The Ashes

[Torneyboy]

Ok We won but was not a contest when one side loses a bowler and add the bad early fielding and they were down in confidence very early into the game.

 

The crowd were very happy whatching (pay for a five day ticket) the collapse was disapointing but i think they can fight back and make a contest in Adelaide.

Not much in the pitch for the faster bowlers and usually a good flat batting strip.

 

So lets all look forward,.

[racha]

The Aussie press are having a field day taking the Piss,

 

Poms want their heads examined

 

By Mark Fuller

November 12 2002

 

 

 

 

 

England will consider calling in a sports psychologist to help their battle-scarred players overcome the impact of Australia's crushing win in the first Test at the Gabba.

 

Australian captain Steve Waugh described the 384-run win on Sunday as "devastating" for the tourists, and England captain Nasser Hussain conceded after a woeful, match-shaping first-day performance last Thursday that "there were 11 very nervous cricketers out there".

 

When he arrived in Australia, Hussain said England would benefit from their young players bearing no scars from previous Ashes thrashings. If there was any advantage, events in Brisbane surely have erased it.

 

England do not have a team psychologist on tour, primarily for cost reasons, but coach Duncan Fletcher said yesterday it was possible one may be brought on board.

 

He said team management would assess how England could recover before the second Test starts in Adelaide on November 21, and the use of a psychologist would be on the agenda.

 

 

 

 

Fletcher was unable to say whether England would call on an expert from home or would make use of an Australian.

 

Fletcher's predecessor, David Lloyd, who was a strong advocate of sports psychology, brought psychologist Dr Steve Bull with the squad to Australia on the 1998-99 Ashes tour.

 

In the three years that Fletcher has been in the job, Bull has not toured with the England squad. He has, however, been involved with England players at home and is available to squad members over the telephone when the side is abroad.

 

The absence of a psychologist is in stark contrast to the practices of the world-champion Australians, who were assisted at the Gabba by Brisbane sports psychologist Dr Phil Jauncey.

 

Jauncey, who worked closely with Australian coach John Buchanan when he was coach of the Queensland Bulls, is the mental-skills coach with the Brisbane Lions AFL team and boasts Brisbane Broncos rugby league coach Wayne Bennett among his supporters.

 

Hussain said he did not believe his side's problems were mental, but Fletcher said England management would spend this week talking with their players while in Hobart for the three-day tour match against Australia A, which starts on Friday.

 

Fletcher said inexperience was the main reason for England's inability to deal with Australia's intensity in the first Test. He said that against Australia, unlike other opponents, "there's pressure coming at you all the time", and dealing with it "all boils down to experience".

 

"You've got to make sure you learn that experience pretty quickly," he said.

 

Waugh expects Australia A to keep the tourists honest, and is hoping the understudy national team will provide England with more torment.

 

"If our young guys can do well against them this week, it certainly keeps the pressure on England," Waugh said when he arrived back in Sydney yesterday.

 

England will be without their captain against Australia A.

 

Hussain will practise with the squad during the week but will fly to Perth on Saturday to be with his pregnant wife, Karen. Their second child is due on November 20. Marcus Trescothick will captain the side.

 

Fletcher said Hussain would benefit from his time away from the squad, and England would benefit as a result. "At the end of the day, the captain needs a break," he said.

 

Cramming for experience in Hobart will be an all-new England pace attack. With Simon Jones out of the series and Darren Gough on his way home, new squad members Chris Silverwood and Alex Tudor will play at Bellerive Oval, as will Steve Harmison, who has recovered from a shin-splint problem.

 

In Jones's absence, and given Matthew Hoggard's disappointing form at the Gabba, at least one and perhaps two of this young trio will play in Adelaide alongside Andy Caddick.

 

Queensland off-spinner Nathan Hauritz will be hoping to push for inclusion in an expanded Australian Test squad in the event that selectors follow recent history and take two spinners to Adelaide.

 

 

[Guest]

Couldn't resist this one lads!

 

Following the crushing defeat of Pakistan, the International Cricket Council has imposed a new set of rules for the Ashes

series to make the contest more even.

 

1) As a result, England has been granted an automatic wickie,

freeing up wicket keeper Alex Stewart to defend the boundary. Under the rule, Australian batsmen will be deemed out "caught behind" if the ball

nicks their bat and ands in the immediate area behind the wicket. The rule is a compromise from the original English proposal which had pushed for automatic slips as well. The ICC refused that request on the grounds that "someone has to go and get the ball when an Australian misses it."

 

2) In addition, Australia is under strict "tip and run" restrictions

which require they take a run off every ball they hit. Steve Waugh was

happy to accept this, as it meant no change to his current game plan. As a compromise, it was agreed that the Australians will also have to

shout out the word "wickets" when completing a run to make run out decisions by umpires easier.

 

3) Following his outstanding performances, Australian wicketkeeper

Adam Gilchrist has "six and out" restrictions imposed on him. As well, following complaints from English fielders, Gilchrist will have to

get the ball if it goes across the road.

 

4) Instead of using a bat, Matt Hayden will now be obliged to use

his arm with his jumper wrapped around it.

 

5) New rules for England include "one hand, one bounce" while they

are fielding, and the provision of "last man carries" when they are

batting.

 

6) The English tried to extend the "can't get out first ball"

provision to "can't get out first ten overs", but the ICC proclaimed that the extra runs gained would hardly be worth the effort. Australian captain

Steve Waugh has vigorously opposed the "last man carries" rule and has

launched an appeal. Waugh says Australia will only agree to the rule if there are electric wickets at the end, allowing Aussie fielders to throw to

the stumps at either end.

 

7) A spokesperson for the ICC also announced that following six

successive ducks "from now on Craig White can't get out for a duck".

 

8) English pace bowler Andy Caddick will also be allowed to wrap the b all's seam with electrical tape when he's bowling in the second

innings.

 

9) The spokesperson added there will be "no LB" for English batsmen

unless "it is really, really obvious."

 

10) Shane Warne has conceded that its "fair enough" that he has to

bowl underarm (but not molly grubbers) to the English tail end.

 

11) If England decides that Steven Harmison is to be given an over,

the umpire will deem the Australian batsmen as dismissed if Harmison

lands the ball anywhere on the pitch. Captain Steve Waugh has no problems with this change, as the probability of such a dismissal occurring is infintessinately small. Despite the changes, Australia remains firm favourites going into the Ashes Series, paying $0.22, while an

English win is currently paying $1.3 trillion.

[Robbie9god]

LOL,Very good!!! Should give England a sporting chance.

[Guest]

Forget the ashes.....league....now for the real football, we are playing a friendly in London(socceroos)against the English side. We will top it off if we can knock you off your real game. Anyway you did get us back with a win over us in RAH RAH the other nite.

[sayjann]

of course you will win.

 

our lord and master Sven,will play 22 different players(as he normally does).

 

this really helps for getting a settled team together.

and of course the game takes part in between a 10 day period of 3 games for the teams who provide the most players for England.

 

these PL and CL games are far more important to the clubs and wait for the withdrawal of players.

[Robbie9god]

Forget everything!Ireland beat the Aussies in the rugby.Who's gives a f**k about anything else.Hopefully we can do the same in the world cup next year.Got to go book my tickets!!

[Guest]

Poms are batting in 2nd test.

[Guest]

Poms...2-190, looking good

[Robbie9god]

Good day with the bat for England.Michael Vaughan made an excellent 177 but should have been given out when on 19.

 

England had a lot of luck today apart from Key's freak dismissal after the ball bounced up off Pontings boot.Strange to see the normally reliable Aussies put down so many catches.

 

A good chance for England to post a good score but with Stewart and White,both of whom failed badly in Brisbane,next in I wouldn't hold my breath.

 

Expecting an Aussie onslaught tonight!