People from Australia and England spent last week glued to whatever broadcast medium they could find, as a rare event unfolded. Newspapers devoted front and back pages to its coverage. It was the talk of the town in Sydney and London.

Thankfully, this event was no bombing or natural disaster – it was a cricket match.

But, it was no ordinary cricket match, as England claimed the Ashes – the trophy the two countries play for every two years – winning it for the first time since 1987. The final match of the series actually ended in a draw – five days of play without a result – but it meant England won the five-match series 2-1, with two draws.

The final match was the culmination of a pulsating series that captured the imagination of both countries. After Australia dominated the first match, experts foresaw another rout of the old enemy. England, however, won the second match by the smallest margin in the 128-year history of the matches, and then took the fourth game in a similarly dramatic fashion.

Yet, as exciting as the games this year were, the importance of the Ashes is rooted in more than a century of history and tradition.

Ryan Nelson, exchange student in aerospace engineering from Grays Essex, England, was still reveling in his nation’s victory this week and explained its significance.

“We’ve copped a beating from Australians for so long,” he said. “It’s just a huge relief to get one back. They’ve been so good for long and we’ve copped a lot from them. The banter is all in good fun, but we English have a lot of national pride, and to keep getting beaten by those colonials, those ex-cons, well, it’s awful.”

Stephanie Bainbridge, an Australian Occupational Therapy student, also touched on the historical significance of the series.

“The Ashes isn’t just about cricket,” she said.

“It’s about Australian pride against those pompous, stuck-up Poms [English people]. We need a place where we can be better than them, and I guess for a long time, it’s been in sport – especially in cricket.”

Australia and England have played official Test Cricket since 1877, but the Ashes was first contested in 1882. The trophy itself is deeply embedded in this traditional rivalry. The trophy the teams play for is an urn, three inches tall containing the ashes of a bail used in a game Australia won in extraordinary circumstances in 1882.

An “obituary” for English cricket was printed in a London newspaper the next day. That obituary not only inspired the Ashes trophy, it gives an insight into the nature of the rivalry.

“In Affectionate Remembrance of English Cricket Which Died At The Oval on 29th August 1882,” the obituary read. “Deeply lamented by a large circle of sorrowing friends and acquaintances. R.I.P. NB: The body will be cremated, and the ashes taken to Australia.”

The impact of the series has reached both countries. Soccer traditionally dominates the back pages in England, but it has been pushed aside amid the euphoria following last week’s win.

Australia’s cricket team has been the world’s best for the past decade, but its star players are aging and the country is demanding changes. Almost the whole Australian team was over 30, while most English players are in their 20s.

No one seems safe from the repercussions – even Australian captain Ricky Ponting, who had never lost a series before, is under pressure to hold his job.

Australian audiences are used to success, and the Ashes failure equates to a national disaster.