Anyone with an ear for language will have noticed a tendency over the last few years for a strange new English usage to creep into sports' commentary, more specifically football commentary.
Often managers and presenters will say things like "He's come her and done well.....he's crossed the ball and given them problems" instead of the standard form "He came here....he did well, he crossed the ball etc." Just listen next time you here football being discussed. This phenomenon is part of the discussion in Michael Rosen's recent Word of Mouth on BBC Radio 4
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qtnz
and it's worth a listen.
For me the English academic in a French university, was closest to identfying the trait linguistically and culturally, but he missed the point that it is heard not just by players, many of whom have little in the way of formal education, but managers and even presenters. What's wrong with the past definite? There was an interesting attempt to rationalise its use as a past in the present description as a player comments live on a recording of his play obviously in the past. Plausible, but the usage started with presenters and managers commenting live.
I've not yet heard it in the rugby arena, but I think I did hear it during a cricket commentary. If anyone hears examples of this in other sports......curling......Graeco-Roman wrestling.....badminton.....I would love to know.
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