 The Australian side had been quite strong in the early 1970s and had won the previous two Ashes series, 1974–75 at home and 1975 in England.Although it was not a contest for The Ashes, Australia and England had also played in the Centenary Test from 15 to 19 March 1977 to mark the 100th anniversary of the first Test match.Remarkably Australia won by the same margin as in 1877, 45 runs.