Not Cricket

When the one-day cricket between England and Australia comes to these parts in September, there will two stands, one for the "Barmy Army", and the other where no alcohol will be allowed.

The latter has already sold out. Whereas tickets for the former are all but having to be handed out in the street.

Those who are determined to turn cricket into some outdated caricature of football (which now takes a very hard line on drunkenness) should get the message.

Football, meanwhile, needs to take a leaf out of rugby's book, and ban all foul language on the field of play.

None of this has anything to do with class. Cricket has always been a working-class or all-class game here in the North, and the swearing ban in rugby applies equally to both codes.