England can now boast an attack ready to eclipse the 'famous five'

The team of Freddie, Steve Harmison, Simon Jones, Matthew Hoggard and Ashley Giles was regarded by many as the best attack from these shores in many a year.

They had everything a captain could wish for; a bowler, it would seem, for all occasions.

Flintoff may have been Vaughan's 'go to' man because of his undoubted quality, but Harmison's raw pace and the swing (both ways) of Jones and Hoggard proved just as destructive during that epic summer – and even the much-maligned Giles would prove himself to be adequate spin support come series end.

The Ashes 2005 was their series and their efforts will go down in folklore just as much as those of Kevin Pietersen and Marcus Trescothick.

Fast forward five or so years and it would seem that once again England has an attack which, quite possibly, could be the key to their dreams of winning the Ashes.

What was a definite work in progress back in the summer of 2009, has developed into a bowling section which has every possibility of matching and even gazumping the exploits of Flintoff and company.

Talking to the Yorkshire Post before the Ashes, Yorkshire bowler Ryan Sidebottom suggested that current captain Andrew Strauss may yet have a bowling attack which, when on song, could be even better than the class of '05, and which would be crucial in the battle to retain the urn this winter.

After two days of the opening Test, it is hard to pick fault in his beliefs.

They may have taken a while to find their line and length on Thursday evening and Friday morning, but this England attack has an undoubted ability to take wickets in clusters. They get on a roll and they are devastating, just as they were after lunch yesterday when four wickets tumbled.

In Jimmy Anderson, Strauss has an experienced performer who was on the fringes in 2005 but who is very much the leader in 2010.

His level of control has vastly improved over the last couple of years and his display during the first Test in Brisbane so far is proof of his standing among the very best swing bowlers in the world.

People used to say that Flintoff would be the next Ian Botham, well the next Flintoff is undoubtedly Stuart Broad.

He has pace, aggression and a competitiveness that is so refreshing to see. Once he further develops his skills with the ball he will be every bit as good as Flintoff – learning how to go around the wicket to left-handers and still draw the ball toward the slips is his next lesson.

The latest addition to the line-up is young Middlesex quick Steven Finn, who on Friday proved just why the selectors have put so much faith in him. Relatively new to the Test arena, the 21-year-old was fast-tracked to the starting XI for this Ashes quest because of his height and ability to get abnormal bounce off flat pitches. His display so far offers hope that England have unearthed a star of the future.

And then we have the best of the lot; the world's No 2 bowler Graeme Swann.

It shows how times have changed when it is the Australians who are in fear of an English spin bowler, but they know that Swann is good enough to take wickets on any track and that he is the jewel in the crown of England's bowling line-up.

He must be given enough overs to have an effect on the series and Strauss must not be afraid to throw him in early doors just as we used to see Shane Warne skipping in to work his magic after only a handful of overs.

Get it right with this attack and the England captain will have the most potent bowling weapon in world cricket at his disposal.

And in the background, waiting for their chance are the likes of Tim Bresnan, Ajmal Shahzad and Chris Tremlett... it really is an embarrassment of riches.

leading the fightback: England's James Anderson, who was on the fringes in 2005 but who is very much the leader of the attack in 2010, celebrates dismissing Australia's Shane Watson during the first Ashes Test at the Gabba in Brisbane.picture: gareth copley/pa.