which is why Hoggard got Ponting and Gilchrist out in the same over 42 overs into the second new ball? Suggesting that Hoggard was looking below club standard (averaging 3.16 runs per over)? The statement may have applied to Anderson who was chucking pies all match but certainly not the Hogster.

England need an in form strike bowler NE - not a bowler who takes 122 overs to get the wickets of players who had already done the damage.

Open with Mahmood who's stats are very different in Tests than in ODI, and Harmison Hoggard for change bowlers - Giles or Panesar the 5th bowler you pick the better bowler, or the better batsman, Fletcher will do that anyway.

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Ern

How about bringing in Joyce and Panesar. Dropping Flintoff down to 7 so he can concentrate on the bowling.
So you would have a four man attack with Collingwood and Bell bowling the odd over.

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"Checkout the big brain on Brett" Pulp Fiction

Oh God help us. Are Collingwood and Bell going to throw fewer pies than Anderson and Hoggard (with the first ball - I'll let you have the 122nd over NE)?

As England are undoubtedly going to call for assistance from the "shadow squad" at some point during this tour; why can't it be now?

OK nobody has any experience, but maybe there's a couple of usefully tall fast bowlers we could use.
Perhaps Chris Tremlett and Stuart Broad are as good as any of the other seamers in the squad.
Perhaps one or both has a decent future in the long game. Perhaps one or both are more likely to play in the series than Theo Walcott was in the recently passed Association Football World Cup!

And I believe Tremlett and Broad are both reasonably good lower order willow swingers. That should solve the late order crisis and perhaps even allow Read back into the side. Have to get Jones off the selection panel though.

It's good to see that someone else agrees with my theory that English swing bowlers don't do well in Australia.
Obviously Lewis is a much more experienced first class bowler than Hoggard, but he is older and slower. Not sure why Anderson is struggling to find any useful lines, but either way all THREE are NOT what the doctor ordered in Australia.

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Red-it, Red-it, Read it and wept

I forgot about Broad. But the batting needs strengthening and it would be good Flintoff drropping down to 7. A five man attack failed last Test why not give the batsmen a chance?

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"Checkout the big brain on Brett" Pulp Fiction

To me Lewis is a Mcgraish sort of bowler with good control over line and length he would take wickets.. that is if it is one of the better english fielders is catching

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Yes he is. But he's not as tall, and he's not as quick. So he will disappear to all parts in Australia.

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Red-it, Red-it, Read it and wept

Folk said Hoggard would disappear to all parts of India during his two tours recent over there.. and on both occasions he excelled. We've heard the same of Lewis virtually every time he has taken the field in any form of cricket... and yet every time he's had the chance he's proven his critics wrong.

His one and only Test was at Trent Bridge... and just look who got carted:The guy has a nice cutter: it's just one variation but that's enough. Sadly, like Bicknell before him, he's likely to end his career at least 50 Test caps shy of his just deserts.

ps. if he's that easily carted.. how come his ODI economy rate is 3.83 (identical to McGraths, as compared to Flintoff's of 4.39, Anderson's of 4.86 and Harmison's of 5.05).

Flintoff was put at 6 John because he was a disaster at 7, he may have been out of form of late, but then who of the England side has been in form?.
It never works - it's been tried with Trescothick, with Bell - Vaughan bowled the odd over with no success, England need to stick with the bowlers IMO - except maybe for the odd over before lunch or tea,

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Ern

I would move Flintoff to 7 or even 8 for his bowling not his batting. If England were to go with a four man attack. The trouble with a five man attack what does the fifth bowler Anderson etc . Not very much.
The only one I would have as a fifth bowler is Giles than Flintoff can stay 6. I was just considering the idea of an extra batsmen ( Joyce) it might prove more effective. Its either Giles or Joyce for me none of the others deserve to be picked.

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"Checkout the big brain on Brett" Pulp Fiction