England has deservedly won the 2010-11 Ashes series 3-1 after completing its unprecedented third innings victory over Australia. There has been some media discussion about Australia’s performance in comparative terms.
A caller to ABC Radio suggested this was the “worst Australian team ever,” which drew a rebuttal from Jim Maxwell that 1978-79 was a more insipid performance.
My immediate reaction was to disagree with Maxwell on the basis that in 1978-79 Australia had a developing team of youngsters, rejects and loyalists.
The best players of the era were mercenaries/trailblazers with Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket, forsaking the baggy green for a yellow cap and cash.
That summer, at the age of 12, was also the first time I took any interest in the national side and Allan Border became my boyhood hero. I wonder if any new members of the current Australian side will become heroes to a generation?
Australia lost the 1978-79 series 5-1 and went down 3-1 in 2010-11 in a shorter series. I doubt there is anyone, however, who doesn’t believe England would have won the current series 5-1 if two extra Tests were played in Sydney and Melbourne or Hobart.
Starting team:
1978-79: Graham Wood, Gary Cosier, Peter Toohey, Graham Yallop, Kim Hughes, Trevor Laughlin, John Maclean, Bruce Yardley, Rodney Hogg, Allan Hurst, Jim Higgs.
2010-11: Shane Watson, Simon Katich, Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke, Mike Hussey, Marcus Northe, Brad Haddin, Mitch Johnson, Xavier Doherty, Peter Siddle, Ben Hilfenhaus.
I would back the 1978-79 side in a contest between the two. The vintage team had a suspect top order, but Wood, Yallop and Hughes were class players. The bowling attack was much stronger and better balanced than today’s line-up.
First Test at Brisbane
1978-79: England won by seven wickets after an Australian batting collapse in the first innings. Australia batted reasonably well in the second dig, with centuries to Yallop and Hughes. Hogg took seven wickets for the match and Hurst four.
Points: England 6 Australia 4
2010-11: Match drawn. Hussey and Haddin scored centuries, Siddle took six wickets. England amassed 1/517 in their first innings.
Points: England 5 Australia 5
Second Test
1978-79 (Perth): England outclassed Australia to win by 166 runs. Hogg took 10 wickets, Hurst and Yardley four each as England were dismissed twice. The batting failed twice, with only Toohey and Wood scoring half centuries.
Points: England 7 Australia 3
2010-11 (Adelaide): England won by an innings and 71 runs. Hussey and Watson both scored two half centuries, but nobody made a ton for Australia on a good batting deck. Harris was the “best” bowler with 2/84.
Points England 8 Australia 2
Third Test
1978-79 (Melbourne): Australia won by 103 runs. Wood made a century and Border 29 on debut. The bowlers dominated, with Hogg taking 10 wickets and Dymock five.
Points: Australia 7, England 3
2010-11 (Perth): Australia won by 267 runs. Hussey scored 61 and 116, Watson made 95 in the second innings. Johnson and Harris snared nine wickets each.
Points: Australia 8 England 2
Fourth Test
1978-79 (Sydney): England won by 93 runs after Australia collapsed for 111 chasing 205 for victory. Border scored 105 runs without being dismissed and bowled 23 overs. Higgs took eight wickets.
Points England 6 Australia 4
2010-11 (Melbourne): England won by an innings and 157 runs. Australia made just 98 in the first innings and 258 in the second. Siddle took six wickets.
Points: England 9 Australia 1
Fifth Test
1978-79 (Adelaide): England won by 205 runs. Australia’s batting failed in both innings. Hogg and Hurst took seven wickets each.
Points: England 8 Australia 2
2010-11 (Sydney): England won by an innings and 83 runs. The only batsmen to make half centuries were all-rounders Johnson and Smith. Johnson took four wickets.
Points: England 9 Australia 1
Sixth Test
1978-79 (Sydney): England won by nine wickets. Australia’s batting again failed twice to pass 200, even with Yallop contributing 121 in the first innings. Higgs took five wickets for the match.
Points: England 8 Australia 2
Points tallied (subjective measure)
1978-79: England 38 (6.3 average) Australia 22 (3.6)
2010-11: England 33 (6.6) Australia 13 (2.6)
The 1978-79 team failed regularly with the bat, but was frequently in a winning position. The best-performing batsman (Yallop) scored less than Hussey and Watson in 2010-11, but more than any other Australian.
The big difference between the two teams was the bowling. The 1978-79 side proved itself capable of dismissing England twice in a match. Hogg took 41 wickets, Hurst 25 and spinner Higgs 19. The “best” bowler in 2010-11 was Johnson 15.
The 1978-79 team had class players who performed well in Yallop, Hogg and Higgs. Promising youngsters included Wood, Hughes, Border, while Yardley and Dymock also went on to be successful Test players.
The 2010-11 team had good contributions from Hussey, Watson and Haddin, with a match-winning cameo from Johnson, otherwise the efforts were “solid” at best, eg Siddle and Harris.
It remains to be seen if any of the youngsters from 2010-11 go on to be as good as Border and Hughes, but on bowling strength alone the 1978-79 team was a better outfit.
At least after the 1978-79 humiliation Australia rose from the ashes. It’s hard to be sure the same improvement can be expected any time soon in 2011.
Some unwanted records from 2010-11:
– England won three matches in the series by more than an innings.
– England made its highest-ever innings score in Australia (644).
– England made four scores above 500 in a series for the first time.
Lolly
Guest
Any team with both Rick Darling and Gary Cosier as we had in 1978 is pretty poor. I don't see that level of uselessness in this bunch. Though Watson can just about match Darling for brainless running.
Fisher Price
Guest
I fear Punter's gigantic ego will drive him on, and the selectors won't tap him on the shoulder either. Haven't you heard? The players are disappointed and know they need to do better - but there's a lot of talent in the group.
Fisher Price
Guest
I don't agree that England had a rubbish side in 85 or 86/87. The likes of Marsh, Border, Boon, Jones, Waugh, Hughes, McDermott, Matthews and Reid weren't rubbish either.
The Barry
Roar Guru
roarr - I think you've made an excellent point about the "bubble" - and probably warrants an article of it's own. We'd heard from Michael Clarke's manager, batting coach, dad, ferrari dealer, selectors, Lara Bingle and CA that he is destined to be an Australian captain before he had even played a shield game. Has he earned the right to be spoken about like this ? He's been media hungry since Day 1 - waving his Slazenger sponsorship, new ferrari and Bingle in our faces - far from the humble approach we expect from our leaders. He's never captained at Shield level and having the c next to his name for a few one-dayers and T-20s doesn't prepare him to lead a Test team. While he has been an accumulator of runs I don't recall him dominating an entire series with the bat. What he has he actually done to warrant the FTC tag ?
Tony
Guest
Sheek, I'm not sure about that, we were pretty dreadful in 1985 and 1986/87. And as far as unavailable talent was concerned, you can say the same about 1978/79.
roarr
Guest
Yeah its quite the diasaster. Surely Ponting has enough brains to do a collingwood and step down. Is he really that submersed in the captaincy that he cant take a step back and have a look at the last couple of years and realise that its time for some new leadership... something, anything. Its jsut not working. On the contrary, I honestly cant think of anyonje to step up and lead the team for the next 5 years. Does allan border have any kids that are mid-20's. Doesnt matter if they can play cricket or not... as long as theyve got a bit of mongrel and the other players have the right amount of fear and respect for him. It seems to me that most of the xi have been so removed from normal society for the past 2-5 years that they are just in their own little CA cricket bubble. How to fix it? I dunno... it kinda seems like the next line of players are in the small little bubble. Groomed from about the age of 14-15 to play for their state and then earmarked for the test team. I'm glad I dont work for CA
Vinay Verma
Roar Guru
Viscount,best to wait till after the ascension. Charles has been waiting a long time.
sheek
Guest
Tony, I would back the mid-80s teams over this current lot. Besides, Australian cricket was divided back then. We had better talent, unfortunately half of it was in South Africa.
sheek
Guest
3 innings defeats out of 5, & opposition scores of 1-517, 5-620, 513 & 644 say this is the worst Australian Ashes team in history. If the fear of the future of test cricket doesn't send a shiver down the back of traditional cricket lovers, then we are truly lost.....
Tony
Guest
Surely the 1985 and 1986/87 vintage Australian teams should crack a mention in a Worst Team Ever competition. Australia was beaten comfortably both times despite England having a rubbish side propped up by a handful of top players.
Whiteline
Guest
Stevo - you are right, preparation was terrible. Evidently, that was one of the main 'reasons' behind 2005...seems we are slow learners. I remember watching 78/79 as a youngster. Laughlin at 6 makes Smith look like a reasonable batsman...ouch!
Viscount Crouchback
Guest
Tony Blair famously applied to Balliol College, Oxford and was dismissed by the Dons as "not bad - merely mediocre". I think the same applies to this Australian team. They are not bad - they are just (to coin a wonderful Australianism) "ordinary". And make no mistake, this England team is headed to Number 1, so there is no shame in losing to such a splendid outfit.
apaway
Roar Guru
Even thought there were mitigating circumstances, I have to agree with Jim Maxwell - the 1978-79 team was a much worse one than the current team. The difference being - the 1979 team had the potential to get better, the 2010-11 team are on the downslope.
Stevo
Guest
I don't think in terms of talent this is the worst Australian Test team ever. Clarke, Ponting, Katich and Hussey have all scored huge amounts of runs at test level. Johnson and Siddle have both picked up a fare haul of 5 wicket innings. Haddin is no slouch either. Watson has been scoring runs at a good rate recently too. What this team represents is the most ill-prepared Australian test team in the modern era. England knew where to bowl to every batsman, knew which balls to leave from every bowler and how to stand and play them to put them off. They were sharper in the field, and their field placements were superior. In contrast, the Australians looked all at sea against any ball that moved even slightly in the air (a problem that we still have over 5 years after Jones and Flintoff exposed it so obviously). The bowling was insipid, and I wouldn't be surprised if they hadn't done any fielding practice recently. The lack of a good spin bowler I think can be linked to the state of pitches in Australia. Most pitches for the 4-day domestic competition are either flat batsmen's paradises, or green tops for seaming bowlers. I can't remember the last time I saw a dusty pitch in Australia. How can we develop spin bowlers when the odds are so badly stacked against them?
dunc
Guest
I have been folllowing cricket pretty closely since the West Indies came to NZ in 1979 ...i saw Joel Garner up close when i was 11 years old....sorry...a tangent.... yes worst Australian team i have seen in my lifetime - especially on these measures: fielding, accurate bowling, grittiness, team cohesion, captaincy, selection, discipline......did i miss anything?
tommy
Guest
That last list could go alot further than that lol