Richard Chorley reckons today could prove seismic for this English group. “People should have been given advance notice to allow them to pause and celebrate Jos and Jonny’s final red ball contributions for England ahead of today’s innings,” he emails. It could well be the end of the road (at least for now) for a few members of this group. But as discussed yesterday, it’s hardly as if they are keeping out an army of contenders demanding selection. The Naylorfesto: ... but that final hour - oh, that final hour - it belong to Australia’s attack in the most brutal, thrilling fashion. Pat Cummins was magnificent. Mitchell Starc was on a hat-trick. But it is the impact of local debutant Scott Boland that caught Geoff Lemon’s eye. Boland’s story is in many ways representative of the treatment of Indigenous Australians in the nation’s modern incarnation. He did not know of his heritage until he was in his 20s, when his family learned that Boland’s grandfather was descended from the Gulidjan people of western Victoria. For so many people and for so long, that kind of heritage had been hidden or ignored. The Boland family embraced it instead, in a process of learning that is still under way. If the footballing cliche is ‘a game of two halves’, yesterday’s action at the MCG was a game of six hours. The first five belonged to England, and Jimmy Anderson... But, of course, Anderson can only do it in England. Never mind that he now averages fractionally better (a shade over 33) in away Ashes Tests than he does at home. Or that he averages 12 in away Tests this decade. The caricature of Anderson as a green-wicket phenomenon remains a stubbornly persistent myth, even within his own camp. Certainly you suspect it contributed to his omission in Brisbane and subsequent rustiness in Adelaide. By the time Anderson was finally up to speed, the Ashes had all but gone. Geoff is thinking like an Australian. In England we call this kind of logic fantasy. Rob Lewis wins the prize for the first email of the day. “Spare a thought for my son Josh - known to his friends as Duke. He married his Aussie love Ella in August, and they had plans to move from Cambridge to Melbourne soon after the wedding. So Duke bought tickets for several of the Ashes matches, being a fanatical cricket follower, sometime spinner and umpire. Flights were delayed by Covid until just before Christmas, and without quarantine, at last he will get to see some cricket today - Day 3 of the test! But it’s going to be some cricket, not an awful lot, I imagine. As if all the ribbing and the barracking from his new Aussie family is not enough, he will be witness to the witlessness of this total capitulation. Spare a thought for the lad.” As a dual citizen (born in the UK, now at home in Australia) I can empathise. Now, Rob, make sure when he’s backed into selecting an AFL team to follow he avoids St Kilda, or his pain will grow every winter too. We’re just under an hour from the start of play, plenty of time to enjoy the latest Final Word podcast. So, what will happen today? Will Joe Root and Ben Stokes combine for one of *those* days? Will Australia rip out England’s resistance before lunch? Could England eke out enough of a lead to set a nervous run chase? To give you an insight into thinking at Guardian Towers, Rob Smyth is already padded up ready to step into the fray, like an England No 7 watching his side’s openers take guard to the new ball. After a couple of cool and blustery days in Melbourne, day three will be warm, sunny, and glorious. To get you up to speed on where we are in this fast-moving Test, here’s Ali Martin’s report from stumps on day two. Root, who reached the close 12 not out with Ben Stokes for company, may well be reaching the point where he is done with the burdens of captaincy. And not least after a day when, despite news that two coaches and two family members in the touring party had tested positive for Covid‑19, his side displayed renewed fight on this green MCG pitch, only for this to then be undone by a top order still made of balsa wood. Preamble Hello everybody and welcome to live over-by-over coverage of day three of the Boxing Day Ashes Test. We’re underway at the Melbourne Cricket Ground at 10.30am local time (11.30pm UK). Just like Australia’s attack slicing into England’s middle order, we’re going to bypass any opening pleasantries and dive straight into news this morning. Following yesterday’s Covid outbreak in the England camp, further cases have been identified in the touring party following PCR tests, but for now, the match, and the series continues. Here’s Ali Martin’s report from this morning. There will doubtless be more news filtering out of the MCG as the day goes on as contingencies are discussed regarding the final two Tests of the tour. Asked on Monday if the tour was in danger, Nick Hockley, chief executive of Cricket Australia, replied: “No. This is what the protocols are for. We are being extra vigilant as there are increasing cases in the community but our protocols are designed for absolutely this set of events. I’ll be back with more shortly, but if you would like to join in, you can reach me by email or Twitter (@JPHowcroft).