From the abyss to the..................

You could always go for 11 new faces for the next series but that's not realistic. When Clarke has dug in he's looked good but every time he loses concentration he gets out. Trott and Cook never lost concentration and therefore got huge tons.

I haven't heard Skull talk about Hughes but I think the guy can do it, whether his temperament can improve enough I'm not sure. He's worked on his technique but shot selection has brought his downfall - like most of our batsmen - and therefore I don't think you can be harder on him than anyone else. Watson is infuriating; more often than not gets Aus off to a great start but throws it away either by edging or running himself/others out.

My 15 going forward for the next 2 years:

Hughes
Watson
Shaun Marsh
Khawaja
Clarke
Mike Hussey
David Hussey
Haddin/Paine
Hauritz
O'Keefe
Starc
Siddle
Peter George
Mark Cameron
James Pattinson

Hughes is obviously a contentious issue but in my view there isn't many opening options around the country at present. Cosgrove could be one of few others.

I think Haddin is important and Paine has time to make his mark. Keeping some senior players is vital which is why I've included Mike Hussey but fear he'll retire before 2 years is up. David Hussey is 32 and could well do what his brother did upon entering the Aus set up.

Quicks are around - who knows who will stand up and grab some poles? If Johnson wants back in he has to find consistency. Noone is expecting him to bowl like McGrath but bloody hell he can't keep bowling like an uncoordinated under 10!

Spin is a major issue and I fear the main role for a spinner for the next 2 years will be a container rather than a strike bowler. I guess Swann didn't take the game apart during the Ashes but still bowled well as the series wore on and played a part keeping pressure on.

Watson, Khawaja and the Husseys form a group you can plan your batting around. If Marsh can open you can have Watson, Marsh, Khawaja, Hussey and Hussey as your top 5. Not bad in my view. Obviously Clarke would not bat at 6 but if he's not in form anyway...........

As Border did, time to draw a line in the sand and move forward. Honest appraisals and determination to do better. If the bowling is good it may get you out but you just cannot gift it to them. Too often Aus' batsmen have succumbed to the pressure by England's bowlers by fishing outside off when there was no need to play a shot. Our bowlers lacked pressure and innovation, getting into modes of just putting it up there without any consistency. You may not win many test matches against a team like England with the personnel Aus has got but you can fight and 3 innings losses in a 5 test series smacks of folding when it gets hard.

Well done England who deserve the rewards for excellent planning and execution.

Ouch, what just happened?

Let this be a lesson to selection of overseas touring parties: ALWAYS pick backups for each area of your team. This means: batsman (middle order), keeper, pace bowler and spin bowler. Obviously this depends on the depth to choose from; for instance if the spinner you're talking about couldn't turn the ball to save their life don't bother. I know that David Boon used to take the gloves on occasions but with the tendency for keepers now to be more than half-decent batsmen too, I think there's even more reason to include Wade or Manou. When a pace bowler breaks down obviously there needs to be someone to take their place; same goes for a batsman. It begs the question; what were the selectors going to do if Katich or Clarke broke down. With the latter this was certainly going to be a risk. What if it occurred two days before the start of a test (which it has)? Contingency plans are indicative of good preparation. No doubt if North had not eaten some rancid wild boar there would be nothing to say on the issue. But because Aus danced with the culinary devil the great debutant is lying in a hospital bed and the first 11 is missing a number six.

It must also be acknowledged that day one of the third test highlighted how close South Africa and Australia are. If one team is not quite on the ball this is exploited ferociously by their opposition. I would ask, however, if Macdonald is picked as an allrounder then why would he bat at seven while Haddin is put up to six. That being said your top order is picked to do a job (ie take the shine off the new ball and make runs!) and your number eight should be getting bonus runs: not required runs. Whereas it appears RSA has made good changes; at least with their opening batsmen so far, Aus has looked short with the bat and no options that could have prevented such an event .

RSA came out with more purpose and fire than in the previous two tests and the Aus batsmen were not up to the task (save Katich, Haddin and Johnson). This was to be expected as pride is on the line for RSA. Hughes will hopefully have learnt another lesson about intent and respecting the bowling, the selectors will hopefully have learnt a lesson about picking a touring party for England. And Hussey will ideally have learnt a lesson about one's place in the team before the first test of the Ashes when he is dropped.