Trivia.

The Ashes originated in 1882 when the Aussies won a Test series against England for the first time in the ‘motherland’. The series was won after a thrilling match at the Oval, Australia dismissing England for only 77 and narrowly winning by 7 runs. The win was marked by the famous obituary to English cricket. The ‘body’ of English cricket was cremated and the ashes were taken back to Australia. Or, to be more precise, it was the bails from the stumps that were burned. The Sporting Times published a mock RIP memorial ‘in affectionate remembrance of English cricket’. Each test series from then on became known as the Ashes, and both teams would compete to retain the tiny urn that contained them.

Those were the days!