Almanac Cricket – The Ashes Squad competition: And we have a winner!

 

The entries have been scrutinised, the totals tallied, the results double checked, and the judges have made their final decision. And we have a winner…

 

The Cricket Australia selectors finally went for an Ashes Test squad of 17. All of our entrants scored 11 or 12 – you can make your own judgement about how good that is but please take into consideration that the so-called experts whose squads we listed back in February all, bar one, scored 10 or 11. Ben Horne from The Daily Telegraph actually scored 14. Like our winner, he was one of the few to choose Matthew Wade but also scored with other ‘outsiders’ Peter Siddle and James Pattinson.

 

We can’t have a competition without a touch of controversy, hence the Judging Panel did have to make a call on one entry. And who is more likely to cause such a call than Rulebook! Go back and have a look at his list, especially at pick 17. The Judging Panel, in its wisdom, decreed that Rulebook’s 17th selection was D Worrall and that, given the visual format of the entry, the name J Pattinson constituted an unacceptable 18th name. But given the usual big-hearted nature of all things Almanac and its passion for the spirit of the game rather than the letter of the law, the Panel resiled from the option of declaring Rulebook’s entry invalid.

 

A few highlights from the entries: absolutely no-one named Mitchell Marsh (including the experts!); our winner was the only entrant to select Cameron Bancroft; Dave Brown was the only one to choose Peter Siddle; Ian Hauser alone chose Michael Neser.

 

…and the winner is Dan Hoban. As they say in the classics, the cheque is in the mail, Dan!

 

Our writers are independent contributors. The opinions expressed in their articles are their own. They are not the views, nor do they reflect the views, of Malarkey Publications.

 

Do you really enjoy the Almanac concept?
And want to ensure it continues in its current form, and better? To help keep things ticking over please consider making your own contribution.

Become an Almanac (annual) member – CLICK HERE
One off financial contribution – CLICK HERE
Regular financial contribution (monthly EFT) – CLICK HERE