Onions expresses respect for Ponting

Published on Wednesday 5 August 2009 22:53

RESPECT will be a watchword in the England dressing room as they head into the crunch fourth Ashes Test against Australia tomorrow, according to Graham Onions.

With the booing directed at visiting captain Ricky Ponting throughout the series becoming a key issue, Onions insisted that the England players remain wary of their opponents as they bid to wrap up a series victory with a Test to spare.

"Personally, I've got a lot of respect for Ricky Ponting and all the Australian players in that changing room," Onions said.

"He's a world-class performer and as players you've got to remember that whatever happens within the white lines stays on the field. What the supporters do is up to them."

The mood of the series began to turn a little more feisty at Edgbaston last week, with the sledging in the middle noticeably increasing, but Onions insisted the banter both on the pitch and in the stands is all just part of the game.

"It just shows how much it actually means to both sides," he said. "We desperately want to win and Australia want to keep the Ashes. It's a great spectacle.

"You might get a bit of stick from the crowd but as players you've just got to put up with it. I'm not one of the boo boys, I'm just trying to win a Test match for England. There is a line and I think respect is the key word."

With a 1-0 lead in the series and only two Tests remaining, England could win the Ashes back with victory at Headingley. "It's a very exciting prospect for the Headingley crowd and as players, we're trying to win every game and it's exciting," Onions added. "I think we'll pick the team best suited to the ground and the wicket."

Andrew Flintoff's availability is one of the big questions now remaining before play begins tomorrow. Jonathan Trott has been called in as cover for the all-rounder, but Onions admitted he would be virtually impossible to replace.

"Andrew Flintoff is key for England," he said. "He's an important player if he's fully fit, but I think that's a massive thing to say. "If he's not fit to bowl his 50 overs and score his 50 runs, is he good for the England team? That's not for me to say. If he doesn't play you miss a legend of the game.

"Andrew Flintoff is a massive person to have in the England team and the dressing room, but with Jonathan Trott and Ryan Sidebottom in the squad, deep down we're pretty confident that if he's not fit, we've got a good enough team to win."

Although Ponting stated he "loved every minute" of the Edgbaston draw which concluded earlier this week, England and Wales Cricket Board chairman Giles Clarke has written in the official programme in a bid to dissuade hecklers. There are also other issues to confront as millions of eyes turn to the famous old ground, such as the building site at the Kirkstall Lane end where the new pavilion will be housed, and the state-of-the-art drainage which failed earlier this year. Of the noise from the stands, Regan said: "It is about getting a balance right between allowing people to support and cheer for the team – hopefully in our case England – and taking that a step too far.

"Our own West Stand has come in for a lot of criticism over the years and the several thousand people sitting on the West Stand are largely here for the enjoyment of the cricket. There are a small minority who like to take their behaviour one step too far and the club have said we will not tolerate behaviour which gets out of hand.

"Obviously we can't stop people booing the opposition, to even suggest that is ludicrous, but what we can do is stop fans getting close to the players. We won't be allowing that and we will take action against anyone who tries."

Ponting himself does not seem too concerned by anything from the stands, describing England's official supporters' group the Barmy Army as "the best sporting crowd in the world" and admitting he was "half-expecting" some heckling as he made his way to the middle.

"There is never anything untoward," he wrote in his newspaper column. "It is always good, light-hearted stuff, and when England have a sniff of winning the volume goes up tenfold. They add a lot to the whole experience of the Ashes."