Home and Away - The Ashes Tour: 1st Test

So, here it is, the first test of the much anticipated 2010-11 Ashes series is over. And we're exactly where we started five days ago after a drawn match - however, one team will certainly be the happier and it sure as hell isn't the hosts! Here's the scoreboard with day-by-day analysis as I called it:

1st Test (Brisbane) - England 260 (Bell 76, Cook 67, Siddle 6-54) and 517-1d (Cook 235*, Trott 135*, Strauss 110) drew with Australia 481 (Hussey 195, Haddin 136, Katich 50, Finn 6-125) and 107-1 (Ponting 51*)

1. Australia close first innings on 25-0. I've pretty much already discussed this day's play in a previous post. However, to recap the main points: Siddle succeeded where his teammates failed because he pitched it up - his hat-trick was excellent but in general, England will be very disappointed that they gave so many wickets away. Cook grafted, Bell and Pietersen looked fluent but nobody was able to get the big score that this track suggested would be possible. Aus 1 Eng 0


2. Australia close first innings on 220-5. A day which swung back and forth started with England looking equally toothless with the ball and with the Aussie batsmen looking decidedly more solid than their counterparts. Then came the collapse from 78-0 to 143-5. Michael Clarke in particular looked in horrific touch. Anderson looked the chief wrecker, somehow finding movement with an older Kookaburra ball and generally finding a fuller length than both Finn and Broad who prefer to use their height to good effect. Finn's catch to remove the effective but ungainly Katich was outstanding for a man of his height - he seems to bowl well in spells but can otherwise be innocuous. Swann's length was far too short and allowed Haddin and Hussey to attack him late in the day - he can't get away with the length he crafted from years on the county circuit on bouncier Australian tracks. Aus 1.5 Eng 0.5


3. England close second innings 19-0. After a horrendous first hour, where the UDRS and the lack of England reviews came to Mike Hussey's rescue, he and Brad Haddin dug in to record a massive partnership full of flamboyant strokemaking. Hussey has now probably saved his Test career. Anderson was so unlucky in the morning - moving the second new ball all over the place in the perfect areas to take wickets, but to no avail on this occasion. Figures of 2-99 were frankly insulting! Instead it was Finn who eventually came through, again having bowled some average stuff on which Hussey and Haddin pounced, eventually varying between full and short deliveries, taking away the predictability factor that had previously dogged him in this innings. Australia then folded again from 450-5 to 481 all out. Without the 6th wicket stand, they'd have been nowhere in this match. Does this suggest a frailty? To be honest it's something that has long been suspected of this group of players. Aus 2.5 Eng 0.5


4. England close second innings 309-1. It appears crucial that Strauss and Cook survived 15 overs the previous day, as it allowed them to bat with relative freedom as anything that was in the pitch for the bowlers died out. Strauss may have been the man to fall but was clearly the more fluent of the two, finding timing, whereas Cook had moments of struggle. Mitchell Johnson's drop off Cook was poor in the extreme and was made to pay for his error - I'd expect most of my team to take that particular chance if nothing else! Cook took the more aggressive role as Jonathan Trott came in and looked considerably more watchful than his frenetic first innings. Cook particularly targetted debutant spinner Xavier Doherty, who looked innocuous here and appears fairly easy to negotiate. Aus 2.5 Eng 1.5


5. Australia close second innings 107-1. Game over. More of the same for the Aussies, who were well and truly put to the sword and England turned a seemingly hopeless situation around to save the game, albeit not as dramatically as in Cardiff in 2009! Trott and Cook both played to their strengths in piling on the runs and were helped by distinctly average bowling from the hapless Mitchell Johnson in particular. It's just a shame that England declared early, allowing Ricky Ponting to find a little bit of form ahead of a batsman's paradise in Adelaide. Broad's dismissal of Katich was reward for a lot of toil in the heat. Aus 2.5 Eng 2.5 - the draw a very fair result.

I'd expect one change for the Adelaide match, with Johnson making way for fellow left-armer Doug Bollinger. England should remain unchanged, but will hope their bowlers find more breakthroughs on a typically flat pitch, although the curator claims to have produced a result wicket.

In other world cricket news - the Test series between South Africa and India will not make use of the Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS). Why? Because the Indians simply don't like it, having failed to get to grips with it in Sri Lanka in 2008. I find this pretty distasteful that the betterment of the game can be held back by the choice of an individual, in this case the all-powerful BCCI. The ICC has introduced the UDRS for the World Cup next year - it is clear that they see it as the way forward. Which is why they should for once stand up to the Indian Board and, rather than making it a series-by-series choice, implement it across the board in Test match cricket with no opt-out available.

RM

The RedZone: Week 12 in the NFL

Ryan's Top 5

5. Brian Westbrook - 23 carries, 136 yards, 1 TD. The man of many concussions has really been underused by the 49ers this year, mostly appearing on 3rd and short situations. However, despite the former Philadelphia star was needed on Monday night as Frank Gore's season was ended by a cracked hip. Westbrook promptly ran all over the hapless Cardinals defense as San Francisco improved to 4-7 with a 27-6 victory, a competetive record in the NFC West, currently led by the Rams of all people!

4. Chad Henne - 17/30, 307 yards, 2 TD's, 1 INT. Henne's had it pretty rough this year. One of the more inconsistent QB's in the league right now, it looked as though his season was ended by a knee injury. Tyler Thigpen struggled against the Bears as the offense were shut out in Week 11, so Henne's return, with Chad Pennington on IR, was crucial for the Dolphins. Thankfully for them, he had one of his better days as he led his side to a 33-17 win over the Raiders.

3. Dwayne Bowe - 13 catches, 170 yards, 3 TD's. The man responsible for making Matt Cassel's numbers look good in 2010. Bowe now has 13 TD's in the last 7 games, with at least one score in each of those matchups. A big, physical receiver who has put previous attitude problems behind them, Bowe deserves a trip to the playoffs and Hawaii. The Chiefs ran out 42-24 winners over the Seahawks.

2. Glover Quin - 3 tackles, 1 assist, 3 INT's. Another man who, like Henne, has bounced back from a tough couple of weeks. Quin is probably the most maligned of the worst secondary in the NFL, giving up the crucial scores in the previous two games. However, with the Titans' fielding rookie QB Rusty Smith, Quin led the Texans defence to a 20-0 shutout. Shame his contribution was all but forgotten once Andre Johnson decided to land one on Cortland Finnegan.

1. Tom Brady - 21/27, 341 yards, 4 TD's. I know it's a very obvious joke, but the Patriots can certainly be Thankful that they have Brady. For most of the first half, it looked as though they were in a real game with a scrapping Detroit outfit, who really have deserved better than 2-9 so far this season. However, Brady, with a supposedly depleted receiving unit since Randy Moss left and a supposedly ageing side in general, rallied the troops in the second half in a 45-24 win, allowing them to keep pace with the supposedly (but not actually) superior Jets.

Graeme's Top 5

5. The Chargers' Linebackers - 19 tackles, 1 sack, 2 INT's between them - Peyton Manning was once again made to rue his mistakes as San Diego continues its infuriating run of playing really well in the midseason, but only because they lost all their opening games and are under pressure. This team has a serious problem with starting the season. It does not, however, have a problem with its linbackers. Shawn Merriman is a distant memory, and they are proving that he was surplus to requirements. Against the Colts, the LBs shut down the Indy short passing game and their screen passes and draw runs, leaving Manning little option other than to toss it up there.

4. Ryan Fitzpatrick - 23/45, 265 yards, 1 TD - It is safe to say that almost all NFL players are more athletic than I am (thank god for punters). Fitzpatrick, though, is a Harvard grad as well as an NFL QB, and thus may be more intelligent than me as well. He probably isn't, but he is certainly a 'gamer'. This Bills team just looks so much more effective with him at the helm. He is quite simply a good football player. Unlucky to lose to the Steelers this week; they would have won (and deservedly so) if Steve Johnson could have reeled in Fitzpatrick's OT deep shot.

3. Mike Martz, Bears OC - Cutler 14/21, 4 TD's and no INT's, Forte 114 yards rushing - Martz has finally saw some sense and stopped exposing Cutler to so many shots. He found a way to exploit the speed of his recievers against the Eagles without having Cutler sitting in the pocket waiting to be sacked. The ball was spread about the field, the running game complemented things well and Jay C executed things to perfection.

2. Dwayne Bowe - 13 catches, 170 yards, 3 TD's - Holder of the Chiefs franchise record for consecutive games with a TD, and now with 14 TD's on the season. He is a big man with remarkable body control, and he can muscle his way open much like Andre Johnson does. Further confirmation that the tall, strong modern WR is almost unstoppable.

1. Sam Bradford - 22/37, 308 yards, 3 TD's - I love Sam. I have a major bromance for Sam. This week he got his first road win and his first 300 yard game, against a Bronco's team that showed it still has some fight after thrashing Kansas City at Mile High earlier this year. Look at the recievers Bradford has to work with, and realise how brilliant this bloke is. If the Rams can continue to draft well, then they could ultimately become a team much like the New England Patriots have been. Namely, good.

GM and RM

Home and Away - The Ashes Tour: Test 1, Day 1 - A Fan's Perspective

OK, so not quite the live blog I promised, I had too many guests to entertain but instead, a taste of what it felt like to be a Scottish England fan watching the Test match through the night with his teammates. It's really not as dull as it sounds!

I was pretty convinced things couldn't have got much worse after being made to suffer the Rangers vs Man United match in the Champions League. Arriving back from Domino's (or indeed any other pizza takeaway chain) just in time for the toss, the optimism felt by every England fan for the last few weeks was palpable. Mainly because any Edinburgh University cricketer is a posh Englishman. Except me, it seems! We all felt it was a good toss to lose. So England promptly won it and batted. The first over has meant so much in recent times. The first ball was uneventfully left by Strauss, as was the second. Then Ben Hilfenhaus pitched one short and wide and the England skipper's eyes lit up as he unfurled his favourite cut shot. And whacked it straight to gully. "That's huge" said one of the lads. And he was right. After their meticulous preparation, England were instantly on the back foot in the main event.

The first session was fairly uneventful. Jonathan Trott came out and was uncharacteristically willing to play his shots. Which is why he wafted at a Shane Watson delivery, one of the few he bowled at the stumps, leaving a massive gate through which he was cleaned up. Fortunately we had homemade Snakebite to go with our pizzas and 20 packets of Monster Munch so 86-2 at the lunch interval didn't seem as bad as it could have done. At which point I realised that any more alcohol would make the tea break an impossibility. So I started on the Tunnock's Teacakes and cuppas as our numbers began to dwindle until five hardcore lads remained at around 3:45am. Pietersen, having looked in great touch and having taken the left-arm debutant spinner Xavier Doherty to town, he got out in the 40s, with Collingwood following soon after.

At tea, a couple of the lads decided a power nap was the best way forward. The rest of us thought the widespread distribution of a photo taken earlier in the night of our latent homosexual member, doctored by wonderful iPhone technology to make him look obese. The response has largely been positive thus far. The evening session started with the Aussie bowlers sticking to a strategy of bowling wide of off-stump so Cook and Bell wouldn't bother to engage with it. Until Ricky Ponting brought back birthday boy Peter Siddle. Who promptly pitched the ball up and lo and behold had taken the first Test hat-trick in three years. Caught slip, bowled, lbw (the latter of which I predicted in advance). It doesn't get much better than that. Unless it's 5:50 am and England have just collapsed to 197-7. So I went to bed, unable to stomach any more disappointment.

The other lads toughed it out until the end, but, having seen ITV 4's surprisingly good highlights package, I missed nothing save for a superb Jimmy Anderson reverse sweep.

I had England losing this first test and then going on to claim the series 3-1. So things are going to plan thus far. Well played lads... NAT!
RM

The RedZone: Week 11 in the NFL

Ryan's Top 5

5. Clay Matthews III - 5 tackles, 1 sack. 'Bloodline' hasn't given enough credit for his sterling work for the Packers this season. It wasn't Aaron Rodgers and Greg Jennings who put the final nail in the coffin of Brett Favre, it was Matthews. It's fitting that the league's sack leader will probably be the last man to sack No.4. The offense took care of Vikings coach Brad Childress and the result, a 31-3 romp on the road.

4. Maurice Jones-Drew - 23 carries, 133 yards, 1 TD; 3 catches, 87 yards. Who had the Jaguars leading the AFC South at 6-4? The answer is nobody. MJD may have been fairly below par for much of the season, but has come to life in the last couple of games, giving David Garrard a get-out clause on those days, like in the 24-20 win over the continually tricky Browns, when he's not quite up to scratch.

3. The Redskins' banged-up secondary - Phillip Buchanon - 6 tackles, 1 INT; Reed Doughty - 5 tackles, 2 assists. Shorn of Carlos Rogers and LaRon Landry (who genuinely could be an All-Pro contender), the Redskins secondary reflected much of their season - ruined by injuries. However, they still managed to keep Chris Johnson et al scoreless, the only TD for the Titans coming from special teams. They also knocked Vince Young out for the year, and possibly out of the franchise, as they eventually prevailed 19-16 in OT.

2. Ben Roethlisberger - 18/29, 275 yards, 3 TD's; 3 carries, 55 yards, 1 TD. Questions had been asked of the Steelers since Big Ben's return as to whether they were actually as good as they initially appeared in 2010. Some believed that the Oakland Raiders would continue their recent run and turn them over. Pittsburgh had none of it, as they were blown away in all facets of the game. Big Ben even appeared graceful on his feet with a 16-yard TD run as well as a further 31-yard scramble. James Harrison and the defense made sure of the win, as the Steelers cruised to a 35-3 success. And, in Mike Wallace and Rashard Mendenhall, they have two have the best young offensive weapons in the league.

1. Steve Johnson - 8 catches, 137 yards, 3 TD's. Steve who? The Bengals once again lived up to the 'Bungles' tag which has plagued them for so long, as they gave up a 31-14 lead at the half to get beaten 49-31 by the Bills, of all people. To be fair Buffalo have looked a different side since Ryan Fitzpatrick took over from Trent Edwards - Fitzpatrick threw 4 TD's on the day, three of which fell to 3rd year pro Johnson, previously unheralded within an already poor offense.

Home and Away - the Ashes Tour: Week 4

For those of you who regularly follow Beyond the Cliche (you must be out there somewhere), apologies for delaying this post by a day. The reason being I wanted to have the result of the final warm-up match in the bag before writing this up, mainly so I could focus solely on the Test matches themselves from hereon in. Without further ado, let's see how England are shaping up for Thursday's big kick-off:

England 288-8d (Collingwood 94, Bell 61) and 240-1d (Cook 111*, Strauss 102) drew with South Australia 221 (Swann 4-68) and 48-2. OK, so England weren't able to force a result on this occasion but to be fair, they did have only three days on a flat Adelaide surface and clearly had the better of proceedings. Only Trott and Prior have failed to score a 50 in the top 8 and all of the bowlers are looking in fine form, finding ways to take wickets on very different surfaces to what they have become used to (only Jimmy Anderson, impressive here with 5 wickets in the match has toured Australia before and that was a chastening experience!). The frontline bowlers were then sent off to Brisbane to acclimitise ahead of the 1st Test and the back-ups were given a shot for the final game.

England 523 (Bell 192, Collingwood 89, Cook 60, O'Keefe 4-88) and 11-0 beat Australia A 230 (O'Keefe 66, Smith 59, Tremlett 4-54) and 301 (White 111, Hughes 81, Bresnan 4-86) by 10 wickets. An impressive performance and a good toss to win, as the Hobart track started off green and ended up flattening over the four days. Both Chris Tremlett and Tim Bresnan showed that they can be capable deputies should injury strike the frontliners. Back-up spinner Monty Panesar also showed how far his game has progressed with an amazing catch to dismiss Ed Cowan on the first day. Bell looked magnificent, although possibly wasted at No. 6 in the order. If Jonathan Trott's poor form continues, he might just be bumped back up to 3, as he was on the last tour, with reasonable if unrecognised success.

So let's now look at the bowling attack:

Stuart Broad (RA fast, LH bat) - the new Flintoff? Maybe if his bowling finds more sustained hostility. Relies on the short ball, which should serve him well in Australian conditions. The hero of the Oval in 2009, has also found some batting form with a wonderful century against Pakistan. Father Chris was man-of-the-series last time England won Down Under in 86-87.

Graeme Swann (RA off-spin, RH bat) - the man with the X Factor. The best England spinner since Derek Underwood has superb character and a great cricketing brain. The big turning off-breaks and subtle arm balls are well disguised and mixed up and he's already found form on this tour. He is also a complete lad. More on that later.

James Anderson (RA fast swing, LH bat) - having been almost ruined four years ago by the Aussies, Jimmy has been on an upward spiral ever since. At his best when there is plenty of lateral movement, which he won't find in Oz, but has at least found ways to keep it tight and pick up wickets in all circumstances.

Steven Finn (RA fast, RH bat) - the young buck of the bowling unit, Finn has had a great start to his Test career and hits the deck hard, so the pitches should suit him. Has the tendency to tire quickly and bowl some average spells but will improve with time. This tour may be a little early for him, but he'll have a great career.

Tim Bresnan (RA fast-medium, RH bat) - the man most likely to step in. Quicker than you'd expect, gets a little bit of movement and can bat effectively at No.8. Fitness may be a concern

Chris Tremlett (RA fast, RH bat) - toured last time in limited overs, played 3 Tests against India and did fine, not considered since. Had a magnificent season at Surrey, where he dispelled rumours that he was a soft touch. Will step up if Finn begins to struggle.

Ajmal Shahzad (RA fast, RH bat) - here more for the experience, but I like the look of this guy. Gets reverse swing in the style of Simon Jones.

Monty Panesar (SLA, LH bat) - criticised for lack of variation, but has won several games for England in the past. A hero of Cardiff last year when he kept North and Hauritz out with Anderson for a draw.

The Aussies have selected their 13-man squad for the First Test, which lines up as follows: Watson, Katich, Ponting, Clarke, North, Hussey, Smith, Haddin, Siddle, Johnson, Bollinger, Hilfenhaus, Doherty. Nathan Hauritz may feel aggrieved at being left out instead of debutant Xavier Doherty, but the selectors are clearly trying to exploit Kevin Pietersen's weakness against left-arm spinners. Plus I feel Doherty will get more control over the batsmen, allowing the pacemen to open up. North and Hussey are under pressure to make runs, but Usman Khawaja and Callum Ferguson didn't do enough in the Australia A match to force their selection.

England's "Top Bloke" of the Week: Graeme Swann. Ian Bell has been the star man with the bat, but Swann has adapted beautifully to conditions to find early success in the tour matches. He has also lifted morale with his ECB-approved tour diary. I actuall brought out The Sprinkler myself in a club the other night. LAD (him, not me!)

http://www.ecb.co.uk/news/england/england-in-australia-2010-11/swannys-ashes-video-diary/

I will hopefully bash out a live blog from the first night of the Ashes. Provided I don't get too drunk
RM

England's Unfriendly Attitude Smacks of Convenience

I'm not in a position to give a detailed analysis of England's friendly match with the French at Wembley this week, mainly because I watched the game in a bar, turning the match into a drinking game that involved Jagerbombs. Which never ends well. Nevertheless, much like my body the following morning, the backlash from the English media has been truly terrible. There have been various outcries with such soundbites as "We should no longer be playing international friendlies" and "These matches are wasted exercises". Let me correct both of those statements here and now. England should still play friendly matches, but they should prepare properly for them and there should be allotted time set aside for around two a season within the domestic calendar. And international friendlies have the potential to not be a wasted exercise - England just do not take the opportunity to use them properly.

The truth is ugly - England were found out for what they are - an average at best international side, who have wasted a generation and are now left with a dearth of talent, both on and off the field, to take them forward. Had we witnessed a game where England had played their opponents off the greasy Wembley pitch, unearthing new stars such as Andy Carroll and Jordan Henderson, we would be talking of how bright the future looks. And also how wonderful it was to have the opportunity to blood these youngsters in a non-competetive environment before the crunchtime encounters against such Euro 2012 powerhouses as Wales and Bulgaria. The fact is, despite being amongst the best young English talent in the Premier League right now, both Carroll and Henderson haven't got the game as yet to compete with the very best international players. Compare them to Michael Owen, Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney at the same age, and you realise that England's chances of righting the now innumerable "years of hurt" are slim for the forseeable future.

Then there is the issue of Gerrard's hamstring. The fact that he played longer than was originally agreed with Liverpool is understandably irksome for his club. However, with experienced campaigners dropping around him during the game, Capello actually asked Gerrard if it was OK if he continued. He agreed. The player took matters into his own hands and I actually credit him for that. At the end of the day, club football is essentially a job, one which can be changed if desired. Unless your name is Kevin Pietersen, you cannot change your identity - your nationality is part of who you are. In a week where the country has got hysterical over the way Remembrance Day was celebrated and the prospect of a royal wedding, you would think there would be a little more patriotism in the club vs country row. Never mind that it was a non-competetive match, Gerrard was representing his country, and he knew it. His role as an experienced campaigner was to allow the younger players to settle into the occasion and show what they're made of at the highest level. It's just a pity it didn't work!

In summary: international friendlies can be the making or breaking of a team. For France, they looked to be identifying the men to take them forward under Laurent Blanc, after their disastrous World Cup. England have much more to ponder and sadly are looking at more years of decline, with few genuine prospects coming through the ranks.

For that, they must blame themselves, rather than the international calendar.
RM