Being English, whether you are a child or an adult, male or female, you must feel immensely proud of our cricket team. Obviously, if you don't follow cricket, or don't have a clue what I'm talking about, you're exempt.
However, for the many of us that would sit up at 3am watching Alastair Cook batter the Aussie's lacklustre bowling attack - this is just time to sit back and laugh a little. Gone are the days, that I was brought up in. The 1990's was an era of total domination of Australian Cricket over England. We were poor, and unfortunately it just never seemed right?
We would never win the Ashes in the '90s - we just simply couldn't. If you compared the names in the 1993 squads for example, Australia boasted the likes of Border, Hayden, Hughes, Slater, Taylor, Waugh, Waugh and Warne. England had Peter Such, Mark Ilott and Martin McCauge. According to Steve Marsh's autobiography, McCague consumed 72 pints of Guinness during a stag weekend in Dublin. Remarkable.
Now, before people get angry at my claims of ignorance over the aforementioned players, I'm just making a comparison.
This time round however, I just love it when James Anderson and Stuart Broad stand at the top of their run-ups. Staring down the other end is Usman Khawaja, or Phillip Hughes - two players, this time, I do not rate. Not at international level anyway.
The Australian squad to tour England in 2013 were dismal. The worst touring side, ever.
Here was my evaluation of it all:
Michael Clarke - The only standout player for Australia. When needed, he's scored runs. Captaincy could come under scrutiny, but when you don't have good enough players, you shouldn't be the one to blame.
Brad Haddin - Seemed to do averagely well with the bat, and the gloves, but no shining efforts noted. Bottled it when Australia needed 14 to win in the First Test.
Ashton Agar - He had one lucky innings, where he tried saving his country's skin. Managed 98, but they still lost the game. His bowling isn't all that, but he's still only 19.
Jackson Bird - Looked okay but could be out of the first test, come November.
Ed Cowan - Got a first-baller in the first innings at Trent Bridge. He scored 14 in the second and got dropped for the rest of the series.
Ryan Harris - A hard-working bowler that got his rewards at Chester-Le-Street. However, when your batsman can't win you the game, it's all in vein.
Phillip Hughes - Not his biggest fan, but he tried making runs. Again, nothing springs to mind to make me feel like he's done something special. He's had a quiet series.
Usman Khawaja - A baffling choice to include Khawaja. I never thought he was good enough for international standard, let alone an Ashes series. He needs to go back, score runs, and try and get a chance. Though, I think it will be hard.
Nathan Lyon - Came into the team in the Third Test and immediately asked questions. He's looked good, but others have let him down, and he'll go unnoticed.
Chris Rogers - Finally got to his first test hundred, and what a time to do it. Unfortunately, when you lose the game, nobody takes much notice. It's a shame, he's too old now, and so this could be his last big chance.
Peter Siddle - Another hard-working cricketer. Took a handful of wickets but again, when you bowl your heart out, if the batsman don't back you up, you'll suffer. Hard work seems to not be paying off here.
Steve Smith - Can't stand the bloke. He's a terrible leg-spinner, which would make Shane Warne shiver.
Mitchell Starc - At times, has seemed dangerous. However, Australia have a problem with left-armers called Mitchell... they're just not good enough.
David Warner - Decided to punch Joe Root, which got him suspended. Warner is an ill-disciplined character that can occasionally hit the ball. He sparked the collapse late on Day Four of the Fourth Test.
Shane Watson - There were reports of a rift with Clarke pre-Ashes and he seemed to do his usual 'get to 40 and get out' - if he was lucky enough to get to 40.
You'll note I don't like Australia very much. The truth is they've lost three Ashes series' in a row, and it's more than likely going to turn into four. The language I use in the player evaluation is colloquial, pub talk, to an extent. That's what this is. It's opinion. My opinion is that England will win 4-0 down under.
What does everyone else think? Is my criticism on Australia too harsh? Or are England getting too ahead of themselves?