The best way to do this would be to try and respond to the questions you have brought forward in the post:

1. Most depressing: Probably Martyn but thats just me. The bloke has as much talent, if not more than a lot of the side and he seems to just waste it. After a magic run through the subcontinent where all supporters hoped he had turned the corner and become a “tough” player, he falls back into old habits and has become the sides new “Mark Waugh”: plenty of talent but looks like he is wasting it at times. WA supporters will probably disagree and call it WA bashing, but its just massively irritating when he should be taking games by the scruff of the neck and doesn’t…

2. Clarke captaincy: Not yet. Just haven’t seen enough of him to make that judgement at this moment. He is logically the successor of Ponting but most Aussie supporters were planning on that being in about 5 years time, with Clarke firmly planted in the team and Ponting having won everything about 3 times over. But now its a totally different story…

3. Punter stripped of captaincy, retained in side: I can’t see that happening. If he is out of form with the bat, then there is some sort of a case but it has been Aussie tradition since Border that “the job” is one for the rest of your career, and eventually you will come good. I’ve no doubt that he will but again the captaincy is only as good as the rest of your team. If everyone else is playing terrible cricket then whatever moves you put in place as captain never seem to work.

Going back over the past couple of captains, they all had either form slumps or supposed captaincy slumps but because the team played so well over that period, along with the unwillingness of the selectors to change, they all played themselves back into form and along with that came the better captaincy. If I were the selectors, I’d give him at least to the next Ashes unless something goes horribly amiss between now and then.

4. Fast Bowlers: Basically, our bowling department as a whole will be our biggest problem over the next couple of years. You will always produce 3 times as many capable batsmen as you do bowlers, and the added pressure of having to replace two long serving successful cricketers (in Gillespie & Kasper) and two out and out champions (in Warne & McGrath) will ensure that unless you are very, very, very good, then you won’t get picked.

Although our batting lineup has been relatively stable over the last 10-15 years, we have a heap of fast bowlers who have played a few tests here and there who weren’t quite up to it. When I say that, I probably should qualify that they weren’t up to Warne and McGrath standard, but could possibly get a game for any number of countries around the world. Blokes like Bichel & Kasper have had the drinks waiter job covered over the past 5 years so I guess if you throw them in there and give them a go they might become stars of the future (young blokes I am talking about) So really, we theoretically should be able to produce a decent attack in the next generation but hope like hell a bolter comes out of the blue (much like a Flintoff) to top things off.

In the spin department, I believe that Warne will go for another few years. Depending what happens in his off field sagas, he could possibly keep playing till he’s 40. Again, with the selectors not wanting to change a great deal, it will be entirely Warne’s call whether he retires soon, after the next Ashes or goes for another couple of years. The biggest non-gamble for me was not playing MacGill at any time during the series. On the SBS coverage over here, Greg Matthews repeatedly called for MacGill to get a run. (160 wickets in only 30 tests or something) Imagine the fun and games in the last test if you had two spinners who could bowl in tandem on that wicket!

5. Where to from now: I would possibly give this side the Super Series and the Aussie summer to either put up the runs and wickets to save their careers or be told to move on. Hayden, Langer and Martyn seem the most likely to get the chop earliest from this team. This means basically a total rebuild of the top order. Katich is still worth his place in the middle order, and Gilchrist will EVENTUALLY make some runs and take his catches (scrambling to touch wood)

Warne speaks for himself, Lee is worth another go in Australian conditions, and McGrath could possibly continue (if his body holds together) I don’t know about Tait but again, Australian conditions could prove him to be worth his place in the side. An inclusion for the bowling attack could be Bracken. Left arm, took a few wickets in the domestic comp here and changes the look of the attack. Lee and Tait are too similar and when there is no movement etc they are too easy to hit. Both bowl flat sliding deliveries and even with a half good eye (ie. Pieterson) they can both go for plenty when its not entirely that way. Bracken is a change of angle and something different the batsmen have to contend with. He’s been given a go before but worth another crack for sure.

Phew! Sorry for the length, but I tend to ramble on, especially about cricket. Well done to the Poms, but look out when you come over to our neck of the woods. We may even be able to bring on a professional 12th man so we can catch the odd ball!!!

I think Ponting will stick around as captain. It was *one* series. Yes, he is nowhere near looking as comfortable and authoritative as Taylor (who could be like him?!) or even Waugh. But Australians dont sack captains easily, at least not unless they’re planning a regime/generation change or the captain is hopelessly out of form … or quits himself!

I think Buchanan could be the fall guy here. While it is true that it was just *one* series, the fact is that Australia’s catching standards have deteriorated rapidly in the last two years and nothing seems to be done by the coach to stem the rot. There doesn’t seem to be any attempt to bring in batting/bowling/fielding coaches. Perhaps he doesn’t want to share the laptop with them.

As for the bowling, I think McGrath and Warne will go on until the next Ashes for sure. I’m absolutely sure that McGrath will gradually stop playing one-dayers with the 2007 World Cup being his final one-day series. He’ll also ensure he doesn’t go anywhere near the outfield or random cricket balls thrown around.

I don’t think Gillespie will be given the sack, for the same “one series” reason. Hayden, if he doesn’t score bigtime in the next 6 months, will be.

“I want to thank everyone, including the Australians. On a personal level, I am very happy, but it takes 24 players to make a great series.” - Kevin Pietersen

Does that include the substitutes, Kev?

I agree with Harry. Ponting only made one mistake in the whole series. And if it wasn’t for that hundred of his then England could of had a much firmer hand on the urn and we wouldn’t of even been in with a shoot come the Oval.

Captaincy:
I think Ponting did an excellent job as captain. From what I could see his body language was always pretty positive, he retained his general energetic approach. Basically his players let him down. Can you imagine the pressure that Ponting was under in the circumstances? Aside from the meltdown lapse with the famous runout I thought he kept things together pretty well.
On Clarke, I love his attitude and he may make a fine captain one day - hopefully his back will hold up to another decade of strain.
Batting:
Australia’s recent policy has been almost exclusively to play and then retain endlessly more mature batsmen. Langer, Martyn, Lehmann, Hayden. Only Ponting and now Clarke in the last ten or more years have entered the scene as your proverbial ‘young tyro’. It is that type that Australia should give more chances to. I got a bit of an impression that there was a bit of a fear-based approach to much of the batting. But neither Ponting nor Clarke batted that way.
Bowling:
As Adsy said, this is the tough area. Hopefully Tait can develop into something. Finding the likes of McGrath again would be nice! But if Tait is the most promising of the up-and-coming bowlers it is probably a bit alarming. Much encouragement must be given to big spinners of the ball. A wicket-taking spinner is a huge weapon as Warne illustrated amply - nearly saved the Ashes on his own.

Above all don’t panic. It’s not that bad. England were very good, and we need to work calmly towards being better than them in 15 months - that’s it.

There should be no “English-style” (no malice intended) sackings or over-reaction. Asides from natural replacements, those wounded by this loss should be given the chance to make ammends - some obvious attention to the bowling department though, as Gillespie, and Kaper a probably gone, and those injuries show that McGrath is close.

I think Gillespie should be given help to improve, to act as a backup while replacements are blooded - surely they can sort out a technical deficiency these days…

I don’t really think Ponting is a great captain, Warne is the player that is excellent with the tactics. Though he is coming to the end of his career and never would have been made captain anyway because of the constant off field scandal. Really there is no one in the Aussie team that could replace Ponting anyway in the next 12 months. Clarke is too raw yet.

I do believe that we (I am a aussie even though I was cheering for england) need to include Mike Hussey in the test team. Great fielder, he can open the batting, or play lower in the order and he’s a west aussie (always helps). He is also a future captain prospect, as if I am not mistaken Captained Aus A.

As for the bowlers, Brett Lee needs to get some consistency. Yes he can take wickets and upset batsmen but he is way to expensive. Tait is still young, he could develop into a prospect but I think he may become another Lee. Who is going to replace McGrath? One of the most consistant bowlers in the world.

I agree with the last couple of posters - Hussey is a must for the side. Windies in Australia represents a chance for (a) guys who are underperforming to look good again by carting a second rate attack around or (b) easing in players like Hussey and Hodge who are hungry, talented and likely to be around to play for the Ashes in 20006/7. Option (a) does nothing for us in the long term - so a big “thanks for the memories, but that’ll do for now” to Hayden and Martyn. As for the bowling, Bracken has got to be given a crack again - left armer, bags of domestic wickets etc.
And Symonds, Watson and White could all be investigated again at test level to see if the all-rounder option is on… although the view has to be that unless you’re able to hold your place on the strength either batting or bowling alone. All-rounders who aren’t quite good enough with the bat and aren’t quite good enough with the ball just add up to brief and occasionally entertaining cameo innings and leaking tons of runs - both of which leave the team nowhere.
And - yep - stick with Punter - he has to be given the chance to win the urn back!

I agree with most in that Ponting should be left alone. If he had won then nobody would be complaining. What Australia need ot do is to look at the players,like Gillespie, whose place would be dubious even if we hadn’t beaten Australia. I think that although the feeling of beating Australia was unbelievable we need to come down to earth and realise that Aus are still the best side in the world and England need to beat India and Pakistan to claim their title. As this is true Aus are actually in the better position as they have tonnes of places to get their young players from. Even though the horizon looks bleak now, you’ll find that soon there will be lots of people vying for the places of Hayden, Martyn etc who now feela assured of their places simply because there is no competition. Australia are lucky as they don’t have the problem that England has of an awful county system that means that this winning team might evaporate if there are no replacements.