Draft: The Ashes | COMPLETE

[VC the slogger]

He was very much my next pick. It was so late in the draft I just assumed he'd gone under the radar

Very nearly passed over McCabe for fear of losing him to one of yous. Ended up getting them both eventually.

 

[Aislabie]

Overall Pick #56: Bill Woodfull

​

Profile
Honestly, this is why I have left my opening batsmen until last: if there's one thing that the Ashes history is absolutely replete with, it's high-quality opening batsmen. Now to be clear, I don't think that people have necessarily been picking bad opening batsmen. Indeed, the vast majority of them have been very good indeed. However, nobody has yet picked the mighty Bill Woodfull, destroyer of state bowling, county bowling and most definitely Ashes bowling. Very nearly 1,500 runs at an average of 48.13 as an Ashes opener, with six centuries to his name, is a truly fantastic record that stands up well in comparison to almost anyone else. Moreover, he captained an evolving Australian team in three quarters of his Ashes Tests, and did so with consummate composure and decorum. And yet, he is most remembered as the batsman hit over the heart in the infamous Bodyline series, in which he stood up to an absolute battering to register three courageous half-centuries.

Statistics
ASHES - 1,675 runs @ 44.07 (6 centuries, best 161) in 20 matches
ALL TESTS - 2,300 runs @ 46.00 (7 centuries, best 161) in 35 matches
FIRST-CLASS - 13,388 runs @ 64.99 (49 centuries, best 284) in 174 matches


Aislabie's XI so far:
1. Bill Woodfull (Pick #56)
2.
3. Charlie Macartney (Pick #36)
4. Steve Smith (Pick #8)
5. Steve Waugh (Pick #5)
6. Ben Stokes (Pick #19)
7. Brad Haddin (Pick #25)
8. Bill Lockwood (Pick #53)
9. Jim Laker (Pick #18)
10. Frank Tyson (Pick #45)
11. Jack Iverson (Pick #40)

Next Pick:
@CerealKiller

 

[VC the slogger]

My picks are Sid Barnes and Wilfred Rhodes (writeup later)..

​

It is often said that the best players are often those that leave you wanting more. This old cliche couldn't have applied more to any one individual than Sidney Barnes, the opening batsman from New South Wales who shared remarkable similarities with the legendary Englishman Sydney Barnes both in name and in regards to off-field controversies. Barnes played a grand total of just 13 Tests over a 10-year career but left an indelible mark from the few opportunities he got, averaging a staggering 63.05, which extended to 71.38 as opener - the second highest batting average ever recorded by an opening batsman with a minimum of 500 runs in Tests behind the great Barry Richards (72.57), and the fourth highest overall among batsmen with a minimum of 10 innings at Test level after Don Bradman (99.94), Stewie Dempster (65.72) and Steve Smith (63.24). To show this was no fluke, he also scored 6582 runs at 62.09 at First Grade Level, where even Bradman averaged only 89.47 compared to a Test batting average of 99.94, putting himself on par with some of Australia's most cherished opening batsmen such as Victor Trumper (9244 runs at 62.03), Bob Simpson (10188 runs at 60.28) and Archie Jackson (3084 runs at 58.18) in the competition. Of the three Ashes series he played, he finished second on averages to Bradman in 1946/47 with 73.83 to the latter's 97.14, but actually managed to beat him in 1948 where he averaged 82.25 to Bradman's 72.57 - thus making him the only Australian batsman apart from Archie Jackson, Bill Ponsford and Arthur Morris to finish ahead of 'The Don' in terms of batting average in a Test series.

Early in his career though, he made his name as an attacking middle-order batsman and part-time leg break bowler with a brash confidence that almost bordered on arrogance in his ability. In just his second season of first-class cricket in 1937/38, he totalled 800 runs at 50.56 with 1 century, which he managed despite bleeding profusely after being struck on the jaw by Test fast bowler Ernie McCormick; another century against Western Australia which ought to have been his first was removed as a result of the NSWCA retrospectively deeming the match as a non first-class fixture much to Barnes' anger. Nevertheless, his performances so early in his career were enough to earn him a call-up to the Australian Test side which toured England to contest the 1938 Ashes. Though unbeknownst to anybody, Barnes went into the tour with a fractured wrist which he kept secret for fear of being sent home, thereby causing him to miss half of Australia's first-class fixtures along with the first two Tests of the series. He made his Test debut in the final Test of the series, where England posted a then record total of 903/7 on the back on Len Hutton's epic 364, being forced to bowl as many as 38 overs whilst claiming 1 for 84 in the process. Australia, with both Don Bradman and Jack Fingleton unable to bat due to injury, managed just 201 and 123 in response to lose the match by a record innings and 579 runs - still the biggest innings defeat ever suffered by a team in Test history. Barnes though acquitted himself quite well given the circumstances, scoring 41 and 33 with the bat in both innings. He managed 720 runs at 42.35 for the entire tour, but had his international career put on hold for the next six years due to the onset of the Second World War - in between, he managed 1050 runs at 75.00 with 6 centuries for the 1940/41 season prior to enlisting in the Second Australian Imperial Force.

When cricket resumed after the War, Barnes took on a completely different identity as a batsman, changing his attacking style of play to become an obdurate opening batsman after being approached by the Australian selectors, who were unable to find a suitable opening partner for the talented Arthur Morris with regular pre-war opener Bill Brown ruled out due to injury. Despite initial misgivings, he accepted the role for it would see him coming in before Bradman in the lineup instead of after, which he described as "flat beer after champagne". He would go on to score 443 runs at 73.83 for the 1946/47 Ashes with a highest score of 234, which he made whilst sharing a record 405-run partnership with Bradman who also scored 234 in the same innings; Barnes later revealed he had deliberately thrown away his wicket to avoid outscoring Bradman. His performances in his new role were enough to force Brown to batting in the middle-order for the rest of his career, with Barnes and Morris confirmed as Australia's new Test opening pair. He toured England with Bradman's 'Invincibles' in 1948, where he continued in the same vein of form he had left off in his previous Ashes series - scoring 329 runs at 82.25 from 4 Tests; he missed one due to an injury he suffered fielding at his novel short-leg position. In six innings in the Test series, he crossed fifty four times with a highest of 141 at Lord's where he had wagered £8 at 15/1 on himself to score a century. Australia dominated the series 4-0 and went through the entire tour unbeaten to live up to the moniker of the 'Invincibles', with Barnes scoring a total of 1354 runs at 56.41 from all first-class matches. Upon returning home, he played in Bradman's testimonal match in 1948/49 where he famously walked out to bat with a miniature bat as a practical joke, and later announced a shock retirement from all cricket aged just 32 in order to focus on his business interests.

In the three years following his retirement, Australia struggled with their opening position with the formerly prolific Morris aggregating a mediocre 884 runs at 36.83 as opposed to the 1408 at 74.11 he managed until 1948, whilst Barnes' replacements in Jack Moroney, Ken Archer and Jim Burke fared no better with a combined aggregate of just 632 runs at 27.48 during this period. Barnes, now a columnist who would often criticise the Australian cricket administration was prompted to return to first-class cricket in a bid to win back his Test place after being told by ACB chairman Aubrey Oxlade that he would be judged solely on his batting performances. But in reality, he was judged on anything but his batting performances - despite recording an impressive century against Victoria and thereby being selected in the Australian Test squad to play the West Indies at home in 1951/52, he was vetoed out of the team by the ACB "on grounds other than cricketing ability" in a manner not too dissimilar from what would befall Kevin Pietersen more than half a century later. He continued to impress with the bat without any hope of a Test recall, scoring 152 against Victoria in what turned out to be his final season of first-lass cricket in 1952/53, but made the headlines for the wrong reasons when he walked out dressed as a flight assistant (pictured above) carrying several superflous items in a match against South Australia where he was acting 12th man, thereby delaying proceedings much to the annoyance of the opposing team. He then retired for good at the end of the season, saying that "his card had been marked".

Overall, Barnes scored 1072 runs at 63.05 with 3 centuries (all of them in the Ashes) from 13 Tests between 1938 and 1948, including a staggering 846 runs at 70.50 in the Ashes. Among openers with a minimum of 500 runs in the Ashes, nobody averages higher than his 77.10 from the position with the nearest rival being Herbert Sutcliffe (2708 runs at 67.70). In all first-class cricket, he scored 8333 runs at 54.11 with 26 centuries, and also claimed 57 wickets at 32.21 with his part-time leg breaks which were sparingly used at Test level where he managed only 4 wickets at 54.50 from 9 innings. He also kept wicket early in his career, managing a total of 4 stumpings at first-class level in the process. If not for his larrikin nature and outspokenness against the Australian Cricket Board, he could have perhaps added to his 13 Test caps, a number which did little justice to a player of his ability.

Playing Role

I had initially planned to select an aggressive opening batsman like Victor Trumper to complement Hobbs at the top of the order. But with my team already possessing a galaxy of attacking players in Ponting, McCabe, Miller, Gilchrist and even Lindwall to some extent, I reckoned a bit more solidity would be better up top. Barnes and Hobbs, both averaging well above 50 (77 in Barnes' case) are the two perfect men to lay a solid foundation at the top in my opinion. Besides, I couldn't resist the urge of having both Sidney and Sydney in the same lineup! (sorry to those still searching for openers)

As for the bowling, my selection of Rhodes has pretty much completed my attack and added some much needed left-arm variety to a predominantly right-handed bowling lineup. With an Ashes bowling average of 24.00, batting average of 31.01 along with the ability to open either the batting (from where he averages a stunning 42.95 in the Ashes) or the bowling, he was simply too good to ignore. But I'll deliberate more on that later, as I need some sleep now..


VC's XI

1. Jack Hobbs
2. Sid Barnes
3. Ricky Ponting
4. Stan McCabe
5.
6. Keith Miller
7. Adam Gilchrist
8. Ray Lindwall
9. Wilfred Rhodes (writeup later)
10. Bill O'Reilly
11. Sydney Barnes


Over to @Aislabie, again.​

​

Cricket has had it's fair share of players who have excelled with both bat and ball at international level, few of whom can arguably lay claim to being the best in the world at one discipline while still being world class in the other. But fewer still can lay claim to being the best in the world in both their disciplines, such as Wilfred Rhodes was at one of the many stages of his astonishingly long career which lasted a record 30 years and 315 days. Between 1898 and 1904, he was easily the finest left-arm spin bowler in the world, bowling from a classical rhythmical action with accuracy that was second to none, along with several variations in flight and the ability to generate sharp turn with the ball - something which made him lethal on wet pitches, but also a good bowler on true batsman-friendly wickets such as those found in Australia. That was until he began focusing on his batting, which was little better than that of a tailender's at the beginning of his career, but by sheer hard work and determination would improve enough to see him stand amongst the best opening batsmen at Test level between 1910 and 1914, a period during which his bowling though still quite good took something of a backseat. His unique career path made him one of only three batsmen apart from Syd Gregory and Vinoo Mankad to bat in every batting position between 1 and 11 in a lineup in Test cricket.

His greatness with the ball was apparent in his very first season of first-class cricket in 1898, where in just his second match he claimed a match haul of 13 for 45, and would finish the season with a remarkable 154 wickets at 14.60 - a performance which saw him named one of Wisden's Cricketers of the Year in 1899, before he had even made his Test debut. He batted at No 10 scoring 6, along with figures of 4 for 58 and 3 for 60 across both innings in his first Test match against Australia at Trent Bridge in 1899, which incidentally turned out to be WG Grace's last for England. He claimed 13 wickets at an average of 26.23 in his first Ashes series, which England lost 1-0 to Australia, who had just unearthed Victor Trumper during the series. Between 1902 and 1904, he would go on to dominate with the ball in Test cricket claiming 53 wickets at an average of 15.55 with 5 five-fers and 1 match 10-fer from 10 Test matches, including two stunning hauls of 7 for 17 against Australia at Birmingham in 1902, and a career best 8 for 68 in a match haul of 15 for 124 against the same opponents at the MCG in 1903/04. England would lose the Ashes again in 1902 by a 2-1 margin despite his returns with the ball (22 wickets at 15.27), and even a crucial effort with the bat from No 11 where he helped George Hirst take them over the line by a thrilling 1-wicket margin in a match at The Oval that went down as one of the series all-time classics over the years. He showed the first signs of his all-round potential by completing the double of 1000 runs and 100 wickets for the season in 1903, and would go on to star in England's triumph in the 1903/04 Ashes in Australia with 31 wickets at 15.74 to help them reclaim the urn for the first time since 1896. Such was his relentless accuracy with the ball that Victor Trumper, Australia's star batsman once remarked to him "for God's sake, Wilfred, give me a minute's rest" during one of the Tests.

Despite his growing claims as an all-rounder, his Test career appeared to have hit a bit of a trough between 1905 and 1910, where he claimed 30 wickets at 37.47 with just 1 five-wicket haul and scored 745 runs at 27.59 to highlight this improvement as a batsman. His career was revived in 1911 when he began playing as a specialist opening batsman for England alongside Jack Hobbs, scoring 1009 runs at 43.87 between 1911/12 and 1913/14, with the only 2 centuries of his career - 179 against Australia at the MCG in 1912 where he and Hobbs put on a record 323-run stand for the 1st wicket, and 152 against South Africa at Johannesburg in 1913. He played a starring role with the bat in England's victorious 1911/12 Ashes campaign down under with 463 runs at 57.87, and also played what many regard to be his best innings i.e 92 against Australia in the ill-fated 1912 Triangular Tournament on a pitch where no other batsman could score more than 19. His bowling by now though was little more than part-time, seeing him claim just 9 wickets at 36.22 from 16 Tests during this period.

His career trajectory would change yet again after the end of the Great War, with him resuming bowling full time in order to make up for Yorkshire's losses during the War. He regained his old fluency with the ball against all odds with a haul of 164 wickets at 14.42 to top the averages in 1919. This was followed by an even better haul of 161 wickets at 13.18 in 1920, but his form did not translate into the international arena due to some unimaginative captaincy by then England skipper Johnny Douglas, who continued to use him in his pre-war role primarily as an opening batsman who bowled a bit. He was thus part of two nightmarish Ashes series in 1920/21 (238 runs at 23.80; 4 wickets at 61.25) and 1921 (29 runs at 14.50; 2 wickets at 16.50) where England lost 5-0 and 3-0 respectively, thereby ending his Test career, or so it seemed at the time. He continued to perform well for Yorkshire in county cricket and by 1926 found himself on the English selection panel, when his fellow selectors decided to give him a surprising recall to the Test side at the age of 48 for the final Test of the 1926 Ashes. In a performance that defied conventional logic, he claimed 2 for 35 in the first innings and a match-winning 4 for 44 in second innings to bowl England to a 289-run victory and claim the series 1-0, their first win over Australia since 1912. But he still wasn't done with Test cricket, oh no; 4 years later he resurfaced for the umpteenth time for a tour of the West Indies, where he played mostly as a specialist bowler with his batting having declined due to age, and claimed 10 wickets at 45.30 from 4 Tests which were drawn 1-1. At the age of 52 years and 165 days, it made him the oldest player to ever appear in a Test match, and at 30 years and 315 days his Test career easily the longest ever.

Overall, Rhodes scored 2325 runs at 30.19 with 2 centuries, and claimed 127 wickets at 26.96 with 6 five-wicket hauls along with 1 ten-wicket match haul over a 30-year career between 1899 and 1930; this extended to 1706 runs at 31.01 and 109 wickets at 24.00 in the Ashes where he averaged a stunning 42.95 as an opening batsman. In all first-class cricket, he scored 39969 runs at 30.81 with 58 centuries and a best of 267*, whilst claiming 4204 wickets at 16.72 with 287 five-fers and 68 match ten-fers with a best of 9 for 24 from 1110 matches between 1898 and 1930. Among his many records are the most number of first-class matches played in a career (1110), the most wickets taken in first-class cricket (4204), the second most five-fers (287) in a career behind only Tich Freeman, the most balls bowled in first-class cricket (185742) and the most number of all-rounder's season doubles of 1000 runs an 100 wickets in a career (16). Apart from all that, he was also the first Englishman to complete 1000 runs and 100 wickets in Test cricket, the first ever to 2000 runs and 100 wickets, and remains to date one of only four players - WG Grace, George Hirst and Frank Woolley being the others, to score 30000 runs and claim 2000 wickets in a first-class career - numbers than can make anybody's jaw drop.

Playing Role

Rhodes is in this XI primarily for his bowling. His batting, though good enough to average 42.95 as an opener in the Ashes is something of an added bonus. I've pushed him down as low as No 9 below even Lindwall primarily because of his dour grinding style as a batsman. Alternatively, he could just as well be pushed as high as No 7 if we were to suffer a bad collapse of sorts.

VC's XI

1. Jack Hobbs
2. Sid Barnes
3. Ricky Ponting
4. Stan McCabe
5.
6. Keith Miller
7. Adam Gilchrist
8. Ray Lindwall
9. Wilfred Rhodes
10. Bill O'Reilly
11. Sydney Barnes​

 

[CerealKiller]

My next pick is David Gower, the stylish England left hander, who is, surprisingly, fifth highest run scorer in Ashes history, with 3037 runs at an average of over 46, which is better than his overall Test average. He was arguably England's best batsman of the '80s, and captained them to an Ashes win 1985, but he was also as frustrating as he was a graceful player. He seemed to always be playing beautifully, until he got out. He was labeled as a "laid-back" personality, but his 8231 Test runs in a period dominated by fast bowlers seem to prove otherwise.

CerealKiller's XI
1. Len Hutton
2. Bill Lawry
3. Don Bradman
4. David Gower
5. Mark Waugh
6. Andrew Flintoff
7. Alan Knott
8. Hugh Trumble
9. Dennis Lillee
10.
11. Glenn McGrath

@Survivor

 

[Deleted member 193590]

My penultimate pick is

JEFF THOMSON



Batsmen were understandably in awe of this Australian tearaway fast bowler with the slinging action. He took 33 wickets and formed a deadly duo with Lillee in 1974-75, 16 in England at 28.56 in 1975 and 23 at 25.34 over here again in 1977. There was also a stunning renaissance in 1982-83, when he took 22 wickets as a measly 18.68 each, although he could not repeat the trick in England in 1985, which proved one series too many. In total he took 100 Ashes wickets at 24 apiece. He also liked hitting English batsmen, and aiming a few blunt barbs in their direction.

1. Arthur Morris
2. Justin Langer
3. Ken Barrington
4. Michael Vaughan
5. Michael Hussey
6.
7. Jack Russell
8. Shane Warne
9. Jeff Thomson
10. Alec Bedser
11. Terry Alderman

@blockerdave

 

[blockerdave]

There was a tradition in the 1990's of MICHAEL SLATER hitting the first ball of the Ashes for 4. I'm pretty sure he did it in 1994/95 and 1997... I've even a hunch it was poor old Phil Defraitas both times.

Either way, when he was in form Slater got the innings off to a quick start. With Edrich at the other end providing solidity, Slater's job is to not let the bowlers settle into a groove. He's got the technique to handle the moving ball and the aggression to take the game away from the opposition when it's flatter. Slater and Edrich give me a world class opening partnership, a classic left/right, defensive/attacking combination.

There are Ashes openers who scored more, and averaged more than Slater, but few if any who had such a record of getting his side on to the front foot from ball one. Most importantly, in the Ashes, when he got in he cashed in - he passed 50 11 times in the Ashes and converted 7 of them.

In 20 Ashes matches he scored 1,669 runs at 45.10 with a top score of 176. He scored 7 centuries and 4 half-centuries.

1. Michael Slater
2. John Edrich
3. Wally Hammond
4. Kevin Pietersen
5. Alan Border (c)
6. Ian Botham
7. -
8. Mitchell Johnson
9. Hedley Verity
10. Bob Willis
11. Simon Jones

@Sinister One

 

[Deleted member 193590]

24 hours has passed so I'm gonna make my final pick

My final pick is an all rounder who in the ashes scored 2172 runs at an average of just over 35 with 4 hundreds.He also took 74 wickets at just over 30 with an economy rate of 2.
He is

WARWICK ARMSTRONG



Warwick Armstrong was a right-handed batsman and a right-arm leg break bowler. With a hugely built figure, Armstrong earned the nickname "the ship".

He even captained the Aussies from 1920 to 1921 and ended on an undefeated streak. Armstrong's captaincy was instrumental in Australia's 5-0 Ashes victory against England in 1920.

Armstong didn't possess of any sound batting technique but played effective strokes to score runs. He was not a big turner of the ball and bowled more of a wicket-to-wicket line to dismiss the batsmen.

The Victoria native played 269 first-class games and scored 16158 runs at a superb average of 46.83. He even notched up 45 centuries and 57 half-centuries in the process. Coming to the bowling, Armstrong claimed 832 wickets at an average of 19.71.

He made his Test debut against England at Melbourne in 1902 and played 50 Tests until 1921. Armstrong ended his international career after scoring 2863 runs and picking up 87 scalps.

1. Arthur Morris
2. Justin Langer
3. Ken Barrington
4. Michael Vaughan
5. Michael Hussey
6. Warwick Armstrong
7. Jack Russell
8. Shane Warne
9. Jeff Thomson
10. Alec Bedser
11. Terry Alderman

@CerealKiller @Sinister One

 

[Master Bates]

Bob Simpson
Herbert Sutcliffe
Maurice Leyland
Dean Jones

Monty Noble
Jim Parks
Billy Barnes
Bobby Peel
Charlie Turner
George Lohmann

@CerealKiller

 

[CerealKiller]

To complete my squad, i'll go with a bit of a left field pick, Stuart Broad. He has 112 Ashes wickets at a good average of 29, which makes him, statistically at least, the 9th most succesful bowler in the series' history. He finished as England's leading wicket taker in the 2013-14 series in Australia, when they were whitewashed, but his finest performance came in 2015 at Trent Bridge, when he finished with a stunning 8-15 to dismiss Australia for 60. Similar bursts of brilliance include 5 for 37 in 12 overs at The Oval in 2009, and 6 wickets in Durham in 2013, on his way to an 11-fer. When on song, he can change the entire match in one spell.

CerealKiller's XI
1. Len Hutton
2. Bill Lawry
3. Don Bradman
4. David Gower
5. Mark Waugh
6. Andrew Flintoff
7. Alan Knott
8. Hugh Trumble
9. Stuart Broad
10. Dennis Lillee
11. Glenn McGrath

@Aislabie

 

[Aislabie]

About to get on a plane, but before I do I'd like to pick Jason Roy Geoffrey Boycott as my second opener.

Bill Woodfull
Geoffrey Boycott
Charlie Macartney
Steve Smith
Steve Waugh
Ben Stokes
Brad Haddin
Bill Lockwood
Jim Laker
Frank Tyson
Jack Iverson

Will edit this later and make it nice.

@Sinister One

 

[Master Bates]

Bob Simpson
Herbert Sutcliffe
Maurice Leyland
Dean Jones
Peter May
Monty Noble
Jim Parks
Billy Barnes
Bobby Peel
Charlie Turner
George Lohmann

@VC the slogger

 

[blockerdave]

As it's over 2 hours, I'll take my turn.

I can't even put my finger on why exactly, but I hated IAN HEALY

Most of the Aussies that routinely whipped us in the 90s I rather admired. I mean I hated them obviously, but I admired them too - Warney, the Waugh Brothers, Big Bad Merv, Tubs, Captain Grumpy - they were bloody good.

But red-round-face, chirpy, mouthy bloody Ian Healy, I hated him. Probably because he was always involved in dismissals - 135 (123 catches, 12 stumpings) - the most of any keeper in the Ashes, in his 33 matches. He also saved a lot of his best batting for the Ashes - his Ashes average was 30.95 vs a career average of 27.39. He mad 2 of his 4 test hundreds in the Ashes, plus another 6 50s.

He was a bloody good keeper, and as I've gone for bowling depth I need to take every chance.


So my final team is:

1. Michael Slater
2. John Edrich
3. Wally Hammond
4. Kevin Pietersen
5. Alan Border (c)
6. Ian Botham
7. Ian Healy (wk)
8. Mitchell Johnson
9. Hedley Verity
10. Bob Willis
11. Simon Jones

Very happy with that XI - classy top 5, a belligerent all rounder, top-class keeper, top-class spinner, and a varied dangerous attack of real pace.

 

[Master Bates]

@VC the slogger it's your turn to end the draft!

 

[VC the slogger]

@VC the slogger it's your turn to end the draft!

Late for my own draft. How ironic..


Still haven't been able to make up my mind regarding my final pick. Will do it later in the evening.

 

[Deleted member 193590]

@VC the slogger My last pick was Warwick Armstrong not Dean Jones,got me mixed up with @Sinister One