The Australian spells which made Down Under a home from home for England's Mark Stoneman and James Vince

England have a pair of batsmen who know all about life on the other side of the world as they prepare to return for this winter's Ashes

Mark Stoneman will head back to Australia this winter with England (Getty)

It’s ironic given the current woes of his former Durham team-mate that Sydney’s cricket community has declared itself ‘stoked’ at the prospect of Mark Stoneman lining up for England against Australia in this winter’s Ashes.

Stoneman, who is married to an Australian, has been part of the furniture in Sydney Grade cricket for the best of a decade, taking himself away from his native north-east for a spot of sun and run-scoring while the skies darken in both colour and mood back home.

Spells at St George, Campbelltown-Camden and, most recently, Bankstown, mean Stoneman is an instantly recognisable figure in this part of New South Wales.

Little wonder then, that there was a buzz of excitement when he nailed down his place in England’s Ashes squad after a series of increasingly confident displays against the West Indies this summer.

In all, he has spent six seasons playing Premier cricket in Sydney, with his first coming as long ago as 2006/07. His on-pitch contributions have gradually increased, with the Surrey left-hander scoring 699 runs at an average of 63.55 at Bankstown two winters ago. It’s his influence off it, though, which has been just as keenly felt.

“He was a great guy to have around the place, someone who was really good with the younger guys in and around the side,” says former team-mate, Jared Bourke. “He has spent a lot of time over here and he’s completely at home in Australian conditions. He’s unbelievable off the back foot and the bouncy Australian wickets should suit him down the ground.

“He got a lot of stick over here but you’re always going to get that as an English cricketer. I don’t think playing over here will faze him at all. I know the boys at Bankstown were absolutely rapt for him. Mark’s a great fella, he’ll do anything for you. It’s great to see him have success. Personally, I hope he scores a truckload of runs but in a losing cause, obviously.”

There are similarly rare feelings of goodwill towards an Englishman on the other side of the country at Melville Cricket Club, the former home of such luminaries as Dennis Lillee, and Marcus Trescothick, who spent two winters there between 1997 and 1999.

A signed shirt from the Somerset veteran sits in the club house at Tompkins Park, nestled snuggly alongside an autographed pair of boots worn by the Western Australian hell-raiser during his stint at the club. A recalled James Vince will hope he can add some of his own kit to that collection in a winning England cause this winter.


 Stoneman heads Down Under after a fine season with Surrey earned him an England spot 
 (Getty)

The Hampshire skipper travelled to Perth to train at the Paul Terry Cricket Academy for two successive seasons, arriving as a fresh-faced 17-year-old in 2007 and playing largely Second Grade cricket for Melville.

There was nothing second rate about his efforts, though, with a double century against Midland Guildford in October 2008 providing ample evidence of his promise.

“He obviously looked like he could play, he always had really good timing and always worked really hard at his game and at his training,” says Terry. “Very often you get the feeling that when players work hard at the other side, not just the batting, then they’re going to go a long way.

“One of the real positives out of the academy was that you saw people growing day-by-day because they were having to look after themselves. James is one of those guys who really seemed to grow up along the way.”


 Vince's selection was a surprise but he has experience in Australia 
 (Getty)

Melville was the ideal destination for Vince given its traditional links to Hampshire. Along with Terry, and his son, Sean, Dimitri Mascarenhas and Liam Dawson also played for the club.

On his rare appearances for the Melville first team, Vince would bat lower down the order than his country would expect him to this winter. What England will anticipate, though, is that he can draw on his Australian experiences and finally live up to his promise after a false start against Sri Lanka and Pakistan last summer.

“He came over and played in the Big Bash for Sydney Thunder and I know that Mike Hussey (director of cricket at the franchise) was really impressed with him,” says Terry. “There’s no better place for him to score runs than over here. They’ve obviously got a good attack but generally, once you get in over here, the wickets are pretty flat. The Kookaburra ball won’t do an awful lot after the first few overs and if he gets the opportunity and he gets in then there’s certainly a lot of runs to be had.”

The same goes for Stoneman. England will just hope that they hang around long enough to give Aussie captain, Steve Smith, something to think about – and their old Aussie mates something to cheer.