The Ashes Blog

There’s a new game on the way, and it looks sensational!! It’s called “Ashes Cricket 2009″, and it’ll be available for XBox360, PlayStation 3, and PC from June, and later in the year it’ll be released for Nintendo Wii. Real players, real grounds, and even the latest cricket rules. You’ll be able to play Tests, one-dayers, and Twenty20 games, with each team incorporating different players depending on the format being played.

Here’s an interview with producer Jamie Firth:

Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday The Ashes Blog revealed exclusive security footage of the theft of the now infamous ‘bowling plans’. Well, now we can show you the new England plans.

With the old plans embarrassingly made public, the England management quickly got together to put a new set of plans in place. One of our photographers was able to grab this exclusive image of coach Duncan Fletcher with the new plans. They are:

1. Use ball to get Aussie batsmen out.

2. Use bat to score runs.

Although these plans have been used at times during England’s tour of Australia, the England XI have not yet played a full game with these in place. They would have been hoping to surprise the Australians with their new plans during the Sydney Test, but that will all change now that these have also been revealed.

Presents. Food. Family. Fun.

Yes, they are all a part of our Christmas celebration, one that for my wife and I has only just started. It’s our first Christmas with our little 5 month old boy, and it looks like being a fun day. It’s getting close to 7:30am, and he’s back in bed already. We’ve opened our gifts, which he smiled at, and then went back to sucking the life out of the wrapping paper. Maybe, instead of spending the big bucks on those toys, we should have just wrapped up a crumpled ball of paper and said, “Go crazy, kid.”

Later on this morning we’ll all head over to my parents-in-law for a big roast lunch, and then this evening we’ll drive out to my uncle’s acreage property almost an hour out of Brisbane. As usual, it’s going to be a hot and humid Christmas Day – 32 deg. C. with a late thunderstorm sweeping through. Still, we’ll stay inside when the rains come, and we’ll joke and laugh and eat fresh prawns and salad (an Aussie tradition).

But there’s more to it than that. Christmas is the day we give thanks for the birth of the Christ Child – the day when God came down to earth in human form. A day that changed history.

But that’s not the whole story either. Christmas is also a day of rest … before the Boxing Day Test starts up in Melbourne!! Let’s face it, mate, all this food and gift-giving is great, but it’s all just a prelude for The Big One. The Boxing Day Test. Australia v England. Shane Warne’s final Test in front of his adoring home crowd.

It may not be all that Christmas is about, but without the cricket, Christmas Day would be just another significant religious holiday.

This is fantastic! And yes, there is a cricket connection … right near the end.

Music by Boy Mongoose.

Enjoy!

In the Book of Matthew, Jesus Christ outlined a form of prayer that we know as The Lord’s Prayer. He said that this was a good place to start as a model for how we should pray. Here, then, is a Prayer for England:

Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Duncan came, his will was done,
Getting Giles and Jones in the team.
Give us this day our daily rumour about Michael Vaughan returning soon,
And lead KP not into temptation,
But deliver him from Warnie.
For Pietersen thinks he is the greatest player who has ever lived,
And Simon Jones seems to be injured for ever and ever.
Amen.

You probably think I’m talking about everyone’s favourite tweaker, Ashley Giles. Well, I’m not. Nor am I referring to Shane Watson’s hamstring. I’m actually talking about my home state of Queensland, and our absolutely fantastic weather, beaches, and holiday resorts.

My wife and I, together with our baby boy, have spent the past few days lazing around at Alexandra Headland on the Sunshine Coast. We stayed at a place called the Grand Palais, and it was great! The days were fine and warm (around 27 deg.), the food was plentiful, and after putting in some long hours at work this year, the time spent with my family was terrific. If I get a bit of time over the weekend, I’ll try and put a short video together so you can see for yourself.

I’m going to be away for a few days, so there won’t be all that much happening at The Ashes Blog until the 3rd Test starts on Thursday. I’m taking a few weeks off work, and I’m just about to head up to the Sunshine Coast to spend a few precious days with my beautiful wife and our wonderful 5 month old baby boy. This is a much anticipated holiday, as I’ve been pretty flat out with my photography business this year, and a few days relaxing by the beach will be good for all of us.

But I had to plan this one carefully. We’re in the middle of an Ashes series, and I didn’t want to be away during a Test, unable to update this blog with news and images. So we head off today, and we’ll be driving home again on the morning of the third Test. We need to leave our hotel room by 10am Thursday, and with a 1 and a half hour drive home, I’ll be back in front of the television in time for the first ball being bowled in Perth. A carefully planned operation that allows maximum time with the family, without missing a session.

The things we do for the game.

During the New South Wales v England game a week ago, Andrew Flintoff had a benefit night and Brett Lee – good mate that he is – was invited along. Lee sat down at the same table as Freddie and Paul Collingwood, and when the England captain got up to make his speech, he noted the weirdness of it all:

“It’s funny . . . Brett and I have been having a steak and a glass of wine together and talking about family and kids and tomorrow morning he’ll be trying to knock my head off.”
- Andrew Flintoff

This is one of the great things about cricket, and sport generally. As Lee notes in this article, there’s been a lot said about the friendships that have developed between various players in the Australian and English camps. Some have questioned whether friendship and competition can co-exist:

“My feeling is there is room for both. I hope that when people see me playing they can’t deny I am giving it 100 per cent.
I try my best until 6pm but after that I switch off. It’s part of sport.”
- Brett Lee

I absolutely agree. Cricket is the greatest game in the world, and the competition experienced on the field is amazing, but there is more to life than cricket. Friendships, family, and the bigger picture … these are the things that really matter.

I went to the Gabba website and found a bit of helpful information for those of you who – like me – will be getting along to the Brisbane Cricket Ground for the first Test. You can see the details here, but here are a few key points:

- Deliveries and product from external caterers is not permitted. Patrons are allowed to bring homemade items such as sandwiches, biscuits, cake and cordial will be permitted provided they are appropriately packaged

The following items are not permitted into the ground:

- Large Eskies, backpacks, and camelpaks
- All beverages in glass or cans
- Folding Chairs
- Alcohol
- Crockery, cans, opened bottles, glass containers, dangerous or illegal substances, flares, fireworks, laser pointers, loud hailers, certain musical instruments including horns and whistles.

Got that? No cans, no backpacks, and no big eskies. And to further protect patrons from the risk of terrorism or other acts of violence, if you bring any food along it’s got to be homemade.

The original Ashes urn is being exhibited around Australia this summer, and yesterday I visited the Queensland Museum for a bit of a look. My wife wasn’t interested, so I checked the in-laws to see if they were keen, cricket fanatics that they are. “Already seen it at Lord’s”, they said. I guess I’m by myself for this one.

My drive to the museum took me past the Gabba, battle ground for the first Test. It was then on to South Bank and in to the Museum. I took the lift to the second floor, and there it was. Magnificent. The urn itself is a tiny little thing, and I could barely read the inscription on the front of it. I met up with a guy I know who was there with his two young daughters, and they thought it was all a little strange that this 4 inch bottle could cause so much hysteria.

There were a number of other fascinating items in the exhibition, including the velvet bag presented by Mrs Fletcher to Ivo Bligh in 1883 to house the urn. The large Waterford crystal replica of the urn was also on display, together with some old scorecards from the 1882 game, cricket bats from the Aboriginal tour of England in the 1860’s, and various signed images of WG Grace and others.

If you’re in Australia, do yourself a favour and go and check out the Ashes exhibition when it’s in your neighbourhood. It may not ever be out in this part of the world again, and if you’re a cricket tragic like me, you’ll love it.