Simon Jones not fit for The Oval

By Will 3 years ago, at the start of September Leave a comment on this post

Great shame - mainly for him. He’ll be devastated, having played such a key part in this series. But this isn’t the “end,” as the BBC’s listeners seem to think, of England’s Ashes chances. Far from it.

So - Collingwood or Anderson?

Tags: australia, england, james-anderson, paul-collingwood, simon-jones, the-ashes, the-oval |

Comments to “Simon Jones not fit for The Oval” Geoff wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 11.08 am

It’s a tricky one. It might even be considered more aggressive to pick Collingwood, intimating that Flintoff, Harmison, Giles, and Hoggard will be enough to see off the Australians.

I would certainly pick Anderson … if he could bat or field as well as Jones. He can’t.

Scott Wickstein wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 11.20 am

If England pick Anderson that’s fine with me. Collingwood’s a useful bat and a darn fine fielder; who’ll forget that marvellous catch he took to get rid of Hayden in the ODI at (Bristol, was it?)

Matt wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 11.40 am

Anderson will be a brave move considering his shocking performances in South Africa. His run up and delivery stride were all shot to pieces.

On the other hand, we will have to trust the selectors - they did well to go with Pieterson over Thorpe, and to stick with the same team after Lord’s, and haven’t made any big mistakes I can remember over the past few years. Anderson is bowling well for Lancs at the moment, but personally I’d be tempted to go for Collingwood. His fielding is worth a few runs on it’s own, and I can’t see his bowling getting smacked around, can you?

Another good thing about having Collingwood in the lineup is that Flintoff can move to 7, which eases some of the pressure on him, and with Jones the Wicket coming in at 8 that’s a pretty formidable batting lineup.

Greasychipbutty wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 12.01 pm

England expects everyman to do his duty!

http://www.raindancefortheashes.co.uk

chris wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 12.06 pm

The England batting is the key to getting a result at the oval. If they score heavily in their first innings (as they have already done in the last 3 tests) the bowling becomes less important. Get Collingwood in.

mark wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 12.18 pm

I think it has to be Collingwood. The argument for Anderson is that it keeps the shape of the team intact with 4 seamers but the situation dictates the more cautious option which means Collingwood should get the nod.

If England get another 400+ first innings score then it makes it difficult to lose. Collingwood just increases our chances of this. The fact that he can field superbly and bowl a bit is just a bonus.

Oscar Wildebeest wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 12.19 pm

You can justify Colly or Jimmy equally well. The upshot is that this is now Australia’s match to lose, especially if McGrath is fit (all this Stuart Clark nonsense is just a bluff).

Wraye wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 1.09 pm

I vote for Collingwood, handy with the bat and a safe pair of hands but he played in no Tests in 2004. Anderson is still a good player but went through some confidence problems last season.

Compare figures:
Collingwood: 21 ODI 363 runs@27.92, 9 wkts @34.66
Anderson: 12 ODI 13 runs @ 13, 13 wkts @ 35.61

Also think Collie’s quiet and selfless temperament would fit better in the team at this critical moment in time.

Chris Weston wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 1.43 pm

Collingwood is the right choice. He has the game to fit into this side, and will keep the batsmen honest in the field. I suspect the Australians would far rather see Anderson come in than Collingwood, knowing they have to win.

As for McGrath, I’ve not changed my opinion for several days, and that is that they won’t risk him.

Nick wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 2.47 pm

I’d go for Collingwood - he’ll strengthen the batting and the fielding and given that spin could be a factor, he and Vaughan would probably combine to make the fifth bowler in terms of overs.

Plus, given that England have placed a lot of importance on limiting Australian run scoring by field placement, having Collingwood patrolling in his usual position will no doubt stop a few hits that would otherwise go for boundaries and that’ll add to the pressure.

I’d bat him at number 7 though - moving Flintoff down the order after the way he batted at Trent Bridge seems a backward step, and Collingwood is a good batsman to have in with the tail.

As for the Australians, I think it’s 50/50 whether they take a chance on McGrath, but if they do I suspect they’ll drop a batsman to make way for him, so they have four seamers in case he breaks down.

chris wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 3.49 pm

As a England fan I really want Mcgrath to play and break down in the very first over on Thursday morning and then watch Ponting and Katich bowling together for good long spells into Saturday morning. I know I really shouldnÂ´t feel this way but I canÂ´t help it.

AlanR wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 5.34 pm

If you go to http://www.googlefight.com and type in “Paul Collingwood” and “James Anderson”, Anderson wins easily.

S wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 6.22 pm

Collingwood. The batting looks incredible then. Bat first and bat bat bat bat Australia out of the Ashes! Anderson is too unpredictable.

djbrd wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 7.52 pm

It has to be Anderson. Collingwood is there to be a substitute fielder (picked to cunningly deflect criticism and gain an advantage at the same time). Anderson’s record isn’t great this summer, but it isn’t bad either. Collingwood would be a very defensive choice. If we had to win the game then Anderson would be the obvious choice. But then I think we do have to win the game, because unless it rains a lot (at least a day and a half, maybe more), then a draw is highly unlikely.

Nanda Kishore wrote:
September 6th, 2005 at 7.57 pm

I think bowling has been key to England’s success this series, they’ve had Australia in trouble and under pressure every time. It’ll be hard for Anderson to bowl remotely as well as Jones has, but I’ll still go with the seamer.

Matt wrote:
September 7th, 2005 at 12.45 am

Anderson will play. They have to save Collingwood as a super sub to replace all the bowlers so they can have a quick massage before they bowl.

japaddy wrote:
September 7th, 2005 at 4.36 am

Collingwood, he has pluck and presence, and he may just make a telling contribution, forget balance, positivity/negativity, England need a Nobby Stiles, this game will be a scrap.

Lucy wrote:
September 7th, 2005 at 3.56 pm

I have to agree with the majority, Collingwood is the way for ward, i think it would balance the team alot more and give back up to bith batters and bowlers. Anderson’s track record is a little shakey recently and not sure if the final test in the ashes is a place to give him his confidence back, we need strong and confident!

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Simon Jones not fit for The Oval