The press are having an absolute field day of course, and disconcertingly, many papers have adopted a style that resembles the British tabloid 'gutter' press. Sure, our boys screwed up royally in St Lucia, and such an embarrassing failure against an archrival will always elicit plenty of emotion from fans and players alike.

But despite these emotions, it is important to remain objective in order to assess the current situation accurately, otherwise we will arrive at the wrong conclusions and not remedy the real problems.

We have 10 possible reasons why South Africa came up short in the Caribbean:

1. Our players choke on the biggest stage:
As a passionate Proteas supporter, it is very hard to admit this fact, but after the non-performance against Australia, it can no longer be refuted. Like golfer Jean van de Velde's infamous British Open fiasco a few years back, the occasion seemed just too big for us.

The reasons for this escapes me. Do the players not believe that they can reach the top echelon? Were they suddenly overcome with an inexplicable fear that was decidedly absent in the wonderful performance against England? Did the tension and expectation cause the batsmen to make the wrong decisions?

We seem to lack that very abstract and intangible quality called 'big match temperament' - the ability to execute correctly when the pressure is on.

2. Australia have a mental hold on us:
This relates to our tag as "chokers". However, it seems to be Australia that are administering most of the choke-holds. We seem to falter most spectacularly when Australia are there to laugh at us. This has become almost like a teenage insecurity amongst our players, and the more it is mentioned, the bigger the stigma gets.

3. We can't bat in 'slow' conditions:
This was proved again in this World Cup, most notably against Bangladesh and New Zealand. The aggressive Proteas line-up looks great on true, fast tracks with good bounce (such as found in most places in South Africa and Australia), but on slow, low pitches such as those encountered in Guyana, our batsmen struggle to adapt.

4. We don't have a decent spinner:
It is clear that spin-bowling has become an integral part of modern one-day cricket. Caribbean conditions have proved to be very conducive to the spin brigade. Brad Hogg, Muttiah Muralitharan and Daniel Vettori have claimed a truckload of wickets between them, and provide their captains with the vital option of variety.

It is a point that has been discussed for at least 15 years now, and remains a major issue in our team selection. We don't have a decent spinner. Apologies to Robin Peterson, but he is simply not of international standard.

There is much to be said about this. Are the likes of Paul Harris and Thandi Tshabalala considered to be of inferior quality? (Editor's note - if Monty Panesar can play at a World Cup, so can Paul Harris.) Are there any other good spinners around? Does the policy of playing an all-pace attack discourage up-and-coming young spinners? The UCB have to find the answers to these questions once and for all.

5. We don't have an express fast bowler:
Allan Donald's retirement after the previous World Cup left a gaping hole in our bowling attack. As the saying goes, there is no substitute for pure pace, and unfortunately for SA, there are not many young, truly quick bowlers around. Sure, Makhaya (and 'Nella' occasionally) can crank it up to 140 clicks on a good pitch, but they are not in the consistent 150kph class of Lee, Akhtar, Malinga or Tait.

The sole incumbent for AD's mantle as express bowler seems to be Dale Steyn. Yes, he may have travelled for plenty early in his ODI career, but he has improved his game, and shown that he can swing the ball at high pace - a natural ability that, if moulded correctly, could render Steyn a deadly attacking option in any form of the game.

6. Our pace attack is limited:
In the nineties, the Proteas were largely a bowling side. We relied mostly on our bowlers to win matches. The current team is the opposite - we rely almost solely on our batting to win matches. This is because our bowling attack rarely penetrates opposition batting line-ups - Holland and Bangladesh are good examples. In short, we rarely bowl sides out.

The days of Donald and Pollock wrecking opposition top-orders, with the likes of Kallis and 'Vinnige Fanie' mopping up the tail are well and truly over. South Africa's all-pace attack is only effective in seamer-friendly, hard and fast conditions. It has been shown up to be toothless in subcontinental/West Indian conditions, where pitches are dry and slow, and the bounce is low.

7. Our gameplan is too predictable:
Kepler Wessels said that it has become too easy to play against South Africa, because one knows exactly what to expect. There are no surprises in store. Pollock will bowl on a length, Smith will blaze away at the top of the order.

Although South Africa execute their gameplan well on occasion (for example, against West Indies and England), we seem to get caught out by smart captains who stay a step ahead by predicting our moves, like Fleming and Ponting.

8. Graeme Smith's captaincy is sub-standard:
'Biff' might be a very talented batsman, but I feel that his captaincy lacks cunning and variety. If we are to be the best, we also need to have the smartest, wiliest and most perceptive leader.

9. We haven't identified our best team/squad:
There are many who feel that we never pick our best teams. Players that missed the boat for this World Cup include Boeta Dippenaar, Dale Steyn and Johan van der Wath to name a few. Would they have made a difference?

10. We're not as good as we think we are:
The Proteas are a good cricket team, made up of many talented players, and solid pros. However, Australia seems to be a factory of awesome cricketing machines, constantly churning out match-winners in almost every position. Shane Warne retires, Brad Hogg takes over effortlessly; Brett Lee gets injured, Shaun Tait picks up the mantle, no sweat.

Their levels of performance at this World Cup have been almost unprecedented, and they have been miles ahead of any other team in the competition. Perhaps it is only to be expected that a team of such quality and consistency has comprehensively outplayed our boys.

Even the most parochial Proteas fan would begrudgingly have to admit that we are not nearly as good as those blasted Aussies...

Do you have more reasons? Email us!