[bazzap]

Originally Posted by Frankie

Mate bought the tickets through Yorkshire CCC. Same as buying them off ECB I would think. They were bought around November last year and there wasn't much choice left, so we ended up in the East Stand. Good view though. They were £80 each I think. Bumped into a lad I used to play cricket with and he went to the Lords Test. Had tickets in the Dennis Compton Upper at £180 each.

Which is about $360 AU for one day at the Test.


I just checked my old WACA membership costs. I was a Country member as I lived more than 100ks away from Perth. Country membership is now $340 AU a year. For that, you get a ticket to the Perth Test for 5 days and all the Perth Scorchers Big Bash games at the new Optus stadium. Also, any Australian men's ODI or T20 games played in Perth. All Australian women's games played at the WACA plus any domestic Western Australian Men's games (Sheffield Shield and One Dayers) played at the WACA. The Optus Stadium is over the river from the WACA.


Not a bad deal but better back in the 90s when we got all Australian men's internationals plus WA men's games plus AFL & NRL games. Plus there was a proper Member's stand. I let my membership lapse after 26 years when I retired to Thailand.


Interestingly, back in the 80s when I joined the WACA you had to know someone to be recommended for membership. The local Newman Cricket Association president was a mate. These days it is open to anyone.


The last time I was there was in Nov 2013 with Fozzie and his young bloke on their "Abbo Bashing Tour". It was a practice game for the Poms against a hastily put-together WA B side. Some of those blokes are in the current Ashes squads


















Jimmy not looking too impressed








Reg's mate was there too

[bazzap]

Bazza's Rant


If Australia plays Warner again, they are fucked. The loss of Lyon is an irreplaceable loss for them so down to 10 men already. 9 if they play Warner.


I thought Boland would have played better than he has. Bazz is wrong again. So back to Cummins. Starc and Hazelwood. They couldn't win in 2019 so probably won't this time. Starc & Hazelwood couldn't win in 2015 either. Starc can throw in 2013 as well. Don't know what the alternative bowlers are.


My plan

Leave my man Mitch Marsh in. Bring back Green. Two allrounders. So 3 quicks and 2 fast-mediums. Sack Warner and rest Murphy. Open with Harris. He is next to useless but hopefully better than Warner. Head and Smith are the spin options.

Bazz's Team

The Paki
Harris
The Saffa
Smith
Head
My man Mitch
Green
Carey
Starc
Cummins
Hazelwood

Wish we had some hard bastards like Border & Waugh S.


A shining light though for the Aussies. The Poms have brought back our secret weapon. One Jimmy Anderson. He hasn't played in a winning Ashes team since the 3rd Test at Birmingham in 2015. By my reckoning anyway.


Go, Jimmy. He'll probably be the man of the match now


I fear the worst

[ferocious]

Keep Warner in for me (probably get a score now)
We should’ve played foakes as WK from start better keeper than Bairstow and been scoring well for Surrey as he has when in the test team stinks of jobs for the boys
Ok I’m biased but we should be ahead in this series on dropped catches alone add in no balls and missed stumpings it’s difficult to see us getting the ashes back at this point couple bad rain days and it’s over

[bazzap]

We are all biased mate. We can't help ourselves though that said most people are critical of their own sporting teams too. I guess we expect 100% performance in every game. We expect hundreds from batsmen and 5 fors from bowlers every time they go out to play. Not even Don Bradman or Shane Warne could do that and in more recent times, Ben Stokes. Not even he can perform miracles every day.


I do agree with you that the luck has gone Australia's way so far but to counter that a little bit, England has won every toss. Actually, Cummins has lost every toss as usually the visiting captain calls.


I shouldn't whinge too much as we are still in front and history shows that is so hard to win Ashes series away from home. Still, if England wins the last two Tests, these blokes will go down in cricket history as the only Australian Test team to lose an Ashes series after being 2 nil up. Feeling any pressure boys?



Just read the Cricket Australia website and I nearly got my wish as Boland and Murphy are out with Green & Hazelwood are back in. The bastards still picked Warner though



Still, we live in hope. I look for omens so how is this one?


Green has never played in a losing Test team in England.

[Frankie]

Originally Posted by ferocious

Keep Warner in for me (probably get a score now)
We should’ve played foakes as WK from start better keeper than Bairstow and been scoring well for Surrey as he has when in the test team stinks of jobs for the boys
Ok I’m biased but we should be ahead in this series on dropped catches alone add in no balls and missed stumpings it’s difficult to see us getting the ashes back at this point couple bad rain days and it’s over

I think the whole country agrees with you, me included, that Bairstow should not be behind the stumps. He's taken an excellent catch this Test at OT but that doesn't make up for all the other bollocks he has dropped. Foakes is a way better keeper and a good bat, granted not as good a bat as Bairstow, but he's no mug. Bairstow looks overweight, and very stiff. I've noticed that he struggles to take balls that bounce in from of him. His legs are rigidly straight and he can only bend his back to attempt to get down and gather the ball rather than bending his legs at the knees and getting down low. Probably hasn't fully recovered from his horrendous injuries.

[Frankie]

Originally Posted by bazzap

Which is about $360 AU for one day at the Test.


I just checked my old WACA membership costs. I was a Country member as I lived more than 100ks away from Perth. Country membership is now $340 AU a year. For that, you get a ticket to the Perth Test for 5 days and all the Perth Scorchers Big Bash games at the new Optus stadium. Also, any Australian men's ODI or T20 games played in Perth. All Australian women's games played at the WACA plus any domestic Western Australian Men's games (Sheffield Shield and One Dayers) played at the WACA. The Optus Stadium is over the river from the WACA.
:

Excellent deal that Baz. I know if your a member of the MCC then tickets are cheaper, assuming you don't want to wear a shirt, tie and a pair of strides just to watch a game of cricket sat in the pavilion, and sit in the stands instead. Of course becoming a member of the MCC is not that simple and the waiting list is very long. Unless you fancy taking the fast track route which costs about £45,000.

[bazzap]

We're doomed unless my two Western Australian boys bat for the next two days and save the world


We are going to Pattaya at the end of the month. Around the same time as England will be handed the replica Urn. No mucking about. Straight to the top of the Markland where all one's problems can be sorted out








Anyway, I'm off to watch the more important cricket. Major League Cricket. Texas Super Kings are up against the Seattle Orcas.

No more of that old-fashioned 5-day stuff. This is the future. They are creating legends here!!

24/7/365 T20 is on the way

[ferocious]

I think the rain will save you Bazza

[Frankie]

Originally Posted by ferocious

I think the rain will save you Bazza

Would have fancied Englands chances more if the Aussies had been 6 down at the close. Just have to wait and see what tomorrow brings.

[Frankie]

Originally Posted by bazzap

We're doomed unless my two Western Australian boys bat for the next two days and save the world


We are going to Pattaya at the end of the month. Around the same time as England will be handed the replica Urn. No mucking about. Straight to the top of the Markland where all one's problems can be sorted out








Anyway, I'm off to watch the more important cricket. Major League Cricket. Texas Super Kings are up against the Seattle Orcas.

No more of that old-fashioned 5-day stuff. This is the future. They are creating legends here!!

24/7/365 T20 is on the way

Well hopefully a combination of this MLC and the Caribbean Premier League will attract all the top class mercenaries and totally fuck up the ECB's 100 competition.