Barry's Beef

And then God created Monty. A 5-for on his Ashes debut (incidentally the third best test innings figures by a spinner and the WACA) shows how embarrassingly inept Fletch was in not plumping for the man-child over Giles and his dodgy hip. Just to see England go out and there and play like they can is so great. Ok at 51-2 we're already ostenisbly in the dog house, but I think (or is that blindly hope?) that England will bat well tomorrow and build a first innings lead. And Harmison getting four wickets and bowling with pace, bounce and even control. Oh happy day. Come on England.




Update: So what is the reason for England's good day in the field? Well no less a cricketing aficionado than Ray 'Butch' Wilkins hit the nail on the head by saying England just needed a bit of donald. Donald Duck = luck. God bless you, Butch; God bless cockneys and God bless Monty Panesar.

Labels: Monty, Steve Harmison, the Ashes

The Ashes! Yeh, baby here it is. First ball...it's Harmison and...oh my...it's snaffled at 2nd slip. Queue ecstatic whooping, apart from that there was no edge involved. Yep, Steve Harmison's first ball of the 2006 Ashes was so bad and so wayward that it went to slip. 2nd slip. For those of you who are not followers of the beautiful game, please believe me when I say this is total w*nk.
It is getting beyond the point of saying that Harmison is our number 1 bowler and he will hit form. Potential is one thing, but when you are 28 you should be the finished article. The first day went exactly as I feared it would; Harmison and Hoggard bowl crap with Harmison's radar being all out of kilter and Freddie keeps us in the game. And Ponting plunders away til his heart's content.
Oh well, we're still in it and to evoke emotions from last year; Come on England - We Believe.

Labels: cricket, radars, Steve Harmison, the Ashes