Hands up who is amazed by our recent cricketing form against Australia.

Either our national team has started putting something in its tea, or it's been putting something in the oppositions - for after years of being whitewashed by everyone from Australia to Diddymen CC, we have started winning.

Now like most every other Englishman, I couldn't give a XXXX about the old enemy from Down Under, as long as we beet 'em, see.

But, strewth cobbers, it's not just the cricket. English footballers are beating the likes of Poland and Italy, we've won a tournament for the first time in years, ands uddenly Glen Hoddle is elevated to God-like status.

And let's not forget those lovers of the oddly-shaped ball. Yes, English rugby recently triumphed in South Africa and Argentina.

Not that I don't think some newspapers have gone over the top in their euphoria, the Mirror for one with its 'It's not just the sport, everything feels better... you can feel it in the air, a sense of optimism and hope that at last something wonderful is happening to our country' garble, but yes, sport is important to us, to our country, and it feels great to be on top again.

But getting serious for a moment, I have to say that quite how we've got on top is a mystery; sport in our schools is hitting an all time low, with some schools discouraging competition. This I feel is a great loss, being the four times winner of the West End Primary egg and spoon race that I am - and ardent campaigner for it to be made into an Olympic event.

The streets where sporting heroes of old learned to love their craft are no longer safe for their young successors. The much touted National Academy of Sport is still little more than a pipe dream.

It looks to me like we've got this far with massive raw talent winning through. Just think what would happen if we ever gave it a real chance. As the Aussies might say, Britain could be fair dinkum at most sports.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.