Hampshire Second XI wicketkeeper, Iain Brunnschweiler, is currently spending the winter Down Under playing grade cricket in Perth. Here, he looks at the differences between the English and Australian games, and examines why the Aussies are currently the best in the world.

WHY are Australia so good at cricket at the moment?

Even the most die-hard of English fans must admit that there is a fair gap in quality between the Poms and the Aussies currently in Test cricket.

One school of thought is that it's just the "cycle of quality."

The West Indies cleaned up for a few years, the good old English had a superior decade, and now it just happens that it's the Aussies' turn to be top of the pile.

That is one way of looking at it, and the trend is there for all to see, but I have a suspicion that the boys from Down Under didn't just float to the top by accident.

Australia's growing ascendancy in many sports at the moment has arrived several years after the formation of the Australian Institute of Sport.

And the results are clear.

You just have to look at the cricket, rugby and hockey rankings, not to mention the medal count at the recent Olympic Games.

Even soccer, our own pride and joy, has been infiltrated by the likes of Harry Kewell, Mark Viduka and Mark Bosnich.

I'm sure the Socceroos will be a force to be reckoned with by the end of the decade.

England's cricketing body, however, has made a move to try and keep within touching distance of the World Champs by setting up the new National Academy.

Hampshire's Derek Kenway and Chris Tremlett have just returned from Adelaide.

They were in the first group of players selected for the winter of training, under the guidance of Australian cricket guru Rod Marsh.

In accepting this post, Marsh took leave of his commitments to the Australian Institute where he was chief coach for the 15 or so young players picked to undertake the Aussies' off-season programme.

Bashley's Luke Ronchi, a 20-year-old wicket-keeper/batsman, and Scott Meulemann, a 21 year-old batsman, have just completed their first winter at the AIS.

Ronchi said: "One thing is for sure, the boys would have worked very hard with Rod. It's certainly no holiday, and the fitness requirements are pretty tough, but if you put the hard work in, then the benefits are huge.

"I feel that after this winter, my game has improve massively already.

"The technical coaching and fitness regimes the guys will be given are cutting edge, and the players that have come through the system already are testament to it's quality."

Ronchi played for Bashley Rydal CC for in 1999 and 2000.

He scored more than 600 runs each summer, including a match-winning century in the Echo Trophy.

"The standard of club cricket is certainly lower in England, but there is definitely plenty of talent out there," he added.

"It's just a case of the coaching being of a quality which can bring out the best in people.

"I think that the new Academy with Rod in charge is a huge step forward for English cricket."

Meulemann's efforts with the AIS seem to be showing already, as his first two knocks in the WACA A-grade this season have been 178 not out and 121.

Having made his first-class debut for Western Australia at the end of last season, this young man must surely be pushing for more honours with his State side, having got stuck in the winter.

"Your time is certainly filled," said Meulemann.

"There are at least two or three two-hour sessions everyday, whether it be technical batting in the morning, some strength and fitness in the afternoon, and then some core stability and flexibility in the evening.

You gain so much from being around cricket all the time, and particularly guys like Rod who have been there, and done it."

Kenway and Tremlett will now be looking to reap the rewards of five months' graft with the men who know how to breed winners.

The pair are two of Hampshire's most talented young hopefuls, both having shown that they are more than capable at first-class level.

If they can build on their time in Australia and find the winning edge that seems to be ingrained the all the Aussies, then it can only be good for the future of Hampshire and England.

Hopefully this will signify the start of the "cycle" again.

Surely it is about time that England were great again!