The best Ashes rivalries are off the field

 

Roar Rookie

By Fred Magee, 18 Jul 2009 Fred Magee is a Roar Rookie

Tagged:

 Australian Cricket, Cricket, english cricket, Ricky Ponting, The Ashes

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Ashes history is full of on-field rivalries which have dictated the fortunes of both sides for many years. But the most memorable are those that happen off the field.

No matter what the sport, being able to score points against your mates while your teams are fighting to do likewise on the field is one of the elements that make watching sport so enjoyable.

Nothing proved this more than what happened as I was watching the second day’s play from the Lord’s Test Match.

As I watched the replay of Ricky Ponting being caught at first slip (after the ball hit the middle of the pad), my phone sounded with a SMS.

It was from an English mate of mine expressing his joy at his dismissal; a joy only enhanced by the fact that he knew Ponting didn’t hit the ball.

I replied as any Australian supporter would – saying that the Poms were lucky to get him out seeing he scored 150 in the previous Test. He rambled on about Ponting being out LBW anyway., and thus the banter commenced for the evening.

The fact that he was watching the Test match being streamed live off the net in an Irish pub in Tokyo was an interesting aside as well.

This SMS exchange brought back memories of recent Ashes series past, of exchanging SMS messages during the final stages of the Oval Test in 2005.

I was in Sydney and my mate was in Singapore, but that didn’t stop us trading blows along with the fluctuating fortunes of both sides that final day.

It ended with a virtual shake of hands in the early hours of the morning, exhausted at the amount of effort we had both gone through watching the day’s events on the TV.

Thankfully, I was able to exact revenge face to face as he joined me on the final day at the SCG as Hayden and Langer saw Australia home prior to lunch and deliver the 5-0 whitewash that restored order in Australia-England cricket relations.

This was quickly followed by several celebratory-commiserating ales depending on who was buying.

So it lead me to think and ask my Roar brethren as to whether they had shared or were currently in the midst of similar rivalries with mates during this Ashes series?

There is nothing like a bit of banter, be it across the street or across the globe, especially in the wee small hours in the morning.

The floor is yours.

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