England's tepid victory overshadowed
St Lucia - Englandβs would not have lived long in the memory were it not for the events that surrounded it.
By mid-afternoon in St Lucia, discussion of had become frivolous next to the news of the .
Before taking the Pakistan job in 2004, Woolmer worked as a high performance coach with the non-Test nations.
He would have been impressed as Canada recorded their highest World Cup score, with key contributions from home-grown batsmen Ashif Mulla and Abdool Samad in a stand of 96 for the fifth wicket.
England will struggle to use the score line as evidence their World Cup campaign is back on course.
They learned little in an uninspiring win and were arguably less impressive than in .
They now have five days before their next match against Kenya, in which to stew over the repercussions of Fridayβs escapades, which saw five players fined and Flintoff banned from this match and disbarred as vice-captain.
Put in to bat, Englandβs batsmen began timidly, only passing the 250 mark thanks to some late thrashing β a possible template against a top team but not one like this.
Their decision to give back-up bowlers a good run made sense in the bigger picture of the tournament but it is not the way Australia go about facing a lesser side.
Ed Joyce desperately needed runs to keep hold of his place at the top of the order ahead of Andrew Strauss. He got them, but in unconvincing fashion, dropped in the covers on 30 and behind on 46. Perhaps England will argue they are damned if they donβt go on the attack and damned if they do, as Joyce and Ian Bell will both be blamed for expansive shots.
But they are simply unable to find a middle ground, unable to nudge into unoccupied areas until Paul Collingwood arrives at the crease.
βCome on England, this is a one-day international!β shouted one traveling fan, with justification, at 200-4 in the 43rd over.
On the same pitch used by Canada in their game against Kenya last Wednesday it was never going to be easy to score freely against the spinners.
Left-armer Sunil Dhaniram β who spends most of his time working as a fork-lift truck driver - and off-spinner John Davison exploited the conditions by bowling briskly on a full length.
Fortunately for England, once those trump cards were used, Canada had an empty hand.
But where were the big early shots against a pace attack that would be mauled by most county sides?
Collingwood and Ravi Bopara β whose opportunity was the one positive to come from Friday nightβs debacle β showed how it should be done in a run-a-ball half-century stand.
Collingwood started to motor in the final five overs for an unbeaten 62 and Paul Nixon did exactly what he was brought into the side to do, with some extravagant shots in his eight-ball 23.
England would not have nominated this line-up β containing just three front-line bowlers β against a Test nation.
Bopara and Jamie Dalrymple were in effect auditioning for a single spot, with Dalrymple again struggling for consistency on a pitch he should have found ideal.
Bopara took two neat wickets but did not suggest he is a 10-over option at a higher level.
Against Canada's top order, James Anderson was below par and Liam Plunkett profligate for the second successive game, increasing the need for a fully-firing Flintoff in the games to come.
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Shocked and saddened by the sudden death of Bob Woolmer. The cricket didn't seem to matter after that.
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I'm a Warwickshire fan of 30 years and I've just heard the news and I'm in shock - I saw him pack his bags on TV just 24 hours ago.
Bob Woolmer was an amazing coach and more importantly a great man. Never too busy to discuss the views of the common fan, never so aloof that he couldn't inspire all those who played under him. I've debated points with Bob on Warwickshire's internet forum, and regardless of the inanity we were spouting, Bob was curteous and enthusiastic in listening and responding.
Many of the greatest spectacles that I've seen on a cricket field were under his stewardship - from that heady evening at Lords in 1993 through Lara's 501, the B&H win against Worcs, Championship against Hampshire and the Sunday league at Bristol. In each case, it was clear that Bob was a beacon for the team.
I thought he might well be the next England coach and it's a great shame he will never get the chance.
This is a huge loss for his family, for cricket and for our club. Whatever killed Bob, and it seems unclear at this stage, he will be remembered with enormous fondness by anybody who came into contact with him.
I'm not sure I can even carry on watching the world cup now... In a world where "Great" is over used, he certainly was....
Will
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Englands bowling looked insipid without Flintoff, I am not sure that either Dalrymple or Bopara did enough with the ball, I would rather Lewis was included, allowing 5 front line bowlers, including Flintoff a decent batsman and Plunkett who can bat a bit.
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I fully agree with Andy Sea (above).
Woolmer was a man of great integrity who was not afraid to push the boundaries.
If I was in charge of the Pakistan team now, I would forfeit the final match and go home. This would give everyone involved in Cricket, from the fans, players, and TV companies to the sponsors, a minute to review their values and consider their motivations.
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Devastated about Bob Woolmer. I actually thought he would've replaced Fletch after the World Cup, and a good job he would've done too.
For the Kenya game, I suggest bringing in Flintoff for Dalrymple. Up to this point I have been impressed with Dalrymple and he seemed to be progressing well, but Bopara just has the right body language and he looks capable of delivering straight away despite his lack of experience. This game highlighted England's lack of depth in the bowling department - there's no way we should be turning to spin in the 12th over. I hope the players can buck their ideas up, otherwise they don't deserve to be in the tournament.
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Well, we (Canada) are still minnows but our guys gave it their best. Well done, gents!
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I agree with Andy. As soon as I heard about Bob Woolmer's death my attention was diverted away from the cricket match to a source where I could find out more. Shocking and tragic he will be a sad loss to England and Cricket in general. Pakistan are playing their remaining game which is good for the sport as it must go on but this is one of the days when sport is irrevelant. Our thoughts must be with Bob Woolmer's relatives/friends as we have lost a great sportsman of the game.
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Not sure I agree with this, Mr Gough. - I'd say that England took heart from the examples of Bangladesh & Ireland - and smashed their way to victory. Three minnow victories in only two days has to be good news for cricket.
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As an Irishman I am very sad indeed to hear of Bob Woolmers death. He was a great servant to cricket and always played the game in its proper spirit. He appears to have had the affection and earned the respect of all who played with and against him in his career. No man can have a greater legacy.
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England don't have the fire power to bowl out my Sunday League team in 50 overs.
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Well played Canada! But a long way to go.
OK so England fielded a below par squad, on a bad day for cricket.
Please no more Paul Nixon. Kenya can put this lot out their misery, manager and all.
Yet I fear the gods of Survivor' as England fly below the radar. They may yet still creep to the semis
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Well played Canada! But a long way to go.
OK so England fielded a below par squad, on a bad day for cricket.
Please no more Paul Nixon. Kenya can put this lot out their misery, manager and all.
Yet I fear the gods of Survivor' as England fly below the radar. They may yet still creep to the semis
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Don't forget that Flintoff did play in our unsuccessful game aginst NZ. There is every chance he would have made 0 difference today. Please don't hype him up to be the team saviour, there's been far too much of that over the last couple of years. Right now I'd say England were missing more than the presence of one fully firing strike bowler. I will not be surprised if we lose to Kenya, going on our last two lack lustre performances. Improvement is needed in all areas if we're to make any impact in this tournament.
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Terrible news and a terrible day for cricket. If the England players could show the enthusiasm and commitment that Bob Woolmer was famous for they'd walk off with the cup.
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wrong team wrong selection wrong changes
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R.I.P. Bob Woolmer, a gentleman if ever there was one. He will be sadly missed by many. My heartfelt sympathy goes out to his family
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Expat in Calgary...
Canada scoring two hundred runs against England... who would believe it ... mind you Ireland beating Pakistan, yesterday, who would believe that!
Not so sure about these so called minnows, are you Mr. Holding?
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Condolences to all Bob's friends and family, and he certainly seems to have had very many friends and admirers in the cricketing world, from the comments showing up on the Blog sites.
The game seems to have meant a very great deal to him, and it is almost as if that loss to the Irish side, by the team that he coached, actually literally broke his great heart.
Rest In Peace, Bob Woolmer.
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Mr Woolmer......you will be missed...........
Englands performace's so far remind me of England's Football team in the World cup last year, unispiring, and lacking any sort of creatvivity. Not too sure what it is down to but after about 10 overs we look like a second rate team and not one bowler so far looks like he is going to take a wicket or even put on any sort of pressure, it is so frustrating watching.
Things need to change for the Kenya game, THEY CAN BEAT ENGLAND, make no bones about that, they will give us a tougher game than the Canadians and between then and now we need to find a guy that can take a wicket in between the 10th and 48th over, if we dont, i can see the headlines next Sunday now..............and I for one wont be buying that paper.....
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The victory was quite rightly described as tepid. However given the disruption caused by the Flintoff affair and the warning given as ireland saw off Pakistan I think to secure the victory was the important thing. The same again against kenya to get us through and build up some confidence and then we can begin to motor. At this point I would much rather be an England supporter than a pakistan supporter.
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job done were in the tournament for real now win, win ,win is the name of the game, against whoever we play.let's worry about other side's after we've beaten whoever we are playing at the time and not worry if we were playing australia we would have got beat, we don't know that.it's an old saying but one game at a time.so now let's concentrate on kenya and just make sure we win and not on how many we should be beating them by.
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England should be very careful with Kenya particularly now that Ireland have shown the way and Pakistan are on the way home.
Australia will probably win the cup with the West Indies playing the finals.
England have the best chance to defeat the AUssies given recent history. Bu t will probably fall before they can get going. Flintoff's suspension will not help.
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I was shocked at the death of Robert Woolmer. It just goes to show we never know. I just wonder if this was brought on by Park. exit. I was also sadden and shocked about the comments of Ian Botham. Such comments is very harmful. 'His only crime is that he got caught' i really have no time for him ever again. he has tarnish english cricket with his comments.
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Til blazes! Flintoff is a disgrace - he's worse than my building! Go on the silver! We are back on the road! well so want everyone to think!!!!!! DEP!
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In some ways Iβm glad England put in another forgettable performance against Canada. If they had beaten the minnows convincingly we may have been duped into believing that we have a team that can actually challenge for the title.
It would have been great to see England beat Canada convincingly, like Australia and SA beat the Netherlands or Sri Lanka beat Bermuda, to give both the team and their supporters a lift. It was bound to be a lift of short duration though, as weβd then have to put up with England losing miserably to the first decent team they come across in the knockout stages.
I would have thoroughly enjoyed watching the England batsmen cashing in on some batting practice, nudging and nurdling the ball around during the middle of the innings to keep the scoreboard ticking over, playing some big shots at the start and finish. Then, the bowlers could have come in and cleaned the opposition up quickly and effectively.
Instead, the batsmen got bogged down and threw away their wickets, four of the six falling to slog sweeps or premeditated reverse sweeps. Why is it that the England batsmen persist in attempting to play these shots? Whatβs wrong with hitting the ball straight back over the bowlerβs head?
Itβs hard to imagine how England, against tougher opposition, will not score fewer runs and concede more, tipping the equation away from victory and towards defeat.
And itβs hard not to admire the smaller nations who have shown that it is not only skill but also application and desire that can be the difference between defeat and victory. Well done to Canada, well done to Ireland and well done to Bangladesh. Now my hope is that England loses to Kenya so we can forget all about this mediocre team, and start watching the ones who are out there to play good cricket and win the world cup.
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The biggest loss the sport has had in a long time, Bob Woolmer seemed to have so much left to give to the game, truely inspirational, a technical genius. Its a sad loss for a great man.
My deepest sympathy to his wife and sons
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No doubt it will help England's seige mentality especially if they only scrape a win off Kenya.
When Fletcher's vicar in the media Nasser calls it a drinking culture we know it is a drinking culture.
At least the reasons for the selection of bellicose socialisers at the expense of earnest triers is explained. Also the fact that some players seem not to perform and get clearly cold shouldered by the captain(s) in the field.
Regardless of whether this team somehow goes on to some success in this tournament the stop start inconsistency and injury proneness of prominent drunks, sorry players, surely means a total over haul of coaching, captaincy, management and selectors is urgently required.
Or else the very talented group we have will continue to be inconsistent and destory/de-motivate those happier not to be in a bar.
This is not the early 80s like Football 15 years ago when Graham Taylor remarked on re-fuelling habits it is time to get into the 21st century with regard to conditioning and the 20th century on selecting on merit at least.
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wonder if mr Gough would care to contemplate his previous article where he commented on Ravi Boapara - writting him off as the 'theo walcott' of the england cricket squad.
he might have got his oppotunity in suspect circumstances, but i cant imagine many people would be arguing that he shouldnt take over from dalrymple. in my opinion, he should have been there from the start.
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I cannot pretend any connection with Bob Woolmer, other than what I have read in the press over the years; other than what I have heard on the wireless. However, reading through the many tributes, one thing above all about the man seems to stand out - viz. the common touch - the idea that any man's opinion deserves to be listened to, purely out of human respect. As one whose cricketing memories go back to Gentlemen v Players matches at Lord's - and that memorable Lord's tannoy correcting a scorecard misprint from "F.J. Titmus" to "Titmus, F.J." - I have welcomed the levelling. RIP Mr Woolmer. "Any man's death diminishes me."
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The selection process needs to be reviewed PDQ. There is an opportunity to use Nixon as a pinch hitter at the top of the order instead of Joyce and bring back Flintoff. Lewis or Plunkett batting at 9 should not be a concern.
The batting would be nicely balanced between the grinders and some flair down to Dalrymple at no. 8.
It has been said by a few that the back up bowlers will be key during the tournament, which I agree with. Bopara, Dalrymple and Collingwood, plus maybe Bell and Pieterson (depending on conditions) to back up Flintoff, Anderson, Lewis and Panesar - the red and yellow tie brigade will be up in arms.
Think of the following team -
Vaughn, Nixon, Bell, Pieterson, Flintoff, Collingwood, Bopara, Dalrymple, Lewis, Anderson & Panesar.
The line up could be tweaked to try and ensure at least one of the big hitters are around for the power plays, otherwise I would put Flintoff higher up the order.
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England's bowling attack is too 'samey' with too many fast-medium bowlers. There's no way England are going to achieve anything with the attack that played against Canada.
I would pick Mahmood instead of Anderson. He might be inconsistent but he's tall and quicker than any other England bowler. He would offer something different and he did play (and take wickets) in all the recent victories over Australia.
The Australians after all are taking a chance on the fast but occasionally wayward Tait. But then what do they know?
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Terible news about Bob Woolmar. He's done so much for cricket, especially in the associate nations. Ireland proved yesterday how far the minnows have come since the last world cup. He'll be dearly missed. He would have made a great english coach.
The english public are a fickle lot.
I'm not surprised England are not setting the world alight. Judging by comments on this website and others over the last few months the players get little support from the fans, the media, and former players. I think every player has been demonised and criticised.
Until he scored a couple of centuries over here in Australia, Collingwood was 'useless' 'pathetic' etc.
Bell is 'too slow'. Vaughan is a 'lame duck' Dalrymple is useless. Nixon is over the hill. Anderson can't bowl. And there seems to be a concerted vendetta against Ed Joyce, the second highest scoring batsman in the CB series and England's top scorer yesterday.
The only players that England supporters seem to like are the ones who aren't in the team, Strauss, Read, Shah etc
As a result of all this criticism, the players are playing for themselves and their careers, not for their team and it shows - they are terrified of taking any risks. The slow hand clap during england's innings yesterday was disgraceful, and I felt it led to Joyce and Bell's dismissmals, as they felt pressured to play bad shots. These are young guys who need to build confidence.
Do England fans take a perverse pleasure in seeing their team do badly? Compare this to the Aussie public who support their team. When someone like Hayden is out of form the country sticks with him until he gets back in. If every Aussie was dropped from the team after a few poor performances we wouldn't be the world champions. Symonds' and Warne's early games were shockers. Steve Waugh and Mark Taylor all had bad runs, but Australia stuck with them, because we are a team.
As an Aussie, I have a lot of time for the English players: Joyce, Bell, Plunkett and Dalrymple will be class acts if they are given the opportunity to develop.
Stop whinging and get behind your team for god's sake.
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Wow....... how unimpressive was this. I live in the US and had beenm so excited for a year to come to this. I could have flown to England and watched Dorset versus Devon for more cricketing fun.
The team lacks talent, e all know that. But it also lacks a sense of conviction and energy. No matter how much Nixon runs around and throws the ball in the in field this is mostly a poor group of individuals. Vaughan, Nixon, Collingwood and Bell deserve a place, even KP looks lazy whe nhe bats. The others are little more than fill right now. If they adjusted their attitude you might see a difference but the fealing is that the team was flatterred at the end of the tour down under.
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Uninspired though England's performances may have been so far, no team wins a World Cup during the qualifying stages. Before everyone gets on the bandwagon and slags them off lets judge their performance after it's all finished, whenever that may be. It wasn't that long ago that all and sundry were slating them for their initial ODI games in Australia but then hailing them as World Cup winners-elect after the final five games.
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Why is it that Nixon the wicket-keeper has to show the 'batsmen' how to play the reverse-sweep?
His attitude is always positive and encouraging - he wanted to hit every ball. Great to see!
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Through all the trials and tribulations of the first few days of the World Cup of Cricket - and my thoughts and condolences go out to Bob Woolmer's family - the remarkable performances of Ireland and Canada shine through. Oliver Brett's description of England's pathetic performance against Canada as "seeing off the minnows" ranks right up there with the unparallelled arrogance usually associated with England's sporting commentators (Martin Gough excepted!). Minnows are freshwater fish of the carp family actually and very well regarded in fishing circles I am told! If England paid a little more attention to their childish, petulant bahavior on and around the cricket pitch and gave slightly more credit to the up and coming minnows in the cricket world, their reputation as the arrogant, noses-in-the-air snobs might be ameliorated.
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What is sacrosanct about a batting order? Surely at 101-1 after 20 overs you do not need Bell to consolidate, you need Pietersen to keep up the momentum. With Vaughan the outgoing batsman, this is clearly another decision that fell on Duncan Fletcher and he got it got hopelessly wrong.
Whatever the situation of the game, we stick to the advertised order. Where is the flexibility? We don't hand in a sheet beforehand that says which bowler will bowl each of the 50 overs?
So we end up with Pietersen arriving at the crease after 32 overs, as the run rate is slowing, quick wickets fall and we have to consolidate.
These innings only last 50 overs, for most of which the opposition isn't trying to get you out, just to contain. If you are not in the top four, you are probably unlikely to see enough overs to get a big score, unless the top order gets wiped out and you can turn things round.
You have to get your hitters in early, whilst the power plays are in effect, otherwise you are struggling to top 250 even against one of the minnows. Alternatively you have to keep the opposition down below that score, and we couldn't even bowl Canada out.
I previously predicted Australia's omission of Stuart Clark might haunt them, but Brett Lee's injury may be a blessing in disguise.
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When we won the Ashes in 2005, Freddie was and is a star. He was every childs dream cricketer. Thousands of Kids of all ages went out and bought his kit. He is ( was) a role model to every kid at school . He has let everyone of his fans down and the least he can do is to offer a public appology or else get the next flight back !
I am a true fan of England, but this is not the standard of cricketers I want around and I applaud the management for the action taken . However there is news that he was in similar behaviour down under and that must be sad to note. We the public need to know what he was upto in Australia - the press owe that to us !
Ian Bothams comment that this is 'normal' is of the old school of thought when cricketers were out for fun at every oppourtunity. Times have changed and Nasser was right that this should not be allowed and that is what happens in modern games - play hard, train hard .
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Teecee
Thanks for another blinkered view of English cricket. The reason Aussies get behind individuals is that the team is very successful with or without them on form - it would be quite a different story if the team as a whole were struggling. I am old enough to remember the pasting the Aussie team took from their own press in the 81 series so please don't patronise English supporters who have every right to criticise their players - especially based on some insipid performances this winter. What we could definitely learn from Aussies is commitment and passion which this team has sadly lacked for a long time.
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Zizbo
I don't remember 1981 - has it been 26 years since the Aussie public last got stuck into their team? Funny that - we only recently lost the CB series and the Cheppell-Hadlee I dont hear calls for mass sackings or grumblings from the fans. Hussey's been in bad form, Ponting hasn't been too flash of late. Our bowlers aren't that scary any more - but these guys are part of the team, there's no question about their positions.
Not like in England where your guys are under unbelievable pressure. They're only as good as their next failure. They get no support from the so-called fans and vindicitive media commentators.
Don't get me wrong. I want to see england do well. Like I said earlier, I think you have the nucleus of a great side, but the English public's constant whinging and carping is counter-productive. The CB series proved that this England side is capable of competing with the best - there's no shortage of ability with the current crop of England players. But, to an outsider, it looks as if your top batsmen are too scared to express themselves.
Why not settle on a side and let it develop, rather than constantly calling for heads to roll whenever someone has a bad patch? You can't build confidence in such an insecure and inconsistent environment.
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>sample resumes for human resource assistant
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