Ashes 2013

It has been good to see and England batsman bat for a change 250 for the win

Just when it was looking settled

Here we go. Jimmy and Monty to bat out the day…

I thought the crims had a grave dislike of bodyline 😕

Yes that and underarm 😉

And that, is that.

Geoffrey Boycott, Ex-England batsman on BBC Test Match Special

“What’s more disappointing, even than all the poor shots, is that Australia aren’t that good a side.”

the only thing we could have achieved today was to get the defeat under 200, fail…

Hopefully some of the poor performers have learnt something and some others have picked up a bit of confidence from the 2nd innings that and get a coin with 2 heads

Congrats to Australia, another thumping win and I fully expect a 3rd at Perth.

Total shit from England. Total shit.

And the next test is on Friday…. At the WACA. It has the potential to make the size of the first two defeats look quite small.

One wonders what is going on in the England camp, apart from lack of leadership and team spirit.

Hey ho! Just like the old days!

It has the potential to make the size of the first two defeats look quite small.

Or they lean how to play the high ball (get out of the way of it), and dish up some of their own. It’s not as if we don’t have some of the world’s best seam bowlers ourselves! As Stuart Broad demonstrated in the first innings at the Gabba, it’s not as if their batting is much more resilient when tested correctly.

Coaching staff have a job on. Because 3 days isn’t enough to fix any technical flaws, not that they are the issue – you can assume this lot can all play, otherwise they wouldn’t be there (and their records prove they can) – and you’d be daft to try and just scramble minds even further. Sure, there are limitations but they all know how to play within their limitations.

No, in 3 days they have to convince them all that they CAN do it, and get back to the simple basics of watch the ball, hit the ball.

We talked before the series started about broad’s mentality and the way he’d use their press’ attack on him to motivate himself (and he did too, if you remember his 6 or 7-for in the first test). We need the same now from the batters, do they really want to come home not only beaten but also going down in history that they lost their bottle against a bloke who they dominated so badly last time that he nearly packed the game in.

FFS boys. Is that what you want this tour to be remembered as? You’ve got 3 days, switch off for a day or two, get your minds straight and then come back and get on Johnson’s case, see if you can make him cry again.

The issue is not with ability or skill, even technique. The current England team are capable of beating all other teams when they all play to their potential. It seems to me that the issue is in the dressing room. No team mentality, or there has been such over confidence that personal inter-changing room bets on personal stats have taken hold.

Either way, 4 day’s to sort themselves out, or it’s going to be a whitewash.

slackalice – Member
,..or there has been such over confidence

+1combined with our attempts in the summer to position ourselves as a nasty (yeh, right) team applyimg cheating, gamesmanship, arrogance and surliness to new levels. Good to get a reality check and our due comeuppance. Hopefully lessons will be learned and quickly. This is test cricket and arguably (the Ashes) the pinnacle of the game. Let’s treat it as such and show some true character.

As I posted on the other thread yesterday, comparing the beliefs and values of the All Backs (yesterday’s Torygraph) with England 1X1 says all that needs to be said. Good to see beefy giving the back room team some crap before play last night. A lot of it starts there IMO.

d with our attempts in the summer to position ourselves as a nasty (yeh, right) team applyimg cheating, gamesmanship, arrogance and surliness to new levels

Are you really saying they exceed the Aussies previous bests/ worsts or what the Aussies are currently doing?

We all know you think its not cricket [ Boom Tish], and your view is not without merit, but you do somewhat over egg it, hence the crack comment.

Basically the batters have all failed that is what the problem is
They seem to want to attack the bowlers despite being out of form and this is what is needed.

Hard to see England bounce back but they surely cannot do any worse.

It’s not as if we don’t have some of the world’s best seam bowlers ourselves!

Big difference between low 80s ‘nibble it around in English conditions’ bowlers and at least two geezers who can bowl 90+ regularly (one of them with the potential to get up to 95). This will be amplified in Perth. Broad and Anderson will easily be able to get the ball up at head height, but really making it uncomforatble comes from speed through the air.

Not that this is the be all and end all. Remember, we also have Panesar – bowlers who turn the ball always benefit from extra bounce.

Not that this is the be all and end all. Remember, we also have Panesar – bowlers who turn the ball always benefit from extra bounce.

True but knocking the other blokes head off is generally quicker

True but knocking the other blokes head off is generally quicker

Broad does that well enough, just ask his bunny – Clarke!

And I reckon a fit and firing Bresnan would’t be someone you’d want to face at the WACA either

its also easy enough to duck that is what they should do

the bouncer is only effective if you hit it as it wont get you out itself [ may keep you back mind]

The whole WACA thing can get blown out of proportion a bit, but it is such a ‘stand-out’ pitch that special consideration should be given to how to play there.

It obviously favours openers who have quick feet and can play horizontal bat shots well (Rogers and Warner), but won’t favour the taller openers who like to drive (Cook and Carberry).

If England go too far with bowlers who aren’t sufficiently quick they may find that Warner in particular will have a wagon wheel that shows plenty of sixes and one-bounce fours to third man – having been deliberately played there. It is a ground where touring teams traditionally waste the (very precious in the case of the kookaburra) new ball and its hardness and shine. The Freemantle Doctor also makes swing virtually non existent.

The other thing about the WACA is that the bounce is very consistent, so players can duck with confidence, knowing that the ball is unlikely to keep low and really do them a mischief.

If England lose the toss I think the series is over. If they win the toss, bat well and post a big score then we’ll see what these Aussies are made of.

combined with our attempts in the summer to position ourselves as a nasty (yeh, right) team applyimg cheating, gamesmanship, arrogance and surliness to new levels.

🙄

Toss lost Oz to bat, Monty out Bresnan in, sounds like Oz unchanged.

Off we go again

Clarke is a lucky tosser, isn’t he!

I see heart went over head in terms of Swanny keeping his spot. Hope Bressers pulls up well. At least we’ll have a day or so before we can start working hard on a concerted batting collapse.

But all this comment about heat I don’t hold much truck with. It was 40+ for three days of the Adelaide test last time round, and it didn’t seem to do much harm to us then.

I don’t fancy Billy Bowden’s chances at breaking up a brawl though 🙄

what a start, time to build come on guys

That was rather kind!

WTF??? RR of 6.5? 😯

Yep, momentum swing just did a 180 back to the locals..

The speed of the pitch makes it look like a miniature ground out there. With them just cruising past 50 it’s looking like a worry. Going against runs on the board is the biggest problem England have.

and there goes another one 🙂

105 looks a big ask for England though

It feels a lot hotter than 35 degrees at the WACA today, it could open up a bit this afternoon with players going for big shots rather than going for singles.

Is suspicious

I became rather excited when I woke this morning at 148 for 5. Then I remembered the first two tests, wasn’t it 136 – 6 at Brisbane?

Now I see its 220 – 5.

Bowlers tiring in the heat?

Jeez fellers. Smith’s not test match quality yet we’ve let him score 70-odd with 65 of them through the on side. Make him play where he doesn’t want to, not where he does.

I’m getting more and more confused. How are Australia scoring so many sixes when we seem to struggle to score singles?

Yeah, Carbs and Root. That was the ball. You’re supposed to try to catch it FFS

It’s not getting better…

MJ on 35no. Score now well over 300. That, I’m afraid, is that, we won’t win this test and will in all probability lose it. And even with a draw, then getting two wins to draw the series and retain the urn – I think not.

I’ve been saying for 8 months now that this lot are too good to keep failing. Clearly I’ve been wrong.

Only one LBW in the series so far.

Those three stick things: you hit them, the batsman’s out. He gets his leg in the way, he’s out. Why not try that rather than all this high rubbish?

Root out my arse. No hotspot. No snicko. No deviation. What a load of bollocks

zokes – Member
Root out my arse. No hotspot. No snicko. No deviation. What a load of bollocks

Yep and the more Boycott tries to explain it the worse it sounds. Yep thats right to overturn the decision you need clear evidence that something else happened, no evidence of hitting it isn’t enough.

Good to see DRS controversy returning to The Ashes ha ha! For mine, there wasn’t definitive evidence to overturn the onfield Umpires call, so it stays with the original decision, them’s the rules…

WTF was Boycs on about 😆 I bet Aggers has to seriously vet the tweets he reads out when Sir Geoff is around 😛