-
-
England win by 197 runs
The Ashes are where they should beComment
-
Comment
-
The England players grab each others stumps in celebration while the crowd go wild.
Comment
-
-
****ing brilliant!
Comment
-
So Australia have been Harved then.Comment
-
Originally posted by Assassin View PostThe England players grab each others stumps in celebration while the crowd go wild.
Great result. A broken down clapped out Flintoff still had what it took to inspire us to victory. True legend.
Result was inevitable after yesterdays groundwork, but must admit they did have me worried a little until punters went.Comment
-
"When a man insults my country I insult him, by taking his woman" Tony Yeboah
"looking through your posts since 2007 and what you have consistently written about my football team I have come to the conclusion that if you had 1 more brain cell you would be a plant .. your father was a hamster and your mother smells of elder berries, I fart in your general direction ..." Nicey
Comment
-
Good series again, but i do think we were fortunate to escape with a series victory.
However, where do we go from here? Who replaces Flintoff? Who replaces Harmison? Is Collingwood good enough to continue? And Bell? Is Broad a batter who can bowl a bit...a bowler who can bat a little...or a genuine all-rounder? Does Broad even know what his best style of bowling is? Does Bopara deserve a recall? Do we need Monty if we have Swann?
Questions questions questions...and will we retain the Ashes in 2011??
Comment
-
I think clearly when confident Broad is a genuine all rounder. he is young and I would expect him to grow into the role, playing the tactical role of Flintoff even if you couldn't call him a direct replacement.
Not sure that Harmison has much of a future as he only seems any use in very specialised circumstances. There is no direct replacement available though. We will have to hope that Onions or someone else either kicks on or forms a good combination with Anderson or Broad.
Collingwood has been solid for a while and I think there is a danger of change for changes sake. he is good in the field and a useful option with the ball. I think someone else will have to step up a fair bit to make dropping him seem the right move.
The batting decisions when Pieterson is fit will be interesting though. Bopara, Trott and Bell will all have supporters. I don't think we can afford two idiots in Pieterson and Bopara in the same lineup. One or the other will have to grow up and start using their head more. I do worry that we don't have the mental toughness in the line up which is one of the bigger worries with Bell. In general I think we could do with another tactical brain in the team as Strauss is quite conservative. Not sure if we need it enough to bring in someone like Key. Hopefully a bowler will start having more influence, possibly Anderson. I think the mental aspects are the biggest problem for us between now and 2011 as there doesn't appear to be the great talents or the strength in depth in Australian cricket there was so from that point of view it should be a tight series again.
Swann still isn't that great but he is certainly a better all round package than Monty. If Monty keeps bowling averagely there is no argument at all for him in the side. Rashid presumably has to be pushing quite hard at the door but then on a wicket likely to take spin he didn't even seem to be considered."The man who never alters his opinion is like standing water, and breeds reptiles of the mind."
-- William BlakeComment
-
Anyone else gutted there will be no more Freddie?
The bloke is fantastic and I'm gutted we wont see him in the whites anymore.**** OFF HICKS AND GILLETT WE DON'T WANT YOU.Comment
-
Weirdly tho, neither his bowling average or is batting average was anything special, but he brought a certain something to the team...with him in it, we just seemed to ooze confidence. We need another charismatic, likeable talisman, with a funny accent and a tendancy to eat and drink too much...Broad doesn't have any of that.Originally posted by Pacman View PostComment
-
His injuries meant a lot of the time he was playing it was unrepresentative of what he could do though. His bowling though was always more of a thing that helped the team more than himself. He never really seemed to get a wicket taking length consistently but he often changed the mood of a game, and helped the bowler at the other end get wickets by exerting pressure.Originally posted by Scratch View Post"The man who never alters his opinion is like standing water, and breeds reptiles of the mind."
-- William BlakeComment
-
A few thoughts:
1. While many have bemoaned the lack of Brett Lee for Australia, England did without Pietersen for most of the series (and they did without a fit Pietersen for the whole series). The test England lost they were also missing Flintoff. How much Australia missed Lee is hard to say - would Siddle have played if Lee was fit - would Lee have done better?
2. While Bopara took a step backwards this series (some flaws in technique to resolve) there were several players who came out with reputations enhanced. Prior continued to show that he is a genuine wicket-keeper batsman (unlike Geraint who got found out a little at the top level) and made great strides in his 'keeping. Broad obviously gave a very clear glimpse of what we can be hoping to see for a decade to come. James Anderson contines to cement his place in the side - when conditions are right he's a very dangerous bowler. When they are not at least he's not as bland as he used to be. Strauss was excellent again and Swann was a pleasant surprise.
3. Collingwood's form has fluctuated a lot of the years. He is a fighter and has a lot of experience. I think he should be kept.
4. Rashid should probably overtake Monty as the second spinner.I'm playing all the right notes. Not necessarily in the right order. I'll give you that, sunshine.Comment
Comment