Wizards from Oz!

FIRST the cricket, but Australia's 4-1 Ashes win over Nasser Hussain's injury-hit tourists was hardly the biggest shock in world sporting circles.

Next came Australia's Davis Cup thrashing of Great Britain, but even that failed to register on the richter-scale of upsets due to the injury-related absences of Tim Henman and Greg Rusedski.

But then came Wednesday's unlikely 3-1 home defeat by Australia of Sven-Goran Eriksson's men (all 22 of them) at Upton Park.

Strewth! Not content with trouncing us Brits at all manner of games, they have now got the barefaced cheek to thrash us at our national sport!

There is, of course, a serious side to this Australian sporting domination, and it poses some tough questions the powers that be in this country must ask of themselves if they ever want English sportsmen and women to really conquer the world.

How can a country of just 20 million people churn out such a remarkable stream of sporting winners?

Take a look at this list:

The leading cricket nation in the last decade, Australia are currently favourites to retain the World Cup and their Test team is without doubt head and shoulders above everyone else.

Players such as Darren Lehmann, Jamie Cox, Matthew Elliott, Greg Blewett, Matthew Slater, Mike Hussey and Hampshire's new signing Simon Katich - prolific runscorers in the English domestic game in recent years - struggle to establish themselves in the Test team.

Australia are the reigning World Cup holders at rugby union, and will start as favourites to retain their crown when the tournament is held in their own country later this year.

Australia are also the reigning World Cup holders at rugby league, beating New Zealand in the final three years ago at Old Trafford.

In athletics the Aussies dominated the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, winning 207 medals including 82 golds. Next best was England (lest we forget, with a population almost three times that of Australia!) with 165 medals including 54 golds.

In the 1998 Games they topped the medal charts with 198 and also in 1994 with 183.

In the Sydney Olympics three years ago they finished fourth in the medal table with 58 behind three countries with slightly bigger populations to draw from - USA (97 medals), Russia (88) and China (59).

In tennis, Lleyton Hewitt is the current Wimbledon men's champion, while Pat Rafter and Pat Cash have also won Grand Slam tournaments since 1987.

Back in the early 1990s they ended America's century-plus domination of the America's Cup by winning the world's most prestigious sailing tournament.

In the 1990s they won the World Bowls Championship.

And to prove that Australians can compete at sports which aren't played outdoors, Tony David was the first Aussie winner of the Embassy World Darts Championship at Frimley Green in 2002!

In order for England to produce a roll call of such international domination needs major funding from central government.

That's the opinion of Southampton FC's academy director Huw Jennings, who has visited Australia and seen what they have to offer their youngsters.

"Australia is an outdoor society - that's what hits you first and foremost," said Jennings, pictured left. "They have a wonderful climate and wonderful facilities. All that combines to give them a solid platform.

"There's also a great commitment to sport from a young age. In Australian schools they probably play twice as much sport, at least, to what we play in this country. That needs a large commitment from the government.

"Australians have also got a strong mental attitude. A lot of that has probably been borne out of their historical situation.

"They do seem to have the feeling that 'winning is important, losing is not good' and that attitude seems to pervade through their sporting performance.

"If we want to be serious about producing sporting winners then the government have to properly invest in sport, and not just for the next five years or so.

"We have got the talent in this country, but we're not being competitive on the world stage because of the infrastructure. Until we get that right then we're not going to produce the winners, individually or collectively, that this country deserves. We do need a ministry for sport.

As always, it takes time to produce stars - though from reading the national press at times you'd think this country demanded overnight heroes.

"The situation is getting better," said Jennings. "Look at some of our younger players - Wayne Rooney's come through the Everton academy, Steve Wigley (Saints reserve team coach) coached Jermaine Jenas at the Forest academy, and Francis Jefffers and Michael Owen were both at the national school - so that's a commitment to development.

"Players like those haven't just walked off the streets to play for their clubs.

"What we need to do is to get more kids playing sport in schools - not just at secondary school, but at primary school.

"That's where skills are going to be taught, but we've had a problem in this country there because staff haven't had the expertise.

"But it's all going to take time. At Southampton our first Under-9 academy squad are now the Under-13s - you're not going to see the real benefit of that for another five years."

Jennings does believe you can't compare the current Aussie football team and their international colleagues from different sports.

"They do seem to be a different breed," he said. "There certainly wasn't the machismo on Wednesday that you see in other sports.

"Frank Farina (Socceroos manager) was playing down their success - if that had been cricket you wouldn't have heard the end of it!

"Their fans made a lot of it, but neither the manager or the players did."