Macca

In all seriousness I'd be batting Labuschagne at no.5 for the foreseeable future Renshaw & maybe Burns can slot into the top along with a rejuvinated Warner as well as a possible Harris I just like the idea of Smith at no.4 & Labuschagne at no.5. We've got a chance at a soft intro for a possible 10 year batsman. It's a throwback method but it works. Ponting played nearly every one of his first 20 tests batting at no.6. Labuschagne can work his way up the order. I also believe that opener types can bat at no.3. Maybe Warner at no.3?

In a general sense small forwards feed best off good key forwards. They (small forwards) end up in better spots by default. They are the add-ons rather than the focus. Once they become the focus (or are isolated) they often fall short. Hogan went close but we haven't had a decent and consistent KPF since Neitz. And since Neitz we've played in one final series in a decade. Medium sized forwards are a different matter ... a forward line can consist of these types primarily but they need to be very good as a collective and as individuals. I'd like to see Petracca, Melksham & Fritsch work together to see if it does work (rotating deep forward and as high half forwards) Jones & Viney could easily be used as small forwards but we haven't seen it. Not sure why as our forward line didn't function at all well all season. But if we could land a player like Patton then I'd breath easier. T-Mac could then go back to being a utility forward and be used up the ground periodically as well. Weideman gets game time when needed (if form warrants)

Good point ... we can sometimes judge the whole walking bit by old standards. Gilchrist was the last true walker. But he effectively went outside the team rules by doing so. Of course, he was an all-time great and we didn't lose too many tests when he played. So he was 'allowed' to walk per se. Might have been a different story these days!

The umpires haven't been the best but it should be noted that the captains are only getting their reviews right about 30% of the time. That effectively means that the captains are getting it wrong and wasting reviews 7 out of 10 times. And unlike the umpires, the captains have any number of sets of eyes to help out and don't have to make split second decisions as the umpires do. So if we're going to get stuck into the umpires, the captains should be copping it something fierce. But that won't happen.

Could be that he didn't want to be shown up for being dishonest. If he knew he definitely hit it and that ultra-edge was going to confirm that, you're better off getting out of there. I've seen any number of batsman walk under similar circumstances with the new technology. Should be looked on as a positive too. Looked noble but was it? Ultra-edge is being trusted by the players by the looks of it. That's my take.

His ability to overcome all those injuries from a young age tells us about his character. Many were writing him off but Cummins had other ideas. There's another one ... the no.1 bowler in the world strikes again. He's the other success story of these Ashes. 24 wickets @ 16.45. Hazlewood has 17 wickets @ 17.37

There's the wicket ... now we can get on a roll. Was just about to suggest that we give Labuschagne a couple of overs. Scrub that and I'm not in communication with Paine anyway.

Monday Special MLB 03.10am Washington @ Atlanta Atlanta Win (-1.5) $3.25

NFC East - Eagles NFC North - Packers NFC South - Saints NFC West - Rams Wild Cards - Bears, Cowboys AFC East - Pats AFC North - Steelers AFC South - Jags AFC West - KC Wild Cards - Browns, Chargers MVP - Mahomes NFC Champions - Saints AFC Champions - Pats Super Bowl Winners - Saints

Or the plan was to end up at Pats from the get-go. Player acquisitions happen by hook or by crook. And the Pats often end up getting what they want (or need) You've got to play the long game in a league where parity exists. Nothing surprises me these days Dappa.

Best Bet Strike Rate 16: 3 - 3 - 3 Australian Group Racing Calendar Out of the wash-up from yesterday there were some impressive Stakes winners in 'Dreamforce', 'The Inevitable', & 'Ehhilarates' whilst 'Libertini' found a way to win. All are black-bookers in my opinion. And here are the replays of the other 4 feature races from yesterday. 'Avilius' lacked that finishing burst, 'Nature Strip' over raced, Eduardo had every chance, 'Homesman' very impressive & 'Surprise Baby' raced well first up. They all get another chance.

Maybe I'm just listening at a time when that biased commentary isn't happening. There's probably a few moments but I find the commentary to be fine. And if we're struggling at times we deserve to be called out on that. Our batting for instance has been generally poor apart from Smith & Labuschagne so critical analysis should therefore be forthcoming. From any source. But there again, I'm not so biased where I can't see the realities of where our team sits. As an example ... we may well retain the Ashes but our team is not a great team. And neither are England. The top order with both teams is the worst I've seen (as a collective of both) Root should be batting at no.4 too. He's better suited there but at no.3 he's a lot more vulnerable. Helps us of course. It's been a great contest though ... a bit like 2 average but evenly matched boxers going at each other. With Smith being the major difference. The difference-maker.

Yeah same here Wadda but I vaguely remember listening to the cricket from England in 1968 though. Definitely 1972 like your good self. The Bob Massie 16 wickets was great to listen too as a lad. Those were the days! I'm a real audio person - I can easily paint the picture no matter what the sport. And with tunein radio now available, all sports are available to listen to. Bliss. The BBC are great. Their cricket coverage is superb. They give credit where credit is due and aren't bad losers (although I love listening to Boycott & Vaughan get stuck into England when they stumble)

Not quite Nostrodamus but damn close (383 & 7 overs) Might start up a horoscopes thread. Bit of money to be made apparently. Just tell people what they want to hear. "You'll be coming into a bit of money soon" "How soon?" "Soon"

Or 0 for 2 as the Poms call it. Only rain can save England now (you'd think) Went audio only late and next minute I was woken up by the Joe Root dismissal. Great delivery apparently by Cummins. Smith supreme (again) Only a low chance (10%) of precipitation tonight so the Ashes are there for the taking. But that's what I said going into the final day in the last Test! I also predicted that they'd win the series 3-1 after we blew that test so who am I to judge Wadda! Anyway, I occasionally get 'all' emotional! Gotta own ya own words. Go Aussie! Edit: Will we see a final twist tonight? They can't win but they could save the test with one of their batsman having a 'Faf du Plessis' type innings.

Good point DJ And during that era we had any number of top players who couldn't get into the team (mainly on the batting side of things but a player like Stuart MacGill might have got 500 test wickets if Warne wasn't in front of him) And to win 16 tests in a row (twice) was just incredible. We were blessed with talent for a prolonged period of time.

Well I thought 359 was enough of a lead in the last test but it wasn't. It's very difficult to do any projections in this series. Expect the unexpected is what we can expect. Along the lines of that known unknowns business Wadda.

The mid 70's were outstanding as well. Others can go back further to the Benaud days. Greg Chappell was still the best batsman to watch in my book and played against much better bowling attacks. Smith is incredibly effective but so were Border & Steve Waugh. Ponting was brilliant It's unfair to split the 5 though. They were all great. And then there's Bradman. And Harvey. Victor Trumper? Ponsford?

Interesting comparison ... Mark Taylor scored 839 runs in the 1989 Ashes series in England. 6 Tests it must be said. And Taylor was only in his 2nd year of playing Test cricket.

We need to counter attack here ... how you do that is anyone's guess. But it's no good poking about against this quality bowling.

Barring rain we're going to see a result you'd imagine. Still the equivalent of 5 sessions left with the time made up for the rain delays.

Jeepers that was quick. Don't poke the bear hey? Apart from all that, Head isn't exactly the world's best batsman. Deserved a send-off.

Archer seems a bit sharper tonight. We'll need to keep him out but Broad is bowling really well too.

The series has been quite incredible DJ ... packed full of drama. Just enough in the tracks to help the bowling but the good batsmen can still score centuries anyway. Test cricket is at its best when the bowling is slightly favoured. A century therefore scored by any individual is hard earned and often memorable. I cannot get enough of it.

I'm worried Wadda Most concerned! It's like watching our forward line in action. Except if Smith was in our forward line he'd dominate!