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Listed below are comments made by start_of_an_era between Monday, 10th August 2009 and Thursday, 12th November 2009.

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Should Dundee's neighbours merge? 3:34pm on 12 Nov 2009 Merge the two teams, then play home games alternately between the two stadia - when they play at Dens, the team can be called Dundee, and at Tannadice, they can be called Dundee United. Hey presto, one combined, stronger team whilst keeping all the tradition and history.
Nutt gets the sack 1:31pm on 31 Oct 2009 As well as the pig-headedness of sacking someone for telling the truth, does this decision not also highlight the sheer hypocrisy of politicians. Many of them (including the former Home Secretary) have admitted to past drug use themselves, yet they want to criminalise others who do the same thing. Or is it one law for those who "tried it once at a party, didn't like it, have never touched it since and deeply regret the experience" and another for all other drug users?

Then again, maybe our politicians' previous drug use is what's responsible for their schizophrenic, detached-from-reality policies.
Nutt gets the sack 7:15pm on 30 Oct 2009 All too lamentably similar to the episode of the Thick of It where the hapless minister gets the advice of an expert on a schools issue, only to be given advice the government doesn't want to hear, and is lambasted by Malcolm Tucker for having consulted "the wrong expert".
'Labour's lost it,' says the Sun 03:03am on 30 Sep 2009 I think the Sun may have badly misjudged this. Yes, they may declare open season on Gordon Brown, but now that Labour no longer have their support, surely they will declare open season on the Sun. There is a great current of unease and dissatisfaction about Rupert Murdoch's influence in this country, and if Labour can go on the attack and tap into some of that feeling (for example, Murdoch's Fox News slagging off the NHS), people will sit up and take notice. The Sun has declared its support for Cameron so far ahead of the election that it could well turn out to be a poisoned chalice.
Will Upton Park violence scupper 2018 bid? 8:16pm on 26 Aug 2009 Surely the best thing the FA could do in this case, and in any future cases of crowd trouble and pitch invasions is to simply order the two clubs involved to play their next five home games behind closed doors. That would act as a massive deterrent to the "fans" next time they think of doing anything similar, and the financial penalties would make the clubs get their act together and make sure adequate security is in place for future potential flashpoint matches.
England's bowlers face Oval challenge 3:54pm on 15 Aug 2009 #39 - is the David Lloyd Trafford Centre a Bumble-owned venture, rather than the ex-tennis player? Probably not, but would be somehow better if it was!
England's bowlers face Oval challenge 03:59am on 15 Aug 2009 Based on what groundsmen and so-called experts have told us before matches in this series thus far, I would take any pitch predictions with a huge dose of salt.

We were told Cardiff would favour spinners. England's two twirlers took one wicket between them. Lords was meant to favour Steve Harmison, yet England won perfectly well without him. Edgbaston, the groundsman produced the most gloomy prognosis for any Test match that I can remember, saying that bowlers would feel like they'd bowled 35 overs after they'd bowled 20 - yet the bowlers got good reward if they put the ball in the right place. And Headingley, we were told, was not the bowling paradise of old, but would favour the batsmen. I don't think I need to comment further on that one.

So ignore it if we are told the Oval will favour batsmen. Just pick a team to win the match, regardless of conditions. And I tend to agree with previous posters - if we have to take 20 wickets to win the game, it would be better if we fielded first. That's how we beat South Africa at the Oval in 2008 and 2003, after all.
How England can win the Ashes 01:04am on 12 Aug 2009 Would it not be a good idea to use the England Lions v Australia match at the weekend to its full potential? Stick Bell, Bopara, Trescothick, Ramprakash and Key in the side, tell them they're fighting for two places at the Oval between them, and see who handles the pressure best. Similarly, pick Harmison and Onions and tell them they're fighting for the last bowling place. I can't think of a better way of getting some solid statistical evidence as to who will be up for the fight.
How England can win the Ashes 5:30pm on 11 Aug 2009
#203 Re Tresco - sounds like he may not need that much coercing:

"If I was asked, I don't know," said Trescothick. "If they threw questions at me, I would listen. But until they do I can't answer. I am just carrying on what I am doing at Somerset, carrying on playing. Anything else is so hypothetical at the moment.

"It's always nice to be thought of - of course it is. But people are talking about it more than I am thinking about it."

To me that sounds like he definitely would play if asked.

I know it's for entirely the wrong reasons, but I would love him and Ramps to both play - Tresco so that he could finally get a century against the Aussies, and Ramps so that at least one player of that '90s generation could say they'd played in a winning Ashes side. Seems such a shame now that Bell played instead of Thorpe in 2005.
How England can win the Ashes 8:38pm on 10 Aug 2009 Ramps for Bopara may not be such a bad idea. Ravi's confidence is gone, and much as I'd like him to play, it would be too much of a risk. England brought back Martin Bicknell to play on his home ground (The Oval) against SA in 2003 after a longer absence from the England team than Ramps (I think!) and he helped England to victory, so why not Ramprakash?

It sounds like Flintoff will play, so I guess you'd have to drop Harmison or Onions to accomodate him. Keeping Harmison in the side would probably the riskiest option, but then again, he might, just might win the match for us.

England can definitely still win. Anderson and Harmison always seem to bowl well at the Oval, and England have a habit of winning there - no defeat since 2001 (and that defeat aside, a very good record against Australia there). Headingley was an abberation - a bloody great big one, but England can bounce back. Australia won't play that well again, and England won't play that badly.

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