There was a bit of craic too. On the scoreboard I was down to bat at number 3 however, unannounced, Geraint Jones actually went in to bat. The first ball he faced was followed by my girlfriend screaming something unprintable because she thought I'd got out for a duck! She had a rant to anyone who'd listen, saying how much I'd wanted to bat and enjoy myself, gain confidence and get some runs. In the middle of it all Jimmy Harmison (father of) pointed out that the batsman just out was a right handed one. In his Geordie accent he asked, "isn't Joycey a left hander, like?" Not knowing what to feel, Francesca heard the next batsman being announced as Michael Vaughan. To which I received a standing ovation because it was actually me walking to the middle! Francesca & co worked out that it was me, not Vaughan, and I hadn't made a duck.

After a day off on Monday it was back to the nets. The routine leading up to a test consists mainly of a long net practice a couple of days prior, and a much shorter one the day before the game. We netted well and despite the situation in the series, still felt relaxed and confident.

The day before the game I received a note under my hotel room door from a fellow Irishman, and former Tribune journalist, Paul Kimmage. I was surprised to read that Paul is over here acting as a ghostwriter for Brett Lee's Ashes column in one of the UK papers. Nice to hear of another Paddy "making a shilling from the Queen" as he put it. We met up for a coffee later that day. Paul admitted he wasn't much of a cricket fan, and only a month ago didn't really understand the game. But now, he's putting his name down for the newspaper's cricket team!

That evening I also managed to meet up with an old cricket team mate of mine from my time in Perth, Brett Jones. He gave up a promising cricket career to become an Aussie Rules footballer with the West Coast Eagles, winning the grand final this year. It was interesting to get his opinion on the International rules games between Australia and Ireland - he said most of the players and public loved the game because of the 'aggressive' tactics generally adopted by both sides. I should have expected as much!

Before my dinner with Brett, the Ashes team had our final meeting before the test, during which Fred announced the squad. Mahmood and Panesar were added, while Giles and Anderson were left out. Giles's departure was widely speculated in the media but it's nevertheless still a shock when someone gets dropped.

It's been an incredibly difficult couple of weeks for Ashley, who hasn't bowled that badly but has taken much of the blame for the poor results so far. Saying that, I was very happy for Monty to finally get his chance.

After an erratic start with the ball Hoggy got the breakthrough removing Hayden, and Ponting finally failed as Harmison rediscovered some rhythm. The introduction of Panesar after 22 overs brought the greatest ovation we've heard since the start of the Ashes. And that wasn't just the English fans, everyone in the ground acknowledged him. With the combined effect of his excellent bowling, his not so excellent fielding (although this has improved a lot), and his individual style of batting, Monty has managed to win over the world of cricket.

In addition to this, his sense of humour and what can only be described as the best ever celebration in cricket, he is fast becoming a superstar.

Away from the game he's a slightly different character.

One tends not to see him in the evening because he seems to have family and friends in every city!

He is also a very religious man so he also spends his time praying. He can often be found on a match day meditating in the dressing room. I've had some good conversations with him, finding him to be very good company . . .

talking mainly about cricket, but also about his beliefs and his shady musical past as a rap DJ.

As expected Monty ripped through the Aussies taking 5-96, and with Harmy taking four wickets we bowled them out for 244, a total we believed well below par. We were proved wrong when, after a storming start by Cook and Strauss, the Australian bowlers pegged us back. It took some gutsy lower order batting by Harmison and Monty, and another excellent innings by Pietersen to get us just past 200. The Australians pulled well away from us in the second innings, and facing more than 550 to win we couldn't afford to lose Andrew Strauss last night. The dressing mood is sombre, as it will take some miracle to survive two more days. A few of us are going to see Liam Gallagher tonight so there could yet be some Monday morning glory. . .