My old Mum used to tell me ‘if you can’t say anything nice about someone, don’t say anything at all’. Unfortunately, if we adhered to this particular sentiment today, the following article wouldn’t be very long. That’s why we’ve given our new guest writer, Edward Higgs, free rein to tell us how he really feels about the only man in cricket with worse tattoos than Mitchell Johnson. Over to you Ed … Years from now, Jade Dernbach will settle down in...
A hard slog ahead
Another day, another T20 defeat for Ashley Giles’ beleaguered squad. The days when Britannia ruled the T20 waves seem a long, long, bloody long, time ago. When I look at England’s side on paper, we have a few useful cricketers, but we just can’t seem to get our strategy right. We’re also clearly lacking confidence, and it’s hard to know how a bland character like Giles can turn things around. Having said that, the best team doesn’t always win T20 contests. There’s little ebb and flow during...
All Hales – second T20 from Durham
England 195-5 (20 overs). Australia 168-9. Yesterday was the last Saturday of the English summer; once September comes, the rugby season arrives and the nights seem to roll in. We’re left with just the dregs of the cricket season – a few ODIs which will always seem largely irrelevant when they’re played after the test series. Therefore, it was great to fire up the BBQ for last time, sit back with a few beers, and watch England slog Australia’s medium pacers around Durham – revenge for Finch’s...
What the hell was that?
New Zealand 359-3 (50 overs). England 273 all out (44.1 overs) He sat there on the balcony making notes. Every time a wicket fell, or a boundary was conceded (probably from a Dernbach longhop), a further entry was made into the notebook. We can’t tell exactly what Ashley Giles was thinking because his expression was masked by his shades – which seem to be compulsory for England coaches these days (maybe it’s something to do with maintaining a poker face?) However, he doesn’t need to be a...
Is Stuart Broad toast?
Stuart Broad is like a piece of bread. He started off fresh, filled a hole, failed to ignite much excitement and started to go stale. What do you do with stale bread? You throw it out. But England’s persistent regurgitation of Broad is starting to turn my stomach more than banana sandwiches. It’s about time they went shopping. Broad was a bowler tipped for big things from a young age. He impressed at Leicestershire, particularly as a one-day bowler where he profited from a line and length that...
Morgan or Trott? We can’t pick the lot
England have just won a One-Day International series, which by all accounts is becoming a bit of a habit. With the exclusion of the 3-2 loss in India, England have been victorious in four of their last five ODI series’, with a 2-2 draw at home to South Africa spoiling a full house. Yet, despite our success, it’s time for a shake-up according to some sections of the media. Whilst it may sound slightly unusual given our form over the last 12 months or so, there’s certainly an argument to...
