Usually I can’t wait to update this blog. But this time its different. I can barely summon the energy.
The England cricket team has reached it’s nadir: being whitewashed in the Ashes, losing the early summer series to Sri Lanka, and now thrashed at home by an Indian team that hadn’t won away from home for three years. Imagine how ugly it would have been if we’d lost the toss.
It’s time to face facts folks …
We have a toothless bowling attack.
We have a brittle batting line-up without a single world-class star (someone who averages fifty plus)
We have the worst captain in international cricket (and probably the worse one in England’s history)
We have a head coach who is hopelessly out of his depth
And the selectors’ plan to rejuvenate the side rests with a rookie who hasn’t kept regularly at first class level, and has only scored four first class hundreds in his career. Good luck Jos Buttler (you’re going to need it).
What’s worse, the only people capable of making the tough decisions required – in other words sacking the captain and coach and rethinking England’s schedule – are an incompetent board hamstrung by political constraints of their own making.
So what are we going to do? Unlike Piers Morgan, I do not believe that Kevin Pietersen in the answer. As far as I’m concerned he is a cricketer somewhat in decline. I want to build a fresh, young team that will improve and possibly surprise the Aussies next year.
Now that Root and Balance have nailed down the number three and five spots, there is only room for one elder statesman in the middle order.
That player might as well be Ian Bell. The sherminator is actually playing first class cricket at the moment (albeit not very well) whereas Pietersen, talismanic though he may be, hasn’t played a first class innings since January. He’s unlikely to do any better.
Other than KP, is there anyone else outside the squad who might improve matters? I’m afraid not. The thirteen picked for the third test are the best cricketers in the country. The selectors haven’t done much wrong.
For those of you who want a specialist spinner, the decision to drop Kerrigan from the squad speaks volumes. The truth is, the coaches and selectors watched him at close quarters in the nets at Lord’s and concluded he was no better than Moeen Ali.
With the exception of Monty, who cannot be selected due to personal reasons, Moeen is as good as we’ve got. Besides, the bearded one has done a decent job (his strike rate is far better than Ashley Giles’ ever was) and he has the talent to improve. Moeen obviously isn’t quite there yet, but any young spinner would have to learn on the job.
So what’s my recipe for success? It’s not rocket science I’m afraid.
1. The captain must be sacked immediately (shock!). Poor on-field decisions have cost England too many times.
I don’t care if there is no obvious alternative to Cook. I initially hoped he would do a serviceable job until a new leader emerges, but now it’s clear he’s doing more harm than good. This cannot continue.
Because Cook the captain is a known failure, it’s madness not to try someone else: someone who might not be a failure. Let’s face it, even a complete rookie couldn’t mess things up worse.
2. In order to take the pressure off the new captain, I would tell him (and the media) that performances not results should be the priority now. The goal is to build a new side for the 2015 Ashes. Losing to India is not a big deal as long as improvement is shown.
More faith should therefore be invested in youth. If this means dropping Cook for Lyth or Lees then so be it. The current skipper needs time away from the game to reinvent his technique (if possible). What’s more, it’s easier for a new captain to assert himself if the old one isn’t there.
Who is my new skipper? Step forward Mr Joe Root. It’s come a year too early, but by all accounts he has the resolve and personality to be successful.
Joe, just pretend you’re Allan Border in the mid-1980s and she’ll be right mate …. especially if fans and the ECB set realistic expectations.
The next thing that has to happen – and fast – is the replacement of Peter Moores with a coach who possesses the right stuff. I don’t want a nutty professor as England coach. I want someone combative who can look Darren Lehmann in the eye without blinking first.
This might seem a little hasty but hear me out. Why are the senior players not performing? It looks awfully like a repeat of Moores’ first stint in charge. I was not in the least but surprised when I heard on the radio that there is already discontent in the dressing room.
Let’s not forget that Moores must take a huge amount of criticism for England’s naïve strategies this summer. We all know that Cook is spoon-fed tactical advice, and logic dictates that it’s Moores feeding him.
It’s also time David Saker slung his hook. Ask yourself how many times England have bowled too short. It’s practically every test match. His position is surely untenable.
What’s more, England’s management team has utterly, hopelessly failed to manage the absurd workload demanded by the ECB. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to work out why Anderson and Broad aren’t performing well: they’re exhausted, and in Broad’s case, unfit.
Rather than adopting a play-at-all-costs strategy designed to save Cook’s job (and theirs) they need to rotate the bowlers and think about long-term consequences. It will pay dividends in the end.
And we simply must stop picking injured players. The decision to recall Matt Prior this summer was an utter disaster. It was unfair on him and the team.
Who is making these boneheaded decisions? It’s that man Moores again.
However, sacking Cook and Moores is not enough. We all know the real reason why England are losing (and will continue to lose for some time): as they say in the USA “it’s the ECB, stupid”.
England’s current malaise is entirely the ECB’s fault. Look back at the England side that reached number one in the world. How many of them are now washed up / retired before their time?
The truth is the ECB have flogged the players to death. Trott’s mental health, Swann’s elbow, Prior’s achilles, Broad’s knee, Pietersen’s patience, Bresnan’s back, Monty’s you know what, Tremlett’s entire body … all have disintegrated. I imagine Cook and Bell are burned out too.
Even if Cook and Moores move on, the deep-seated problems will remain:
Why do England lack alternative captains? Because our test stars don’t play enough for their counties and never get the chance to develop leadership skills.
Why don’t they play enough for their counties? Because the ECB insist on playing too much international cricket.
Why don’t England have any decent spinners? It’s partly because the county championship is mostly played in April/May when conditions don’t suit them.
Unbelievably there is no more championship cricket now until mid-August. If England called up a spinner for the fourth test he wouldn’t be in any kind of first-class form. Ditto any new batsman they might need. It’s the peak of the English summer, yet no first class cricket will be played. It beggars belief.
Why can’t our players think on their feet and adapt during games? It’s because the Flower-method, which relies on stats and pre-determined strategies, is regarded as sacrosanct. Why should players think for themselves when there’s a backroom team the size of Giles Clarke’s ego to do the thinking for them?
Why can’t England find a world class head coach? It’s because after the Pietersen fiasco, in which the board made it perfectly clear who the captain would be (and who could or couldn’t play), the top coaches lost interest. What’s more, the ECB wanted someone who could be relied upon to toe the party line. Ability was a secondary consideration.
And finally, the biggest question of all: why are there very few good players coming through the ranks? I could go on all day, but it’s a combination of cricket being stuck on satellite TV and being perceived as elitist.
Put it this way: if the ECB’s priority was to broaden the appeal of cricket, why appoint Waitrose as the team’s primary sponsors?
Waitrose themselves are harmless enough (their food is good), but there’s no escaping the fact they’re perceived as middle or upper class, possibly a little snobby, and most definitely over-priced. Remind you of Lord’s?
Until the ECB start making strategic long-term decisions that put player welfare and the popularity of cricket above money and politics, England will continue to struggle. That’s the bottom line.
Whether it’s football, rugby, tennis or cricket, a team is usually only as good as the people who govern the sport. It’s a cliché but it’s true.
Even if the ECB reforms itself, this current mess is going to take years to clear up. Just look at the England football team.
Depressed? Me too.
James Morgan
James, I see things have come to such a point that the disparate editorial line taken by you and Maxie, whether in the interests of a personal credo or broad church ethos, has finally confluenced to the same incredulous, bemused position!
Many of your themes were raised in my ‘Turtle Tank’ article which the Full Toss kindly published at the beginning of May. You have neatly revealed the dysfunctional narrative that has unfolded since then.
We only differ on the elevation of Jos Buttler and I have posted a piece on his value here – http://discussion.theguardian.com/comment-permalink/38522358
I think Buttler is a very talented player and I have no problem with his selection. I just think it’s risky. Everyone jumped on Prior’s back for missing catches, but Prior is a better keeper than Buttler at this point. I just think it’s best to moderate expectations.
Just for the record, I have always been critical of the ECB when it comes to the big issues. They do a poor job running our game, and it’s actually pretty impossible to argue the reverse :-)
Where Maxie and I differed over KP is whether to keep banging on about it i.e. trying to win him a recall. Because of the way Pietersen plays (all eye and front foot) i assumed long ago that he’d regress once he reaches his mid-thirties. Dropping him revealed the arrogance and prejudices of the ECB (even if I could see the vague rationale i.e. backing the captain, who was younger) but I never saw it as the be all and end all. For instance, I doubt KP would have scored more runs than Root or Ballance this summer.
I’ve never actually argued explicitly thst Pietersen’s recall would be our salvation. I believe it was absurd to fire him, but it’s impossible to say whether restoring him now, after all that’s happened would necessarily improve the team. I continue to talk about Pietersen because none of the issues revealed or created by his sacking have been resolved – and they continue to hurt us.
If you like your stats, happy to do you a stats analysis of KP’s career (I’m a numbers nerd – you might have noticed with some of my tweets to George Dobell and others…)
The structure of the season is the problem for me – they’ve been cocking it up for years, particularly with one day cricket, from the old B&H, Gillette Cup through to the Pro40 and the T20. Although I don’t know how much of a say the counties have in the set up of the season.
The T20 has to be played over a more compact period when there’s no international cricket so that counties have their England players.
I also think that players should be released back to their counties to play more – partly to get out of the bubble of the England set-up – maybe we’d have less fall-outs if they got more of a break from each other!
“The T20 has to be played over a more compact period”
We tried that, it didn’t work. The games were too closely packed for spectators to be able to attend more than one, the random distribution of games confused the hell into everyone, and the effect on the integrity of the county championship being shoved into April and September was disasterous. The new structure is far more sensible and seems to be having an extremely positive effect on both the quality and interest in the T20 and the CC.
We don’t want an IPL. We don’t particularly want to see foreign mercenaries or are even particularly bothered about seeing England test players, they’re rarely much cop at T20 anyway.
What we want is to sit in the sun with a beer, and watch a decent, competitive game of cricket for a couple of hours on a Friday evening. If the players are seen to take it seriously, the spectators will take it seriously.
From what I’ve read attendances are doing very well and this year’s competition is shaping up very nicely. There’s some excellent cricket being played, particularly in the northern group.
I wrote earlier this year about the sclerotic scheduling of the county championship: there is virtually no play on a Saturday all year. How do they expect to attract spectators?
It’s time 2 words were thrown into the mix – Samit Patel. I know he did not exactly impress in his few Test appearances but, on the other hand, it was no secret that the management (eg Flower, Gooch, Strauss)) did not approve of his dietary habits and that cannot have done wonders for his confidence. Broad probably needs a rest more than Anderson, although the heavy-hand of the playing regs might force the latter out of the reckoning before too long. The reported events are just the sort of stupid churlish nastiness to which Anderson seems prone. Samit would at least tie up an end with his more economical brand of spin and, at the moment, tying up an end is about all that Broad is doing. However, the captain needs to get hold of Stokes and tell him to use the good-length delivery a bit more frequently.
It’s interesting looking at the Notts team. Several talented players there who have been badly treated by the England mismanagement team and they include 2 captains who are better than Cook
Who in particular? Samit Patel has had chances but not set the world on fire, Read was unlucky as his batting was never as strong as Stewart, Jones and then Prior.
Hales is in the mix – hopefully Cook will be stood down from One Day and Hales will get his chance.
James Taylor has been captaining the Lions for 2 seasons and scoring good runs (though admittedly less so this season) and had captained Notts in the One day stuff this year. Doing a decent job by all accounts. Given 2 matches against the best attack in the world (South Africa) in which he no means disgraced himself, and was dropped from the touring squad two years ago. Then Last year he was in line for a start in the Ashes if KP had been injured, got 100 in a warm up match against the Aussies, and then again did not make the touring squad…
Very harshly treated.
I think he’s an excellent player, but I think he was unlucky that Joe Root appeared on the scene and took his opportunity in India.
Root, Ballance and Ali are the ones that have jumped in front of him, and the selectors have probably got that right. He’s leading the Lions, so is obviously still very much on the radar, can you really say he was harshly treated?
Taylor was given 2 tests against South Africa and then banished to the long grass. I would say that was harsh treatment given that his performance over his 3 innings wass not markedly worse than Ballance, Bairstow, Root, Gooch……
In addition to getting test players to play more county cricket, is there a way we can make that more competitive too?
Would there be value in getting some counties to prepare spinning pitches to develop home grown spinners, or hard bouncy pitches for the quicks and flat pitches for line and length? This way batsman would also have to vary their techniques and be able to adapt to back foot, front foot, short, fast etc, etc. Still have a majority of English type wickets for sure but have some more extreme variations to test our best players.
Excellent article James. Agree with most of your sentiments and very depressing I’m afraid. Sadly I don’t think anything will change soon because the ECB hierarchy are too complacent, arrogant and out of touch with general opinion of England cricket fans.
Good article – I completely agree regarding Moores. I think Flower had a to to do with Moores appointment. Moores is a tried and tested failure. I don’t see anyone I respect involved with England just patsies like Moores, Downton, and Whitaker who all tow the line. I’d love to see someone like Michael Vaughan or Shane Warne as England coach – someone to inject some positivity into things and straight talking. Listening to Moores interviewed makes me want to smash the tv up. Cook shouldn’t be in the team – end of story. 14 tests averaging under 24 with no hundreds while leading the team down the toilet and showing less tactical acumen than Baldrick on a bad day.
I don’t care if there is no obvious alternative to Cook
As he cannot captain – and right now cannot apparently bat – there are at least half a dozen potential alternatives who can do at least one of the two things better.
The thirteen picked for the third test are the best cricketers in the country. The selectors haven’t done much wrong.
Apart from picking injured/exhausted players (Broad/Anderson), and Cook.
Give Finn another chance for example (after sacking Sacker of course). And second Richard Johnson from Middlesex for a couple of matches.
(Actually, borrowing selected county coaches for a couple of games might be an interesting idea in general.)
Give one (better both) of Anderson and Broad a rest. They need and deserve it.
Don’t worry about the absence of senior players. Right now they’re not helping a lot anyway.
Otherwise, much in agreement.
Yeah I take your point about selecting injured players. I’m not sure the selectors should take all the blame though. They presumably go by the medical reports they’re given, and it’s up to the management to rotate and rest players. They’re in the best position to assess whether a player is exhausted. The selectors have generally provided a squad of 13, so the coaches should have some flexibility to rotate. Having said that perhaps the selectors / management need to communicate better.
Thanks for all your comments everyone. Good debate brewing.
Great post James even if it is depressing. However it pretty much sums up our predicament. Whats most depressing is that everything is interconnected. Which makes it very difficult to make changes.
I have to say that I’m with Ian Chappell regards coaches. “Coaches are for driving round the countryside in.” Now I don’t mean they have no role, but the way they have acquired Svengali status in recent years I find suspicious. It is made worse in England because we have an obsession with hierarchy and leadership . We still have a monarchy (albeit a ceremonial one.) We are obsessed with who the Monarch is. Who the prime Minister is. Who the England football manager is. We believe that the leader can solve envy thing. My view is great teams have great players. No coach can turn average players into a great team. They can improve average players. They can improve poor players. Who was the coach of the Windies in the 1970s? Nobody can remember. Who was Australia’s coach during the 1990s?
The Cricket captain has always been in charge. But with the rise of the coach that is no longer the case. There is now a conflict of interest between 2 people. Both are judged on performance and their job depends on results. If the team is losing, and the coach thinks the captain is not doing a good job then the captain is changed. But what if the captain is being forced to carry out plans he does not agree with? He arrives back in the dressing room at Lunch to be told by an army of computer pod people that things are wrong, and the approach after lunch will now be changed. What if the captain does not agree? All is fine if the team is winning, but if they are losing who is responsible?
As the coach has taken more and more power ,almost by stealth, the players slowly but surely have everything done for them. Everything they need is provided. They don’t have to think. Even what they eat is provided for them. Then one day in the heat of battle, their support system is no longer there. They are so used to everything being spoon fed they are clueless as to what to do.
All of which is a long winded way of saying produce good/great players and it does not matter who the coach is.
Excellent points, Mark. I suspect that the cult of coach has denuded players of their initiative, self-sufficiency, individuality, and ultimately, self-respect.
I thought this was one of your best pieces, James. I wanted to pick up on this bit, because it doesn’t receive much attention amidst the rest of the nonsense, and because it chimes with something that occurred to me over the weekend:
“I could go on all day, but it’s a combination of cricket being stuck on satellite TV and being perceived as elitist.
Put it this way: if the ECB’s priority was to broaden the appeal of cricket, why appoint Waitrose as the team’s primary sponsors?
Waitrose themselves are harmless enough (their food is good), but there’s no escaping the fact they’re perceived as middle or upper class, possibly a little snobby, and most definitely over-priced.”
I only see the Channel 5 highlights these days. I couldn’t help but notice that the most prominent advertisers at the ground were:
Waitrose
Investec
JP Morgan
I would be interested to see who the most prominent advertisers were for the Lord’s Test of 2005 (npower being one, of course). OK, I’m not expecting to see Visionhire and Radio Rentals everywhere, as in those over-familiar videos of Headingley 1981, but I bet the image was less blatantly elitist than that conveyed by a snobby, over-priced supermarket and, er, two international investment banks.
I think the sponsors fit very well with the people running the ECB. Bankers and posh snobs. Everything about English cricket is being run by, and for the English elite. Would not surprise me to see England revert to having two dressing rooms. One for the gentleman and one for the players.
Lovely to have you here on TFT, Arron. And thanks for a very interesting observation. You can tell a lot about a sport from the brands it sells sponsorship to. I always remember a bowls tournament I watched once on TV, sponsored by Bupa Care Homes.
It seems a long time ago now that England were sponsored by the likes of Tetley’s bitter.
Well said Sir. I couldn’t agree more.
Interestingly I think you blend two points. The first is that they need to change their thinking and second that they need to change people to do this.
From overall ECB strategy down to setting the fields England’s thinking is muddled. This must change.
Changing people will have an effect but without know what needs changing, bringing new people may not actually be positive.
Irrespective Cook must go. As for Moores, I think that is for the new Captain to decide – I’m with Mark and Ian Chapple. Others may survive. Root would be my choice.
For a supposedly ‘good’ businessman Whittaker clearly doesn’t have a plan b or an exit plan if things don’t go right.
Excellent piece, rather depressing so if you don’t mind (at the risk of being called a troll) then I’d like to debate a couple of points.
We weren’t thrashed at Lords. We have had many moments that we haven’t seized upon this summer, that is hurting us badly.
We are showing improvement, every new cap or recalled pick has performed well, its the 5 senior players who have let us down.
Prior/Broad clearly injured, Cook/Anderson look mentally shot and Bell is being his enigmatic old self.
I agree entirely about the sponsor and sky,but its not just cricket that wants blue chip sponsors and satellite TVs big bucks.We’ve merely jumped on the bandwagon.
We do need to reach out to the working class family, maybe the ecb should have employed the chief exec of poundlsnd instead of Downtown.
One last thing, the itinerary is down to an extensive fan survey. We voted for this.
Cheers Neil. The main problem is the international schedule really (future tours programme etc) whereby England play too much. Cook has faced more balls than anyone in test cricket in the last year, despite his awful form. Shows just how much England play.
I agree re: the new players. They’ve exceeded expectations, and I suppose Moores must take some credit for creating an atmosphere in which these guys feel comfortable enough to perform (although it could simply be because there’s so many of them, who all know each other from The Lions, that integration isn’t a problem).
As it’s the young guys doing well (presumably because they’re not burned out) Bell and Co had better be on their toes. Vince or Taylor will be breathing down his neck.
Cracking article James. I loved this bit:
‘Why should players think for themselves when there’s a backroom team the size of Giles Clarke’s ego to do the thinking for them?”
Depressed? No, more like nauseated by the lot of rubbish from the ECB. I am just utterly disgusted with the whole lot of them. Glad I am saying it on here rather than on Twitter or I’d likely be getting a right earful. We cannot say anything truthful about the ECB can we now. The ECB, of course, being above criticism and certainly above critical review and exchange.
I am no longer in the camp that believes KP should be brought back to play for England – of course that balloon will go up into orbit come October! I do think it is time to bring in the youngsters. I just do not think Joe Root should be captain yet. He has the right attitude and mentality and can bat so well, but I just do not believe he has been in the team long enough. If Moores et al are still in place then Root could really suffer. I think they need to bring in someone like Read to steady this almost shipwrecked boat. There are a great many great youngsters around who should be brought forward. Sadly the culture we have at the moment is so backward I think it is unlikely that anyone can build a team to move forward whilst these moronic wasters remain in their position!
I was very interested in the unrest in the dressing room you talked about. Anymore on that James? So it is not all lovey dovey then? Well surprise, surprise.
The ECB is now wriggling – as is the whole support network of journos and ex cricketers – with its back to the wall trying to find someone to blame and deflect their failure on to someone else or others. There is no way they are going to admit they have made a right cock up. In all my years of watching and loving cricket – especially test cricket – I have never, ever seen such a terrible mess made of England Cricket. It should be a sackable offence IMHO. The ECB, all the coaches, Cook should be gone.
I am right with you about the absolute damning danger of knackering the players. How can the ECB, et al, talk about making a new and exciting era with nice players from the right background blah de blah, when they are using our senior players in such a disgraceful, uncaring way. The management must go and sooner rather than later.
“The ECB is now wriggling – as is the whole support network of journos and ex cricketers – with its back to the wall trying to find someone to blame and deflect their failure on to someone else or others.” I totally agree with you Annie.
Brainwashing of Koreshian proportions and only the wonderful George Dobell and Jarrod Kimber are calling it in the press.
The decline of our team is mirrored in the mainstream media. TMS has gone downhill in the last 2 years. They appear to be scared by Test Match Sofa and bloggers and have become hysterical about claiming their views as knowledgeable opinion.
I fear we are going to continue on this path for some time. Smaller crowds, continuation of the poor run of results and Cooks poor form. Increasing disinterest from the fans. Continued ruining of the young talent we so desperately need by the system. The problems are systemic. The only hope is a mass changing of the guard, from captain to coaching staff to selectors to Downton and Clarke.
Who am I to say all this?
Just someone who saw their first test match as a kid in 77 and enjoyed watching England Cricket through all the highs and lows for over 35 years.
“Just someone who saw their first test match as a kid in 77 and enjoyed watching England Cricket through all the highs and lows for over 35 years”.
In other words: outside cricket.
Thanks for your post, by the way – great to have you with us.
didn’t take long for Matty Prior to find a new job ………
Ha! He’s gone a bit saggy around the middle. Most weight gained in 24 hours?
Gold star.
For all those slagging off Waitrose as an overpriced supermarket for snobs, I’d like to point out that it has many virtues this team should be proud of. It is a mutual run by and for the benefit of their staff. It may be more expensive than other chains but it supports local farmers and puts quality and fair pricing above screwing local suppliers into the ground.
This debate needs many things, but small minded prejudice is not one of them, especially when it is so misplaced.
Do you work for them Benjit? Thanks for the info. Didn’t know all that. As I said in my piece, I have no problem with waitrose personally. It’s my local supermarket. I just don’t think it’s the right fit for the England team. However, it’s good to know that the food is more expensive for a reason. It’s important not to exploit suppliers, and I’m glad someone is taking a stand.
Ha ha, yes I’m their head of marketing! No my family have always shopped there and we’ve never had much money, but it is possible to make a little go a long way via stews, casseroles curries etc. This patronising view that those on low incomes have no choice but to eat battery farmed chickens from the local business eating tesco is nonsense.
As I said there is much to hate and be disappointed by this regime but the digs above in some if the comments to Waitrose just seemed very unfair to me.
I know what you mean – but Waitrose got off to such a bad start with that disastrous advert that they are still paying off their overdraft of bad PR.
But surely the image problem stems not from its admirable business practices, but from things like this (all of which can be found in the Wikipedia entry):
‘In September 2009, Duchy Originals, the struggling organic food business started by Prince Charles was rescued by Waitrose, which has agreed to an exclusive deal to stock the range, and to pay a small fee to his charity. In return, Prince Charles has visited Waitrose stores, and dined with senior Waitrose executives and their spouses.’
‘The Telegraph also later reported that Waitrose has faced “complaints from disgruntled middle-class shoppers who claim its free coffee offer is attracting the wrong kind of customer”.’
‘Traditionally, Waitrose branches were largely concentrated in the south-east of England and Greater London – even as recently as 2003, its northernmost English branch was in Newark, Nottinghamshire.’
The last point is particularly interesting, given that next year’s Ashes tour has no Test (and not even a county game) north of Nottingham. Those of a cynical or satirical bent might even suggest this makes Waitrose a perfect fit for the ECB and its monumentally ridiculous bidding system.
Though, to be honest, I’m much more bothered about the investment banks. Gosh, I wonder what Giles Clarke’s first career was…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giles_Clarke
At least you get branches of Waitrose at motorway service stations. Which is more than you can say about JP Morgan.
While I except your points about Waitrose how many kids will be taken by mum and dad to their stores? Against say Tesco? Asda? Whatever advertising they have in store will miss the vast majority of England’s kids. (A nice full sized cardboard cut out of Cooky by the Cheese counter)
And as the majority also don’t have Sky sports most kids wont ever see Waitrose on the shirts. Waitrose don’t seem to mind having such a small sample to sell to, and the ECB seem more interested playing to the choir rather than trying to attract new customers to the brand of cricket.
I’m sure Waitrose is a fine company,but it is a very conservative,narrow choice for the ECB to go with. Broad appeal is obviously not their aim.
I don’t deny that they have a more limited geographical spread, I was merely countering accusations of snobbery or elitism.
Broad appeal for the sport was clearly abandoned when they gave exclusivity to Sky. I wonder how the county game and cricket in general would be if at least 4 day matches were shown on terrestrial tv.
you are going to love this …… the 3 Wise Men
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/cricket/international/england/10987131/Sacking-Alastair-Cook-as-England-captain-would-hurt-Paul-Downton-and-remind-him-of-1988.html
It’s going to be longer than anyone can imagine (at least feel like it!!)
What a strange indirect defence of Downton’s approach. Pringle is bizarre. Nobody is suggesting chaotic wholesale changes to the team. Most people just want one change: Cook removed as skipper. Don’t really see the relevance of the 1980s.
I’m sorry but I am not clicking the link. I have no interest anymore reading Pringles idiocy.
But I guess what Pringle really means is sacking Cook would hurt people like him, and Selvey, and Newman who bet the farm on the golden boy, and lost. Now, like a demented losing gambler they are frantically writing out IOUs so they can keep gambling. Oblivious to the long term damage they are doing themselves and the team. Downtons pride, and the ECB media’s feelings apparently trumps English crickets recovery. How selfish is that? And they have the Gaul to claim KP put himself above the team. Mr Pringle, Mr Downton you are behaving like the man you despise.
If England lose this series how can Cook stay on? It will be 3 series in a row they have lost. 2 at home to mediocre sides. And that is before you analyse his batting.
By the way if you want a good link try this Jarrod Kimber piece about England’s fall from number 1 ranking.
http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/763221.html
Well done Mark, you just pipped me on this. A brilliant article, encapsulates perfectly the whole mess! Recommended reading!
Are you the same Dave who wrote this the other day?
“England invented most of these sports, and for a while was quite good at them. Then in walked through the door a man in a Blazer.”
Brilliant and priceless. I know it is a sort of reworking of the 57 old farts but it evokes the underlying problem with English sport. I am afraid I am going to have to steal it. Hope you won’t mind.
Yes Mark, it was me! Feel free as it’s an inescapable truism!
It’s perfect.
Not as bad as I feared, from the way you described it.
But surely there’s a middle ground between chaotic revolving doors, and stubborn pig-headedness.
[…] there is James’s tour de force on The Full Toss. Especially the rumblings, already, about the back room staff. If we expected a new voice bounce […]
Great article James, informed, balanced un prejudice analysis.
I agree re: Cook and Root is certainly emerging as heir apparent (or emergency fall back) but the truth is if one of Cook or Bell scores a century in the first 4 matches of the summer, England win. Weight of runs and scoreboard pressure certainly count for more than ‘Funky Fields’.
Even with the batting collapses, we’ve not been ‘thrashed’ Ashes style, despite fielding 3 debutants, a new 1st change and spin attack and a completely new batting order.
On another note, I’ve seen common trend recently of players being described as “Treated badly” which as far as I can see is equal to “Not Selected” or at worst “Dropped”. Carberry a recent example cited by Shane Warne, he may or may not have had a satisfactory explanation for not being picked for the Sri Lanka series but is currently part of the ODI set up (in much the same way as Eoin Morgan et al) it’s surely the selectors prerogative who to pick, as in any sport it’s a privilege not a right.
There have been some stories – from paid journos rather than bloggers – and various remarks about senior players ‘vetoing’ or ‘black-balling’ new entrants to the team. It was suggested about Compton, for instance. Essentially they make it known they don’t want X in the team and they get their way.
The way Cook has spoken recently seems to lend some weight to that. When asked about Prior (prior to him ruling himself out) he said that it’s up to Prior whether he plays or not. I mean, what the hell? Who picks themselves? Likewise, after he ruled himself out, Cook said his place will be open for him when he wants to return. That had followed-on from Cook ruling out Buttler playing even though he seemed nailed on to do so.
Pringle said Broad was basically deciding for himself whether he was fit to play. Again, what??
Does all rather smack of a clique of senior players who run the team as a private club – they’re in for life and they decide who will and will not join them. I think that’s the gist of some of the ‘badly treated’ stuff. Some of the players have felt they were never given a fair crack because Jimmy or Cooky or whatever didn’t like them.
You’ve got it in a nutshell.
The Prior situation encapsulates the entire extent of the ECB’s muddled, prejudiced mindset. He had a year of poor form was finally dropped after Perth,
They then brought him back only two matches later, despite being unfit, and despite not having shown sustained good form in the championship.
They pick him above Buttler, who was in form and full fitness, because Cook felt he “wasn’t ready”.
Then Prior has a nightmare four matches, because he wasn’t fit and wasn’t in form.
So then he stands aside, and they call up Buttler, who presumably is ready now, having not been ready six weeks ago.
But Cook says that Prior can come back when he likes. So if Buttler makes a double century at Southampton, he’ll be dropped for Old Trafford if Prior wants to return?
Thanks mate. I think by poor treatment they mean dropped without being given a fair crack i.e. one or two bad inns and you’re out, whereas Cook has had 28 and counting :-)
Fair point re: Bell etc
Good God!!!!!! Just heard on the news that Flower is to take over the England Lions?? My forensic and incisive analysis of this move is….we’re f++ked!! The long road ahead? The short road to oblivion methinks….babies and bathwater come to mind….groan!!!
It’s becoming like the Masons! Funny handshakes & rolled up trouser legs.
Oh well, at least the next generation will know you don’t declare till the lead is 600+ Oh and diet sheets. Pages and pages of diet sheets.
yes Dave, here’s the link:
http://www.espncricinfo.com/england/content/current/story/763645.html
Funny how a guy who should have been sacked but was promoted instead into a non-descript, specially invented role in the heavens has now re-materialised as coach to the Lions … this is as good as Coronation Street and equally as pointless.
Pipo down. This is a new era. In no way does it resemble a 43-year-old classic rock track:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/who/wontgetfooledagain.html
You git – I was just about to say that, before I scrolled down and saw you’d beaten me to it.
Someone has been leaking nasty stories about Bell to the Daily Mail….
Go on…
Look lads, come on, be fair – we should support Cook’s captaincy cos he’s lonely
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/cricket/international/england/10989228/England-captain-Alastair-Cook-is-stranded-and-needs-help-says-Ashley-Giles.html
you tell ’em Mr Derek, you tell ’em …………………………FFS
He should be made to feel even lonelier by being dumped on a desert island.