Australia Under-19s 331 for 8 (50 overs; JN Burke 100, CJ Simmons 88, CL White 60) beat England Under-19s 163 (39 overs; Kadeer Ali 43, B Cassan 6-26) by 168 runs It is said that Australia will struggle once the Waughs, Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath retire, but the manner in which their Under-19s slaughtered their English counterparts by 168 runs in the World Cup warm-up at Adelaide today suggests there could be plenty more Ashes misery ahead for England.

The young Australians hammered 331 for 8 off their 50 overs and England did not get close. After an opening partnership of 72 between Kadeer Ali and Mark Pettini, they collapsed to 163 all out.

In their five-wicket defeat on the same ground yesterday, England fell prey to a legspinner (Australian captain Cameron White, who took 4 for 19). Today, it was a chinaman bowler: slow left-armer Beau Casson took 6 for 26, and White did not even need to bring himself on.

If it's Australia v England, the Aussies must be winning the toss, and they did so here for the second day in a row. On a fine pitch White predictably chose to bat, and his openers Jarrad Burke and Craig Simmons tucked into the new ball like Hayden and Langer.

Burke creamed 100 off only 89 balls, including 12 fours and a six, and when he was first out (153 for 1), his partner Simmons really cut loose. His 89 included five sixes and came from 111 balls. He and White, who has already made a 91 in first-class cricket for Victoria and who slammed three sixes in his 39-ball 60 here, reserved the harshest treatment for Samit Patel, whose three overs disappeared for 32. The pick of the England bowlers was Yorkshire's Alex Roberts, who dismissed both openers on his way to 2 for 35.

England's reply started well but they were never up with the required run-rate, which started at 6.64 an over and soon reached gargantuan proportions. Kadeer's 46-ball 43, with three fours and two sixes, was the top score, but once he and Pettini (23) went there was little resistance. Durham's Nicky Peng made 18, Gordon Muchall 24, and Kyle Hogg a defiant 20, but nobody else reached double figures.

When the last man Chris Gilbert was bowled by Casson for 5, England still had 11 overs of their allocation left. It's not only good habits youngsters can pick up from their seniors.

England leave on Sunday for Christchurch, where the ICC Under-19 World Cup takes place from January 19 to February 9.

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