then, with the last ball of his over, clean bowled Ted Peate for 2 to have England all out for 77 off exactly 55 overs. England's innings had lasted a mere 122 minutes, destroyed by the pace of Spofforth, who bettered his first innings career best by two runs, collecting 7 for 44, to give him match figures of 14 for 90, both of which would remain his finest figures. Spofforth's performance included a burst of four wickets for only two runs to leave England just seven runs short of victory in one of the closest and most nail-biting finishes in the history of cricket. At first the crowd fell deathly silent, unable to fathom how England had collapsed so dramatically. Then as the fine bowling display sank in, they rushed onto the field to congratulate Spofforth and Boyle for their remarkable achievement. Post match England's astonishing collapse had shocked the English public, and the press savaged the players. It was the first time England had been beaten in England. On 31 August, in the great Charles Alcock-edited magazine Cricket: A Weekly Record of The Game, there appeared a now-obscure mock obituary: SACRED TO THE MEMORY OF ENGLAND'S SUPREMACY IN THE CRICKET-FIELD WHICH EXPIRED ON THE 29TH DAY OF AUGUST, AT THE OVAL ---- "ITS END WAS PEATE" ---- Two days later, on 2 September, a second, more celebrated mock obituary, written by Reginald Brooks under the pseudonym "Bloobs", appeared in The Sporting Times. It read as follows: In Affectionate Remembrance of ENGLISH CRICKET, which died at the Oval on 29 August 1882, Deeply lamented by a large circle of sorrowing friends and acquaintances ---- R.I.P. ---- N.B. – The body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia. Ivo Bligh fastened onto this notice and promised that, on the tour to Australia in 1882–83 (which he was to captain), he would regain "those ashes". He spoke of them again several times over the course of the tour, and the Australian media quickly caught on. The three-match series resulted in a two-one win to England, notwithstanding a fourth match, won by the Australians, whose status remains a matter of ardent dispute. In the twenty years following Bligh's campaign, the term "The Ashes" largely disappeared from public use. There is no indication that this was the accepted name for the series—at least not in England. The term became popular again