Aside from the finality Andrew Flintoff's retirement brings to a long-winded 12 months of injury woes, baseless fitness updates and empty promises of a return, I hope it also puts a cap on what was and offers what is - and will be - due credit.

For far too long - bordering on half a decade, in fact - England have clung onto their triumph in the 2005 Ashes series, lauding and flaunting it as greater than any other success achieved since.

Despite Test series wins over Pakistan, West Indies, and New Zealand (all twice), hefty ODI series victories over South Africa and the Aussies, World Twenty20 glory and even another Ashes triumph over Ricky Ponting's men, the English have never allowed their more recent accomplishments to usurp their celebrations on that great day at The Oval.

Flintoff, through all his crutched appearances in the England dressing room, limping around the Lancashire set-up and bombing of the press with perpetual tales of return, had inadvertently robbed his nation of ever truly looking beyond his era, disastrous 2007 Ashes tenure and bit-part 2009 role included.

For all his attractive execution, Andy Flower took a while to shrug off Duncan Fletcher comparisons in undoing the disaster Peter Moores had ensured. The same applied to Stuart Broad and any other aspirant all-rounder asked to follow in Flintoff's footsteps. Too a lesser extent young fast bowlers in the wake of Simon Jones and Steve Harmison were beset by the same ask.

Now, with the last of their jaded 2005 heroes out the way, the time is now for England to swap former glories for even greater heights - namely beating the Aussies in their own backyard - in a thriving, Flintoff-less era in its own right.