Shut your eyes and think of England.

[Making_Splinters]

I do wonder whether those inside of the England set up are even aware of how their actions affect those outside the core squad.

[Aidan11]

Like everyone in top posts, they look after themselves first, themselves second, and everyone else a distant third.

[Making_Splinters]

Most of the feedback from those picked then dropped seems to be on a closed clique of top players who don't give two hoots about anyone else.

[m@tt]

The Newman article is very poor. Others on Twitter and a few blogs I follow have already done a good job of deconstructing it.

The Compton article, on the other hand, is genuinely interesting and raises some valid questions. Questions which are not new but which many mainstream journalists like Newman have completely failed to ask over the past 18 months.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Talking of anger management. Tales told from the Wisden dinner last night.

The board members are also understood to have joked about Clarke’s behaviour at the Wisden dinner the previous night, at which the outgoing ECB chairman became enraged by the guest speaker and former ICC president Ehsan Mani, who claimed more should be done to protect Test cricket.

Clarke, who was central to last year’s restructure at the ICC that saw India, England and Australia take control, angrily remonstrated with Mani after the dinner in the Long Room at Lord’s, with the Wisden editor, Lawrence Booth, telling him to calm down and behave.

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/a ... or-cricket

This journo on another article states that Steely is quite upset by Michael Vaughan's criticisms. Maybe something should be done?

[rich1uk]

Talking of anger management. Tales told from the Wisden dinner last night.

The board members are also understood to have joked about Clarke’s behaviour at the Wisden dinner the previous night, at which the outgoing ECB chairman became enraged by the guest speaker and former ICC president Ehsan Mani, who claimed more should be done to protect Test cricket.

Clarke, who was central to last year’s restructure at the ICC that saw India, England and Australia take control, angrily remonstrated with Mani after the dinner in the Long Room at Lord’s, with the Wisden editor, Lawrence Booth, telling him to calm down and behave.

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/a ... or-cricket

This journo on another article states that Steely is quite upset by Michael Vaughan's criticisms. Maybe something should be done?

that'll be the end of Vaughan's chances for an ECB role , cant have anyone upsetting cook ...

[Aidan11]

I don't think Vaughan was ever in the frame.

He was asked if he would be interested in the job when talking about PD's departure and he said he would.


If someone asked me I'd probably say I would take it. Doesn't mean it's a possibility though.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Apparently the Telegraph is saying Strauss has been offered the job of England manager. Which just replenishes my downer on English cricket to full. His ultra conservative captaincy, and his connections to the disasters of the late Flower period just feels like England will be missing an opportunity to escape from the depressing mood that has dogged the national team in the past few years. He's too close to the player in the dressing room, Cook in particular, and I didn't appreciate his verbal abuse of Pietersen on tv, although inadvertently. He'll do the pr stuff far better than Downton, but prepare for more of the attritional cricket of the Flower/Moores era.

[Aidan11]

It's no secret how Strauss feels about KP so if he does take the role then KP can forget about a return to the England side.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Pretty sure KP's long gone. Getting him to play for Surrey is just for fun.

[Making_Splinters]

KP needed to have a blistering start to the season, he hasn't.

[shankycricket]

I don't think KP had a chance in any case and its a moot issue but English cricket will once again have missed a good opportunity to cut out the deadwood and start afresh with a new brand of thinking, Strauss is cut from the same cloth as the current management and is too close to the current setup/captain to bring about any siginificant changes. Very disappointing.

[Dilbert]

I was surprised by Cooks comment about Graves yesterday

Calling West Indies "mediocre" on the eve of the Test series gave them their team talk, claimed England captain Alastair Cook.

Now considering the 2nd test was actually won by Eng, his stance on this doesn't make sense. This mentality from Steely bothers me, he seems very stubborn and not afraid to pass the blame anywhere else.
Also with Strauss coming in, his position just becomes stronger, along with Moores's
I think NZ will give them a tough fight, and if they create doubts in the Eng players mind, Aus might get a huge advantage.

[Arthur Crabtree]

Cooks comment sort of missed the target, because in saying Graves delivered a team talk to WI, it just made me wonder what Steely's contrasting team talk to his own players was like, why it was less successful, and whether he could turn something to his own advantage.

As I suspected, this series is getting spun into a success in the press...

[braveneutral]

I can see both sides. I may elaborate later.