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Beautiful weather, classic snacks and legendary venues - what more could an supporter of the English team possibly want?

Realistically, they'd hope for an contest for the urn in Australia where they still have a chance to secure the famous trophy once the opening games are done.

That will not be happening this time, though, after a comprehensive 82-run win in Adelaide gave Australia leading three-nil for the fourth successive Ashes series on home turf.

England's famous supporters' group, the vocal contingent, have thousands of supporters making the journey for the last two matches in the SCG and MCG.

There are also travel parties who will celebrate the holidays overseas, as well as relatives and companions planning a once-in-a-lifetime trip.

The Ryding Siblings

Four fans named Alex, Sam, Rory and Katie are four such fans.

Alex, Sam, Rory and Katie had their flights and tickets booked for the Melbourne and Sydney matches "a full year in advance", anticipating a historic English victory.

From afar, they've seen Australia defeat England convincingly in just 11 days from their residence in Penwortham, Lancashire.

"All my colleagues has been giving me grief regarding the concluded contest for the last two weeks," said Sam.

"We always thought that we would have something to play for by the time we arrived."

Lowered Expectations

There was plenty of positivity concerning a potential victory of breaking a 15-year drought for a series win in Australia prior to the first ball.

But they are now looking at the possibility of prolonging a streak without victory in the country to 19 matches when the fourth Test gets under way in Melbourne on Thursday, 25 December.

The tourists - and their followers - will be hoping to sidestep a whitewash.

Alex said the "thrill and enjoyment" of head coach Brendon McCullum's 'Bazball' in the past couple of seasons had "reinvigorated" Test cricket for England fans.

But the Ryding siblings said they had realistic outlooks for the remaining matches - and all they are hoping for from the players is "a bit of fight".

"All analysts alludes to it, but it all comes down to mental resilience. 'The aggressive approach has been turned into a buzzword now that is just, like, unrealistic play," added Rory.

"In a five-day Test match, you should dig in. Chasing balls 'outside the line has not been part of the fundamentals, and that is primarily due to the frontline batsmen."

Looking Ahead

When questioned if he believed England will secure a victory in this contest, Sam said: "It appears the Aussies are just too good currently."

"Necessarily, there must be more than one player that stands up for England and makes a big impact."

Despite the scoreline, the fans are excited about the trip.

"It will be a fantastic experience nonetheless," said Katie. "We must adopt that outlook."

"Naturally, it's unfortunate we don't have more to play for, but we have spent so much money as it is."

"We plan to savor celebrating the holidays in Australia. This will be mine and Rory's first time traveling over Christmas."

A teacher, Katie is intent on maximizing the 21,000-mile round-trip as part of her time off.

"Should the cricket disappoint, there's always golf to fall back on," she added.