Quadrant Posted July 8, 2009 Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 Highlights on Channel 5 at 7.15pm... that's in er, 10 minutes' time! Had the scoreboard open on my computer at work, and on the radio in my van Now I just need to SEE what happened... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Kane Posted July 8, 2009 Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 I watched as much as I could this morning, just watched the remainder of the day on sky sports (well alternating between that & highlights of Le Tour). Decent position to be in, just a shame we lost the late wickets. If we can push up to 400, which is possible with Broad & Swann's capabilities with the bat, then we're set fair Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briggsy Posted July 8, 2009 Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 I was panicking a bit to start with, but we've recovered well. Its good to see Collingwood back on form aswell. Hopefully he can keep that up. He seems to play well against the Aussies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neuro Posted July 12, 2009 Report Share Posted July 12, 2009 Heroes! I can't believe we've drawn that Test. I'm so happy!! Definitely watching the highlights at 7.15, superb stuff! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Kane Posted July 12, 2009 Report Share Posted July 12, 2009 Cracking finish to the match, Monty was superb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briggsy Posted July 12, 2009 Report Share Posted July 12, 2009 England did well to grind out that result, but at the end of the day, they shouldn't have been in that situation to start with. The bowling to the Aussies first innings was shocking - they were all over the place, and Flintoff clearly isn't fit. If Flintoff isn't fully fit, the England selectors shouldn't be picking him. Pieterson also proved again that he's a bit of a liability. There's no doubt that he's a very skillful player, and on his day, he's superb - however, he's also a very immature player that won't change his game based on certain situations. Sometimes, all it needs is a simple shot or a defensive shot - instead, he gets carried away and tries to whack everything to show off. He really needs to learn that its a team sport, and sometimes, to benefit the team, he needs to calm down a bit rather than going to personal glory. Strauss & Cook have been inconsistent for the last 18 months or so too - and they shouldn't be automatic choices - but again, the England selectors have opted for past reputation rather than form. We'll see as time goes on I guess, but there's two or three positions that look a bit vulnerable for England - and have done for a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Kane Posted July 12, 2009 Report Share Posted July 12, 2009 The batsmen let the side down really, in the 1st innings to have every player bar Monty get into double figures but the highest score is 69 is awful. Pietersen, Collingwood & Prior all needed to go on & do as Haddin, Ponting, Katich & North did. If we had got 500+ the game would have been totally different & we could have extered more pressure on them. Broad was well below par & if it doesn't swing then Anderson is limited. Strauss & Cook for me are both certs to play, their partnership averages something like 45 which is top class & they add a consistency to the team which is important, Cook needs to really be careful not to play across the line as he did in the 2nd innings though as that's a major flaw in technique Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neuro Posted August 23, 2009 Report Share Posted August 23, 2009 Chuffed to bits about today, have been glued to it all day and it's great to see us regain the urn once again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briggsy Posted August 23, 2009 Report Share Posted August 23, 2009 Chuffed to bits about today, have been glued to it all day and it's great to see us regain the urn once again Definately! We've still got a lot of work to do on developing the side long term. The Aussies are definately not the side they once were, so it'd be nice to think we could put a decent side together that can compete with the bets long term. Our middle order is still very suspect though, and I still think we could do with a good opener that can knock up 100 runs from time to time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigsteve Posted August 24, 2009 Report Share Posted August 24, 2009 So pleased that we did it again. I refuse to give Sky anymore money, but the guys at TMS have kept me very entertained throughout the series (incl at work where I've been cheekily listening in on my pocket DAB ) Also pleasing was the lack of drunken players shouting from open-topped buses today, and instead a much more professional approach, looking towards the winter tour to South Africa. What annoys me with the media is the comparisons between players. Freddie was the 'new Botham', now Broad is the 'new Freddie'. No harm in saying that he has a future as an all-rounder with the potential to move up the order, but lets not go down the comparison road. Everyone is different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briggsy Posted August 24, 2009 Report Share Posted August 24, 2009 The media annoy me - a few months ago, they wanted Freddie out saying he was a liability because he was always unfit, Strauss wasn't a world-class captain, Harmison should never be picked for England again because of his attitude on tours and his unpredictable form - and yes, many of those are true - but what annoys me is that they say all these things, and then three months later, they're saying Strauss is a genius, Harmison was a hero, we wouldn't have won it without Flintoff, etc. They need to make up their mind. We need to be realistic though - despite winning the Ashes, we weren't brilliant and it wasn't a classic Ashes series, unlike 2005. We've still got a long way to go before we can be taken seriously by every test playing team - as soon as we come up against South Africa, who are the new Australia, they'll really show our weaknesses. Our middle order looks seriously suspect. Bell is hit-and-miss, Pieterson is massively over-rated and quite often a liability, When Collingwood is on-form, he's outstanding, but when he's having an off-day, he's barely noticeable. Flintoff has now gone - so we do have a few issues that need looking at. Hopefully Trott can keep up his form and fill a hole in the middle-order, and it'd be nice to think that someone could have a word with Pieterson about changing his game so that he can learn to play a few defensive shots when needed, without him throwing his toys out of the pram saying "i'm not changing my game, this is how I play, blah blah". If he's not prepared to change, then kick him out - we need a team player, not an arrogant individual looking for personal glory. We do seem to have got the bowling sorted now though. Typical England - once we get the bowlers playing well, the batsmen struggle - when the batsmen are playing well, the bowlers struggle. Good win - but its the past now - time to plan for the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quadrant Posted August 24, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 24, 2009 South Africa will be a test for sure. But we have 2 in our team now so I think we'll have the edge! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briggsy Posted August 24, 2009 Report Share Posted August 24, 2009 South Africa will be a test for sure. But we have 2 in our team now so I think we'll have the edge! haha once Pieterson is back, we'll have three. England = South Africa Second Eleven. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigsteve Posted August 24, 2009 Report Share Posted August 24, 2009 Good point about the middle order Briggsy. I had a wee laugh on my face when Ravi didn't get to go onto the podium at The Oval, even though Monty, KP and Onions did. Its clear that Ravi isn't up to Test standard yet, regardless of his record (in the 2nd division). Trott was a good find and should get a winter tour, along with KP. Bell and Colly I have never rated; they are just too hit and miss...quite literally. I was concerned about what is essentially our 3rd choice captain, but he played from the front and held the team together. He's a bit your typical public school boy, but maybe that is what is needed to steady the side. I don't expect miracles this winter, but a drawn series would be a vast improvement. Its just nice being able to go with some hope and dare I say it, expectation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briggsy Posted August 24, 2009 Report Share Posted August 24, 2009 Good point about the middle order Briggsy. I had a wee laugh on my face when Ravi didn't get to go onto the podium at The Oval, even though Monty, KP and Onions did. Its clear that Ravi isn't up to Test standard yet, regardless of his record (in the 2nd division). Trott was a good find and should get a winter tour, along with KP. Bell and Colly I have never rated; they are just too hit and miss...quite literally. Yeah Ravi isn't really up to it. He's had his chances and struggled really. I think Monty may be used less and less now too - his bowling is superb, but his fielding and batting are too poor for international cricket. It wouldn't be so bad if we could afford to give away a few runs because the middle order have piled up the runs - but that isn't the case with England. Swann has proven to be a good replacement. Bell I feel sorry for - as a Warwickshire fan, i've seen Bell playing for years - and to be fair, he's a bloody good batsman. The problem is, he's struggling for confidence. He needs sending back to Warwickshire for 6 months, let him get some county cricket under his belt again, along with some big scores, and then perhaps re-consider him. He's very much a confidence player - like Harmison. When he's confident, he's a match winner. When he's not confident, he's useless. You might think i'm losing the plott here - but i'd seriously consider Ramprakash JUST for the winter tour. I know he's old, and I know he's failed for England in the past (although to be fair, he's matured 200% since his days where he was a bit of a lad). Not only is Ramprakash scoring runs (and has done consistently for the last couple of years), but I think putting him in alongside Pieterson would help him (Pieterson) mature a bit - and when he tries to whack something that should have been left well alone, Ramprakash is experienced and mature enough to be able to give Pieterson a good telling off. Pieterson needs someone older and quite bossy to calm him down - and I think Ramprakash could kill two birds with one stone - he'd get us runs and sort Pieterson out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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