Collingwood gone for 50

Eng 221/7

South Africa's total was pretty good but apart from the odd one keeping low the conditions have been ok for England and we should be doing better!!! The batsmen just do the same thing match in match out and thats do the hard work to get their innings going and then get out.

We have to pray somehow Broad and Swann and take us past 300 and hope we can whip them out for a very very low score.

It's all but over in truth though.

The batting fails yet again...i wonder which bowlers will get dropped for the next test then????

Shocking call for the Broad wicket, 35 seconds!!! No doubt the SA dressing room had watched a replay



Swann and Anderson showing some fight at least.

318-8 - 100 behind.

Great stuff from Swann & Anderson, we are at least back with a sniff.

Mind you, I won't fancy chasing anything more than 250 to win the match, especially as it seems our numbers 9&10 are the only pair with any batting nous...

It's scary the amount of times we rely on our lower order to rescue matches for us. The top 6 need to take a long hard look at themselves really. Good job we got an early wicket, need to hope we get some quick wickets in the morning.

I just love your positive outlook

Great start today. Another couple of wickets and we're laughing

Well the wickets looks to have dried up. We really had them on the back foot this morning but they're getting control back with this partnership.

We don't want to be chasing more then 250 i'd say. I suppose we'd still be in with a sniff at 280-300 but it's a very very big as with the pressure that would be on and the fact that our batsmen don't seem able to concentrate their way past 30's, 40's and 50's.

I don't think I'm being negative, just stating facts, as is being backed up, not only in this test, but also over the last few years when we have been without Flintoff.

We don't have a Warne/McGrath style pair of bowlers, thus we are currently allowing the South Africans to wriggle out of an uncomfortable position....similarly, yesterday our batsman were unable to dominate at any point, and we had to rely on our tail enders to bail us out...Unfortunately, this cannot happen every time and ultimately we will be found out more often than not.

Duminy gone. Need to rattle through them now.

We're going to have to bat for a day and possibly a few others tonight by the looks of it to save this game. If the batsmen play properly and don't give their wickets away then that shouldn't be a problem imo. The pitch looks to be playing aswell as it has throughout the whole match and we've played the extra batsman(well thats if Bell remembers he's got a bat in his hands).

As I type that Amla wicket is very very worrying. The balls been pretty true today until that rolled along the ground



Could be a tougher ask then I thought if that keeps happening.

We will do well to get through tomorrow....I sense another Cardiff on the cards, only Jimmy is already at the crease, and Monty is no longer around.

No chance of an England victory, its upto a few of our guys to show some balls.

A poor start today, see we are doing the usual ENGLISH thing and trying to block through the day

Suicidal run and Pietersen is run out for 80!

Thats probably the begining of the end of England.

England doing their best to lose the match

Eng 208/7

8 overs remaining.

Eng 228/9

Match Drawn

phew.

England need to take a long hard look at Cooke,Prior and Bell.

Can't drop Prior after 1 iffy match with the bat...He was outstanding against the Aussies.

Agree that Cook is beginning to look on thin ice, and as for Bell??...Well, the ice gave way and he sank a long, long time ago...the fellow shouldn't even be in the touring party....He's this generation's Greame Hick...

Wright, Plunkett or Sidebottom for Bell would be the most likely change. I'm not convinced Wright is a much better bowler than Collingwood, Plunkett is a very capable lower order batsman, Sidebottom in for Bell with Broad & Swann moving up a place would obviously leave us with a long tail.

They can't drop Cook as well as Bell as they only took six specialist batsmen in the Test squad. Unless I'm very much mistaken the five players in the squad not included in the First Test are Wright, Plunkett, Sidebottom, Rashid and Steven Davies. I think Tredwell and Mark Davies are also out there at the moment following a series of minor injuries to various bowlers.

Disagree. A lazy glance at Prior, a stern glare at Cook and an obsessive, elongated stare at Bell (Just to make sure he has definately left the building!)

Cook gets hailed as a future England captain etc etc but he really needs to start performing with the bat. He is nowhere near the player he was when he first came into the side. Bell should not even be there. Plunkett would not be a bad option as he can bat a bit and push Swann, Broad and Prior up one place each. Sidebottom is the better bowler, just depends on how the pitch looks I suppose.

Bell has to go - the amount of times he has failed when England needed a good innings has been startling. As someone said, he is the Graeme Hick of this generation, just not as good.

I would go with Sidebottom for the next test if the weather offers any assistance. He offers control and discipline.

As far as Luke Wright is concerned, I am not convinced his bowling is test match standard. he is above the likes of Collingwood as he is far mroe pacey and dangerous, but has not done enough at County level to suggets he is a perfromer and the same can be said about his batting. He is a talent, but I think England need an 'old reliable' in this series.

I don't get all the talk about Cook being future England captain at all. He should be considered as a player that could 'possibly' have a future as an England batsmen but only if he picks his game up. His poor run of form is now just starting to look like a guy that simply has to many frailties to be in the side at the moment. His issue is technique not form imo.

As for Bell i've never been a fan. He has probably the best technique of all the England players but he just doesn't have the attitude to tough it out in test match cricket. I just wish we could give Collingwoods mentle toughness to Bell and then you'd have one of the worlds best players on your hands. I'd have picked Ravi Bopara in the squad ahead of Bell even though his Ashes form was horrendous. He's never a number 3 but a place at 5 or 6 in this series would have suited him imo and it would have been handy to have the option of him bowling a few overs. He's a really classy player and long term I think he'll become a cracking test match batsman at 5 or 6.

Moving onto Prior. His place should be under no pressure whatsoever imo. He's had a quietish time of it with the bat during the Ashes and in this test but he's got a great record and his keeping has come on fantastically well. He's doing nothing wrong with the gloves whatsoever after working really hard to improve. I get the feeling his hard work with the gloves may be effecting his batting but hopefully he can put both things together soon enough. I think he's a fantastic player tbh.

We should be positive for the next test and bring Sidebottam or Plunkett in for Bell. If you want a little bit more depth to the batting then it would have to be Plunkett. He would probably bat at 9 and along with Broad at 7 and Swann at 8 should just about be able to make up for the lack of a genuine batting number 7.

As has been the case with most of England's last few 'keepers, the clamour for Prior to be dropped only comes about because he hasn't pummelled 100 off 70 balls or similar.

Adam Gilchrist has got a lot to answer for!