Thirtieth Test-playing tour
of England by Australia
(May - September 1985)
The shadow cast by a proposed
Australian rebel team to South
Africa blighted the tour. Once Kim Hughes
was omitted from the touring party, it was learned that he would captain
unofficial Australian tours of South Africa for the next two
seasons.Three members of the official
side side selected to tour England
- Terry Alderman, Rod McCurdy and Steve Rixon - were sacked for failing to
sign the Australian Cricket Board's contract preventing them from playing in South Africa.
To join the rebel tour was precisely their intention, as emerged on 19 May,
and their places in the team for England went to Thomson, Gilbert
and Ray Phillips - three substitutes who had no impact on the Test series.
By changing their minds about
joining the South African tour venture, Wayne Phillips, Dirk Welham and
Graeme Wood retained their places on the England tour group.The Australian Cricket Board now felt it
was time to obtain an undertaking that the South African Cricket Union would
make no raids on players contracted to the Board, and threatened to impose a
ten year ban on any players who signed for South Africa.
As for the official six-Test
series for The Ashes, Australia
were defending the urn won by Greg Chappell in 1982-83.But amid accusations of being too friendly
with the England
side, Border’s 1985 Australians lost the series and gave back the Ashes 3-1
which was as wide a margin as in 1981.
Lawrie Sawle (Western Australia - chairman),
Greg Chappell (Queensland) and Rick McCosker (NSW).
Selection
Mr
Robert Merriman was appointed manager.
Unavailable: none
declaredbut eight of those selected
in March has signed up to play in South Africa.Five of those players swiftly
changed their mind (Bennett, Wayne Phillips, Wellham, Wessels, Wood) but
three did not (Alderman, McCurdy, Rixon)"The quintet were not popular with the rebels …. and Border was
equally unimpressed to be taking them back." (Peter May 'The Rebel Tours' 2009)
Tour Party Announced :delayed one
week to 20 March 1985.
Not selected/Near Miss: Kim Hughes (W), who believed he had been
promised a place in the tour party.
Withdrawals:Terry
Alderman, Rod McCurdy and Steve Rixon.
The Australian Cricket Board named
Maguire and Rackemann to take their place - only to learn that they too had
signed for the rebel tour.
Additionsmade to tour partyon 24 April 1985:Jeff Thomson, Dave Gilbert
(whose place on an Esso scholarship with Essex was taken by 19 year-old Steve
Waugh) and Ray Phillips (who withdrew from the Australia's Maccabiah Games
team).
Time between selection and departure from Australia
41 days
(20 March - 30 April)
Travel
MelbourneQLondon
Departure was on 30 April 1985. The team boarded the plane in Melbourne.
The team arrived in England on 1 May for three days
of practice at Lord's. The Australians' baggage van was impounded by police
at Heathrow for being illegally parked, and a £55 fine was paid before it
could be released.
Time spent in England
126 days
(1 May-3 September)
On-tour
selection panel
Allan Border (captain),
Andrew Hilditch (vice-captain), Geoff Lawson,
Geoff Dymock (coach).
Reinforcements
None.
Fixtures/Results
† Arundel
Duchess of Norfolk's XI(one-day)
Drawn
Taunton
Somerset
Won 233 r
Worcester
Worcestershire
Drawn
†Trent Bridge
Nottinghamshire (55 overs)
Abandoned
†Kennington Oval
Surrey(55 overs)
Lost 6 w
Hove
Sussex
Drawn
Lord's
M C C
Drawn
Derby
Derbyshire
Drawn
† Derby
Derbyshire (55 overs)
Won 6 w
§ Old Trafford
England (1st ODI)
Won 3 w
§ Edgbaston
England (2nd ODI)
Won 4 w
§ Lord's
England (3rd ODI)
Lost 8 w
Headingley
Yorkshire
Drawn
Leicester
Leicestershire
Drawn
HEADINGLEY
ENGLANDFirst Test
LOST 5 w
† Cambridge
Oxford & Cambridge
Universities (55 overs)
Won 79 r
Southampton
Hampshire
Drawn
LORD'S
ENGLANDSecond Test
WON 4 w
3,4,5 July
Won
Chelmsford
Essex
Drawn
TRENT BRIDGE
ENGLANDThird Test
DRAWN
† Jesmond
Minor Counties
Won 125 r
Neath
Glamorgan
Drawn
Bristol
Gloucestershire
Won 170 r
Northampton
Northamptonshire
Drawn
OLD TRAFFORD
ENGLANDFourth Test
DRAWN
† Downpatrick
Ireland(55
overs)
Drawn
Lord's
Middlesex
Drawn
EDGBASTON
ENGLANDFifth Test
LOST inns 118 r
Canterbury
Kent
Won 7 w
KENNINGTON OVAL
ENGLANDSixth Test
LOSTinns 94
r
*When rain prevented
any play on days 2 and 3 it was
agreed to play a 55-over game instead.
The England
team declined to play an extra one-day international when the Oval Test
match ended early
•Bowlers Criag McDermott (6-90) and Bob
Holland (5-68) put in match-winning performances at Lord's.
•Allan Border's 196 in the same match was the
highest by an Australian captain at Lord's.
•In side matches Border equalled Macartney's
1921 record of scoring four centuries in consecutive innings.
Tour
Summary
P
W
L
D
Aban
Test Matches
6
1
3
2
-
Other first-class matches
14
3
0
11
-
ϯ Minor matches
3
2
1
0
-
§ One-day internationals
6
3
1
2
-
All Matches
29
9
5
15
-
Return
to Australia
LondonQSydney
3 September 1985.
The team arrived home at Sydney Airport
on Friday 6 September. Border said the press reception was not as bad as he
feared.
David Boon and Murray Bennett and their wives went to Greece for a holiday before returning to Australia. (Boon in the Firing Line (1993) by Mark
Thomas p28)
Time away from Australia
129 days
(30 April to 6 September)
Finances
Written
accounts of the tour
"An
Australian Summer: The Recovery of The Ashes 1985"by Patrick Eager and Alan Ross (Kingswood)
"The
Battle for
The Ashes : Gower's Finest Hour"Michael Carey(Daily Telegraph)
"Ashes
85"by Matthew Engel
(Pelham Books)
"The
Ashes Regained"120 minute BBC video
V5029 (BBC Enterprises)