Cricket
There is currently 1 person viewing this thread.
Good to see the Aussies making a few mistakes with their batting yesterday and hope we can get the last pair of wickets before 350 is on the board. Archer did well and a couple of good catches too.
Need to bat big and long. Going to be a very hot day, nudging 40c.
Make them Aussies work for their wickets.
Need to bat big and long. Going to be a very hot day, nudging 40c.
Make them Aussies work for their wickets.
sort by:
Show
per page
Replies: 20
|
By:
Not going too well, 40 runs added so far.
|
|
By:
Just the one slip, Stokes is more concerned about stopping runs than getting them out.
 |
|
By:
Oh dear Pope out for three chipping to mid wicket.
I think we need a new Pope. |
|
By:
Duckett clean bowled.
42/3. I am off to bed.  |
|
By:
The Aussies were made to work for their wickets in the main . Pope apart
Stokes battling it out , showing again that you can rein it in when necessary and protect your wicket. Crawley and Duckett got decent deliveries, it's just a fact that the Aussies have top class bowlers and are better than ours. Cummins is a superb bowler, you would never think he hadn't bowled competitively for five months. Still a flicker of hope if we can keep the lead below 100 and then bowl like demons. |
|
By:
Let us hope so Dixie.
Hoping for a good first session to set the tone. |
|
By:
Good so far. Added a few and got a lucky lbw.
|
|
By:
Goose looks to have been cooked this morning.
Cut up and served out today? |
|
By:
Well we kept the lead to under 100 but then the series reverted to type.
Even the tonic of a bizarre failure by "Specsavers" Weatherald to review his obviously not out LBW failed to galvanise the bowlers. It's obviously hard going bowling in that heat on a good batting track but our attack looked insipid at times. Archer only bowling 10 overs and Stokes not bowling at all due to being "knackered "  This is Test cricket - it's called that for a reason, unless Stokes actually has another injury he is not telling us about then it's feeble to suggest he was just too tired to bowl. The Ashes were on the line ffs and the Captain seemingly didn't want to turn his arm over ? All very strange. Especially considering Stokes's "weak men" comments recently. McCullum and co have a lot to answer for. Bazball has been well and truly found out and should be ritually burned the same as the original urn's contents. Others warned that the lack of preparation for this tour would leave the team undercooked and were sneered at by the captain and management. But the "others" were spot on. We have only had NINE days of cricket and yet the team look worn out, bedraggled. They look a tired outfit but they are not unfit, however they ARE certainly not match fit. They have simply not played enough proper cricket, spending too much time training in the nets and just as much time playing ruddy golf ! So the series has all but gone bar a miracle and if it continues in this vein then surely McCullum and co are toast. |
|
By:
Totally agree Dixie about them looking knackered (have only seen highlights but listened to a fair bit on the radio) obviously it's bloody difficult in the conditions but professional athletes with all the coaches should have them in better condition than they are. Listen to any former quick bowler banging the ball in half way down all day is even more tiring so the tactics not helping in more ways than 1. More worryingly now is the rest of the series is back to back to back. Wouldn't rule Archer out of retiring from test cricket at the end of the series and taking he T20 money.
|
|
By:
Need a new top 3, a proper wicket keeper and our best county spinner, whoever that may be for the next series England play in.
|
|
By:
Duckett and Pope have been woeful so far in this series but after a pair in the First Test, Zak has recovered well, 76 and 44 last week followed by 85 here , shame he could not get an elusive century.
Not playing the first choice spinner was yet another error by the England hierarchy. Lyon for the Aussies showing exactly why. At least in this match the team has (on the whole) applied themselves better. that said , Zak's interview after play showed everything that is wrong with the current set up, insulated in their own bubble, not willing to accept valid criticism and sniffily dismissing the media . Things need to change. |
|
By:
The Ashes Obituary
Happy Xmas Whispering Death They came to the Dreamland with hopes held high Stepped off the plane under a raging blue sky Onto the WACCA for the first Perth Test The Bazball boys said they were nothing but the best Poms win the toss and decide to bat Conditions great there should be no looking back On the horizon they see something dark He's elegant, he's fast and his name is Mitchell Starc A ten wicket haul says it all He's the master of pace and swing and was born to bowl The Poms fold like we all know they do No bottle,no skill and no fight too. Now it's onward to the GABBA One nil down and can they recover Archer sweating and chomping at the bit This is a ground that surely fits Another toss won under a red hot sky Can Rooty stay at the crease and refuse to die Zero away tons for this so called great If he fails again the Press will surely berate Flashing drives and sweeps galore He's finally done it but can he add more Finally out for 138 They say he's good but is he an all-time great? Poms out for an average score Now it's time for the Aussies to roar 511 with the wind beneath their wings This lead is too much for the Poms to achieve Another defeat and Stokesy's looking down He says his team are men but they all look like clowns Catch after catch hitting the ground They labour in the sun but there is no broken wicket sound Now onto Adelaide where it's do or die A stunning ground that brings tears to your eyes The terrorist attacks a few days ago A nation mourns and show their sorrow But life goes on and we must not waiver We all love cricket and that's in our favour The Ashes carnival should never end Spare a thought though for those who could not comprehend Paddy back and we win the spin Track looks pure as the innings begin Poms race in as they truly know This could be the last of the ashes show Aussie score is only on par A chink of light for the Poms to go far Yet again it's a dismal display Rabbits in the headlights and an innings of decay One more innings to seal the deal As Travis strides out on his home field He knows the history and he relishes the test He's the Pommy's nemesis and is simply the best A ton achieved and he kisses the pitch He would rather score runs for Oz than be rich A victorious wave to the fans in the stand As he brutally silences the barmy army band Surely now it is all over Never underestimate though a wounded soldier Can the Poms find that one bit of fight I don't think so, but we will all know tonight Six wickets down and hopes dwindling fast The flag is still flying but it's at half mast The sharks smell blood from miles away They are ravenous, eager and about to devour their prey Another Ashes that have passed them by With scant preparation they were bound to die Now it's time for the management to up and go The tour is a shambles and one hell of a horror show The Urn won and Paddy's men in raptures Still they have the fourth test in Melbourne to capture A dead rubber in all but name An eighty thousand crowd to witness their shame The Aussies stamp their class once again They know how to play Test cricket and inflict the pain The greatest nation to have played the great game They treat the opposition with total disdain The Betfair cricket clown for what does he know Bigging up the Poms long before the seeds were sown All the talk and hot air that comes from his stinking breath We all know that loser, that's right it's Whispering Death Another series and result in eleven days They need a Botham amongst them to obey Until that time they will burn in the sun Hey Whispering it's so great to be an AUSTRALIAN |
|
By:
brilliant
|
|
By:
Cheers elisjohn
|
|
By:
I bet they'd beat the Aussies at Golf though
 |
|
By:
Cook - this is the one that got away. You have been battered by our C team. Useless biased commentator along with that mug Swan. They have been as bad as what the Poms have been.
|
|
By:
Cook has a point though TMB, as you yourself allude to this was a seriously weakened Aussie side and yet they were miles too good for England. A massive chance missed.
Had we prepared in a proper manner, with warm up red ball games in the weeks leading up to the series, then we would have been in a much better place. Unfortunately the powers that be thought differently. They always believe they know better. When Botham, Vaughan and others warned that it was folly to go in to an Ashes series down under without playing red ball warm ups they were dismissed as "has beens" by the captain, which sums up all that is wrong with the current set up. Heads really need to roll but i won't hold my breath. McCullum would be out the door in just about any other sport but it sounds like he's going nowhere. "Lessons will be learned" they will say again, will they f**k ! |
|
By:
dixie, youve posted loads on here last few weeks on the Ashes and i must admit youre spot on in all the posts, ps but i think also Stokes should go
|
|
By:
Yes elis, Stokes hasn't had a great series although he has tried to show the way to his team, some of the tactics (field placings in particular) were head scratchers.
That said i think he has enough credit in the bank to continue as captain and if he stays fit i expect him to do so. who would take his place anyway ? Brook is far too immature and there are no other real candidates sad to say  We really need a complete reset now. By all means keep bazball as an approach when the match situation demands, but don't play that way irrespective. Listen to the likes of Botham, Gooch and Vaughan when they are offering advice, they have been there and done it after all. I grew up in the 70's watching some of the greats play test cricket, to me it is and always will be the ultimate in the game. I would have played for my country for free and would have been proud as punch to do so. It doesn't seem to have the same resonance now with the players as, just like in football and other sports, money is the main motivator. They can just earn so much money in the 20/20 franchises and the awful Hundred that playing for their country comes secondary. Unfortunately the genie is well and truly out of the bottle and won't be going back in any time soon. I would have posted even more frequently during this series but it's been as dead on here as England's prospects of winning the Ashes have been since Perth Dragon has given up with this lot through exasperation, Hayden is seemingly AWOL and Whispering Death got banned just before the First Test and seems to still be so. All were frequent and knowledgeable posters and hopefully will return soon. Maybe it will be a bit more lively once the 20/20 World Cup starts in February. |