(NOTE - the following information was taken (pirated!!!) from Flintoff & Dunn's web site.
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For the second successive season Australia's showcase Claxton Shield competition returned to NSW Blacktown Olympic Park, and herein lies a major point of controversy for 'Flintoff & Dunn'.

While we have heard all kinds of reasons ranging from "it is the only suitable venue" to "we are aligning it with Junior state championships where we provide three-year tenures", none of these, in our view, can be accepted as a suitable outcome for the flagship event on the Australian baseball calendar.

We have no argument about the suitability of BOP, or maybe even its current status as our finest baseball facility, but it is unworthy of Baseball Australia to suggest that no other venue in the country could be suitable to host the Claxton Shield, or to ignore the opportunity for fans around the country to attend it on a strictly rotation basis.

We don't want to spend pages of text discussing the pros and cons of playing at Blacktown, but it is imperative for the development of baseball in Australia that the event should be shared by ALL major state centres, even if this means that Baseball Australia may have to provide some financial and logistical assistance to do so.

To simply anchor the Claxton Shield at Blacktown because it is cheaper or easier is not only a retrograde step for the promotion and development of the sport, but also an indicator that our administrators lack the imagination to do something about it.

Unfortunately, it is indicative of the same sort of malaise that we find ourselves in when trying to re-establish the vitally necessary National League competition.
Too many things in Australian baseball seem to be added to the overflowing "too hard basket"!

It would not be too late for this situation to be rectified for 2004/05, but don't expect it move from Blacktown again as scheduled... what a shame!
But, however bad this situation may be, it is even more important that plans are formulated to ensure the future rotation of the event beyond 2005, that is if a proper National League cannot be re-established!

OK, so leaving aside the pure argument about the venue, let's jump straight to another of the unfortunate by-products of the decision and that is the undeniable advantage that the home Claxton Shield provides for the NSW team... an advantage that they hardly need right at the moment.

It has always been accepted that the host State would be advantaged by the luxury of home conditions, but this was acceptable as long as the right to host the carnival was equally shared among the rival states.
Just like the AFL are finding out with their "salary cap concessions" and other vagaries, it does tarnish the integrity of the competition when you create a "unlevel playing field".

It was somewhat of a surprise when Queensland upset the previously dominant NSW team in the semi-final last year, but it never seemed likely that the NSW Patriots would stumble again in 2004.
Although they were not undefeated, they simply steamrolled to their 11th Claxton Shield victory, their first Claxton Shield since 1988... that is if you don't count the Sydney Blues' ABL Championship in 1996.

Nobody could suggest that NSW did not deserve to win the National Championship as they were represented by one of the most experienced and highly credentialed teams in living memory.
Even without the services of recent major league pitchers Grant Balfour and John Stephens, who were late withdrawals, rival teams were entitled to be in awe of the professional talent available to the Patriots, on paper at least!

Herein lies perhaps the most significant advantage in hosting the Claxton Shield in modern times... not just the familiarity with the home venue, but the opportunity to entice your best professional players to compete in their "off season".
NSW have certainly benefited from the availability of star players over the past two competitions and this is most unfortunate for States that haven't!

Not to take another snide shot at the "repeat venue" but the 2004 Claxton Shield could well be remembered as the year of the COMEBACK.
With the lure of selection for the 2004 Athens Olympic games underpinning the tournament, several of Australia's top players made long-awaited returns to the Australian baseball 'big league'.
Little doubt that the appearance of some of our more high-profile players was a major boost to the competition and the general interest of baseball fans.

At the top of the billing was Australia's greatest ever player David Nilsson who surprised many when he decided to end a lengthy "hibernation" from competitive baseball at the age of 34.
While many may have been sceptical about what impact he might have at this stage of his career, Nilsson simply reminded everyone in sport that it is foolhardy to doubt a champion.
However, even his most loyal supporters would have been stunned and delighted with the awesome performance 'Big Dave' summoned for Blacktown in January, 2004.
We don't want to clutter this report with statistics, but Nilsson's speak for themselves... 4 home runs and 12 RBI's from just 11 at bats for a batting average of .455 and a slugging percentage of 1.545... give us a break!
Not satisfied with this, he also supplied an unusual "party trick" by taking a turn as a starting pitcher in a meaningless game and, to complete the folklore, he pitched two effective shutout innings!

Not far behind Nilsson was another of Australia's younger professional stars from Queensland in Brett Roneberg.

Although he had reached 'AAA' with the Florida Marlins, we had not seen much of Brett on Australian diamonds for a few years apart from his cameo at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

In typical fashion, Roneberg was a standout performer on the Australian baseball stage, batting .474 but also providing a tremendous all-round offensive and defensive performance that made him a deserving winner of the prestigious Helms Award, before the age of 25.

With apologies to several emerging young professionals and other quality players who returned for Claxton 2004, a list of some of the major stars who made a re-appearance at Blacktown also includes Phil Brassington, David McWatters, Ben Utting, Shayne Bennett, Tom Becker, John Challinor, Jason Hewitt, John Moore and Chris Oxspring.

For his fine performance as the winning pitcher in the final for NSW, former Queenslander Chris Oxspring was voted Pitcher of the Year.

One other player who deserves special mention is SA's stalwart catcher Ben Wigmore who owns a .449 batting average from the past four Claxton Shield carnivals and who was a deserving winner of the Batting Champion award in 2004 with .500.

WA's Luke Hughes was awarded the Gold Glove.

As a brief overview of the tournament, New South Wales won because of their overall depth and experience, especially in their bullpen.

Queensland rode a potent offence into the final with a chance to defend their 2003 Championship but may have just run out of pitching at the pointy end?

South Australia improved dramatically on recent seasons and some emerging young hitters complimented a most experienced pitching arsenal.

Western Australia, as usual, were highly competitive and they continue to produce some hot prospects for the future.

The Australian Provincials once again clearly justified their participation in the event with some gallant performances and they upset the hapless Victorians for the second straight season.

This brings us, painfully, to our beloved home state of Victoria... we haven't been able to substantiate the fact, but we have not been able to find anyone who could remember baseball's most successful state EVER FINISHING LAST in Claxton Shield competition.

Certainly the team were competitive in the early games of the tournament, but they finished in embarrassing circumstances with too many youngsters and wafer thin pitching options.
What ever got into the minds of the Victorian selectors who, inexplicably, sent away a team that were obviously deficient in key areas is anyone's guess?
With complete disregard for experienced, in-form local players who were playing at the highest level in Melbourne, it seemed that the pre-requisite for selection in the Aces team was a recent professional contract and a birth certificate later than 1980!

Memo to Baseball Victoria (and any other state that might be thinking similarly)... the Claxton Shield is an event with a rich history and, in the absence of a national league, it remains the most prestigious State competition in the land.
It behoves every team to send their very best available players to represent baseball in the proudest possible manner and to produce the finest possible standard of competition.
Professional contract or not, there are many local league stars who may deserve to represent their state AT THIS STAGE OF THEIR CAREER ahead of inexperienced and often immature 'Rookie League' pros.
It is an insult to those who miss selection when they have earned the opportunity, regardless of their professional status.
In Victoria's case, while not directly blaming those players who no doubt tried their very best, the last placed finish was an embarrassment that must have serious repercussions in the hallowed halls of Baseball Victoria.