Glenn McGrath in the lineup but what the squad lacks in star quality it makes up for in depth.

Players were picked on form and not reputation. For the first time since the golden generation retired, Australia's selectors chose a side without having to panic.

They now possess one of the longest batting lineups in recent test history with Mitchell Johnson, who bats at eight, averaging 34.70 and coming off the back of an unbeaten century against South Africa.

Australia's two new exciting openers, Simon Katich and Phillip Hughes, are in great form. Both are left-handers and play for the same state team although they could not be more different.

Katich is 33, always deadly serious, and in his second stint in the side after returning last year following a three-year absence. Like so many other Australian batsmen who have been through that same experience, he has re-emerged as a much tougher player.

Hughes is only 20 and wears a dazzling earring but has already been compared to Don Bradman. A runscoring machine, he made twin centuries in just his second test, against South Africa two months ago, and has continued piling on the runs during a guest stint with Middlesex.

Fearless and unorthodox, how will England's modest bowling attack succeed in containing him when the far more dangerous South African attack could not?

Australia's middle-order of Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and Mike Hussey holds the key to the series. If they all score heavily, Australia will win, although all three have been mixing their form of late and the selectors may have erred in not picking the reliable Brad Hodge as a backup if any of them fails.

Following in Gilchrist's footsteps was never going to be easy but Brad Haddin has already proven himself a worthy successor as wicketkeeper.

His work behind the stumps has been criticised but not his batting. He averages 37.54, has a highest test score of 169 and would make most test sides on his batting alone.

This has allowed Australia the rare luxury of choosing three all-rounders, Marcus North, Shane Watson and Andrew McDonald, who all offer different strengths.

North scored a century on his debut against South Africa two months ago and is a handy spinner who can hold up an end.

Watson, whose career has been hampered by injuries, is a genuine batsman who can also bowl short spells of intimidating pace. England have not the seen the best of him but it is only a matter of time before he shows them his real potential.

Unlike the other pair, McDonald is a better seam bowler than batsman, although he did make 68 against South Africa and was not an unexpected selection.

Much has been made of the selectors' decision to omit Andrew Symonds, though more so in England, where he seems to be feared, than in Australia, where few people were surprised or even concerned at his dumping.

Symonds, who turns 34 next month, saved his test career when he scored his first test hundred against England in a dead-rubber at Melbourne two and a half years ago.

He scored his second hundred against India a little over a year ago but has struggled for consistency and been involved in off-field troubles.

Sacked last year for ill-discipline, he failed to make the most of his second chance at home against South Africa then was unable to mount a case for another lifeline when he averaged just 15 in the Australian first-class competition this season.

While the likes of Katich, Hughes, Haddin and North have emerged to strengthen Australia's batting, the bowling stocks are also suddenly overflowing with talent with five pacemen vying for three or possibly four spots.

Johnson is the new undisputed leader of the pack. As a left-armer with a vicious inswinger, he presents an obvious danger to England's left-handers, including their captain Andrew Strauss.

He is likely to share the new ball with Peter Siddle, a newcomer to the test side who is as tough and strong as you would expect from a man who was once a junior woodchopping champion.

Ben Hilfenhaus impressed Australia's selectors on the recent tour of South Africa and should thrive in English conditions but faces a challenge from two more experienced campaigners.

Brett Lee and Stuart Clark were both included in the squad after coming back from injuries, giving the side the additional benefit of being able to mix experience with youth.

The only obvious weakness is in the spin department. Nathan Hauritz was the only specialist spinner chosen, although Katich, Clarke and North can also roll the arm over.

Like Katich, Hauritz is another player making the most of his second chance.

An off-spinner, he is somewhat less threatening than the famous blond wrist-spinner Australia had in their recent Ashes campaigns, but may only have to play a containment role.

The 29-year-old Voges announced on Tuesday he had withdrawn from the Australian one-day team to tour South Africa in order to stay home and tie the knot.

"It's a big thing to give up an opportunity to play for Australia," he told reporters. "But I guess you only get married once and that's important to me and a decision I've made and one that I'm comfortable with."

Voges has played just one one-day international and three Twenty20s for Australia and had already booked his wedding date long before his surprise inclusion in the team for South Africa.

When he realised the second match of the tour, on Apr. 5, clashed with his date at the alter, he asked the national selectors panel (NSP) whether he could return home between the first and third matches.

But Australia's chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch said the panel would not allow him to return home midway through a series and Voges had to choose one or the other.

Marcus North, who is already in South Africa with the test squad, has been chosen to replace Voges. North is a close friend of Voges and was invited to his wedding.

"It means there'll be one less at the wedding," Voges joked.

PHOTO: Adam Voges smiles after being selected for the Australian Cricket Squad in Perth Dec. 8, 2006. REUTERS

Repercussions from Tuesday's incident that left six players wounded and five policemen dead may also be felt through the entire region for years to come (read our main report here and click here for reaction).

Security arrangements for the 2010 Commonwealth Games, to be hosted in neighbouring India, are certain to be re-examined and beefed up, while there will be renewed concerns about the merits of staging part of the 2011 Cricket World Cup in Pakistan.

Almost all of the world's top cricket nations have already refused to tour Pakistan because of fears about the safety of their players.

Australia have not toured Pakistan since 1998 and were joined by England, New Zealand and South Africa in boycotting last year's Champions Trophy in Pakistan.

The International Cricket Council agreed to move the tournament to Sri Lanka, but are already having second thoughts because it is during the monsoon season.

India were supposed to be touring Pakistan now but pulled out in the wake of recent militant attacks in Mumbai. Only Sri Lanka agreed to take their place.

India and Sri Lanka, co-hosts for the 2011 World Cup, have not been immune to attacks on their soil but Tuesday's incident will surely heighten concerns about staging any events in the region.

Australia and West Indies both refused to play matches in Sri Lanka during the 1996 World Cup after bombings in Colombo while New Zealand cut short tours of Pakistan and Sri Lanka foe similar reasons.

England suspended their tour of India last year after the attacks on Mumbai, which killed about 170 people, but agreed to return on the promise of tightened security.

Cricket is the most popular sport on the sub-continent but the effects are already being felt in other sports.

Hockey's Champions Trophy has already been moved away from Pakistan and tennis officials ordered increased security at this year's Chennai Open and the future of sport in the region now faces a bleak reassessment.

Iraqs inspiring success in this years Asian Cup was not only a victory for the people of a country ravaged by war but also a major coup for the tournament organisers. The Asian Cup has always struggled for external recognition but the extraordinary events of the past three weeks have catapulted the tournament into a new era.

No-one in their right mind expects the Asian Cup will ever match the hype and glamour of the European Championship or the romance and skill of the Copa America but the tournament can no longer be ignored.

Iraqs victory in the face of incredible hardship and the unifying effect it had on their war-weary citizens captured the imagination of the sporting world.

It was a modern day fairytale (and it surely won't be long before it gets the Hollywood blockbuster treatment) yet in many ways it was just the icing on the cake.

The inclusion of Australia and their English Premier League players, the increasing number of Asians plying their trade in Europe and the influence of crafty Brazilian coaches have not only raised standards but given the competition real credibility.

The Asian Cup rose from humble beginnings but it is only in the last 15 years that the event has really started to take off. The first three tournaments, in 1956, 1960 and 1964, were contested by just four countries. As recently as 1992, there were only eight countries involved but the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) realised it had to increase the number of teams if it wanted to be taken seriously.

The competition was expanded to 12 teams for the 1996 and 2000 editions, then to 16 teams for the 2004 and 2007 tournaments. While the first tournament was contested by South Korea, Israel, Hong Kong and Vietnam, todays major players include China, Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia and now Iraq.

The next tournament will be held in Qatar in 2011 and after the events of 2007, the competition just to qualify promises to fierce. The AFC President Mohamed Bin Hammam believes the Asian Cup is now ready to take its place on the football calendar as a major event.

"The Asian Cup from now on will be different from what we've seen in the past, he told a news conference in Jakarta. In terms of organisation, in terms of popularity and in terms of standard. This is my promise to you."

No Asian country has ever won the World Cup but it only seems like a matter of time. South Korea reached the semi-finals in 2002 and Australia made the second round in Germany last year, losing to eventual champions Italy on a dodgy penalty.

Perhaps the best example of the improving standards of Asian football is that neither of those countries made the final this time. Australia were bundled out in the quarter-finals by Japan while South Korea lost to Iraq on penalties in the semi-finals.

Yet the performances of Asias biggest and richest teams had nothing to do with this turning point in the Asian Cups history. Instead, it was the incredible success story of a team no-one thought had any chance that ultimately caught the worlds attention.

Julian Linden, Jakarta

There was no hiding the disappointment among Australia's high-profile players when they made their first appearance at the Asian Cup at a near-empty Rajamangala stadium in Bangkok.

The Socceroos had been told their matches had been sold out, and that they could expect the sort of reception normally reserved for pop stars.

But when the players marched on to the stadium to play Oman for their first game, then Iraq in their second, it immediately became apparent that someone had been pulling their legs.

Only a few thousand people had bothered to turn up to each game and the Australians hardly turned in the sort of displays that will pack them in next time. They drew 1-1 with Oman and then lost 3-1 to Iraq, prompting an angry outburst from coach Graham Arnold.

"As far as I saw some players didn't even want to be here," Arnold said. "They can blame the heat and humidity as expected but this was about attitude."

The Australians had been told that Thais are among the most fervent football fans in Asia, and they would be the headline act because so many of them play in the English Premier League, which is widely watched in Asia.

The Football Federation of Australia (FFA), which ditched Oceania for Asia in search of tougher opposition and the lure of bigger tournaments, admitted they were surprised by the paltry attendance.

"They're big Premier League followers so we expected they would be coming out to watch Australia's Premier League players," said John Boultbee, Australian soccer's head of high performance. "The players are happy with everything here... but I know they were very disappointed by the crowd."

Julian Linden is in Bangkok covering the Asian Cup 

The players aren't the only ones struggling to cope with the extreme weather at the Asian Cup -- the international media corps are also being tested by the conditions.

The combination of scorching temperatures, humidity and wild tropical storms has provided some unexpected challenges for foreign media.

Reporters were forced to take off their shoes and roll up their trousers to wade through deep pools of water just to get into the Rajamangala stadium in Bangkok after a huge downpour caused a flash flood in the hours before Sunday's opening match between Thailand and Iraq.

The following day, journalists were forced to run for cover after another wild storm drenched the media tribune during the closing stages of Australia's match against Oman.

Those hacks who braved the elements to file their reports for urgent deadlines were reduced to cowering under temporary desk tables as the rain bucketed down on them.

One Australian sportswriter's laptop computer crashed because of water damage while another's began to crackle and hiss as water started seeping in. One well-intentioned organiser, fearing the water might cause an electrical problem, elected to turn off the power, causing some journalists to lose their reports before they had filed them and triggering a swift and colourful reaction.

Even when the rain does stay away, there is little relief as the heat and humidity turns the stadiums into saunas. Photographers and cameraman are left drenched with sweat after spending hours under the blazing sun trying to capture the action from the edges of the pitch.

Getting around some of the cities can be notoriously difficult because of the constant gridlock, prompting some of the more adventurous wordsmiths to take their lead from the locals by hitching rides on the back of motorbikes to get to their destinations on time.

Julian Linden is in Bangkok covering the Asian Cup for Reuters