Silverwood needs to be over and out

ENGLAND cricket coach Chris Silverwood’s post-match interview sank to new depths after he dipped into the book of c**p jargon.

As if the show by Joe Root & Co over the past few weeks hasn’t been bad enough – and it has been – Silverwood (below) tried to blindside us all with a truckload of banalities.

In his post-match chat, talk about ‘disappointment’, ’working hard’, ‘putting things right’ and that old cop-out ‘taking the positives’ were at the fore.

It’s not clever. He was taking the cricket-loving public – for whom the Ashes remains a big deal – for mugs.

The dissection called for honesty – poor preparation, poor team selection, poor on-field decisionmaking, a lack of genuine quality and heart against highly-skilled and capable opponents led us like lambs to the slaughter.

There was no admission as to anything that had gone wrong.

For that alone, he needs relieving of his responsibilities. People ask who else is out there.

They may have a point.

But, in this instance, we should be prepared to take the positives from an awful situation and have a look.

“NOT the best kickabout. Year 11s stole our ball. But we go again next year,” wrote Brentford striker Ivan Toney after they fell victim to Manchester City.

Quietly, without too much fuss,

Pep Guardiola’s side have established a healthy lead at the top of the Premier League table.

It’s all coming together nicely at the Etihad. Something’s not quite right at Chelsea and Liverpool have to do without Mo Salah and Sadio Mane because of the Africa Cup of Nations later this month.

Throughout 2021, Manchester City amassed 107 points – more than Chelsea (82) and Liverpool (77).

At the moment, the table doesn’t reflect that dominance. But it’s becoming increasingly clear that by the end of this season it will.