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Starmer moves to a 30% approval lead over Johnson – politicalbetting.com

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  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 14,878
    dixiedean said:

    Sandpit said:

    Why do an online ‘sale’ of free tickets, rather than get everyone queuing up in the morning like we used to? The ground isn’t half full yet.

    Wimbledon has the same problem.

    Cos it's all about collection of data for marketing.
    I'd argue there is something there about not having too many turn up to get in and the issue that might cause (pace the Ashes at the Oval in 2005).
  • BartholomewRobertsBartholomewRoberts Posts: 18,154
    edited July 2022

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-07-05/euro-falls-to-lowest-since-2002-against-the-us-dollar

    Euro Tumbles to 20-Year Low, Putting Parity With Dollar in Sight

    The common currency fell as much as 1.4% to $1.0281.

    I did suggest a few days ago Euro-dollar parity could happen soon.

    The ECB are in an almost impossible situation, quite unlike the ECB who must be loving the situation they find themselves in.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,206

    Leon said:

    Cyclefree said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Cabinet now out - we’ve seen Dorries, Truss, Kwarteng, Wallace, Zahawi, Raab and some others leave from the front door

    No sign of others - Sunak, Heaton-Harris, Hart (who did Friday’s tricky media round), Coffey (who did Sunday’s tricky media round) haven’t left thru No10 so far

    https://twitter.com/SamCoatesSky/status/1544259585376194561

    FFS will one of them finally do the decent thing?

    Has anyone left in public life got a shred of honour and decent left?

    No.
    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    I wonder if I am the first person to watch English Test Cricket in the town square of the Montenegrin royal capital


    Nice!

    I keep meaning to ask you for the details of your set-up so you can watch Sky abroad. I had a ropey set up in France that I could not get to work at all, so I'd be keen to know for future trips.
    Pretty simple - SkyGo plus ExpressVPN plus a decent wifi or 4G signal. Try and avoid places with large crowds of people all using their phones

    This is not meant to be rude. But why travel if you're just going to watch a game you can watch from your own home?
    Because it is exquisitely pleasurable to sit in the sun drenched town square of Royal Cetinje and nibble strudels with fine coffee as I watch a superb England team chase an absolutely historic victory against India

    Next
    Is it any different to me listening to TMS on my Devon hols every year? Actually forms part of the holiday for me. Cricket and TMS is an essential part of my soul.
    Sounds lovely! Better to have visuals tho, no?
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 49,614

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-07-05/euro-falls-to-lowest-since-2002-against-the-us-dollar

    Euro Tumbles to 20-Year Low, Putting Parity With Dollar in Sight

    The common currency fell as much as 1.4% to $1.0281.

    The ECB seem to be accepting a devalued currency, as the price to keep the printing presses runnning and interest rates on the floor.
  • NigelbNigelb Posts: 61,557
    Hi Cabinet. For yr own self-respect don't give 1 more interview defending stuff u know is indefensible. You aren't kidding yourself; let alone us.
    THEN we need eg Sunak+Javid+Wallace (other combos available) to tell Boris THIS AM he goes or you all go. END THIS CRAP TODAY

    https://twitter.com/montie/status/1544224089451151360
  • AnabobazinaAnabobazina Posts: 19,598

    Leon said:

    Cyclefree said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Cabinet now out - we’ve seen Dorries, Truss, Kwarteng, Wallace, Zahawi, Raab and some others leave from the front door

    No sign of others - Sunak, Heaton-Harris, Hart (who did Friday’s tricky media round), Coffey (who did Sunday’s tricky media round) haven’t left thru No10 so far

    https://twitter.com/SamCoatesSky/status/1544259585376194561

    FFS will one of them finally do the decent thing?

    Has anyone left in public life got a shred of honour and decent left?

    No.
    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    I wonder if I am the first person to watch English Test Cricket in the town square of the Montenegrin royal capital


    Nice!

    I keep meaning to ask you for the details of your set-up so you can watch Sky abroad. I had a ropey set up in France that I could not get to work at all, so I'd be keen to know for future trips.
    Pretty simple - SkyGo plus ExpressVPN plus a decent wifi or 4G signal. Try and avoid places with large crowds of people all using their phones

    This is not meant to be rude. But why travel if you're just going to watch a game you can watch from your own home?
    Because it is exquisitely pleasurable to sit in the sun drenched town square of Royal Cetinje and nibble strudels with fine coffee as I watch a superb England team chase an absolutely historic victory against India

    Next
    Is it any different to me listening to TMS on my Devon hols every year? Actually forms part of the holiday for me. Cricket and TMS is an essential part of my soul.
    I love TMS but they need to ship out some of the old guard – wistful references to "proper Test cricket" this summer are beyond annoying. Test cricket is as test cricket does.
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 43,603

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-07-05/euro-falls-to-lowest-since-2002-against-the-us-dollar

    Euro Tumbles to 20-Year Low, Putting Parity With Dollar in Sight

    The common currency fell as much as 1.4% to $1.0281.

    I did suggest a few days ago Euro-dollar parity could happen soon.

    The ECB are in an almost impossible situation, quite unlike the ECB who must be loving the situation they find themselves in.
    Now I have a vision of a bunch old buffers consulting Wisden as to whether they should raise Euro interest rates.

    And a bunch of German technocrats arguing about how many spinners the team needs.
  • wooliedyedwooliedyed Posts: 6,815
    Harry the Cuck says lobby 20 mins late..... drama backstage??
  • StockyStocky Posts: 9,653
    Nigelb said:

    Hi Cabinet. For yr own self-respect don't give 1 more interview defending stuff u know is indefensible. You aren't kidding yourself; let alone us.
    THEN we need eg Sunak+Javid+Wallace (other combos available) to tell Boris THIS AM he goes or you all go. END THIS CRAP TODAY

    https://twitter.com/montie/status/1544224089451151360

    I've not been paying attention much lately. Any particular reason why this is coming to a head today?
  • ChrisChris Posts: 11,008

    We must be due Dom's final depth charge any hour now surely, to finish the job?

    My guess: five in a bed, not all of the same species.
  • https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-07-05/euro-falls-to-lowest-since-2002-against-the-us-dollar

    Euro Tumbles to 20-Year Low, Putting Parity With Dollar in Sight

    The common currency fell as much as 1.4% to $1.0281.

    I did suggest a few days ago Euro-dollar parity could happen soon.

    The ECB are in an almost impossible situation, quite unlike the ECB who must be loving the situation they find themselves in.
    Now I have a vision of a bunch old buffers consulting Wisden as to whether they should raise Euro interest rates.

    And a bunch of German technocrats arguing about how many spinners the team needs.
    Bairstow quantitatively easing himself into another century.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,206
    Difficult to sense from the southern Balkans, but is it really possible Boris might resign today?!
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 14,878
    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    Cyclefree said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Cabinet now out - we’ve seen Dorries, Truss, Kwarteng, Wallace, Zahawi, Raab and some others leave from the front door

    No sign of others - Sunak, Heaton-Harris, Hart (who did Friday’s tricky media round), Coffey (who did Sunday’s tricky media round) haven’t left thru No10 so far

    https://twitter.com/SamCoatesSky/status/1544259585376194561

    FFS will one of them finally do the decent thing?

    Has anyone left in public life got a shred of honour and decent left?

    No.
    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    I wonder if I am the first person to watch English Test Cricket in the town square of the Montenegrin royal capital


    Nice!

    I keep meaning to ask you for the details of your set-up so you can watch Sky abroad. I had a ropey set up in France that I could not get to work at all, so I'd be keen to know for future trips.
    Pretty simple - SkyGo plus ExpressVPN plus a decent wifi or 4G signal. Try and avoid places with large crowds of people all using their phones

    This is not meant to be rude. But why travel if you're just going to watch a game you can watch from your own home?
    Because it is exquisitely pleasurable to sit in the sun drenched town square of Royal Cetinje and nibble strudels with fine coffee as I watch a superb England team chase an absolutely historic victory against India

    Next
    Is it any different to me listening to TMS on my Devon hols every year? Actually forms part of the holiday for me. Cricket and TMS is an essential part of my soul.
    Sounds lovely! Better to have visuals tho, no?
    I'm lucky enough that I can have it on in my office as I work all summer too, and in many ways prefer the commentary over the radio c.f. the TV. I do also watch Sky. Nothing to stop me watching on Sky Go now, tbh, but the radio is better.
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 49,614
    What a fantastic pair of centuries there, two hall-of-fame cricketers at the top of their game.
  • ChrisChris Posts: 11,008
    Chris said:

    We must be due Dom's final depth charge any hour now surely, to finish the job?

    My guess: five in a bed, not all of the same species.
    During lockdown.
  • AnabobazinaAnabobazina Posts: 19,598
    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    Cyclefree said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Cabinet now out - we’ve seen Dorries, Truss, Kwarteng, Wallace, Zahawi, Raab and some others leave from the front door

    No sign of others - Sunak, Heaton-Harris, Hart (who did Friday’s tricky media round), Coffey (who did Sunday’s tricky media round) haven’t left thru No10 so far

    https://twitter.com/SamCoatesSky/status/1544259585376194561

    FFS will one of them finally do the decent thing?

    Has anyone left in public life got a shred of honour and decent left?

    No.
    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    I wonder if I am the first person to watch English Test Cricket in the town square of the Montenegrin royal capital


    Nice!

    I keep meaning to ask you for the details of your set-up so you can watch Sky abroad. I had a ropey set up in France that I could not get to work at all, so I'd be keen to know for future trips.
    Pretty simple - SkyGo plus ExpressVPN plus a decent wifi or 4G signal. Try and avoid places with large crowds of people all using their phones

    This is not meant to be rude. But why travel if you're just going to watch a game you can watch from your own home?
    Because it is exquisitely pleasurable to sit in the sun drenched town square of Royal Cetinje and nibble strudels with fine coffee as I watch a superb England team chase an absolutely historic victory against India

    Next
    Is it any different to me listening to TMS on my Devon hols every year? Actually forms part of the holiday for me. Cricket and TMS is an essential part of my soul.
    Sounds lovely! Better to have visuals tho, no?
    Of course. Sky Sports is compulsory for anyone with even the slightest interest in sports – and it's good value, compared to other streaming platforms, for the amount of content you actually watch.
  • CyclefreeCyclefree Posts: 25,074
    Leon said:

    Cyclefree said:

    Leon said:

    Cyclefree said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Cabinet now out - we’ve seen Dorries, Truss, Kwarteng, Wallace, Zahawi, Raab and some others leave from the front door

    No sign of others - Sunak, Heaton-Harris, Hart (who did Friday’s tricky media round), Coffey (who did Sunday’s tricky media round) haven’t left thru No10 so far

    https://twitter.com/SamCoatesSky/status/1544259585376194561

    FFS will one of them finally do the decent thing?

    Has anyone left in public life got a shred of honour and decent left?

    No.
    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    I wonder if I am the first person to watch English Test Cricket in the town square of the Montenegrin royal capital


    Nice!

    I keep meaning to ask you for the details of your set-up so you can watch Sky abroad. I had a ropey set up in France that I could not get to work at all, so I'd be keen to know for future trips.
    Pretty simple - SkyGo plus ExpressVPN plus a decent wifi or 4G signal. Try and avoid places with large crowds of people all using their phones

    This is not meant to be rude. But why travel if you're just going to watch a game you can watch from your own home?
    Because it is exquisitely pleasurable to sit in the sun drenched town square of Royal Cetinje and nibble strudels with fine coffee as I watch a superb England team chase an absolutely historic victory against India

    Next
    Fair enough.

    Seems odd to me - and not just because cricket is to me unbelievably boring.

    You could be watching what is happening around you in the square, the people, imagining their lives, the stories behind them, why those buildings are the way they are etc, how ordinary life abroad can seem both so similar and so very different in unexpected and small ways etc.

    But no - cricket. Sigh....
    You forget I have been travelling for 3 months solid, near enough. I do that other stuff all the time

    I like cricket anyway, and this isn’t just any old cricket. This is a world class England run chase that — if they do it - will stay in the record books. PLUS It will be over in an hour and the Lovcen National Park will still be there

    If we’re going to be wed you need to understand this, otherwise, quite frankly, the whole thing’s off

    My darling: I do understand. You watch to your heart's content. I will go off and explore gardens and chat to people and pass time in my own way. And you must not interfere in that. Which I am sure you understand.

    Incidentally, yesterday at Hampton Court I was sitting there minding my own business when suddenly I saw before me an old colleague, the first person I recruited into my team many moons ago. Now moved on and doing something very different. Turns out his room-mate at the LSE was one Chris Pincher.

    We had quite the chat.
  • AnabobazinaAnabobazina Posts: 19,598
    Ton Up for EJB
  • eekeek Posts: 24,797
    Leon said:

    Difficult to sense from the southern Balkans, but is it really possible Boris might resign today?!

    No chance - it's Bozo and he will cling on to No 10 like a limpet attached to Superglue.
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 14,878

    Leon said:

    Cyclefree said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Cabinet now out - we’ve seen Dorries, Truss, Kwarteng, Wallace, Zahawi, Raab and some others leave from the front door

    No sign of others - Sunak, Heaton-Harris, Hart (who did Friday’s tricky media round), Coffey (who did Sunday’s tricky media round) haven’t left thru No10 so far

    https://twitter.com/SamCoatesSky/status/1544259585376194561

    FFS will one of them finally do the decent thing?

    Has anyone left in public life got a shred of honour and decent left?

    No.
    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    I wonder if I am the first person to watch English Test Cricket in the town square of the Montenegrin royal capital


    Nice!

    I keep meaning to ask you for the details of your set-up so you can watch Sky abroad. I had a ropey set up in France that I could not get to work at all, so I'd be keen to know for future trips.
    Pretty simple - SkyGo plus ExpressVPN plus a decent wifi or 4G signal. Try and avoid places with large crowds of people all using their phones

    This is not meant to be rude. But why travel if you're just going to watch a game you can watch from your own home?
    Because it is exquisitely pleasurable to sit in the sun drenched town square of Royal Cetinje and nibble strudels with fine coffee as I watch a superb England team chase an absolutely historic victory against India

    Next
    Is it any different to me listening to TMS on my Devon hols every year? Actually forms part of the holiday for me. Cricket and TMS is an essential part of my soul.
    I love TMS but they need to ship out some of the old guard – wistful references to "proper Test cricket" this summer are beyond annoying. Test cricket is as test cricket does.
    I'd happily lose Vaughn (if he hasn't been cancelled), but keep Vic Marks. I love the old war stories from the 70's and 80's from Marks and Aggers. I also like the guest commentators (mostly).
  • rcs1000rcs1000 Posts: 53,766
    Sandpit said:

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-07-05/euro-falls-to-lowest-since-2002-against-the-us-dollar

    Euro Tumbles to 20-Year Low, Putting Parity With Dollar in Sight

    The common currency fell as much as 1.4% to $1.0281.

    The ECB seem to be accepting a devalued currency, as the price to keep the printing presses runnning and interest rates on the floor.
    It's perfectly logical: the Eurozone is full of export oriented economies, and has excessive government debt. A little bit of inflation will wash away quite a few sins.

    The difficult bit (as they and others will surely find out), is that once inflation gets into your system, it can be hard to get rid of.
  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 27,835
    edited July 2022
    Sandpit said:

    What a fantastic pair of centuries there, two hall-of-fame cricketers at the top of their game.

    Difficult to recall Bairstow's place in the team was under serious scrutiny at the start of the year.
    Seems utterly bewildering now.
  • DecrepiterJohnLDecrepiterJohnL Posts: 23,926
    Stocky said:

    Nigelb said:

    Hi Cabinet. For yr own self-respect don't give 1 more interview defending stuff u know is indefensible. You aren't kidding yourself; let alone us.
    THEN we need eg Sunak+Javid+Wallace (other combos available) to tell Boris THIS AM he goes or you all go. END THIS CRAP TODAY

    https://twitter.com/montie/status/1544224089451151360

    I've not been paying attention much lately. Any particular reason why this is coming to a head today?
    The Simon McDonald letter.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,206
    Sandpit said:

    What a fantastic pair of centuries there, two hall-of-fame cricketers at the top of their game.



    Yes. Two off the best batsmen in the world in the form of their lives. A joy to watch
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 49,614
    dixiedean said:

    Sandpit said:

    What a fantastic pair of centuries there, two hall-of-fame cricketers at the top of their game.

    Difficult to recall Bairstow's place in the team was under serious scrutiny at the start of the year.
    Seems utterly bewildering now.
    What a difference a new coach makes.
  • AnabobazinaAnabobazina Posts: 19,598
    India have been utterly marmalised here. An absolute schooling in a record chase.
  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 27,835
    Am less gutted at not getting on India at 12/5 before play started now.
  • Luckyguy1983Luckyguy1983 Posts: 25,042

    eek said:
    A shame the British government is subsidising an American company.
    Completely par for the course.
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 14,878
    Sandpit said:

    What a fantastic pair of centuries there, two hall-of-fame cricketers at the top of their game.

    Bairstow is moving his average towards 40 now, which is a benchmark of a decent test batsman. I'm wary of suggesting he is hall of fame material yet - Root, no question.
  • Leon said:

    Sandpit said:

    What a fantastic pair of centuries there, two hall-of-fame cricketers at the top of their game.



    Yes. Two off the best batsmen in the world in the form of their lives. A joy to watch
    Joe Root has been in this form for a couple of years now. Truly one of the GOATs.

    Making it look easy now. Remarkable to think this is an utterly historic chase, these two look like they could chase down five hundred.
  • Big_G_NorthWalesBig_G_NorthWales Posts: 60,001
    What a joy to watch these two play such wonderful cricket
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 14,878
    How much more could they have chased? 400+ seems plausible. Its reframing the targets that can be set. The old equation of 300 in a day is out of date.
  • Sky, TMS and Cricinfo keep calling it a "canter". This is a Test match and they've scored 62 in the last 10. It's a gallop!
  • boulayboulay Posts: 3,769
    Sandpit said:

    dixiedean said:

    Sandpit said:

    What a fantastic pair of centuries there, two hall-of-fame cricketers at the top of their game.

    Difficult to recall Bairstow's place in the team was under serious scrutiny at the start of the year.
    Seems utterly bewildering now.
    What a difference a new coach makes.
    So a group absolutely on their backsides taking flak in the press and their positions in the team under pressure. The top man is replaced and they start delivering what the country wants.

    A lesson for the cabinet perhaps.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,206
    Fancy England to snatch this, now
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 49,614
    What an astonishing match.
  • londonpubmanlondonpubman Posts: 3,152
    Incredible. Six months ago we were utter shyte. Now we are playing some of the best Test cricket of all time!
  • glwglw Posts: 9,535
    Madness. An extraordinary improvement in English cricket.
  • Sandpit said:

    What an astonishing match.

    What an astonishing summer so far.

    Truly incredible chases from England. Making 300+ chases look easy.
  • Luckyguy1983Luckyguy1983 Posts: 25,042
    Scott_xP said:

    NEW: Explosive call now on @mrjamesob a serving senior civil servant rings in to say our democracy is in danger due to lies coming from No.10 Press operation. Says he was felt a duty to ring in after watching Dominic Raab call into question Simon McDonald’s account in his letter

    “Stewart” went on to say: Do not underestimate how dangerous this is. Our democracy is under threat. Calls on Simon Case to resign. Says to have the most senior spokesperson to continually lie on behalf of the PM is the sign of a “failed and corrupt state”

    He also called on all the civil servants sitting in the Number 10 press office to get up and leave their desks in protest. “I should be at work serving the country!”

    @mrjamesob “You are”


    https://twitter.com/hattmarris84/status/1544260557297127427

    Call me an ole cynic, but you didn't see civil servants so passionate about 'lies coming from Number 10' until they were threatened with a reduction in their numbers.
  • williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 47,786
    edited July 2022

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-07-05/euro-falls-to-lowest-since-2002-against-the-us-dollar

    Euro Tumbles to 20-Year Low, Putting Parity With Dollar in Sight

    The common currency fell as much as 1.4% to $1.0281.

    I did suggest a few days ago Euro-dollar parity could happen soon.

    The ECB are in an almost impossible situation, quite unlike the ECB who must be loving the situation they find themselves in.
    Now I have a vision of a bunch old buffers consulting Wisden as to whether they should raise Euro interest rates.

    And a bunch of German technocrats arguing about how many spinners the team needs.
    "Lagarde promises 'vigilance' from fine leg as currency placed in silly mid off for the first time since 2002"
  • NigelbNigelb Posts: 61,557
    Made it look easy.

    It will be fascinating to see if this approach transfers successfully to overseas matches.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,206
    England’s greatest run chase ever

    Cetinje erupts AGAIN
  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 27,835
    edited July 2022

    How much more could they have chased? 400+ seems plausible. Its reframing the targets that can be set. The old equation of 300 in a day is out of date.

    India collapsed pretty badly in their second innings. They could conceivably have added another 200.
    Imagine if it were that many more needed at 12 o'clock? With Stokes to come.
  • glwglw Posts: 9,535

    Incredible. Six months ago we were utter shyte. Now we are playing some of the best Test cricket of all time!

    I can't think of any other invididual or team that has improved so much and so quickly.
  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830
    Moving on to today's next sporting event, it is a crossword clue: Novak Sinner.
  • SouthamObserverSouthamObserver Posts: 38,876
    Absolutely superb, almost beyond words, from Root and Bairstow. But Stokes and McCullum have utterly transformed this England team. It is extraordinary. They have freed up the players to be as good as they can be. You have to be without fear yourself to do that.
  • Sean_FSean_F Posts: 35,764
    Nigelb said:

    Scott_xP said:

    A Tory MP gets in touch:

    “We are eeking out the final hours and days of this Government. We aren’t talking about weeks or months”

    Don’t see how that happens without quite a few Cabinet resignations in the coming hours, but even still 👀👀👀👀

    https://twitter.com/TomSwarbrick1/status/1544258122721665026

    Stop bloody eeking, and kick the liar out.
    A dying dog should just be swiftly put down. Johnson has long outlived his usefulness.
  • CyclefreeCyclefree Posts: 25,074
    Incidentally - in the vain hope that anyone other than myself is interested in gardening - the Hampton Court Show was ok but a bit underpowered by comparison to previous years. The same for Chelsea. I think such events have not recovered to their pre-Covid oomph yet. Or maybe exhibitors and others don't think they are value for money.

    Some of the gardens - even by well-known designers - were really poor, frankly.
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 39,117
    eek said:

    Leon said:

    Difficult to sense from the southern Balkans, but is it really possible Boris might resign today?!

    No chance - it's Bozo and he will cling on to No 10 like a limpet attached to Superglue.
    Barnacle. Limpets are removable.
  • eekeek Posts: 24,797

    Scott_xP said:

    NEW: Explosive call now on @mrjamesob a serving senior civil servant rings in to say our democracy is in danger due to lies coming from No.10 Press operation. Says he was felt a duty to ring in after watching Dominic Raab call into question Simon McDonald’s account in his letter

    “Stewart” went on to say: Do not underestimate how dangerous this is. Our democracy is under threat. Calls on Simon Case to resign. Says to have the most senior spokesperson to continually lie on behalf of the PM is the sign of a “failed and corrupt state”

    He also called on all the civil servants sitting in the Number 10 press office to get up and leave their desks in protest. “I should be at work serving the country!”

    @mrjamesob “You are”


    https://twitter.com/hattmarris84/status/1544260557297127427

    Call me an ole cynic, but you didn't see civil servants so passionate about 'lies coming from Number 10' until they were threatened with a reduction in their numbers.
    And? The issue we have is that it demonstrates how incompetent JRM actually is. The responsibilities of various departments have expanded since Brexit (as we now have to do whole heaps of things that weren't necessary before or even required at all) yet JRM seems to believe you can just bin people to save money.

    Now you could automate things and then bin people but hey that doesn't tie in with the timeframe that JRM has given of NOW!!!!
  • Absolutely superb, almost beyond words, from Root and Bairstow. But Stokes and McCullum have utterly transformed this England team. It is extraordinary. They have freed up the players to be as good as they can be. You have to be without fear yourself to do that.

    I think we should follow the example as supporters and just believe and enjoy.
  • NigelbNigelb Posts: 61,557
    edited July 2022
    Unquestionably man of the match.

    It is Bairstow's 12th century in 81 Tests. He had only scored six in 89 innings, but he has now scored six in eight Tests in 2022.

    He is only the fourth England player to score four centuries in five Tests.

    He is the first player in Test history to score six centuries in a calendar year batting at five or lower.

    He is the 12th England player to have two centuries in the same Test.
  • wooliedyedwooliedyed Posts: 6,815
    edited July 2022
    As a proud Englishman I'd like to invite the Indian Cricket Team and Boris Johnson to KISS MY ARSE
    All is Glory in every Close and Quad
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 58,038
    (((Dan Hodges))) Retweeted
    Ava-Santina
    @AvaSantina
    ·
    8m
    Boris Johnson's spokesperson yet to turn up to face questions from journalists in lobby this morning.

    30 mins late so far.
  • AnabobazinaAnabobazina Posts: 19,598
    England just think they can chase absolutely anything.

    Mind over matter.
  • AnabobazinaAnabobazina Posts: 19,598
    I thought this was a fair point at the time...



    Ed Miliband
    @Ed_Miliband
    Without tempting #Ashes fate why do sides batting 4th always have such trouble in test run chases. Simply pitch deterioration or psychology?
    1:58 pm · 11 Jul 2015· Twitter for iPhone
  • Morris_DancerMorris_Dancer Posts: 60,933
    edited July 2022
    Mr. glw, I present to you the Brawn F1 team.

    Edited extra bit: some say a lace- and bell-clad hero tipped Button to win that title at 70/1.
  • Nigel_ForemainNigel_Foremain Posts: 13,766

    Scott_xP said:

    NEW: Explosive call now on @mrjamesob a serving senior civil servant rings in to say our democracy is in danger due to lies coming from No.10 Press operation. Says he was felt a duty to ring in after watching Dominic Raab call into question Simon McDonald’s account in his letter

    “Stewart” went on to say: Do not underestimate how dangerous this is. Our democracy is under threat. Calls on Simon Case to resign. Says to have the most senior spokesperson to continually lie on behalf of the PM is the sign of a “failed and corrupt state”

    He also called on all the civil servants sitting in the Number 10 press office to get up and leave their desks in protest. “I should be at work serving the country!”

    @mrjamesob “You are”


    https://twitter.com/hattmarris84/status/1544260557297127427

    Call me an ole cynic, but you didn't see civil servants so passionate about 'lies coming from Number 10' until they were threatened with a reduction in their numbers.
    You are an ole cynic. There you are; you asked and no-one else obliged.

    No amount of cynicism or spin about people's motives can get Johnson off the hook here. Whatever the motivation the key point is correct: Johnson is essentially dismantling the unwritten rules that have applied to running fair and balanced government. He is a threat to our democratic system.
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 14,878
    Cyclefree said:

    Incidentally - in the vain hope that anyone other than myself is interested in gardening - the Hampton Court Show was ok but a bit underpowered by comparison to previous years. The same for Chelsea. I think such events have not recovered to their pre-Covid oomph yet. Or maybe exhibitors and others don't think they are value for money.

    Some of the gardens - even by well-known designers - were really poor, frankly.

    Possible effects of some difficult growing conditions this year?
  • DecrepiterJohnLDecrepiterJohnL Posts: 23,926
    Cyclefree said:

    Incidentally - in the vain hope that anyone other than myself is interested in gardening - the Hampton Court Show was ok but a bit underpowered by comparison to previous years. The same for Chelsea. I think such events have not recovered to their pre-Covid oomph yet. Or maybe exhibitors and others don't think they are value for money.

    Some of the gardens - even by well-known designers - were really poor, frankly.

    I am seeing an awful lot of adverts for the Royal Horticultural Society "we speak plant" which is possibly a result of your (and others') gardening posts on pb.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,206

    Absolutely superb, almost beyond words, from Root and Bairstow. But Stokes and McCullum have utterly transformed this England team. It is extraordinary. They have freed up the players to be as good as they can be. You have to be without fear yourself to do that.

    It’s great

    Tho I can’t help thinking, quite yearningly, of what England rugby could do if they were similarly unleashed. The talent is there, as here
  • Morris_DancerMorris_Dancer Posts: 60,933
    Market isn't convinced, Starmer's still 7 (and favourite) to be next PM.
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 58,038
    Stocky said:

    Nigelb said:

    Hi Cabinet. For yr own self-respect don't give 1 more interview defending stuff u know is indefensible. You aren't kidding yourself; let alone us.
    THEN we need eg Sunak+Javid+Wallace (other combos available) to tell Boris THIS AM he goes or you all go. END THIS CRAP TODAY

    https://twitter.com/montie/status/1544224089451151360

    I've not been paying attention much lately. Any particular reason why this is coming to a head today?
    He has finally been caught bang to rights lying. This time in order to protect an ally who had been investigated at FOC for a previous incident.
  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830

    I thought this was a fair point at the time...



    Ed Miliband
    @Ed_Miliband
    Without tempting #Ashes fate why do sides batting 4th always have such trouble in test run chases. Simply pitch deterioration or psychology?
    1:58 pm · 11 Jul 2015· Twitter for iPhone

    Could be observation bias. If they win in the 3rd innings or only have 50 to make to win in the 4th we don't call it a run chase.
  • Nigel_ForemainNigel_Foremain Posts: 13,766

    dixiedean said:

    Is this the one? Finally?

    (((Dan Hodges)))
    @DPJHodges
    ·
    24m
    Just to repeat. We’ve been told Pincher was vetted at the time of his appointment. That vetting will have uncovered the 2019 incident, which was officially recorded. And that will then have been reported back to the Prime Minister. There is no way round this for Boris or No.10.

    Probably not.
    True.

    But I think this morning'e events have absolutely guaranteed Johnson will not be leader for next GE.

    I hope to God that you are right.
  • rcs1000rcs1000 Posts: 53,766
    rcs1000 said:

    Sandpit said:

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-07-05/euro-falls-to-lowest-since-2002-against-the-us-dollar

    Euro Tumbles to 20-Year Low, Putting Parity With Dollar in Sight

    The common currency fell as much as 1.4% to $1.0281.

    The ECB seem to be accepting a devalued currency, as the price to keep the printing presses runnning and interest rates on the floor.
    It's perfectly logical: the Eurozone is full of export oriented economies, and has excessive government debt. A little bit of inflation will wash away quite a few sins.

    The difficult bit (as they and others will surely find out), is that once inflation gets into your system, it can be hard to get rid of.
    On which note, I see the Norwegian oil & gas workers are striking. Given that both we and the Continent are highly dependent on their gas, this is not good news.
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 58,038
    I guess Sunak is game theory planning all the options before he announces that he has seriously considered resigning but...
  • AnabobazinaAnabobazina Posts: 19,598
    Leon said:

    Absolutely superb, almost beyond words, from Root and Bairstow. But Stokes and McCullum have utterly transformed this England team. It is extraordinary. They have freed up the players to be as good as they can be. You have to be without fear yourself to do that.

    It’s great

    Tho I can’t help thinking, quite yearningly, of what England rugby could do if they were similarly unleashed. The talent is there, as here
    Absolutely agreed. It's tragic what the odious, tedious Eddie Jones has done to the England side, with his overtraining, negative psychology and obsession with "brutality" over flair and skill.

    We have the players.

    Get rid of him.
  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830

    Market isn't convinced, Starmer's still 7 (and favourite) to be next PM.

    Learned helplessness. I have run out of money to bet on bojo going. he is going though.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,206

    Leon said:

    Absolutely superb, almost beyond words, from Root and Bairstow. But Stokes and McCullum have utterly transformed this England team. It is extraordinary. They have freed up the players to be as good as they can be. You have to be without fear yourself to do that.

    It’s great

    Tho I can’t help thinking, quite yearningly, of what England rugby could do if they were similarly unleashed. The talent is there, as here
    Absolutely agreed. It's tragic what the odious, tedious Eddie Jones has done to the England side, with his overtraining, negative psychology and obsession with "brutality" over flair and skill.

    We have the players.

    Get rid of him.

    Yes. We are headed for a dismal early exit from the World Cup as things stand. At least if we throw it about we could have fun and entertain as we lose. And we might just win. Like the cricket team

    TBF to Jones he was a good coach when he started. He turned a poor England side around very quickly. But he’s overstayed by a couple of seasons at least
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 58,038
    Guess Hari and team are spending a long time concocting another contorted pack of bollocks before briefing the press.

    Surely Coffey has the guts and integrity to walk at least. She seems a decent enough person and sensible minister - likely to be retained in a new Cabinet.

  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830
    Debating whether to attend local festival this year. Headliners Kula Shaker which is not great.

    Fun fact, radiohead had a debate about what to label the tapes for their 7th album which would make it least likely that anyone would play them if they were lost/stolen and decided on "Kula Shaker demo."
  • AnabobazinaAnabobazina Posts: 19,598
    IshmaelZ said:

    I thought this was a fair point at the time...



    Ed Miliband
    @Ed_Miliband
    Without tempting #Ashes fate why do sides batting 4th always have such trouble in test run chases. Simply pitch deterioration or psychology?
    1:58 pm · 11 Jul 2015· Twitter for iPhone

    Could be observation bias. If they win in the 3rd innings or only have 50 to make to win in the 4th we don't call it a run chase.
    Not really. The point is that anything over 300 was until very recently considered a real stretch (England declined 270 last summer). The pitch was the reason given.

    But, Ed Miliband was quite possibly right before his time when he alluded to psychology being the key factor.
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 49,614
    Leon said:

    Absolutely superb, almost beyond words, from Root and Bairstow. But Stokes and McCullum have utterly transformed this England team. It is extraordinary. They have freed up the players to be as good as they can be. You have to be without fear yourself to do that.

    It’s great

    Tho I can’t help thinking, quite yearningly, of what England rugby could do if they were similarly unleashed. The talent is there, as here
    We saw the outcome of that in 2003. 1990s rugby was as bad as 1990s cricket, until Sir Clive turned up at Twickenham.
  • RochdalePioneersRochdalePioneers Posts: 27,007
    IshmaelZ said:

    Debating whether to attend local festival this year. Headliners Kula Shaker which is not great.

    Fun fact, radiohead had a debate about what to label the tapes for their 7th album which would make it least likely that anyone would play them if they were lost/stolen and decided on "Kula Shaker demo."

    Kula Shaker's new album is their best in a long long time.
  • SelebianSelebian Posts: 7,245
    edited July 2022
    IshmaelZ said:

    Debating whether to attend local festival this year. Headliners Kula Shaker which is not great.

    Hey dude, hush. Don't you like the sound of drums? Govinda tattva festival.

    (with a wee bit of help from Wikipedia, as all I could remember offhand was Govinda)
  • Stark_DawningStark_Dawning Posts: 9,232
    Sandpit said:

    Leon said:

    Absolutely superb, almost beyond words, from Root and Bairstow. But Stokes and McCullum have utterly transformed this England team. It is extraordinary. They have freed up the players to be as good as they can be. You have to be without fear yourself to do that.

    It’s great

    Tho I can’t help thinking, quite yearningly, of what England rugby could do if they were similarly unleashed. The talent is there, as here
    We saw the outcome of that in 2003. 1990s rugby was as bad as 1990s cricket, until Sir Clive turned up at Twickenham.
    England won three grand slams in the 1990s. They've only won two since.
  • .

    IshmaelZ said:

    I thought this was a fair point at the time...



    Ed Miliband
    @Ed_Miliband
    Without tempting #Ashes fate why do sides batting 4th always have such trouble in test run chases. Simply pitch deterioration or psychology?
    1:58 pm · 11 Jul 2015· Twitter for iPhone

    Could be observation bias. If they win in the 3rd innings or only have 50 to make to win in the 4th we don't call it a run chase.
    Not really. The point is that anything over 300 was until very recently considered a real stretch (England declined 270 last summer). The pitch was the reason given.

    But, Ed Miliband was quite possibly right before his time when he alluded to psychology being the key factor.
    Not just psychology but batters didn't bat with the run rates they can do nowadays in the past, so typically if you were going into the third innings chasing over 300 you likely would struggle to have the time to get it, meaning you'd normally be batting to avoid defeat by getting a draw, which inevitably promotes a more negative attitude.

    That partnership ran up runs at about 5 per over and throughout the entire test over 1300 runs were scored with overs lost to rain and all up before lunch on day five - that wouldn't have happened in the past too often.
  • ChrisChris Posts: 11,008
    In every culture in decline the watchful ones among the slaves know all that is genuine will be scorned and conned and cast away.
  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 27,835

    I thought this was a fair point at the time...



    Ed Miliband
    @Ed_Miliband
    Without tempting #Ashes fate why do sides batting 4th always have such trouble in test run chases. Simply pitch deterioration or psychology?
    1:58 pm · 11 Jul 2015· Twitter for iPhone

    If only we'd listened to Ed in 2015.
  • RochdalePioneersRochdalePioneers Posts: 27,007

    Guess Hari and team are spending a long time concocting another contorted pack of bollocks before briefing the press.

    Surely Coffey has the guts and integrity to walk at least. She seems a decent enough person and sensible minister - likely to be retained in a new Cabinet.

    Despite all of the other false dawns, I have to question if this is *it*. We have had so many lies spread by cabinet ministers, and yet this one is spectacular.

    As others have pointed out, this is the Perfect Storm. BloJo directly appoints someone he *knows* to be a menace. "Pincher by Nature" etc. Then we have got the PM himself directly lying to ministers as senior as the DPM, sending them off to tell lies as the official government position.

    This isn't something that can be obfuscated by smoke or claims of bias. How does the No10 Press Office possibly function now? With direct proof that they are knowing lying to their own ministers?
  • Northern_AlNorthern_Al Posts: 7,458
    Amid all the gloomy news, it's great to see Yorkshire beat India so handsomely. So proud.
  • Andy_CookeAndy_Cooke Posts: 4,793

    IshmaelZ said:

    I thought this was a fair point at the time...



    Ed Miliband
    @Ed_Miliband
    Without tempting #Ashes fate why do sides batting 4th always have such trouble in test run chases. Simply pitch deterioration or psychology?
    1:58 pm · 11 Jul 2015· Twitter for iPhone

    Could be observation bias. If they win in the 3rd innings or only have 50 to make to win in the 4th we don't call it a run chase.
    Not really. The point is that anything over 300 was until very recently considered a real stretch (England declined 270 last summer). The pitch was the reason given.

    But, Ed Miliband was quite possibly right before his time when he alluded to psychology being the key factor.
    I'd agree with Ed.
    And the psychology was partly due to the (ab)use of stats, by pouring in a bunch of dependencies and then glossing over them.

    There are a bunch of reasons why fourth innings chases resulting in a win against a big target don't happen often:

    1 - No target set (win by an innings)
    2 - Small target set (batting stops when you get there)
    3 - Ran out of time/overs (draw)
    4 - Fell short against target.

    And, against any given target, (4) divides into: "chasing team fell short against a target equal or lower" and "chasing team fell short against a target higher than this" (and may have scored more than this.

    There have been 31 chases that resulted in 378 or higher in the fourth innings. It's just that most of those ended in draws or losses against higher targets. And, looking at lower targets that were achieved or ran out of time, odds are that about 30 of those would have been favourites to overhaul 378 if they'd had time or a high enough target (eg 344/1 would be highly likely to get 378 if that had been the target with time enough).

    This shouldn't detract from England's win. One reason for it is that they batted so quickly to get rid of the "ran out of time" option in the first place. Another is that they didn't care about the above and just got on with it.
  • NigelbNigelb Posts: 61,557
    The US version of the Finnish heat storage system.https://www.nrel.gov/news/program/2021/nrel-options-a-modular-cost-effective-build-anywhere-particle-thermal-energy-storage-technology.html

    This is genuinely interesting - particularly for a country like Scotland (or its Scandinavian neighbours), which has the potential for a large year round surplus of renewable energy generation, and a big demand for heating in the winter months, most of which is currently provided by burning gas.
  • MattWMattW Posts: 18,080

    Cyclefree said:

    Incidentally - in the vain hope that anyone other than myself is interested in gardening - the Hampton Court Show was ok but a bit underpowered by comparison to previous years. The same for Chelsea. I think such events have not recovered to their pre-Covid oomph yet. Or maybe exhibitors and others don't think they are value for money.

    Some of the gardens - even by well-known designers - were really poor, frankly.

    I am seeing an awful lot of adverts for the Royal Horticultural Society "we speak plant" which is possibly a result of your (and others') gardening posts on pb.
    Hmm.

    I'm getting some Black Butte blackberries this year from my new plant bought last year, and a small but fair crop of bluberries at last.

    Need to buy some industrial size containers - likely 18" deep x 18" diameter for transplanting.
    (Interesting - plant pots are imperial.)

    But tomatoes seem all over the place. My trailing tomatoes have gone beserk, but apparently down in Kent it is disastrous.

  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 27,835
    Looks like Michael Ellis is the nightwatchman today.
  • ChrisChris Posts: 11,008


    This isn't something that can be obfuscated by smoke or claims of bias.

    You haven't reckoned with their diabolical lexicographical ingenuity.
  • RochdalePioneersRochdalePioneers Posts: 27,007
    Selebian said:

    IshmaelZ said:

    Debating whether to attend local festival this year. Headliners Kula Shaker which is not great.

    Hey dude, hush. Don't you like the sound of drums? Govinda tattva festival.

    (with a wee bit of help from Wikipedia, as all I could remember offhand was Govinda)
    Their new album is called !1st Congregational Church of Eternal Love (and Free Hugs) - a concept album set in a church in a small English village. And its entertainingly good!

    Needed to be though. Their first two albums were sensational. Then they fell off the cliff hard.
  • Nigelb said:

    The US version of the Finnish heat storage system.https://www.nrel.gov/news/program/2021/nrel-options-a-modular-cost-effective-build-anywhere-particle-thermal-energy-storage-technology.html

    This is genuinely interesting - particularly for a country like Scotland (or its Scandinavian neighbours), which has the potential for a large year round surplus of renewable energy generation, and a big demand for heating in the winter months, most of which is currently provided by burning gas.

    The Finnish system seems to work much better for hot water than for converting back to electricity, which makes me wonder, would it be theoretically possible to design a modular system that could be small enough and efficient enough to replace boilers - instead of heat pumps?

    Or would it always need to be big enough that it could only work for eg industry or large scale distribution?
  • RogerRoger Posts: 18,891
    glw said:

    Roger said:

    You can go into any one of twenty video houses in Soho and at the press of a button they will happily generate any number of images depending on your needs. This function has existed for years. If the imput is now words what difference does it make? I can sit next to the operator and say give me a spaceship. Elongate it change colours change shape give it metal wheels painted blue add a few spikes etc etc. I'm struggling to see anything new that might be useful.

    There is a vast difference between a domain specific tool like a 3d modelling programme, no matter how sophisticated it is in order to reduce the effort of the operator, and a natural language to image transformer. There's no operator for starters, there's no tool at least nothing you need to operate directly, you put in text and spits out images. There's no human expertise required at all.

    In the future as these models get faster you could litterally talk to them and have the images refined on-the-fly. Eventually you could have them generate an entire narrative sequence as fast as you can speak. And there's no reason in principle why you can't have them go the opposite way. Turning images to text or audio, and back and forth.
    So what is it's function other than to service those like myself who use and produce images? It's clearly not 'art' any more than Pink Floys liquid light shows were. That you can sit by a machine and instruct it yourself without the guidance of an operator could be labour saving but so what? Everything gets faster and more sophisticated all the time but the goal is still to produce a usable image that serves your purpose and that's not changed

    I suppose it could be useful for home made film makers but it's not exactly answering a need. Over the last thirty years techniques in image making have become much simpler and faster. Starting with simple morphing to complex CGI work. The biggest demand from the designer/director is not being overwhelmed with choice. It's having the vision to know what they want

  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 49,614

    Sandpit said:

    Leon said:

    Absolutely superb, almost beyond words, from Root and Bairstow. But Stokes and McCullum have utterly transformed this England team. It is extraordinary. They have freed up the players to be as good as they can be. You have to be without fear yourself to do that.

    It’s great

    Tho I can’t help thinking, quite yearningly, of what England rugby could do if they were similarly unleashed. The talent is there, as here
    We saw the outcome of that in 2003. 1990s rugby was as bad as 1990s cricket, until Sir Clive turned up at Twickenham.
    England won three grand slams in the 1990s. They've only won two since.
    All of which pales into insignificance, compared to that magnificent morning, eight pints down by 10am, as “Jonny Wilkinson kicks for World Cup glory”, one of the top handful of sporting moments of my life.
  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 27,835
    MattW said:

    Cyclefree said:

    Incidentally - in the vain hope that anyone other than myself is interested in gardening - the Hampton Court Show was ok but a bit underpowered by comparison to previous years. The same for Chelsea. I think such events have not recovered to their pre-Covid oomph yet. Or maybe exhibitors and others don't think they are value for money.

    Some of the gardens - even by well-known designers - were really poor, frankly.

    I am seeing an awful lot of adverts for the Royal Horticultural Society "we speak plant" which is possibly a result of your (and others') gardening posts on pb.
    Hmm.

    I'm getting some Black Butte blackberries this year from my new plant bought last year, and a small but fair crop of bluberries at last.

    Need to buy some industrial size containers - likely 18" deep x 18" diameter for transplanting.
    (Interesting - plant pots are imperial.)

    But tomatoes seem all over the place. My trailing tomatoes have gone beserk, but apparently down in Kent it is disastrous.

    More tomato plants than anyone knows what to do with up here.
    Friend has resorted to giving them away free.
  • OnlyLivingBoyOnlyLivingBoy Posts: 14,911
    IshmaelZ said:

    Debating whether to attend local festival this year. Headliners Kula Shaker which is not great.

    Fun fact, radiohead had a debate about what to label the tapes for their 7th album which would make it least likely that anyone would play them if they were lost/stolen and decided on "Kula Shaker demo."

    That is slim pickings. I saw the Stones on Sunday and I suspect subsequent concerts and festivals may struggle to match it.
  • Richard_TyndallRichard_Tyndall Posts: 30,846

    IshmaelZ said:

    Debating whether to attend local festival this year. Headliners Kula Shaker which is not great.

    Fun fact, radiohead had a debate about what to label the tapes for their 7th album which would make it least likely that anyone would play them if they were lost/stolen and decided on "Kula Shaker demo."

    That is slim pickings. I saw the Stones on Sunday and I suspect subsequent concerts and festivals may struggle to match it.
    I saw the Eagles the previous Sunday. Brilliant concert.

    Mind you I do quite like Kula Shaker
  • KeystoneKeystone Posts: 127

    Leon said:

    Absolutely superb, almost beyond words, from Root and Bairstow. But Stokes and McCullum have utterly transformed this England team. It is extraordinary. They have freed up the players to be as good as they can be. You have to be without fear yourself to do that.

    It’s great

    Tho I can’t help thinking, quite yearningly, of what England rugby could do if they were similarly unleashed. The talent is there, as here
    Absolutely agreed. It's tragic what the odious, tedious Eddie Jones has done to the England side, with his overtraining, negative psychology and obsession with "brutality" over flair and skill.

    We have the players.

    Get rid of him.
    Jones understands that you need to match the physicality of the South Africans and Kiwis before you can play.

    Ideally you'd have loads of top level players with the handling skills of the Kiwis and the physicality of the Saffers. We don't produce them - kids don't play with a rugby ball from dawn till dusk here. (The Welsh do in a few places, and produce better footballers).

    And then you're looking for obsessive winners - the Martin Johnson and Lawrence Dallaglios of 2003. Players opponents fear in the tunnel.

    So Jones does the best he can with what he has. Beats them up in camp to see who thrives under pressure.

    The idea that changing coaches will erase structural problems is like imagining Brexit will magically transform our economy.

  • wooliedyedwooliedyed Posts: 6,815
    edited July 2022

    Sandpit said:

    Leon said:

    Absolutely superb, almost beyond words, from Root and Bairstow. But Stokes and McCullum have utterly transformed this England team. It is extraordinary. They have freed up the players to be as good as they can be. You have to be without fear yourself to do that.

    It’s great

    Tho I can’t help thinking, quite yearningly, of what England rugby could do if they were similarly unleashed. The talent is there, as here
    We saw the outcome of that in 2003. 1990s rugby was as bad as 1990s cricket, until Sir Clive turned up at Twickenham.
    England won three grand slams in the 1990s. They've only won two since.
    Indeed, they also won 6 triple crowns in the 90s, only lost the Calcutta cup once in 1990 and only lost twice to Ireland all decade and scored a win over a very strong NZ in 93. We were the dominant northern hemisphere team throughout the decade. Woodward took that and caught us up with the southern hemisphere
    Edit - we were also world cup runners up in 91 and semi finalists in 95
  • Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 26,279
    Chris said:

    In every culture in decline the watchful ones among the slaves know all that is genuine will be scorned and conned and cast away.

    Which culture is in decline? Russian is the obvious one.
  • Nigelb said:

    Unquestionably man of the match.

    It is Bairstow's 12th century in 81 Tests. He had only scored six in 89 innings, but he has now scored six in eight Tests in 2022.

    He is only the fourth England player to score four centuries in five Tests.

    He is the first player in Test history to score six centuries in a calendar year batting at five or lower.

    He is the 12th England player to have two centuries in the same Test.

    He’s scored four centuries in five innings! And the one that wasn’t a century was 71 not out.
  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 27,835
    Keystone said:

    Leon said:

    Absolutely superb, almost beyond words, from Root and Bairstow. But Stokes and McCullum have utterly transformed this England team. It is extraordinary. They have freed up the players to be as good as they can be. You have to be without fear yourself to do that.

    It’s great

    Tho I can’t help thinking, quite yearningly, of what England rugby could do if they were similarly unleashed. The talent is there, as here
    Absolutely agreed. It's tragic what the odious, tedious Eddie Jones has done to the England side, with his overtraining, negative psychology and obsession with "brutality" over flair and skill.

    We have the players.

    Get rid of him.
    Jones understands that you need to match the physicality of the South Africans and Kiwis before you can play.

    Ideally you'd have loads of top level players with the handling skills of the Kiwis and the physicality of the Saffers. We don't produce them - kids don't play with a rugby ball from dawn till dusk here. (The Welsh do in a few places, and produce better footballers).

    And then you're looking for obsessive winners - the Martin Johnson and Lawrence Dallaglios of 2003. Players opponents fear in the tunnel.

    So Jones does the best he can with what he has. Beats them up in camp to see who thrives under pressure.

    The idea that changing coaches will erase structural problems is like imagining Brexit will magically transform our economy.

    Too much gym work, not enough ball work.
This discussion has been closed.