i've never really liked England as a test OR one day team - and i am hoping RSA will clean them up. There has been a lot of talk between a tough ashes but i'm not swallowing any of it. They say england has a great team on paper, but when you compare it to the aussie team, it suddenly doesn't look so good! Think of it this way: (using Price Waterhous Coopers' Cricket Rankings - the most reliable in the world)
Trescothick (Rank in world): 20th - Hayden: 6th
Strauss: 25 - Langer: 9
Butcher: 30 - Ponting: 5
Vaughn: 27 - Martyn: 8
Thorpe: 17 - Lehmann: 30
Flintoff: 28 (batting) + 13 (Bowling) - Clarke: 35
G.Jones: 83 - Gilchrist: 13
________________________
S.Jones: 47 - Gillespie: 6
Giles: 12 - Warne: 8
Hoggard: 17 - Kasprowicz: 14
Harmison: 4 - McGrath: 1

Add them up and you get:
England: 295 - Australia: 135

Heres a way of looking at it: A difference of 160 runs per innings

Source: http://cricketratings.pwcglobal.com/cricket/cricket.htm - go to the "ratings wizard"

Chuck