Well, here we are then. A month or so of sleepless (and no doubt nail-bitting) nights. A slight tension in my belly...and I imagine in Belly's as he awaits the first morning, swollen wrist et all. And for all its hype, the nagging doubt that we are perhaps a little under-prepared; a little over-confident; a little short of the right people in the right departments. But those doubts aside...on paper, we have an impressive line-up. Even with the demise of Bangers surely our openers have the mettle to withstand an aging McGrath and a slightly out of sorts Brett Lee.
I have just revisited the 2005 Ashes DVDs and found myself struck with one vital difference between the two sides: determination. What I mean is this: The Aussies were determined in spurts...Lee & Gillespie grinding out runs; Ponting's century; Shane Warne's mixed bag...but there never appeared (with the exception of Lord's) a real killer instinct from the team as a whole. The was a kind of resigned fatalism about the whole touring side that they could never retain that little urn again. As for England, I would have to say that the opposite was ever-present, even in the face of McGrath's 5-0 prediction (he's very quiet this time!). And whilst we are not at home, we haven't the same team and there are doubts about the fitness of certain members of the team, one thing is certain....England hold the Ashes.
And so over the next few weeks, regardless of the pain and suffering, I will be adding to this blog my thoughts and I will welcome yours too.
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