latest ODI- Action now!

[surrifox]

The very minimum requirement for representing your country in the sporting arena is that you don't embarass it. The basic requirement of any job is that you do your best especially if you're well paid and offered opportunities not available to the rest of us mere mortals. The cricket team have failed on all counts . Time , I feel for Fletcher to go and take this bunch of losers with him. Flintoff can stay but not as captain - that should be an honour not a right- one he hasn't earned. If he is unwilling or unable to accept this- he can feck off too.

Start rebuilding NOW, don't worry about the world cup there's not a side in it that this shower would bat more than 40 overs against- that's well gone.

I just want to see the back of wankers like joyce, nixon and collingwood

[Flynny]

Shocking. Absolutely shocking. I hoped to watch an hour or two of it before I went out this morning but I woke up and the Aussies needed 8 from 26.4 overs. Urgh.

[Dr The Singh]

As stated before, heads must fall!!!

[marko]

The very minimum requirement for representing your country in the sporting arena is that you don't embarass it. The basic requirement of any job is that you do your best especially if you're well paid and offered opportunities not available to the rest of us mere mortals. The cricket team have failed on all counts . Time , I feel for Fletcher to go and take this bunch of losers with him. Flintoff can stay but not as captain - that should be an honour not a right- one he hasn't earned. If he is unwilling or unable to accept this- he can feck off too.

Start rebuilding NOW, don't worry about the world cup there's not a side in it that this shower would bat more than 40 overs against- that's well gone.

I just want to see the back of wankers like joyce, nixon and collingwood

You clearly dont know what your talking about. Collingwodd has been a superb one day cricketer in recent years, he's in a bad slump of form which every player goes through.

I wish you were the coach of Australia, because presumably after their 2005 ashes defeat you'd have never let Ponting, Gilchrist and Lee wear the baggy green again and look how strongly they've come back.

As for embarassing the nation and getting extremley well paid to lose I think the football team is doing an equally good job.

[surrifox]

You clearly dont know what your talking about. Collingwodd has been a superb one day cricketer in recent years, he's in a bad slump of form which every player goes through.

I wish you were the coach of Australia, because presumably after their 2005 ashes defeat you'd have never let Ponting, Gilchrist and Lee wear the baggy green again and look how strongly they've come back.

As for embarassing the nation and getting extremley well paid to lose I think the football team is doing an equally good job.

Don't confuse having a different opinion with not knowing what I'm talking about- there is a difference.

Collingwood is too one-dimensional as a batsman ever to succeed at the highest level. His one big score on the tour was on a fast wicket with even bounce; put him on a slow track and he is like a fish out of water and if you think that his performances as a no. 4 merit persistence there is little evidence to support your confidence. He is the player most often quoted as to how we're about to turn things round yet wastes over after over playing himself in only to surrender his wicket in the tamest manner possible. Forget the Aussies he's as ineffective against the Kiwis. If he's out of form rest him. He is supposed to be representing his country.

So far as your comments regarding the Australians is concerned - I do not recall them at any stage being embarrassed by their defeat. They fought like tigers to retain the ashes and it was a close run thing with England at the top of their game fighting for every wicket and batting as if their lives depended on it. That's all that's being required.Compare and contrast with the slipshod and gutless efforts in the current series.

Re. the football team -WTF has that got to do with the price of eggs?

[Leicfox]

Pathetic once again....

FLETCHER OUT!!!

He has too many preconceived views on his players and the One Day situation is a shambles with total muddled thinking in terms of selection policy. There's no doubting he's a good coach but a poor selector, and him & his clique have too many favourites and nothing will change until he is gone!

[The People's Hero]

Surrifox is right.

Collingwood is talented but is horribly one-dimensional with the bat (must like Pieterson). I don't doubt their talent, but to make the most of it, they need to come on a bit and take on a bit of responsibility. Great players are not players who accept defeat easily and simply accept being poor amongst a poor side. Great players are those who stand up and be counted when the chips are down.

If Flintoff even wants to be mentioned in the same breath as Botham (which I appreciate he didn't ask for) he needs to look at the English captains of old, rediscover his balls... or just jack the captaincy in and re-find some form.

Collingwood is one of many who need to buck their ideas up. To believe otherwise is to accept mediocrity, underachievement and condones awful shot selection, apathetic response to defeat and plain English cackness.

[Geo V]

Pieterson one dimensional??!! He is the only person who has been able to cope with any bowling attack that has come his way, even the Aussies!

Having slept through most of todays one-dayer, I must admit I am glad that I did. Another shocking yellow bellied performance has made me worry that we may get dicked by a shite cricketing country like Scotland or Holland in the World Cup. Im not sure who is in our group but I am worried because the Aussies have given us the biggest mental poking that any sportsman have ever had over such a long period. They are beating us up to the extent of a knock-out but after a few days we are forced to fight again and get beaten up even worse. Whats worse to come out of this that even the fat bird in the playground now knows we are weak and she comes upto us and gives us a kicking too (New Zealand).

[Dr The Singh]

Let's not point fingers at one player, they (batting) were all shite, and have been shite for too long!!

If playing for your country is not motivating enough, the coach (fletcher)has to take the blame....sack him!!

[Lord Nibblington]

The thing is, we've been terrible at the one day side of the game for quite some time. So the results we're getting are hardly suprising.

[Geo V]

Let's not point fingers at one player, they (batting) were all shite, and have been shite for too long!!

If playing for your country is not motivating enough, the coach (fletcher)has to take the blame....sack him!!

You would never see a bunch of Aussies being so yellow bellied. Our teams body language is atrocious leading onto the field, during the match and leaving the field. Even if the Aussies were crap they would be fighting to the death, even if it just meant that the tail wagged instead of the bums that we had going in late on. 70 odd for 2 and we end up at 110 all out

[marko]

Don't confuse having a different opinion with not knowing what I'm talking about- there is a difference.

Collingwood is too one-dimensional as a batsman ever to succeed at the highest level. His one big score on the tour was on a fast wicket with even bounce; put him on a slow track and he is like a fish out of water and if you think that his performances as a no. 4 merit persistence there is little evidence to support your confidence. He is the player most often quoted as to how we're about to turn things round yet wastes over after over playing himself in only to surrender his wicket in the tamest manner possible. Forget the Aussies he's as ineffective against the Kiwis. If he's out of form rest him. He is supposed to be representing his country.

So far as your comments regarding the Australians is concerned - I do not recall them at any stage being embarrassed by their defeat. They fought like tigers to retain the ashes and it was a close run thing with England at the top of their game fighting for every wicket and batting as if their lives depended on it. That's all that's being required.Compare and contrast with the slipshod and gutless efforts in the current series.

Re. the football team -WTF has that got to do with the price of eggs?

I also recall him getting out on 96 in Brisbane. His score was actually on a slow-low wicket like you find in the sub continent, hence him doing well there. He has trouble with bounce and fast paced pitches because he always nicks off due to uncertainty where his off-stump is and when he tries to work it to the legside (which is easier on slow wickets). Sorry, but very rarely, I won't say never because at some stage he may have batted at 4 in a ODI he usually bats 6 and IMO thats a decent position for him not at no 5 like in this series(i'll present my evidence for this below).

I agree give the bloke a rest, but to quote "see the back of wankers like... collingwood" is a bit extreme to drop him totally when you consider he is one of our best one day players. He averages 33 with the bat and 37 with the ball and is one of the best fielders in the world, (Fred only averages 34 with the bat, Gilchrist 36 and Virender Sehwag averages 32) at the end of the day stats don't lie and he clearly brings something to the team. So what if he isn't an explosive shotmaker, when he needs to he can find the boundary, he's good at nudging the ball round and picking up singles and also very good at batting through to the end of an innings. As I previously stated give the bloke a game off but no way should we turn our back him because of a slump in form.

My point about the Aussies was that all those players didn't perform (especially gilly who averaged less than 20 and played some awful shots trying to hit him self into form) so presumably they should be hung out to dry because they had a slump in form.

My comment about the football was a throw away comment designed to highlight to shambolic state of out national teams. Sorry if it offended.

[Brummie-FOX]

As great as the Barmy Army are, I think it's about time they shown the team what they really think. What has happened since we won the Ashes!?!?

Rugby World Cup 2003

...................................... Winners - England - So how far have we progressed since?

Ashes 2005

[Webbo]

bring the spineless w@nkers home, save us the embarrassment.

[Joe.]

bring the spineless w@nkers home, save us the embarrassment.

That's exactly the best thing to do, I agree.

Absolutely useless. The worst thing is, my form tutor at school is an Aussie...

[lcfc_jme]

Pathetic performance. I woke up this morning and looked at the score - saw we were around 80-5 so I went back to sleep. I eventually woke up again to see that Australia had crushed us by 9 wickets with an awful lot of overs to spare.

We are a dreadful batting unit, and the bowling is too erratic to predict how it'll go. Aren't we the worst test-playing 1 day side in cricket at the moment? Says a lot for our World Cup chances doesn't it?