England in Australia 13-14

Brad Haddin has collected 44 dismissals against England this year, the most by a wicketkeeper against an opposition in Tests in a calendar year - still one more test to go as well!

 

So Swann retires, Borthwick and Tredwell added to squad:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cricket/25490206

Would go with the youngster Borthwick, Tredwell at 31 isn't the future.

 

Look, it really is simple ... Flower took over in 2009 and he had a run against frankly poor opposition, England "looked" good but didn't play great cricket, players like Swann and Anderson battered teams in England who came over and didn't even try, the most disgraceful of the lot being the then number one team, India, who came here with half a team and played like schoolboys ... suddenly we are the greatest team ever and everyone spouts off about legends ... we beat an evolving Australia who were struggling to find a team, with a revolving dressing room door and we get to number one status, our "main goal" ... the SA come here in 2012 and absolutely smash us, taking over as number one ... we lose 3-0 to Pakistan ... struggle to beat a genuinely average NZ 1-0 over six Tests ... and there it is, when teams stand up against us and actually try, we simply cannot cope ... England have enjoyed a bit of a bully boy mentality and it was easy against rubbish teams, especially in England ... when Aus were here a few months ago they had to endure terrible abuse and taunts from the stands and the in the media, and they struggled ... now we are copping it over there and we crumble, not just lose, CRUMBLE ... Flower and Cook are pathetic leaders, and both must go ... Flower says before this tour that his focus is the Ashes, not number one anymore, because obviously he thought that Aus would be easy, and he knows he can't make England better than SA, so for me he must go now, he is weak and it shows in his players, just look at Swann doing a runner ... Swann, Trott, Anderson, Broad, all can only function when the team is on top, for me they are cowards ... Pietersen is a mercenary, has never played FOR England, and his focus has been his own reputation and how much money he could make, no wonder Smith never wanted him in the SA team ... bottom line is that England cricket has never been GREAT over the last five years or so, clever scheduling has helped to paper over the cracks and fool the public into thinking we were great ... the SA series last year showed exactly how good England were, number one at the time, all the talk was about a 3-0 series win, and we got smashed ... my problem is that we never learnt from that drubbing, we didn't look at SA and try to take something from their performances ... the way they played Swann off the back foot, the way they left Anderson and Broad and tired them out before flaying them to all corners, the way they came around the wicket and bowled into Strauss and Cook's pads before firing a ball across the left handers, the way they attacked Trott's body to force him back and then getting him to fend outside off, the way they blunted Bell and showed him to be a very good Country player at best ... their attitude and application, total professionalism, hard work in the field, gentlemen off it signing autographs and saying nothing but complimentary things about the opposition, showing complete respect for the game and the country they were visiting ... no, England are just a bunch of arrogant, egotistical fools who have false stats thanks to playing a lot of cricket against rubbish opponents, and who are completely clueless the moment they come up against a talented opponent ... start again, go and find some youngsters and rebuild, but the problem we have is that County is frankly very, very weak and there are too many old journeymen still taking up places in the County game, just look at players like the wickie Foster, Key at Kent, Chapple at Lancs, Collingwood at Durham and so on ... ECB have got to sort out County cricket as we are not establishing the younger players enough, and our talent is waning.

 

With all the rats jumping ship,and out of form players
selection for boxing day as follows
Cook
Carberry
Bell
Pieterson
Root
Stokes
Bairstow
Broad (if fit) or Rankin
Finn
Anderson
Monty

 

That is a decent team canary, but Anderson is the other one feeling the heat and who has been woeful ... agree with Bell at three, he may help stop the early disasters and settle the batting

 

Agree about Anderson,but with Broad doubtful we need 1 experienced seamer.

 

Probably not the time to throw in Borthwick on Boxing Day, but I would consider him for Sydney where we may well need 2 spinners

 

Best day for us today.

Need to dismiss Aussie early tomorrow
and bat well to get a 350+ lead

 

Darren Flemming said on the radio that some England fans were looking it as a ten test series and the score is currently 3-3. That's how i am regarding it

 

Looks like we will be 4-3 down again shortly then!

What a load of rubbish!

 

4-0 and stuffed again!

My prediction,way back in October was 5-0.

Right score,wrong team.

 

Could be a couple of new England caps and one League of Nations cap given out before the start of this test:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cricket/25572213

Hail the new dawn.

 

5-0 it is then (baring a miracle).

This Aus team aren't all that good, we've had them 5 down for not much several times this series yet when Haddin comes in and starts bludgeoning, we go to pieces. We need to have a plan when a batsman is on the attack, dry up the runs, make them play riskier shots, don't keep feeding them what they want.

Johnson has destroyed our batting, are our players incapable of playing genuine pace? We have to get them used to it, a second thing to fix.

Aside from Johnson the Aus attack is weak yet we play them too defensively allowing them to get on top. See out Johnson, attack the rest, that should be the plan.

Fielding: we used to be great at it, now we are rubbish. Sort it out. I hear Collingwood is involved in the scotch setup. Why? Get our best fielder in recent years on the staff.

Fletcher has just had his contract extended until 2015. He has overseen a mini-golden age in English cricket yet we have since slipped to new depths (starting with the series against Pakistan) and seen players retiring midway through an Ashes tour on his watch. Time for a new chief.

 

Australia captain Michael Clarke said his fast bowlers are "the best pace attack in the world" after his side's 5-0 Ashes series whitewash. Mitchell Johnson, Ryan Harris and Peter Siddle took 75 wickets between them as England lost all 100 wickets in an Ashes series for the first time.
For me it's Steyn, Morkel and Philnder

 

Heather Knight scored an unbeaten 123 in England's warm-up match in Perth ahead of the Women's Ashes series, which starts on Friday.

At least the girls will give it a go

England women squad:

Charlotte Edwards (Captain), Arran Brindle, Katherine Brunt, Kate Cross (Test and ODI only), Natasha Farrant (T20 only), Georgia Elwiss, Lydia Greenway, Jenny Gunn, Danielle Hazell, Amy Jones, Heather Knight, Natalie Sciver, Anya Shrubsole, Sarah Taylor, Lauren Winfield, Danielle Wyatt.
Fixtures
January

10-13: Test match, Perth 19: 1st ODI, Melbourne
23: 2nd ODI, Melbourne 26: 3rd ODI, Hobart
29: 1st Twenty20, Hobart 31: 2nd Twenty20, Melbourne

February
2: 3rd Twenty20, Sydney

 

Reasonable start by the ladies - just about shaded the first day?

 

As if Aus need any help they've now had a player caught who walked and the umpires called him back.

 

Congratulations to the Girls.

6 points in the bag,now go on and retain the Ashes

 

England one-day coach Ashley Giles said Finn was
leaving "for his own good".
He added: "In the short term, he needs a couple of
weeks away. Steven is not selectable at the moment."

What has happened over there?
Players breaking down,players throwing in the towel,
players not selectable.

The touring set up needs really looking into.

 

It's like the Vietnam War rather than a cricket tour, only Broad and Stokes are yet to crack.