Pick a bowler, any bowler...

After the selectorial debacle at Headingley, with long-term 12th man Tremlett clearly not rated, and with a host of proven international bowlers snubbed through the inclusion of a 30-year-old Aussie with 11 first-class games under his belt, the selectors have work to do to restore order to the derailed England squad before day one at Edgbaston on Wednesday.

So who did they include in the squad in the place of the axed Pattinson and Tremlett? Harmison. Hmm.

A couple of statistics for you:

Test bowling record vs South Africa:
- Harmison 18 wickets @ 59.55, best bowling 4-33
- Hoggard 26 @ 25.50, best 7-61

Test bowling record at Edgbaston:
- Harmison 5 @ 68.20, best 2-62
- Hoggard 20 @ 23.15, best 5-92

On top of that, Edgbaston's groundsman Steve Rouse reckons the pitch will be ill suited to Harmison's short-pitched, steeply bouncing style, predicting instead "a 'kiss the turf and get it to swing' wicket". Er, Matthew Hoggard, anyone?!

I hope Harmison proves me wrong, but this has the makings of another selection clanger. Presumably he'll play at the expense of Broad. Let's hope they, at least, get the balance of the team right, and restore some backbone to the batting lineup with Collingwood. His first-innings 40 overs at Headingley show we're incapable of resisting overbowling Flintoff when things aren't going our way, so we might as well stick to the balance of four front-line bowlers plus Collingwood (and, if only he would bowl, Vaughan, as Ed says!).