Perth Test, Day 3
Sunday, December 1, 2002 Today was a nasty experience for England, but let's put it in perspective. Nobody ever thought they would win the series, so they mustn't worry about the extent of the loss. So many things went wrong for them, so it would be more sensible to find out just why their various injuries took so long to heal, and why all the pressure was always on them and never on Australia. I don't believe England are as far off as an 11-day drubbing suggests.

Jason Gillespie would have been upset not to get the new ball last night, but he got his chance this morning, and the early portion of three wickets for one run was an absolute killer. England's running between the wickets was terrible all day, not just when Butcher and Vaughan were together – everyone was looking down instead of up. Nasser Hussain and Robert Key put together a valiant rearguard and Alec Stewart topped it off, but it was a savage dismantling of a cricket side by Australia.

Brett Lee wrapped it up with a fiery, brutal burst, but it was a terrible end when Alex Tudor ducked into one, especially with Chris Silverwood already on crutches and not batting. Lee was merely dishing out what he had copped when he was batting, and didn't even spare Steve Harmison after Tudor's injury. It was a solid team effort with some awesome displays, but funnily enough, none of the Australians will have been very happy with it. Everyone contributed, but they'd all have liked more. When they play like that as a team, they are unbeatable.

Nasser Hussain will cop a bit of flak for his reaction to his dismissal today, but I have no problem with it. It has to be said, it was not a good decision, but he has had a bit of luck this series. It often happens, though, that your bad call comes just at the moment you least need it. Nasser has openly admitted that he had a bad run of luck when he first took over the captaincy, but these things even themselves out over time.

Personally, I believe it was a good level of disappointment – he had been going very well and no-one should hold it against him. More to the point, that sort of emotion needs to be instilled in others to get the whole side on the same wavelength. England have looked particularly fragmented here in Perth, and there hasn't been a whole lot of support, nurturing or inspiration from the senior guys to the juniors. They have been very much on their own.

Australia's current dominance is unhealthy, even more so as England look no closer to beating them than they did ten years ago. Some tough decisions need to be made. I hope there is a legion of young cricketers in England who are sick of losing to Australia and have the motivation to up their county performances, maybe get themselves on an Academy tour, and climb the ladder into the Test side. England need to have 25 young players, ready to beat the Australians in 2005.

But Australia have to be very careful. They are not getting any younger and their thinking has changed since the mid-1980s, when temperament and promise were what mattered. This season they have picked Darren Lehmann to replace Mark Waugh – that would never have happened back then. The selectors feel they need to be convinced of every one of their picks, and by doing so, they have overlooked Michael Clarke, 21, who should by now have played three Tests.

The real problem will come when they have to replace Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne, neither of whom will be around forever. To replace 1000 Test wickets with two new guys, Australia will need Gillespie and Lee, the guys with the experience, to step up another level, and loss of Warne and McGrath will have a double effect. Australia's confidence will drop, while their opponents all around the world will be a lot more positive.

There is enough talent out there. Brad Williams springs to mind, the Queensland duo of Noffke and Dawes, Mike Kasprowicz is still around. But whoever they bring in, they must refuse to bracket them with McGrath and Warne.

For the time being, though, Australia's team has to remain the same. Lehmann should survive at Melbourne – a 40 here is not too bad – and after the World Cup they are off to West Indies, which is an opportunity to bring along a few new faces and get them into the set-up.

As for England, I expect them to dabble with some one-day players. There is a real opportunity, right now, for someone fresh out of England to make a name for themselves in the VB Series, and push their way into the Test team.

Ian Healy, who kept wicket for Australia in six winning Ashes series, will be providing his Expert View at the end of each day's play in the Tests. He was talking to Andrew Miller.

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