THE ASHES

[claret50]

Bloody good first session for England - well done the lads.
Really miss Blower's though........my dear old thing.

 

[Ciderhead]

Not usually bothered by these things but Matt Smith seems a very odd choice of presenter. Has the air of not really being much of a cricket fan and just reading off a script.

Not sure why they ditched Greg James, he seemed pretty good in the little of the Aussie SA series I caught last year and at least appeared enthusiastic.



I think I'm just a bit cranky

 

[lordofthepies]

Just woke up... Vince is in his 30s now and it sounds like he's been playing very well. This is usually about the time he does something stupid and gets out...

 

[lordofthepies]

Not usually bothered by these things but Matt Smith seems a very odd choice of presenter. Has the air of not really being much of a cricket fan and just reading off a script.

Not sure why they ditched Greg James, he seemed pretty good in the little of the Aussie SA series I caught last year and at least appeared enthusiastic.

Greg James decided not to do it. I can't remember what but he's got another job which would get in the way.

 

[Skinner]

As said, I'm missing the sky coverage. BT aren' really selling test cricket.

 

[Ciderhead]

Greg James decided not to do it. I can't remember what but he's got another job which would get in the way.

Ah I see. Heard on the radio the other day him saying how much he wished he was out there at the Gabba so I think he may be regretting that decision!

Pretty even day I'd say, maybe us just edging it. First hour tomorrow will be key.

Gutted for Vince, he looked a cert to make his century, deserved one. But very encouraging how assured he and Stoneman, and later Malan, looked. If they can keep that up we've got a real shot.

 

[Ciderhead]

And loved the stat that Stoneman and Vince's partnership was greater than any we managed in the entirety of the 13/14 tour

 

[SeasideKurt]

Superb from Vince a very tired single and in hindsight it's a wonderful throw.

 

[RavenBish]

The only time you should get ran out in a Test match is when you're 9 wickets down and trying to get your number 11 off strike. It's terrible from Vince and he's not even put a dive in when he's looking straight at Lyon - he played well but it's the sort of mental lapse that's stopped him going on and putting us into a very good position. You've got to cash in when you get in - I found it strange that in the interviews after Vince said he was 'pretty happy'...any top batsman would be fuming at being ran out 17 runs short of a century in an Ashes Test.

Promising stuff for the rest of the series though for Stoneman, Vince and Malan.

 

[SeasideKurt]

Nah I don't think it's that bad of a run out in reality. Nathan Lyon was onto it ridiculously quick and didn't even stready himself for the throw. Vince was slow out of the blocks and was naive looking for a single there.

He's inexperienced at this level. He has the ability and I agree about the mental block.

Look at his last series in an England shirt, he was getting 30/40. Vince knows he has the technique and ability to mix it at this level. He has to follow that up with consistent 50+ scores. Don't let his comments brush over how pissed off he was, I've played with him and he'd have been furious with himself.

 

[CFC91]

Signed up to BT last night having found a code for 50% off for 12 months & agree the coverage isn't as good. Miss Nasser, Lloydy and Holden already.

As for the cricket, great knocks from Vince and Stoneman but still a good day for the Aussies. The run our wasn't great and i'm sure he will be gutted but was great from Lyons. Hopefully we kick on towards 350/400 tomorrow.

 

[blademan89]

Signed up to BT last night having found a code for 50% off for 12 months & agree the coverage isn't as good. Miss Nasser, Lloydy and Holden already.

As for the cricket, great knocks from Vince and Stoneman but still a good day for the Aussies. The run our wasn't great and i'm sure he will be gutted but was great from Lyons. Hopefully we kick on towards 350/400 tomorrow.

What you pay for it? I signed up yesterday too for broadband, bt sport plus some other shite £36 a month for 18 months. Better than the £100 I was paying for sky considering I hardly ever watch it.

 

[CFC91]

What you pay for it? I signed up yesterday too for broadband, bt sport plus some other shite £36 a month for 18 months. Better than the £100 I was paying for sky considering I hardly ever watch it.

£11 a month for BT Sport. 50% off for 12 months.

I work for Sky Bet so get Sky TV / Broadband free anyway so was just being tight refusing to pay for BT. Had to bite bullett, don't mind missing the CL but Ashes as well going to BT is a bit of a piss take

 

[blademan89]

£11 a month for BT Sport. 50% off for 12 months.

I work for Sky Bet so get Sky TV / Broadband free anyway so was just being tight refusing to pay for BT. Had to bite bullett, don't mind missing the CL but Ashes as well going to BT is a bit of a piss take

Sound that, decent enough price

 

[RavenBish]

Cummins is going to have this middle order on toast for the entire series with that short ball.

 

[Super_horns]

Solid start this morning - scoring well.

Hopefully keep this up and build a competitive score.

 

[Flustercuck]

Typical Aussie wicket where Smith has been scoring bucket of runs

 

[Hurrikeen]

Considering it was Stoneman, Vince and Malan that we were more worried about, as opposed to Cook, Root, Ali & Bairstow, its a great Ashes start for each of them in bagging themselves a 50 in the first innings.

Hopefully Malan can turn this into a ton.

 

[RavenBish]

grrr, as soon as the Aussies set that field, the reward went from playing the pull shot. Another opportunity to go on and bat big missed.

 

[Ciderhead]

This all started with Malan completely giving his wicket away when we were in control. So frustrating. There was a chance for a really telling score here and now we'll be lucky to make 300

 

[Ciderhead]

Oh Jonny that's a pathetic shot

 

[claret50]

Aussie 7/1

 

[Ciderhead]

Yes Moeen! Great captaincy by Root getting him on early

 

[claret50]

30/2 is looking good so far.

 

[Ciderhead]

Break this partnership early and we're really in business

 

[Ciderhead]

There it is!

 

[The Jovial Forester]

Good session, right back at them

 

[lordofthepies]

Smith is looking worryingly unflustered here.

 

[blademan89]

Smith is looking worryingly unflustered here.

Not surprising really, he's the best player in the world and when they are at home he's just on a different level. We need someone to produce a cook 10/11 performance with the bat to keep up with him.

 

[Super_horns]

Be handy to get these 2 out quickly when play starts otherwise we might find ourselves on the back foot.