The Sporting calendar

The Aussies have landed in the UK today, ready for a July/August of Ashes battles.
I don’t care what anyone says, this for me is the pinnacle of test match cricket.
When the Ashes were last held in the UK, the excitement was immense. I remember leaving on a plane for America, as the end of the 3rd test was being played out, as the Aussies desperately tried to hold on for a draw, with just 1 wicket left and the overs running out.
In the airport departure lounge, they called for boarding three times, yet nobody moved, as we were all stood around a little portable in the corner watching it live, praying for Freddy to take a wicket!

Eventually, we all had to board the flight, when the captain announced over the tannoy, where we were flying and that England had taken that last wicket and we had won the third test!

In Australia, we failed to even get close to winning one test match, we lost the series and the Ashes 5-0 (if memory serves me right) this time, we should at least give them a decent game!

English cricket has taken a small step to climbing the test match world rankings and given a new lease of life, to all the fans, of which I am one.

The first test at Lords, against the Windies, resulted in a brilliant (if some what fortunate) result of a win by 10 wickets on just day 3.

Bopara had a lucky but effective knock with the bat, Swann’s status as one of our best off spinners, reached new heights (he didn’t do to badly with the bat either), along with most commentators, I agree that Graham Onions our medium-fast seam bowler, who openly admits he has little swing, is a blessing in disguise!

England’s cricket team are predictable, they go with fast seam bowlers who can be effective in damp cloudy conditions, but in the sunshine, prove hardworking but lacking in wicket taking.
Onions, like Swanny, is unpredictable, just what we need this summer.
When Onions bowls it can be one of two bowls, a short delivery which gets to the batsman at chest to head height, forcing him to play the delivery, or its right in front of his feet catching the batter flat in front of the stumps lbw.
Wether by design or accident, it causes the batsman problems, with the added edge, that each bowl is not a set maximum fast pace, it can be medium or fast, which creates yet more doubt for the batsman.
A brilliant performance over the two innings in this test, just what we needed. Well done that man!

In Swann, he also has unpredictability. Not only can he be used alternately to Onions, changing pace and mixing speeds can force into the batter mistiming his shots, but he also has a clever grip on the ball as he lets go, which is almost identical to the ball that goes straight on and the ball that turns out.
If the batsman plays as if its going straight on and it turns, he’ll get an outside edge and more than likely a catch, if the batsman plays expecting it to turn out, it often goes straight through the gate and takes out the batman’s wicket.

Last time England won a first test, was four years ago, against Bangladesh, in the warm up test series before…. our Ashes victory!
Dare the barmy army start singing again? Let’s hope so…

PA sport

France can be infuriating, all powerful – masterful rugby, or woefully short of ideas and lacking in temperament. It took England all of six minutes to discover which team had turned up.

To say the French selectors had got it wrong would be an understatement, packing their forwards full of weight and sheer power, only to find that England had put out a team of runners with ball in hand.
Right from the off, England looked hungry, hitting hard in the tackle and releasing quick ball (who’d have thought it!) – growing in confidence as the tournament goes on, Ricki Flutey picked up the quick ball, with one glance spotted Chabal in front of him and burst through the French line, releasing Cueto for a try inside five minutes.

England were disciplined (for once) at the break down, but more impressively, started turning the French in the tackle, producing turnover ball. Add to this an uncanny nack of stripping the ball away in the tackle, France were finding it very hard to keep any possession at all.
Where Tait failed to execute a training ground “overlap” against Ireland, the England backs made no mistake this time. Straight from a line out, Flood and Cueto combined to burst through the French line again and set up Flutey for a simple try.

England were making the French look hapless in front of more than 80,000 fans and millions on television, no doubt cheering at their tv sets.

Flutey again was the instigator for the next try, ripping the ball from Chabal in the tackle, England piled forward into the French 22.
Shaw was halted just short of the line and the ball found the impressive Armitage to go over for the score.
England were now attacking in waves, the whole team were hungry for the ball and even when the French got the ball, it wasn’t long before England turned it over.

The superb Harry Ellis, chipped forward into the French 22 causing yet more panic for the defence, Toby Flood was unlucky as he followed up catching the ball and stumbling twice with the line at his mercy (injuring his shoulder in the process) England immeadiately recycled and the ball was soon out wide for Joe Worsley to go over unchallenged.
Half time already? England 29-0 France.

There was no way England could come out for the second half and carry on where they left off, but they did!
Ellis stripped Jauzion of the ball with a brilliant tackle and released Armitage, who powered through the French lines and away down field like a train, setting up Flutey, who managed to scramble over the try line and ground the ball, for his second try of the game.
Armitage and Flutey were everywhere, tackling, popping up on opposite wings as an extra man, over lapping, catching everything.
They both grew in confidence the longer the game went on and were fast becoming unstoppable.

England didn’t just break the game line, they smashed it down and left it 40-50 yards behind them.

As England made some changes, they lost their flow a little and the forwards stepped upto the mark superbly. As France began to exert some pressure at long last, their forwards bulldozed over for a try, then their backs ran in another try soon after, unchallenged as England adjusted their defence, after being warned for encroaching at the breakdown.

Now the England pack came into their own, in one passage of play just inside England’s half, the French recycled the ball nine times and made about 5 yards, as the England pack pushed them sideways and held them up without giving away any penalties.
England’s back row were now starting to organise themselves again, once again making big inroads after breaking through the French line.

As the game came to an end, England played an extra fourminutes pushing forward in waves for a final try, but the French held out.
Final score: England 34-10 France.

A fantastic performance from England (regardless of my bias) which has done both Ireland and Wales a big favour for next weeks final round of matches, with France out of the running for the six nations title, it’s a straight fight between them at the millenium stadium.

Tickets for the fifth day of the first test in Cardiff go on sale on the 10th March 2009.

The first four days of the opening Ashes test match have sold out. The Test starts on July 8, and hospitality packages are still available for the first four days.

Tickets – priced at £25 for adults and £15 for juniors – can be purchased by phoning 0844 967 0701 or by visiting the Glamorgan website. They go on sale at 9am, so be quick!

Click here for Glamorgan cricket club’s website

What is going on over there, with the state of the pitches?
Batsmen (yes english ones) scoring hundreds of runs, bowlers toiling in the field lucky to get 6 wickets before a declaration comes, then easily hanging on in the second innings to play out time and it all ends up a draw – very odd!

I’m used to an England mini collapse or a glorious victory against the odds, rescued from the jaws of defeat, is it the wickets? or could it be the bowling attacks of both teams?

The only other explanation I can see is that the bowling lacks bite or flexibility to change from swing to medium or spin, the ability to mix it up, etc.
As pleased as I maybe to see England’s batting order scoring healthily, I’m not convinced that they are doing as well as I’d like on merit.