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thirdwoman

Listed below are comments made by thirdwoman between Tuesday, 4th August 2009 and Tuesday, 25th August 2009.

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Ashes player ratings 12:58pm on 25 Aug 2009 We are obviously obsessed with all rounders in this country, still trying to come to terms all these years later with the wake of his almighty Beefiness, which has burdened Freddie, and the knock on effect to Broady.
The media have gone mad for him over the last couple of days, and now we find out he has an actress girlfriend, and oh my god, I can see the Hello magazine features coming in!
It really is a thin line between success and failure. He has struggled a lot this summer, but has to be congratulated for pulling out a big performance when it really counted. Our desire for the all rounder hero says - go on, do it again, and again......and be knocked down if you don't. And so little said about other real solid guys like Prior.
Easy to predict a big downfall for the young man unless he is super careful.
Quiet celebrations this time? Read the papers - it was a right bender!
Strauss's England worthy winners 08:20am on 24 Aug 2009 Just a couple more things.
England quite rightly stuck with their policy of picking five bowlers throughout the series. Looking back it was rather amusing that they all had a ton up at Cardiff, and their comparison to the give bowlers of 2005 is debatable. Australia only picked four, so had fewer to share the wickets between, which is why their individual stats looked better. But the bowlers really seem to work as a team within a team, each in turn stepping forward at some point in the series. Many disagree with choosing five bowlers, but it spreads the huge workload of international cricket, and the batting of Prior, Broad and Swann gives us the scope to do it.
Credit must go to the selectors, because the loss of Kp and Fred's issues must have given them a real headache. They have done what former captains Hussein and Atherton longed for in their time and showed some continuity and rewarded players in form ( Onions and Trott) with a place. Even at Headingly I believe they picked the right team, but rightly or wrongly, the events before the match took their toll on Strauss, and the game was over by lunchtime. The selectors now need to address the issue of the batting resources. Cook and Bopara need some input, Bell and Colly continue to frustrate and some new guys need a chance.
The best times are ahead of England. We love them for the roller coaster ride, but it would be nice if they got a bit boring and won all the time!
Strauss's England worthy winners 07:53am on 24 Aug 2009 Tottenham lad,
My uncle recently died playing a round of his beloved golf. I hope they are happy upstairs together.
The Oval ratings 11:22pm on 23 Aug 2009 As much as 4 for Colly? He dropped a catch as well didn't he? Serious questions need to be asked in the House about his future in the team. Trott seems a natural replacement.
We need to look at alternative openers - I am not as fed up with Cook as others are, but think it would help the number 3 situation as there is simply no clear answer to that predicament.
Stop this "New Flintoff" business for Broady - he is a completely different kind of player - more refinement and less thuggery.
Straussy (for coping with the responsibility), Swann (for being the biggest laugh in the team) and Broad (for producing a match changing spell when we needed it) get a 10 from me.
Oh go on, push me, and they can all have a 10.
Strauss's England worthy winners 10:43pm on 23 Aug 2009 So sweet after the 5-0 drubbing in 06-07. No repeat of the pattern next time we go please!
I am particularly delighted that the team ethic has worked so well. As a big England fan I have been mightily cheesed off with how often reporters have said England only have 2 decent players in KP and Flintoff. Strauss has eclipsed them both this year, and that is without mentioning his captaincy. Prior made a big contribution with his much improved glovework and confident batting. The batting of the bowlers - Broad, Swann, Anderson, and don't forget Monty, was vital in this series. Strauss had faith in his spinner, whereas Ponting did not. The impact of the loss of Lee, who looked impossible to play in the Lions match, can't be underestimated.
It has been a tough, and frankly at times, comical year following England. I cast my mind back to the Stanford shambles and wonder how many people really care about losing that match. All those tough tough tests in the West Indies where England came so close, but appeared to have forgotten how to win a match, were training of some sort. Even the 20/20 World Cup where England swung between dreadful and marvellous showed that we are a dangerous side when we get it right. I am not convinced we know why we get it right sometimes, but that sounds like a job for Andy Flower to work out!
A glimpse of life after Freddie 11:08pm on 21 Aug 2009 I have been one of Broady's most vociferous defenders on 606, so today is a sweet day, but don 't go mad and expect this every game. Many people simply don't understand that all rounders aren't obliged to get five-fers and score centuries in every match, but often contribute in a more low key way. 37 runs today, that'll do nicely, not spectacular but pretty useful. 3 five-fers in tests for Broad - remind me how many Fred has?
An utterly mind boggling day. The deficiencies in England's batting are glaringly obvious yet again but somehow we have the upper hand. (Can someone please put Colly out of his misery? He bats like a lame dog) the Kp and Moores caper at the start of the year, followed by the 51 all out could not forerun an Ashes victory - surely?
There is cricket magic and witchcraft at work here.
England batsmen fail again 07:41am on 21 Aug 2009 The most important thing was not to have a complete horror show in the first innings as at Headingley. It was a good day for England because they won the toss. Bell did Ok. Trott looks like he could make a few runs for England before he gets worked out on the front pad issue. The alarm bells should be clanging because Cook needs some attention and Colly looks so ugly at the moment - no change there - but ugly and ineffective won't do. With these 2 issues, kp injured and Bopara out, the batting looks really worrying, and the policy of sticking with batsmen through thick and thin rather than trying new blood has come back to haunt England. The loss of Swann was terrible yesterday because Broad hasn't got a decent partner now, and as is so often with him, either run out of partners or perish because he is the one having to score the runs.
The crux of the match is how England bowl today. I hope they don't get over excited and spray it around - a real danger with the choice of Harmy over Onions. Just put the damn ball in the right place!
Broad's Ashes spot no longer secure 10:26am on 05 Aug 2009 162,
There is much talk of Broad not knowing what kind of bowler he wants to be. I'm not actually sure he knows what kind of cricketer he wants to be - bowler or batsman! True all rounders are a very rare beast, and I wouldn't even include Flintoff in that category.
Fred has always viewed himself as a batsmen who can bowl a bit. Broad started as a batsman, but said he felt inside he was a bowler. What are these guys like!!!!
Someone needs to get him to one side and tell him straight - be a batsman. If you didn't know he was a bowler, he would look like a cracking batting prospect.
Broad's Ashes spot no longer secure 5:21pm on 04 Aug 2009 There are lies, damned lies and statistics. People can be selective about who they compare and how they compare them. Especially early in a player's career.
Flintoff is a case in point - are his stats really earth shattering? But most people want him in the team because he adds more than the stats.
Broad's Ashes spot no longer secure 3:25pm on 04 Aug 2009 I must disagree with those who say Broad's runs have been made in situations free of pressure. At Old Trafford last year he got England past the follow on total against New Zealand when the batters were having a total nightmare and we were in a dreadful pickle. We went on to win the test due to an excellent innings from Strauss and a Monty special.
In New Zealand prior to this, there was one test match where England were something dreadful like 5 for 3. He batted really well with KP and helped get a reasonable score on the board.
At Edgbaston he really put the boot in after Prior and Flintoff got things rocking, but was out because he had to get a move on as he was stuck with the tail yet again. I would love to see what he could do if he batted regularly with proper batsmen and had the chance to build an innings.

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