**Official** Group A Discussion

[flibbertyjibber]

That was bloody easy. They really are turd aren't they. Faulkner looked bloody good though amongst the rest of the crap.

 

[Howe_zat]

Almost prosaic in the end.

Please don't make me start to feel sorry for you, Australia. You're better than that.

Don't ****ing start that again, last time it led to them winning 4-0 at home while we got smashed by Pakistan. Learn ffs

 

[Howe_zat]

Bell MOTM. Tch, batsman's game innit

 

[grecian]

Bell wins motm, I think Burgey would agree, the type of player Oz would kill for nowadays.

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Bell wins motm, I think Burgey would agree, the type of player Oz would kill for nowadays.

He'd be captain in that one day team. They are shockingly crap.

 

[Expressway76]

Bell wins motm, I think Burgey would agree, the type of player Oz would kill for nowadays.

Bell should knock on their dressing room door, give a condescending lecture about "showing a bit of ticker", ruffle each players hair and then stroll out.

 

[Burgey]

He'd be captain in that one day team. They are shockingly crap.

Wouldn't be picked on principle. And rightly so.

 

[grecian]

Oh, the Fred Trueman episode of Dads Army on BBC2 now.

 

[LongHopCassidy]

Retching with every syllable here, but Mitch Marsh did nothing in that game. Big Show potentially could have got us back in it.

 

[smash84]

well played England.....not so well played Australia

 

[social]

You don't have to be Einstein to work out that the pattern has been set for summer - England will consistently get below par scores but Oz wont consistently capitalize because our batsmen are ****

 

[flibbertyjibber]

You don't have to be Einstein to work out that the pattern has been set for summer - England will consistently get below par scores but Oz wont consistently capitalize because our batsmen are ****

Be the same in Australia too.

 

[social]

Be the same in Australia too.

Yep

We might win a test or 2 out of 10 simply because our fast bowlers are very good and could potentially bowl England out for next to nothing

But it will have to be next to nothing for our useless batsmen to gain an advantage

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Yep

We might win a test or 2 out of 10 simply because our fast bowlers are very good and could potentially bowl England out for next to nothing

But it will have to be next to nothing for our useless batsmen to gain an advantage

I agree, wish more of your compatriots could see it as it is.

We aren't great but fact is you are as bad as you have been for over 25 years.

 

[smash84]

I can't actually recall when was the last time that the Aussie batting was so ****e

 

[social]

Looking at that Aus side there inst a single player that I would rate over 'good' - Watson fans may disagree. However, ODIs or Tests, I can't think of an Aus side, other than this one, that doesn't have at least one special player. Dramatic conclusion on the table - worst Australian side ever?

As PEWS said, Watson is a special ODI player but he is also a brainless hack

Clarke is obviously a pretty special Test player and there are quite a few quick bowlers who appear to be special talents but are basically unproven

Overall, it is definitely the worst team since the nadir of the mid 80s and things wont improve until we unearth another quality batsman or 2/3/4/5

 

[social]

I agree, wish more of your compatriots could see it as it is.

We aren't great but fact is you are as bad as you have been for over 25 years.

I think most of us are pretty realistic about our chances but you cant expect paid pundits to say "listen, England aren't great but we totally reek and haven't got a chance in hell."

So all they can say is that they hope the young bowlers stay fit/live up to potential and get some support from the batsmen as it could be a close series if that is the case."

 

[flibbertyjibber]

I can't actually recall when was the last time that the Aussie batting was so ****e

I saw them in 85 so can just about claim it though if Clarke is seriously injured then this is worse as he is the Border and the rest are as poor as 85.

 

[social]

I saw them in 85 so can just about claim it though if Clarke is seriously injured then this is worse as he is the Border and the rest are as poor as 85.[/QUOTE


1985 squad was decimated by in-fighting and withdrawals related to rebel tours so hard to compare

 

[Cabinet96]

Chuffed with the result. Bowlers made all those moaning about England's 269 look silly. England could have got more, but it wasn't the top orders fault. They got to 163/1 off 33 overs. They got out at a bad time, but with 9 wickets in hand you'd expect over 137 in the last 17 overs, which would've given England 300. The middle order didn't do their job very well, and in fairness, from what I saw McKay and Faulkner bowled well (why does everyone still like to whinge about the formers bowling?) to restrict them. People such as David Lloyd, who constantly go on about how England are a maximum 280 side and would've been happy with 269 also really piss me off.

Played Jonathan. Get in, scratch around, score at way under a run a ball, and get out. Probably boosted his 'ranking' though, and that's all that matters.

****.

really struggling to buy this line about england only wanting 270. no, they wanted well more than 270.

Yep completely agree.

Tredwell isn't rated because he hasn't taken a fc wicket this year

A decent batting lineup would attempt to smash him as he obviously doesn't have a great deal to fall back on and Eng only have 4 ffront-line bowlers

But this is Australia so they are just letting him bowl

Guess you don't consider India or South Africa to be decent one day batting line ups?

Bell and Trott managed 3 boundaries in their first 15 overs together. The middle order batted like ****, but the top order weren't good. The run rate wasn't good enough, they let poor, part-time bowlers bowl without putting pressure on them, and then once settled got themselves out. Bell did a reasonably good job, but the partnership between him and Trott wasn't good enough. I'm not saying it was necessarily bad, but it wasn't good enough to win tournaments, and it continues to happen. We just won't be able to compete with the big hitting sides when our maximum score is 280. India completely messed up their last 15 overs against South Africa, but their start enabled them to score comfortably over 300. We just don't seem capable of doing that, and making scores of 300 consistently is the key to winning these tournaments, and this England side just aren't capable.

I'm not saying we need to slog from the get go, but a bit of urgency, and regular rotation of the strike instead of just blocking out poor overs would make a massive difference. Bell and Trott seem content striking at 75, when they're clearly capable of scoring quicker. It's frustrating. I'm not happy seeing England playing average cricket, and you obviously are.

Look, the thing is, non of the other so called big hitting sides have death bowlers as good as Australia's. I'd bet big money we would have made more than 269 if we were 163/1 off 33 against India or the West Indies. The reason I think this CT is so even is because for all the strengths certain teams have over others, they'll have a weakness. Australia's batting may not be all that, but they're a strong bowling side and bowled well at the death IMO. Even Starc didn't bowl that badly in his last two overs, in my eyes.

People need to stop stressing about the same old stuff. England beat sides like the Windies, India and Sri Lanka when they last toured here, despite having a similar approach. And I reckon a few pundits and journalists would have hatted Bell getting MoM after all the whinging at the halfway point.