ABSOLUTELY gobsmacked. There is no other way of describing my reaction to Thursday's news that Cardiff's Sophia Gardens will host an Ashes Test in 2009. Mike Ruddock's abrupt departure as Wales rugby coach had nothing on this.

I will freely admit - and have done so in these pages before - that I was hugely sceptical about Glamorgan's quest to become a Test ground.

I thought it rather pie-in-the-sky and that it would only result in a non-event against either Zimbabwe or Bangladesh. So I stand corrected and am delighted to do so.

It is undoubtedly the most significant piece of news in Glamorgan's long history - indeed in that of the whole of Welsh cricket - and will hopefully secure the long-term financial future of the club.

I can only congratulate the club on its efforts and say that I am tremendously excited about the prospect of Test cricket coming to Wales, like I'm sure all other cricket fans in Wales are.

However, what is almost incredible about the decision of the England and Wales Cricket Board is that Glamorgan have still to receive planning permission for their new state of the art stadium.

However, that should now be a formality at the meeting on May 10. Let us just hope that the stadium can be made ready in time.

The decision has naturally caused some resentment elsewhere in the country.

I have been up at Old Trafford this week reporting on a county game and to say that they are not best pleased would be an understatement.

Even more piqued was Hampshire's chairman Rod Bransgrove who is considering his position after what he considers the snub suffered by his Rose Bowl ground in Southampton. He is even considering legal action. "The W in ECB might be silent," he said, "but it is very powerful."

On that point there will be others who will also point to the fact that Welshman David Morgan just happens to be chairman of the ECB.

They can do that, but the truth is that Glamorgan's bid, with its help from the Welsh Assembly and Cardiff City Council,far outstripped all the others. The decision has been made and I, for one, cannot wait.