Immortalised in a cartoon in The Sunday Telegraph, this line perfectly summed up the famous home Ashes series that wrapped up in early 1975. Australian fast bowlers Jeff Thomson and Dennis Lilee terrorised the visiting English batsmen in a dominant 4-1 victory. 

After English bowler Tony Greig had dismissed Lillee with a bouncer in the first test, Lilee stormed off the ground and pronounced to his teammates,

Over the course of the series, in an age before helmets and where the batsmen had minimal protection, the English team collectively suffered a broken hand, thumb and ribcages. Keith Fletcher was hit in the head, Mike Dennis had his Saint Christopher medallion embedded in his chest by a bouncer and David Lloyd had his groin protection cracked in half forcing him to retire hurt in excruciating pain. When the visiting team were finally on the plane leaving Australia, some were overheard saying that they were grateful to be getting out alive.

Thomson finished the series with 33 wickets despite being injured for the final test and Lilee was close behind with 25. Greg Chapell was the standout batsman for the home side scoring over 600 runs for the series. Doug Walters memorably scored a century in a session when he hit a 6 off the final ball of the day in Perth. 

The first World Cup

The next assignment for the Australian team was the inaugural Cricket World Cup held in England. 

The one-day international format had only been introduced a few years earlier and this competition bore more resemblance to traditional cricket than modern limited overs games.

Players competed in white clothing, bowled with red balls and each innings lasted 60 overs instead of 50. There were no night matches held under lights and most teams fielded the same players they would have picked for test matches rather than selecting players specifically for the format. 

Australia made the final only to be beaten by the West Indies (also known as the 'Windies'), who would go on to become the dominant force in world cricket within a few years. Chasing 292 for victory after a Clive Lloyd century, the hapless Australians had 4 batsmen run out to fall 17 runs short of the target. 

Despite failing in their first attempt at lifting the World Cup, Australia would remarkably go on to lift the trophy in 6 of the 12 championships held since.

A second Ashes series

Following the World Cup, the Australian team stayed on to compete in an away Ashes series. 

Once again Lilee and Thomson proved dominant with Lillee taking 21 wickets and Thomson 17 across a 4-test series.

Ian Chappell (in his final series as captain) and Rick McCosker both scored over 400 runs in a series that was won 1-0 after a comprehensive Australian victory in the first test was followed by 3 draws. The third test was notably abandoned on the final day when protesters vandalised the pitch overnight.

The 'Windies' down under

The final assignment for the Australian Team starting in late 1975 was a 6 test home series against the West Indies. 

As both teams had featured in the recent World Cup final, the series was eagerly anticipated as a contest between the world’s 2 best teams. This seemed like a possibility after Greg Chapell scored 2 centuries in the first test at the Gabba in Brisbane to win the game for Australia. The West Indies struck back in Perth on a fast-paced pitch to take the second. Australia won the final 4 tests with relative ease making it a disappointing tour for the newly crowned world champions. 

Young fast bowler Michael Holding and batsman Viv Richards showed some hints of their future promise for the West Indies, while Australia’s new captain Greg Chapell had another fabulous series finishing with over 700 runs. Thomson and Lillee again starred with the ball with a combined haul of 56 wickets.

These items and others are featured in the 1975: Living in the Seventies exhibition currently on display at the Library until 9 March 2026.