No Peter, I can live with the umpiring, I can ALMOST live with our trumpet being confiscated - But! But! BUT!

NOT enforcing the follow-on?? OK. This IS the real rivalry baring its teeth. Well just goes to show just WHAT a drubbing the Oz '05 squad got from the Australian Press and ozzies as a result of loosing last year.

Having 445 in the bag and NOT enforcing the follow-on? Yeah right - do me a favour?!?

Oz have played like the heroes they are. England, on present performance and over the rest of series, are looking forward to an Oz-Wash!


Normal service HAS been resumed . . . . hey ho . .

Grazie, Oh ye of faint heart! I thought your team had done alright in the 2nd innings of first test and very well in the 2nd test. Of course Adelaide is full of Poms (the village of Elizabeth was specially founded) to support the cheering of the Barmy Army.

Sorry Serena? Did you say something? Seesshh . .

Ah, yes......129.

It will be interesting to see whether Australia can make 165 in 90 minutes. Our team will be hitting hard and might go out for 128! And England won't be rushing through the overs--- the ball will probably be passed through everyone before it get back to the bowler.

It started at 4.66 an over - yeah? The ozzies will WANT to get on with things.

What a game! Another "One-day" spat at the end of a 4 day Test? What happens if you don't achieve this? Pressure all around . . .

.. ugh . .and Petersen (bless) has come on to bowl .. . ugh . .

A truly devastating defeat inflicted upon England by a truly victorious and miles away cricketing side. A very well played Australian win from a position of needing to surmount the largest first innnings declaration.

It is impossible to think just how England can come back to level the Ashes Series now?

A well deserved win against what appeared to be a strident and capable England Squad. How on EARTH did we loose this? We snatched defeat from the certain "Jaws of a draw".

Not a Champagne day for us Pomms - Well done Australia! Well done.




. . . un-friggin-believable . . . devastated . . .

Not as difficult as I thought. But England fought to the last.

Tonk a Pom! Err sorry!
Gloat, gloat, aren't I a bastard!
Mick

Serena - there's a formula which dictates a minimum number of overs, so passing the ball back slowly wouldn't have made any difference.

In any event, a terrible defeat for England, as Grazie said. They did get a couple of bad umpiring decisions, but that's really no excuse - the fact was that they had a defensive mindset from the beginning of the day, even though they started at only one wicket down.

This resulted in some batting which ranged from indefinite to incompetent , and left a low total for the Aussies to chase.

The next test is over here in Perth - I tried unsuccessfully to get some tickets, but I'm almost glad I didn't get them now.

It's a shame really - barring a miracle the series looks to be over and the Ashes are regained.


Peter, the disullioned ex-pom who still supports Endland after 34 years living here!!

>>>there's a formula <<<

Indeed, so I deduced when watching the end of the match, Very unusual for me, but actually it was quite exciting.

Oh yes Serena!!

As exciting as watching one's WHOLE life flashing beofore one; like inexorably speeding towards the edge of a cliff and the brakes and gearshift failing; like seeing that safety rope slipping through one's sweaty hand; like being out in the deep and seeing a fin slicing through the water towards one; like being on the other side of middleage-dom and checking-off the remaining days .. . Yeah? Ah yes! I can see that! Very exciting . ..

.. oops, I nearly nearly forgot!! You're an Ozzie! - Ah right . . now I understand . . .

As exciting as watching one's WHOLE life flashing beofore one; like inexorably speeding towards the edge of a cliff and the brakes and gearshift failing; like seeing that safety rope slipping through one's sweaty hand; like being out in the deep and seeing a fin slicing through the water towards one; like being on the other side of middleage-dom and checking-off the remaining days .. .

Grazie, you should have been in the movies...

Alan??!?? I aint??!? Damn it?!? Thought I was . .. Like, waking up everyday and hearing an over-weight rodent forecasting the weather; like not being able to take that ferry trip across the lake; like having that laser beam creeping towards me; like charging off to ASDA on a 2-wheeled conveyance pulled by Six a-breast white stallions; like docking with a mother ship with the red planet in the BG?

Normal day at the office for me .. . doesn't EVERYBODY have this?

Grazie, do you have to pay the Congestion Charge for each of the six white stallions or are horse drawn vehicles exempt?

(I was going to add a smiley then I thought this is a serious question that Ken may not have an answer to)

There again, Ken has an answer for everything!!!

UPDATES:
Here is a link to the Ashes Blog:

http://ashesblog.dailymail.co.uk/

Hey MH_S thanks for that link - some excellent reading, and especially interesting for me as they're currently here in Perth for a couple of weeks.

I'll be at the Perth Test next Saturday - tickets sold out long ago, and I failed to win some in a radio contest, but yesterday my son Simon rang up to say HE'D won two tickets on an FM station by making up a cricket ditty to the tune of The Kinks' LOLA and singing it over the phone!!

That's my boy!

Very well done Australia!

We have been outplayed, out-captained, out-batted and out-spun by the World's VERY BEST CRICKET team - Australia.

PLUS, it was won in the quickest way possible: exactly half way through the 5 Test Series campaign.