Well what a dramatic ending to a pretty boring test series. It was exciting and there were moments but all in all it wasn't extremely high quality and too many instances where wrong decisions were costly.
Australia will definitely be looking forward to the return series, the improvement they showed from Lords to The Oval was astonishing. They have some serious motivation now and will back their chances on home pitches, the message they sent last night was clear, win at any cost.
As for the English, they were dominant at times and clinical when they needed to be, held together by a very defiant middle order and a very good bowling attack. I'd suggest that they need to seriously work on their sportsmanship if they want respect from the Aussie crowds and media.
Can I just say; would love to see them try piss on the hollowed turf at the Gabba, MCG or SCG. 50,000+ pitch invaders wanting Stuart Broads head would be rather amusing.
84 days till it all begins again, minus the poor conditions, annoying english press and doctored pitches.
Bring it on!
What exactly did the Poms do that as such bad sportsmanship?
Please don't cite Broad not walking. Most Aussie batsmen do not walk. The end. Hypocrisy. Lehman himself never walked. (For the record I believe batsmen should walk)
Also please don't cite slow play. Why the heck should they step up a game that to them means sweet fuck all. If you are behind, you need to make the play. Everyone knows that. What makes Aus so special that the opposition owes them?
Years of perpetual arrogance has caught up with Australian cricket in a horrible way. The bitterness from fans and the Aussie media in this Ashes has been astounding. When you guys lose it is everyone else's fault. First a foreign coach, then the Pom media, then the Pom players, then the weather, then the pitches. Blah blah blah. Grow some balls.
The players sucked. Wear it. Every team hits the bottom of the cycle at some stage.
The rest of us had to suffer off-the-map arrogance from McGrath, Warne, Ponting, the Waughs for years.
Karma is a bitch. But she always comes back for a visit.
I hope Aus beats the Poms though. They need to drop off that high horse big time.
An Australian coach calling for fans to have a go at an opposition player is probably one of the most shocking things an international coach in any sport has done for years. And you want to talk about professionalism? Get real.
There is no god given right to be the best in the world. It is earned. I know it's hard for fans to accept this simple little fact.