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Sunshine, meat pies and world-famous cricket grounds - what else would an England cricket fan possibly want?

Ideally, they'd want an contest for the urn in Australia where they retain a possibility to reclaim the urn once the opening games are done.

This is not the case on this occasion, however, after a comprehensive triumph in Adelaide put the hosts with a 3-0 lead for the fourth straight contest on home turf.

The Barmy Army, England's supporters' group, have a large group making the journey for the final two Tests in the SCG and MCG.

In addition, there are organized trips who will spend the Christmas period down under, as well as families and friends planning a dream holiday.

The Ryding Siblings

A group of four supporters are a prime example.

Alex, Sam, Rory and Katie had their itineraries and entry credentials booked for the Melbourne and Sydney matches "well ahead of time", anticipating a rare England series success.

Sadly, they've observed Australia defeat England convincingly in just under two weeks from their residence in the north of England.

"All my colleagues has been making comments about it being over for the last two weeks," said Sam.

"We always thought that we would have the series on the line upon our arrival."

Lowered Expectations

Hope was abundant regarding the team's prospects of securing a first win in 15 years for a victory down under before it began.

Yet now they are staring down the barrel of continuing a barren spell in the country to 19 games when the Boxing Day Test begins in the MCG on Christmas Day.

The tourists - and their followers - will be desperate to avoid a clean sweep.

It was mentioned that the "thrill and enjoyment" of head coach Brendon McCullum's 'Bazball' in recent years had "reinvigorated" Test cricket for English supporters.

But the Ryding siblings said they had low expectations for the remaining matches - and all they are hoping for from the players is "a show of spirit".

"Every pundit points it out, but it all is about mental resilience. 'The aggressive approach has been turned into a buzzword now that is just, like, impractical batting," added Rory.

"Over the course of five days, you should hunker down. Chasing balls 'sixth stump' areas has never been in the fundamentals, and that is mainly the fault the batting lineup."

The Remaining Matches

Prompted about he believed England will secure a victory in this Ashes series, came the reply: "It appears the Australians are superior currently."

"Necessarily, there must be several individuals that stands up for England and turns the game."

Regardless of the result, the group remains looking forward to the trip.

"We will have a great time nonetheless," added another sibling. "We must adopt that mindset."

"Obviously it is disappointing we can't contest the series, but we have spent so much money by now."

"We plan to savor spending the festive season in Australia. Additionally, it's a new experience for us away from home over Christmas."

A schoolteacher, Katie is intent on maximizing the long-haul travel as part of her Christmas holidays.

"As a backup plan, there's always golf to rely on," Katie concluded.