SO there we go, we are now the best thing since the last best thing since sliced bread was invented and we will rule the world for ever and ever...or so you would be forgiven for thinking given the coverage of England, Wales, Ireland and the Rest of the World’s Twenty20 win over Australia at the weekend.

Don’t get me wrong, I am more than suited that we have won a world competition.

World champions is a good moniker to have at any time.

And giving the Aussies a bit of a bashing can never be a bad thing - but let’s try and stay grounded. The Twenty20 is all about cash rather than cricket. It is a diversion to put bums on seats. It is not, to me, a serious game.

One swallow and a few sixes doesn’t really make a team of genuine world champions who can rule the planet for a decade or more.

If we win the proper one-day World Cup I will be much more excited, but in the meantime I will continue to wind up my Aussie mates whenever I can and remind them that they came second.

But I will be more than prepared for their comebacks when our flirtation with greatness comes to an abrupt ending.

Unlike some of the people celebrating Sunday’s win.

l IT was a good day of cricket at Accrington on Sunday as Haslingden took a firm grip of the Lancashire League.

Steven Dearden is arguably the finest league cricketer of his generation. He is known for his explosive batting but on Sunday showed a dogged determination to see his side home.

It was a patient innings from Dearden, possibly one of the slowest of his lengthy career. But it was a joy to watch – and the polar opposite of what was happening on the TV set in the Thorneyholme Road bar.

And you know what, most of the crowd preferred to watch the live action rather than the Twenty20 final.

l CAPTAINS of third teams are supposed to set an example to their young players; they are supposed to pass on advice and educate their charges ahead of their careers.

It’s a vital job so maybe it needs pointing out to one local third team captain, a veteran player with a good career behind him, that he is supposed to set a good example to his young players.

And bright orange batting gloves are not in any way, shape or form a good example.