The years 2010. a brave new England have taken the world by storm and reached the World cup final.
A few months ago people would have thought that sentence had a reasonable chance of being made in July this year, such has been the football teams improvement under Fabio Capello, but today it's not the Italian getting the plaudits, instead another Foregin coach, Andy Flower leads his cricket team into their first ICC final since 1992, and the first against the old enemy since 1987
For too long England have been looking in from the outside on occasions like this, but finally they have lived up to their pre-tournament talk of playing without fear, and whatever the result this afternoon they deserve plenty of praise for the way they have gone about this tournament.
In the 6 games England have played so far (2 of which were interrupted by rain) we have scored at 7.97 runs per over, and bowled at an economy rate of 6.68, only bettered by Australias scoring at 8.51 and bowling at 6.67, however the Aussies havent had any rain interuptions so the figures are a little misleading.
One of the most impressive things abouts this England side is that Kieswetter, Lumb and Pietersen at the top pf the order look to provide a very positive start, as is shown by the fact that we are the highest scorers in the Powerplay overs in the whole tournament. Scoring 306 runs of 216 balls, and only losing 7 wickets in that time.
The Aussies have scored 40 less runs in the powerplays, facing 1 extra ball and losing 4 extra wickets.
The last 6 overs see an advantage for the Aussies though, mainly due to Michael Husseys brilliant displays at number 7, being ably assisted by the likes of Cameron White. And despite the sterling efforts of Eoin Morgan and Luke Wright the aussies have scored 80 more runs off just 9 more balls than England in this area.
One area I see England having an advntage is the Seam bowlers variety of balls, and ability to take the pace off the ball. This proved vital against Sri Lanka in the semi's whereas Australia banged the ball in with as much pace, and Pakistan posted a very high total. On one of, if not the, biggest pitches in the tournament taking the pace off the ball means its harder to hit boundaries, and the slower-ball bouncer proved to be a very hard ball for the Sri Lankans to get away.
Key Men
England - Kevin Pietersen. Hardly an original choice, but his performances this tournament have been superb, and Englands talisman can become the top scorer in Twenty20 World cup history with a knock of 83 or more (102 or more to be the top batsman in the whole tournament). Australia have already said they will look to target him. If Pietersen can come out on top of that battle then it will demoralise the Aussies and lift our boys.
Australia - Dirk Nannes. The leading wicket taker in the tournament but went for 8 an over on Friday. Nannes played a huge part in Hollands win over England, and has been impressive for Essex in this form of the game. If Kieswetter and Lumb get after him early, then it will set us up for key performances, however if he gets an early wicket and gets his tail up we could struggle against him
Whatever the result England can be truly proud of the way they have performed in this tournament, and the attitude they have shown throughout it.
Sunday, 16 May 2010
Sunday, 9 May 2010
Carragher for England... No Thanks.
Welcome to my first ever blog posting. There may be a few teething issues so if so give me a shout and I'll happily take any ideas from anyone on board.
I've been thinking about starting a sports blog for a while, as you may know back at school I wanted to go to uni to do sports journalism, but messed up my A Level grades (don't drink kids), so I'm using this as a way of still getting my views published, and hopefully getting some decent conversations going with others on any sporting issues which i choose to cover, whether you think I'm right or wrong, comments are welcomed, as after all, sport is all about personal opinions, and I'm happy to discuss it with anyone.
Having made the decision to start the blog, I've been thinking long and hard what my first topic should be, there's been plenty of options, including the perils of social networking for sportsmen/women, the vacant managerial job going at the Ricoh etc, but after I read a story on Friday, which has simply grown stronger all weekend, I decided there was only one option...
So it looks like Jamie Carragher is set to be included in Capello's World Cup squad. There's no doubt in my mind that if he is in the 30 man provisional squad, when it's announced, that he will certainly be in the final squad, barring any injury he may suffer.
Leaving aside all the politics of whether you think he turned his back on his country or not, I simply wouldnt have him in the squad based on ability.
Now you can't argue against anything Fabio has done whilst in charge of England, but this surprise inclusion of Carragher just doesn't sit well with me. He's not the same player he was back in 2007 when he retired from international football, he has lost a yard of pace and seems to take the Stephen Wright approach of balling and screaming at everyone in an attempt to cover up his own mistakes.
Now I'm not saying Carragher is that bad a player. He has been virtually ever present and has only missed one League game for Liverpool this season, and despite their troubles they have only conceded 36 goals so far this season (only Manchester Utd and Chelsea have conceded less) and no doubt Carragher has played a part in that, however if you were to ask people about their English centre halves of the year, Carragher wouldn't be at the top of the list (except for the fiercely loyal Liverpool fans of course).
I dont think anyone could argue about John Terry and Rio Ferdinand being picked ahead of him, fitness providing, although Rio himself hasnt had the greatest of seasons, and a lot of people are clamouring for the Spurs duo of Michael Dawson and Ledley King to be ahead of him, I fully agree too.
Dawson has been superb all season long for Spurs, with Redknapp having to alternate between Bassong and King for most of the season, Dawson has consistently been the rock Tottenham have depended on, in what has been a superb season for Tottenham.
Ledley, has really come to the fore lately and has inspired the great run Spurs have ended the season with. His performance on Wednesday at Man City was one of the best performances from a centre half I have ever seen. Any time it looked like Man City were creating something he got a toe or his head to the ball to divert the danger. Another big thing from that game was it being his 3rd in just ten days showing he can get through such a schedule, and in South Africa, England don't have a run like that till the semi-finals.
They aren't the only English centre-halves that I would include ahead of Carragher though.
At Birmingham, Roger Johnson has stepped up from the championship and has looked very accomplished, as has Scott Dann alongside him, which is no surprise to me, he was the one player, alongside Westwood I wanted us to keep last year.
Some say the reason that Carragher is being touted for a call-up is the fact he can play anywhere across the back 4, but I don't buy that. Capello's England have played with the full-backs high up the pitch and joining in with the attacking play. Carragher just doesn't do that. He's a stopper.
Wes Brown and Joleon Lescott can play at Full-back as well as Centre-half and both are better in both roles than Carragher in my opinion (and i'm not even that big a fan of Lescott). Both are struggling with injuries though so i can see why Fabio wouldn't take them ahead of him.
Phil Jagielka is another who can play in several positions, and has been in great form for Everton since returning from a nasty injury suffered last season. He is another, like Johnson and Dann that learnt his trade in the lower leagues before making the step up with consumate ease. I dare say his injury is the only thing that has kept him out of the squad so far.
Then there's Matt Upson, who has been Fabio's 3rd choice centre half throughout his time in charge, stepping in for either Terry or Rio when they've been injured. Does Fabio's call to carragher mean he has been relegated?
Of the others mentioned of getting a place in the 30-man provisional squad, Tom Huddlestone can also play at centre-half. He has everything needed to be top quality there, size, speed and a great reading of the game. His range of passing, and the extra time he would get on the ball at the back could also make him a lethal weapon in springing us from defence to attack.
There may of course be further reasons behind the decision to try and get Carragher to make this u-turn. With the rumours about Gerrards personal life, Capello may want Carragher there due to their closeness, to try and get Gerrard performing like we know he can, but I wouldn't have thought this would work, after all they have been together all season, and Gerrard hasn't performed anywhere near as we know he can.
Let's not also forget Carragher's reason for retiring was that he was fed-up of other players being picked ahead of him in the team. Will he really come out of retirement in order to sit on the bench?
It's pretty much agreed that in the squad of 23 there is room for 4 centre backs. Personally mine would be Terry, King, Ferdinand (if fit) and Jagielka. If Rio wasn't to make it then it would be a tough call between Dawson and Upson, possibly with Upson getting the nod due to having more international experience.
Thoughts?
I've been thinking about starting a sports blog for a while, as you may know back at school I wanted to go to uni to do sports journalism, but messed up my A Level grades (don't drink kids), so I'm using this as a way of still getting my views published, and hopefully getting some decent conversations going with others on any sporting issues which i choose to cover, whether you think I'm right or wrong, comments are welcomed, as after all, sport is all about personal opinions, and I'm happy to discuss it with anyone.
Having made the decision to start the blog, I've been thinking long and hard what my first topic should be, there's been plenty of options, including the perils of social networking for sportsmen/women, the vacant managerial job going at the Ricoh etc, but after I read a story on Friday, which has simply grown stronger all weekend, I decided there was only one option...
So it looks like Jamie Carragher is set to be included in Capello's World Cup squad. There's no doubt in my mind that if he is in the 30 man provisional squad, when it's announced, that he will certainly be in the final squad, barring any injury he may suffer.
Leaving aside all the politics of whether you think he turned his back on his country or not, I simply wouldnt have him in the squad based on ability.
Now you can't argue against anything Fabio has done whilst in charge of England, but this surprise inclusion of Carragher just doesn't sit well with me. He's not the same player he was back in 2007 when he retired from international football, he has lost a yard of pace and seems to take the Stephen Wright approach of balling and screaming at everyone in an attempt to cover up his own mistakes.
Now I'm not saying Carragher is that bad a player. He has been virtually ever present and has only missed one League game for Liverpool this season, and despite their troubles they have only conceded 36 goals so far this season (only Manchester Utd and Chelsea have conceded less) and no doubt Carragher has played a part in that, however if you were to ask people about their English centre halves of the year, Carragher wouldn't be at the top of the list (except for the fiercely loyal Liverpool fans of course).
I dont think anyone could argue about John Terry and Rio Ferdinand being picked ahead of him, fitness providing, although Rio himself hasnt had the greatest of seasons, and a lot of people are clamouring for the Spurs duo of Michael Dawson and Ledley King to be ahead of him, I fully agree too.
Dawson has been superb all season long for Spurs, with Redknapp having to alternate between Bassong and King for most of the season, Dawson has consistently been the rock Tottenham have depended on, in what has been a superb season for Tottenham.
Ledley, has really come to the fore lately and has inspired the great run Spurs have ended the season with. His performance on Wednesday at Man City was one of the best performances from a centre half I have ever seen. Any time it looked like Man City were creating something he got a toe or his head to the ball to divert the danger. Another big thing from that game was it being his 3rd in just ten days showing he can get through such a schedule, and in South Africa, England don't have a run like that till the semi-finals.
They aren't the only English centre-halves that I would include ahead of Carragher though.
At Birmingham, Roger Johnson has stepped up from the championship and has looked very accomplished, as has Scott Dann alongside him, which is no surprise to me, he was the one player, alongside Westwood I wanted us to keep last year.
Some say the reason that Carragher is being touted for a call-up is the fact he can play anywhere across the back 4, but I don't buy that. Capello's England have played with the full-backs high up the pitch and joining in with the attacking play. Carragher just doesn't do that. He's a stopper.
Wes Brown and Joleon Lescott can play at Full-back as well as Centre-half and both are better in both roles than Carragher in my opinion (and i'm not even that big a fan of Lescott). Both are struggling with injuries though so i can see why Fabio wouldn't take them ahead of him.
Phil Jagielka is another who can play in several positions, and has been in great form for Everton since returning from a nasty injury suffered last season. He is another, like Johnson and Dann that learnt his trade in the lower leagues before making the step up with consumate ease. I dare say his injury is the only thing that has kept him out of the squad so far.
Then there's Matt Upson, who has been Fabio's 3rd choice centre half throughout his time in charge, stepping in for either Terry or Rio when they've been injured. Does Fabio's call to carragher mean he has been relegated?
Of the others mentioned of getting a place in the 30-man provisional squad, Tom Huddlestone can also play at centre-half. He has everything needed to be top quality there, size, speed and a great reading of the game. His range of passing, and the extra time he would get on the ball at the back could also make him a lethal weapon in springing us from defence to attack.
There may of course be further reasons behind the decision to try and get Carragher to make this u-turn. With the rumours about Gerrards personal life, Capello may want Carragher there due to their closeness, to try and get Gerrard performing like we know he can, but I wouldn't have thought this would work, after all they have been together all season, and Gerrard hasn't performed anywhere near as we know he can.
Let's not also forget Carragher's reason for retiring was that he was fed-up of other players being picked ahead of him in the team. Will he really come out of retirement in order to sit on the bench?
It's pretty much agreed that in the squad of 23 there is room for 4 centre backs. Personally mine would be Terry, King, Ferdinand (if fit) and Jagielka. If Rio wasn't to make it then it would be a tough call between Dawson and Upson, possibly with Upson getting the nod due to having more international experience.
Thoughts?
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