Stumps: Australia coach reviews WACA Test

Today we farewelled a genuine champion, a bloke that we’ve come to call ‘Caviar’ after the nation’s most famous and most successful thoroughbred.

Mitchell Johnson changed the game for Australia, and probably the way the game is played elsewhere with his performances over the past few years.

Full Story: Johnson announces international cricket retirement

We all remember the exhilarating speed and aggression he showed two summers ago when we won back the Ashes, and I genuinely believe he altered the way in which batsmen faced up to pure, hostile fast bowling.

WATCH: Johnson's 37 Ashes wickets

It was a joy for me to watch him fulfil his full potential as player, having seen him develop from an obviously talented youngster in State cricket and always knowing he had very special qualities about him.

He was also a delight to coach, although he wasn’t afraid to challenge me or others if he felt that things could be done differently or better.

The fact that he has gone on to play 73 Tests and surpass Brett Lee to become Australia’s fourth-highest wicket-taker in Test matches is a credit to Mitch and to his family, and it’s not just his game-changing fast bowling that made him a rare talent in world cricket.

Report: Johnson lights up final day of drawn second Test

He is a complete athlete who can bowl fast, bat brilliantly as we saw when he made a Test century in South Africa and he’s a gun fielder, and as an all-round package he set the benchmark for how you have to prepare and perform to be a premium fast bowler.

Certainly when he came back into our set-up after a time away from the game in 2013, the work that he had put in to get his body right and to build up his strength and his endurance should stand as a lesson to anyone who aspires to bowl fast at the highest level.

Or just bowl fast, full stop.

He will be sorely missed in our dressing room.

WATCH: Johnson ends career with trademark wickets

He is the last of the experienced guys with a decade of international experience behind him, and now Peter Siddle will take on that senior role and I have no doubt he’ll do a great job.

He is also the last link to the Baggy Green Cap recipients in the 300-club – Mitch was number 398, Chris Rogers was 399 and that makes Sidds the lowest number now at 403.

Mitch spoke brilliantly to our players when he made his announcement to them in the rooms after play last night.

He’s very quietly spoken at the best of times, but when he speaks everyone listens and you could have heard a pin drop in our rooms last night when he got us together to tell us of his decision.

Mitch was quite emotional as were quite a few of the players and the support staff, but he had obviously given a good deal of thought to what he wanted to say and his message was that he just wants us to continue to play well and be successful.

I guess that’s what all of us past players want, to try and help those standards to be upheld, and he will always be welcomed back into our group.

He should be extremely proud of what he has given to the game and so many fans in Australia and around the world, and he leaves cricket in great shape and an exciting place.

Mitch’s departure means somebody else will have to stand up to fill those boots, and I think we saw signs of that in the first innings of this Test when Mitch Starc bowled one of the sorts of spells that we’ve recently associated with Mitchell Johnson.

That was a changing of the guard to some extent.

WATCH: Re-live Starc's searing WACA spell

That’s a really positive sign for Australian cricket and we’re confident that Mitchell Starc will fill that role for quite some time.

Of course there is one Test to be played in this Trans-Tasman Series, but Mitch has decided to retire at his home ground and it would have been nice to have a fast, bouncy wicket here at the WACA to allow him to provide one last spell of enthralling fast bowling.

But the pitch, in conjunction with the balls used throughout the Test have contributed to a match that’s been heavily dominated by the bat.

What hasn’t changed is the great Anzac spirit in which this Test has been played, and in fact this whole series has been played with as much respect and regard between the rival team as I’ve ever seen in my time in international cricket.

Another handshake for @RossLTaylor #290 well played mate from all of us pic.twitter.com/N499iIiqt0 — Darren Lehmann (@darren_lehmann) November 17, 2015

From here, we head to Adelaide for the first-ever day-night Test match.

And another new era for our team, having said goodbye to one of the true greats of Australian cricket.