It’s 29 all out for England
QUESTION What is the highest number of cricketers selected by England in a single series? During the 1989 home Ashes tour, the England cricket team called on 29 players. However, it ushered in an era of Australian domination that was to last 16 years.
The Aussies, led by Allan Border, had been famously dubbed ‘the worst team ever to leave Australia’. They had lost three of the last four Ashes and had just one series win in five-and-a-half years.
There was much optimism about England’s chances: big beasts ian Botham and Mike gatting were back in the team; and the new regime was led by great cricketing buccaneers, David gower and chairman of selectors Ted Dexter. it was billed as English style against Aussie grit.
Even the Aussies didn’t fancy their team. Fast bowler Jeff Thomson put his own spin on the Castlemaine XXXX slogan popular at the time: ‘i wouldn’t give you a XXXX for Australia’s chances of regaining the Ashes.’
However, England’s recent record was poor — they had won only one of their past 19 Tests and been thrashed 4-0 by the West indies. Australian captain Allan Border, smarting from back-to-back Ashes defeats, was determined a loss wouldn’t happen again under his watch.
grit won out and Australia thrashed England 4-0. England were lucky — without rain, it would probably have been 6-0. The only contest England won was musical chairs: picking 29 players to Australia’s 12 in the series.
The England players were: David gower, Mike Atherton, Kim Barnett, ian Botham, Chris Broad, David Capel, nick Cook, Tim Curtis, Phillip DeFreitas, graham Dilley, John Emburey, neil Foster, Angus Fraser, Mike gatting, graham gooch, Eddie Hemmings, Alan igglesden, Paul Jarvis, Allan Lamb, Devon Malcolm, Martyn Moxon, Phil newport, Derek Pringle, Tim robinson, Jack russell, gladstone Small, robin Smith, John Stephenson and Chris Tavare.
Stand-out performances from the Aussies with the bat came from Steve Waugh, averaging 127; Mark Taylor, 84; Allan Border, 74; and Dean Jones, 71. Terry Alderman was devastating with the ball, taking 41 wickets at just 17.36.
England didn’t learn their lesson — they used 24 players in the next home Ashes, including seven debutants, and were thumped 4-1. Australia introduced Shane Warne — with inevitable results.
Owen Robyns, Pembroke. QUESTION How did Hornchurch in Essex get its name? THE name Hornchurch is first recorded in 1163. its origin is uncertain. There is a rather salacious belief, though it is unfounded, that the town was built by a female convert to expiate her former sins.
it was called Hor-church until Henry ii, passing that way, nicknamed it Hornchurch and ordered a pair of ox’s horns to be fixed to the church.
The 17th-century antiquary and philosopher John Audrey was of the opinion that Hornchurch got its name from the horns of a hart that happened to be killed by the King’s dog, near the church as it was being built. The horns were put in the walls.
Another explanation is that Hornchurch means the church of Horn, referring to a man of that name.
One more theory is that Hornchurch owes its name to the currying industry, the sign of which was a pair of cow horns. Currying is the process by which leather is stretched and burnished to produce a uniform thickness and suppleness.
A more mundane explanation is that Hornchurch is a contraction of Havering — the local borough — Church. The interchangeable nature of the vowels ‘a’ and ‘o’ might explain the contraction.
Edward Cumings, Brentwood, Essex. QUESTION The 12th-century chronicler Gerald of Wales claimed there was a drowned city under Lough Neagh in n Northern Ireland. Is there evidence for this? in HiS book Topographia Hibernia (Topography of ireland), gerald of Wales mentions a city that was flooded as a
punishment for the residents’ sinfulness. its location is given as Lough neagh. An ancient legend said that if you drew water from a well and left it uncovered, it would flood out and inundate the land. This is how Lough neagh is said to have been formed. gerald also said fishermen claimed to see buildings in the water. However, the flooding would have occurred before the 5th-century arrival of Christian clergy in ireland. Before this time, buildings were made of wood and mud, which would not have lasted long under water. The story was revived in the 19th century by irish songwriter Thomas Moore, who used it in a verse in Let Erin remember The Days Of Old: On Lough Neagh’s bank as the
fisherman strays, When the clear, cold eve’s declining, He sees the round towers of
other days In the wave beneath him shining.
More scientifically, water flows in to Lough neagh from the rivers Bann and Blackwater, and flows out through the Lower Bann. it was most likely formed at the end of the ice Age 30,000 years ago, at the same time as ireland became physically separated from Britain.
retreating ice scoured a depression that was filled by melted ice and then by the rivers. The loch takes its name from Eochaid, the fabled son of a king of Munster. it is 19 miles at its longest and nine miles at its widest, covering 151sq miles. The loch is shallow, with an average depth of 30ft and a maximum of 98ft.
gerald of Wales (Giraldus Cambrensis) was a norman/Welsh monk and historian. He travelled throughout Britain and ireland recording folk tales, and visited rome. He had hoped to become Bishop of St David’s, but had to settle for being Archdeacon of Brecon.
Bob Cubitt, Northampton.
IS THERE a question to which you have always wanted to know the answer? Or do you know the answer to a question raised here? Send your questions and answers to: Charles Legge, Answers To Correspondents, Scottish Daily Mail, 20 Waterloo Street, Glasgow, G2 6DB. You can also email them to charles.legge@dailymail.co.uk. A selection will be published, but we are not able to enter into individual correspondence.