Thetownend.com

begins at 4:30am tomorrow.

looks as if it'll be a straight swap with harmison in for hoggard. hopefully we've adapted better to the conditions for this test and we'll see a better performance.

i shall attempt to get up 7 to catch the post-lunch sessions. i'll probably fail.

No just stay up all night and watch the start straight after the boxing  :mrgreen:

i don't watn to watch the boxing

The first season is always the best, bowlers have a bit of a chance, but if they dont take wickets in that first season it just becomes a batsmans wicket and becomes a very slow and boring innings.
Lets hope Vaughan wins the toss for a change and bats, I think its the only way we can win this test.

I assume you mean session when you say season?  :wink:

:nod:

why why why why why why are we playing harmison. He'll just spread it wildly at the start and do nothing after tea on the first day. Broad would of been a much better bet because at least he moves it a little but second slips more at danger than the stumps when harmison bowls

Harmison was at the top of his game 3 years ago. He never got that form back. We have given him enough time. I agree it's time we looked at someone else.

He's had one good year, thats it. Now he bowls too full, or to wide. If he was constantly bowling at the batsmens ribcage it would be a different matter, but he doesn't, and is dogshit

he's always been shit abroad as well, it's a bit surprising he even gets selected.

i'd have gone with broad too.

Yup. The only decent tour he had was the Windies in 04.

Watch him get 5-for now  :D

You know its going to happen - Harmison will take 10 wickets in this test match and be an automatic choice for the 2008 season :shock:

larwood's gonna kill me cos i started this thread  :oops:

good start today anyway, 128-0 not long after lunch.

 Belly just gone.....expect a clatter now.

kp out as well now, very dodgy decision.

Dap and a catch is out in Sri Lanka I guess....local rules.

bugger.

Sounds like we got done by some dodgy decisions once again.

Still posted a good score though and hopefully we'll carry it on to make 350 or so

didn't see the cook LBW decision but the KP 'catch' was doubtful. i can't understand why they don't use the technology, the umpires obviously weren't sure.

ah well, 258-3 would be dream world  :mrgreen:

The Cook lbw was missing leg side (Botham said 'way down'), and the KP decision...well that was a joke. As Reg said, dap and catch is obviously a local rule in Sri Lanka....

Good to see Cook and Vaughan do well. KP is just shit at the moment and quite frankly is a waste of space. Can't keep blaming umpires. Our batsment are average at best tbh.

yeah KP's rubbish  :nuts:

i would like to see KP bowling a bit out there.

he's a good twirler, and can certainly rip the skin off it.

Well he hasn't done anything for ages now. I fear he will become the new Harmison and just be shit for the rest of his career. Wouldn't surprise me.

average over 50, 2 tons against india in the summer, are most explosive batsmen. Apart from that he's crap.

*Our

the most explosive South African batsman :wink:

Yes, but OUR South African batsman  :wink:

 8)

351 all out, not a bad score and a good knock by prior.

 :soapy tit wank:  Nah,i've been in bed all weekend with a nasty cold,in fact i was a bit concerned that no on would be starting a thread off! :D

Sri Lanka finished the day on 105-2,both the wickets falling to Sidebottom.Not a bad effort considering the pitch is probably still good,plus one of the wickets was Sangakkara :)

Not sure if anyone was listening to TMS early Sunday morning but Simon Hughes told a great story about Ian Botham.Apparently on one tour of Sri lanka the england team were staying in a hotel[obviously].They were sitting down eating dinner,all expect Beefy who'd ordered the turtle curry and was still wating for his.Finally his Beefiness got bored of waiting and went into the resturant to discover what had happened to his food.He found the cook trying to kill the turtle,but every time he tried to kill it the turtles head would hide back in his shell.Beefy told the cook to let him try,he pulled the turtles tail and his head popped out and Beefy slit its throat.

Amazing said the cook how did you know to do that?Well said Beefy i used to room with Gladstone Small and had to help him put his tie on in the morning  :Ride On Fatbury's Lovestick:

It probably loses something in the telling,i am an awful joke teller and i can't believe its a true story.But it had me in stiches at 6.30 in the morning after watching the Hitman lose :D

the other South African did well :wink:

At least we are competing (just about).

draw

 This test is a goner unless it rains....didn't score enough runs in th first innings

it's ok, we never win abroad

 Its obviously harder  playing abroad than at home....but as Rich says at least we've been competing.  Its just we have a habit of throwing away decent positions..

I see our bowlers bowled well then  :-))(

the bowlers are doing just about all that san be expected, its the batsmen that underperformed

it was really bowlers who underperformed at batting - KP, Bopara, Broad...

i thought Harmy bowled really well today with no luck. Jawardeyne(spelling) batted really with Vandort and to certain extent with Chamara Silva. Need quick wickets really early tomorrow morning.