4-8 Jan 26
Australia v England
The Ashes - Fifth Test
Sydney Cricket Ground
Sydney, Australia
The Fifth test started on 4th January and runs for 5 days. The test match coincides with the annual Jane McGrath Day and is known as the Pink Test because it supports the 'McGrath foundation' which funds breast cancer research. The wicket looks good, so hopefully we will get more than 2 days of play
NRMA Insurance Men's Ashes 2025/26
Test Match | Dates | Venue | Result |
West Test | Nov 21-25 | Perth Stadium (WACA) | Australia won by 8 wkts |
Day-Night Test | Dec 4-8 | The Gabba, Brisbane | Australia won by 8 wkts |
Christmas test | Dec 17-21 | Adelaide Oval, Adelaide | Australia won by 82 runs |
Boxing Day Test | Dec 26-30 | MCG, Melbourne | England won by 4 wkts |
Pink Test | Jan 4-8 | SCG, Sydney | Australia won by 5 wkts |
In the 143 years since 1883, Australia have held the Ashes for approximately 87.5 years, and England for 55.5 years. This will be extended by another 4 years with the series already lost as Australia won the first three tests.
Paul had managed to secure Day 2 tickets for this test match. We had a good view of the wicket in the Brewongle Stand, a stand named after a tea room which used to grace the site during the Victorian period in the 1800's
The Brewongle Stand (constructed 1980) is next to the Ladies Pavilion in the Southern part of the SCG
To the left are the Ladies Pavilion (1896) and Members Pavilion (1878), both with the familiar green roofing. Ahead are the Ma Noble and Don Bradman stands located between the floodlights (2013-14). The Bill O'Reilly Stand (1984) is just to the right and the Victor Trump stand (which replaced Yabba's Hill in 2007-08) is to the far right of the photo.
Day 2 highlights
The view from our seats in the Brewongle Stand
England are 211 for 3 at the start of play with Joe Root unbeaten on 78. This was not how it would end!
The Victor Trumper Stand
The Ladies Pavilion to the left of the frame
Members Pavilion in the centre
30 mins in and England have lost 2
more wickets but we've got Joe Root
Average Joe gets his century🏏
At lunch England are gaining traction with Joe Root 128
not out and forming a partnership with Smith
The iconic entrance to the Members' Pavilion
Japanese tourists
"The Greatest Crickets Supporters ,
the world has ever known🏏"...
The exterior of the Members/Ladies
Pavilion and Brewongle Stand
Bro-in-Law
Joe Root reaches 150 and the stadium is on it's feet. He makes160 and England are all out for 384
46,586 were privileged to see this Joe Root - 'Master
Class' but the Aussies took the day
Feed the snake
The snake maker is evicted from the SCG
Paul Kelly, the former Sydney Swans Captain
sporting a pink scarf outside the Brewongle
Day 1 - New Year's Eve 2026
Our Jet Star flight departing Melbourne (Geelong) at 1500 and arriving Sydney at 1625 went ahead without any issues. Meaning we made our 1830 NYE cruse which sailed at 1845
Our vessel the Vagabond Star, boarding at 1830 sharp for a 1845 departure, returning to port at 1230 am
Some of our NYE shipmates
Lamby
Tozer (Tubes)
Last day of the year with Mrs H💞
Our table with Colin, Tracey and Reems
Happy New Year
Cruising passed Luna Park
Sydney Harbour Bridge on NYE
The countdown has begun 💥
A firework display like no other
The Vagabonds
Day 2 - New Years Day
Reuniting with Jo and Paul in Cherrybrook
Day 3 - The Blue Mountains
The Grand Cliff Top Walk is a 19km trail in the Blue Mountains which links Wentworth Falls, Leura and Katoomba. We did the first half from Wentworth to Leura🏅
Waterfalls on the Great Cliff Top Walk
The views across Gundungurra Country
Breathtaking!
On the Scenic Route
Cockatoos are as common as pigeons and considered a pest
After a full day on the walk, we took the train from Leura to Wentworth Falls and picked up the car to drive to Katoomba to see the 'Three Sisters'
The 3 Sisters (Meehni, Wimlah and Gunnedoo) have
massive spiritual significance for Aboriginal people
According to legend they were turned into stone by a
witch doctor to protect them during a tribal fight
The amazing Blue Mountains of New South Wales
Day 4 - Madame Butterfly
Tonight we are at the Opera but the show doesn't start until 1930, time to get into the Sydney groove🎭
First up we had a walking tour of central Sydney.
Passing the Sydney Cenotaph,
The Christmas tree at Martin's Place has 110 lights
drinkies at the Opera Bar, then the Botanical Gardens
Mrs Macquarie's Chair was carved by convicts in 1810 for the Governor of NSW's wife to sit on as she watched the ships from Great Britain sailing into the harbour
Sydney harbour💫
,passing by the Art Gallery of NSW
and stopping for lunch at the Lord Nelson,
then under the bridge
and onto a secret club (the Baxter Inn) to sample it's amazing selection of whiskies and cocktails
..everywhere we go Madame Butterfly is beckoning,
We arrive on time, suitably refreshed and ready for opera
The venue is outstanding
The Opera House in the night sky
Madame Butterfly was amazing and worth every penny of the £234 we paid for the tickets 💰
Day 5 - Bondi Beach
Catching a wave on Bondi
On the Bondi to Bronte Coastal Walk
Sue and Jo the Bondi Beach Babes💕
Tamarama Beach
Bronte Beach was closed off due to the high winds
so we turned around at Tamarama
Girls and their hats
Statue of Bondi's very own Pauline Menczer, the 1993 World Surfing Champion. She succeeded in a male dominated sport and is the author of the book 'Surf like a women'
Back to Bondi and we pass a number of murals. This one is remembering the victims of the bombing at the Sari Club, Kuta Beach in Bali on 12 Oct 2002
Remembering the sacrifices of ANZAC Forces from WW1, WW2 and the Gulf Wars
Celebrating the 'Matildas', the Australian
Women's National Football Team
Beach time
Life is a Beach😎
Finally we passed the bridge and car park that were the scenes of the horrific antisemitic terrorist attack just 3 weeks ago on 14 Dec 25. The killing spree took 15 innocent lives who were celebrating Hanukkah. The two gunmen were Sajid Akram and his son Naveed Akram, thankfully the father was shot dead by Police and his son was critically wounded
Day 6 - The Pink Test (Day 2)
The crowd is queuing early to get into the SCG
After a long day watching cricket it was time
to relax at HQ Cherrybrook🍷
Day 7 - Watson’s Bay
Its a day out with my girls at Watson's Bay
We took a ferry from the Circular Quay to Watson's Bay but there are many other destinations such as: Manly, Taronga Zoo, Milsons Point/Luna Park and Cockatoo Island
Our trip took about 20-25 minutes passing the Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge and Rose Bay
Arriving at Watson's Bay in the glorious sunshine
Lunch at Watson's Bay Boutique Hotel is: fried calamari,
fish tacos and grilled king prawns. Mmmmmmm!😜
Watson's Bay Beach
Me and Jo
Paradise is just a ferry ride away!
An Australian Pelican searches for lunch
Camp Cove Beach at the start of
the South Head Heritage trail
Shortly we pass a battery of historical cannons
Lady Bay Beach is the nudist beach! Sadly I must report with much disappointment that the bronze bums splashing about in the nod all belonged to geriatrics😞
Hornby Lighthouse stands tall at the South Head and is a great spot for whale watching in the Pacific Ocean. It was built in1858 due to the treacherous nature of the sea beneath
Next, we headed passed the gap to the memorial anchor of the clipper, 'the Dunbar'. During a stormy night on 20th August 1857 the clipper steered too close to the rocks of the South Head and was shipwrecked. All but one of the 122 crew perished in the water, as the sole survivor, James Johnson was thrown onto a rocky ledge and managed to cling to safety. The disaster became one of the most important events in Sydney's rich maritime history and led to the building of the Hornby lighthouse in 1858 to protect shipping
After a great day exploring Watson's Bay we sailed into the sunset and back to Sydney
You can never get bored of looking at the Opera House
It's playtime in Sydney Harbour
We finished up with a pint at the Hero of Waterloo
near Barangaroo Metro
Day 8 - Sydney Harbour Bridge
Starting the day with a spot of retail therapy as
Sue invests in an Australian Akubra bush hat
The Argyle stairs were built into the Argyle cut between 1911-12 to link 'The Rocks' to Miller's Point and Bunker's Hill. It now gives access to the walkway above Circular Quay and onto the walkway across the Sydney Harbour Bridge
Walking the bridge from the North to the South
(Milsons Point to Cumberland Street)
The views are amazing
On the south side we see climbers doing exactly
what we will be doing in a few hours
We hook up with our tour operators to climb SHB. This is what we are going to look like when we get rigged out😆😆
The climb to the summit
The 1400 Hrs Group for 7 Jan 26
Sydney Harbour - Ahoy!🔭
Opera House - let's do it😎😍
Sydney Business District - mint😎
Just us on top of the most famous bridge in the world😀
The summit 🥇
