The 2006/2007 Ashes Thread

[Pirateking]

I feel like I should make this thread. Why? Because ever other bloody sports has one so why not cricket?

Didn't we start well? We lost the toss and Ricky Ponting chose to bat. Harmison was misfiring, Hoggard was the most economical, Jimmy Anderson was all over the place. The bright spots were two wickets for Freddie Flintoff and one for the ""King Of Spain" Ashley Giles in his first cricket match for over a year. The Aussies closed on 345-3, with Ponting not out on 157. If our bowlers don't start firing tonight, we can say goodbye to the Ashes, because no team that have lost the opening match at the Gabba have ever gone on to win them. We need to stop the Boom-Crash-Crash-Crash cycle of English sport.

But then, the Aussies slaughtered us in the first test in England last year so you know, anything is possible.

 

[Iceman]

I was going to make this but didn't think anyone here would be interested. Even the football thread which covers nearly every country is a bit quiet and this is just a game between two nations. Having said that I'll be glued to the TV for the next however many weeks so there's no danger of this thread dying a permanent death anytime soon.

I think we'll do amazingly to draw this series and retain the ashes which can be our only (and probably unrealistic ) target. Bad weather is unlikely to save us in Aussieland so we need to be able to keep our wickets for as long as possible when we bat, even if we're not scoring runs. I would play one less bowler and bring in a specialist batsman.

What do you think about Andersen and Giles getting last minute recalls to the team?

 

[XwolverineX]

You guy's seriously watch cricket?

 

[Iceman]

Yeah it's the best excuse for getting out of work for hours (days) at a time.

The Ashes is huge in England and Australia but it's hard for anyone else to understand why. Decades of tradition (England losing).

 

[kit1982]

So whose got that feeling that the Aussie's will give us a bit of a whooping? Let's be fair we only won the last Ashes on the back of a few dodgy decisions ( i.e. Michael Kasprowicz being declared out crucially incorrectly in the 2nd test). The year we won the ashes everyone went on about Flintoff and Pietersen, but I think only now are alot of people realising the massive influence of Michael Vaughn

 

[Iceman]

The last Ashes was only 2-1 and we had a few very lucky moments but we definitely deserved to win overall. We've got so many problems this year - Jones, Vaughan, Trescothick, the form of Harmison and previous injuries to Flintoff that it's looking very bad. Also we're away from home which makes a huge diffrerence. As long as we put up a fight and lose 2-0 I won't be too unhappy. Drawing the series is the ultimate target.

 

[kit1982]

Well I picked the Kasprowicz moment because had the right decision been made we would've been 2-0 down and game over, but as you rightly said after that we outplayed them and thoroughly deserved it.

I was just sick of the whole "renaissance" of English cricket, it was the same when we on the Rugby world cup you get journalists and bloody Phil Tufnel coming from out of the woodwork declaring that this time next year Cricket/Rugby would be huge in the country and we'd be ruling the globe at it. Both times it hasn't happened and in each case star players (Rugby- Wilkinson, Robinson, Cricket- Vaughn, Harmison) have ended up seriously injured or going through some god awful form. We don't build on it, we just bask in the glory and think it'll be even easier next time. You look at the consistancy of other countries compared to ours, it's disgusting.

 

[Iceman]

Well I picked the Kasprowicz moment because had the right decision been made we would've been 2-0 down and game over, but as you rightly said after that we outplayed them and thoroughly deserved it.

I was just sick of the whole "renaissance" of English cricket, it was the same when we on the Rugby world cup you get journalists and bloody Phil Tufnel coming from out of the woodwork declaring that this time next year Cricket/Rugby would be huge in the country and we'd be ruling the globe at it. Both times it hasn't happened and in each case star players (Rugby- Wilkinson, Robinson, Cricket- Vaughn, Harmison) have ended up seriously injured or going through some god awful form. We don't build on it, we just bask in the glory and think it'll be even easier next time. You look at the consistancy of other countries compared to ours, it's disgusting.

In rugby we'll always struggle to compete in the long term with the likes of Australia and New Zealand as it's a bigger sport for them than it is for us. The World Cup victory proves that rugby will never be on a par with football (even though it was one of the best moments in UK sport) as the memory fades quite quickly. A football world cup victory would be completely different. Also the club scene of both cricket and rugby (which is what keeps interest going between events like world cups and Ashes series) is not impressive enough for newcomers to the sport to hang around for.

I don't think England will ever dominate either of these sports at a consistent level

 

[Avangarde]

Thank you for making this thread. I'm an Aussie and now I have another thread to rant . Aussie aussie aussie oi oi oi

 

[Iceman]

Pirateking I think we need a NO AUSSIES rule t:


At least until England get a wicket or someone makes double figures with the bat.

 

[kit1982]

But it's getting to the point of what sport will we dominate in? Football, Rugby (league and Union, lets not forget we're the country that pumps the most money into these), Cricket, Tennis (we have to rely on Scotland to bail us out), Hockey? Not a chance! Heck even the likes of Ding and Neil Robertson are coming into and taking over Snooker. We need an attitude like the Aussies otherwise we'll just drift further and further behind.

Anyway thats all the ranting done....... well till after tonight probably

 

[Iceman]

After tonight we'll probably be ruling out cricket for good.

 

[Avangarde]

Pirateking I think we need a NO AUSSIES rule t:

...........

 

[Iceman]

...........

You guys must be pretty happy at the moment

Or did you expect to be doing even better?

 

[Avangarde]

You guys must be pretty happy at the moment

Or did you expect to be doing even better?

No we are quite happy, it was great to watch Ponting (capt) make a century on the first day of the first test.

 

[Iceman]

You have a lot of very experienced batsman with averages in the high forties / low fifties. On a good batting pitch like this and with most of England's bowlers off form it's looking very good for a big 1st innings lead (if not follow on). I just hope England can put up a fight with the bat. What kind of form are the Aussie bowlers in at the moment?

 

[Avangarde]

Glenn McGrath is the only one that is questionable, his personal life has effected his game and he hasn't been able to show his prior form. Although he could be holding out for something special.

 

[Avangarde]

I live in Adelaide, so when I see it here I might post some pics of me at the game getting plastered. Should be good for a laugh.

 

[Iceman]

Yeah that'll be good to see t:

Hopefully McGrath will trip on a rugby ball before the second test.

 

[Avangarde]

Well we still have "Lord of the Spin" Shane Warne, the man is a womanising Legend.

 

[Iceman]

We'll have to feed him beer and pies to slow him down a little.

 

[Avangarde]

We'll have to feed him beer and pies to slow him down a little.

ROFL

Funny thing is back in the 80's that's what made our batsman invincible.

 

[Iceman]

David Boon t:

 

[Avangarde]

David Boon t:

 

[Pirateking]

Well we still have "Lord of the Spin" Shane Warne, the man is a womanising Legend.

To old, too fat!!



Still too damn good.