Why Australia will win the Ashes - a winners mentality.

[Seamer]

This is the main reason why Australia will win this series. At the concusion of the Natwest final, England were celebrating even though they did'nt win. Australia certainly were not. It was at that moment when it struck me, Australia are here to win and will accept nothing less, England will be satisfied so long as they are competitive. This more than anything is why Australia will win the Ashes and deep down even the most ardent English fan can not deny this fact

[greg]

I think if Australia had been 33-5 and tied the game they would have celebrated too.To tie a game when you are dead and buried was a good performance.

[Richie Benauds Love Child]

Sort of agree, sort of disaggree. Englands first aim is to compete - correct. As we havent done that for years thats a good start ! Aus wont settle for anything less than a win - correct. nuff said.

However, if we start to compete and the pressure begins to build on aus for the first time in I dont know how many years, it might start to get on top of them. Just look at the likes of thommo etc and no doubt other aussie journos who have written england off. They'll, I have no doubt, turn on to pontings men if things dont go well.

Also for the last 12 months england have a winning mentality too - so somethings got to give. And lests not forget, we SHOULD hav elost on saturday, hence the celebrations !

[Notts Exile]

Originally Posted by Seamer

This more than anything is why Australia will win the Ashes and deep down even the most ardent English fan can not deny this fact

I'll deny it for starters!!

That sort of statement goes along with those like "The Aussies will win because they want it more". If Australia win, and I said IF, it will be because they are better than England, nothing else.

[Seamer]

Originally Posted by Richie Benauds Love Child

Also for the last 12 months england have a winning mentality too !

But obviously not against Australia. Considering the last 18 years fair enough too. Australia would never celebrate unless they won.

Originally Posted by Richie Benauds Love Child

And lests not forget, we SHOULD hav elost on saturday, hence the celebrations !

If i was an English fan, i would have been dirty not to get the win. England had Australia 5-93. England were cruising to victory until Collingwood panicked and ran himself out. England should have won that game and i could not believe they celebrated the way they did after blowing it.

[Richie Benauds Love Child]

To be honest that match could have gone either way half a dozen times. That match aside we've won one and as we arent great at ODis generally and our star man hast fired (fred0 we did well

[Notts Exile]

You aren't going to celebrate when you've failed to beat a team having had thm at 33-5 with their five best batsmen back in the hutch are you?

Especially when you've beaten that side in sixteen of the last eighteen completed ODIs (?) are you??

When your press and half your team have been telling the world how bad that side are it makes you look a little bit silly when you don't beat them.

Even more so when one of the big mouths, who is supposedly the best bowler in the world, cannot stop a number eight and ten from scoring nine runs off his final over. I'd be in tears too !!!

What a bunch of muppets they looked like after that !!!

[Kirsty Harris]

Originally Posted by Seamer

This is the main reason why Australia will win this series. At the concusion of the Natwest final, England were celebrating even though they did'nt win. Australia certainly were not. It was at that moment when it struck me, Australia are here to win and will accept nothing less, England will be satisfied so long as they are competitive. This more than anything is why Australia will win the Ashes and deep down even the most ardent English fan can not deny this fact

I don't see how failing to win when you have the opposition 33-5 represents a team with a 'winners mentality'. That is the kind of thing England would have done in the past, let the opposition right off the hook!

I think the result of the game highlighted a weakness in Australia, not strength - they failed to kill off a game which they should have won with ease. That is not a winners mentality.

I dare say they were not happy to draw the game, and nor should they be.

England were happier with the draw becuase it represented a MORAL victory for the side. And Vaughan was NOT happy with the draw, as shown in the post match interviews.

[R W S]

There was once this time, I think it was Edgebaston, when Border was out, he came back to the dressing room and took all his gear off. People were coming up to him and saying 'Bad luck, AB, never mind.' After about the fourth person had done this, he just stood up and said 'Bad effing luck? You Pommies are all the same. Bad Luck? I batted like a busted **** and all you lot can say is bad luck.' Then he stormed out of the room. It really made an impression on me. I thought 'I like that. I love that Austrailian attitude.'

So said Nasser Hussain in his autobiog.

Nasser stopped the English players accepting defeat in a 'English' way and made them take each defeat painfully.

Pain is weakness leaving the body.

After the changing of most of the old guard this new England team are every bit as hardnosed as their Aussie counterparts. It is pleasing that some our Aussie members still think the England team are mentally weak - I think they will be surprised.

Originally Posted by Seamer

This more than anything is why Australia will win the Ashes and deep down even the most ardent English fan can not deny this fact

It is nt a fact it is an opinion - and wrong to boot.

[Alison]

Originally Posted by Seamer

This more than anything is why Australia will win the Ashes and deep down even the most ardent English fan can not deny this fact

Surely nothing in the future is a fact, the reason being it hasn't happened yet!