Local boys' blunders come amid first-day fury

Amid warnings that the famously parochial Headingley crowd would be waiting for Australia with pitchforks, it was incidentally a handful of Yorkshire locals who were central to a series of blunders that England hope will not cost them the third Test.

Having flagged the prospect of crowd hostilities being "ramped-up" beyond the norm due to the Lord's stumping controversy, Ben Stokes went from firing up fans to stirring teammates with what appeared to be an impassioned address in England's huddle after he elected to bowl first on Thursday morning.

It largely fitted in with Stokes' pre-Test decree to teammates to "do what you need to do to get yourself up" for the contest, including channelling the still simmering anger at Australia not withdrawing their stumping appeal against Jonny Bairstow last Sunday.

Despite the first day of the third Test in Leeds finishing with the game in the balance, Stokes may wonder if his edict had the desired effect.

Bairstow's outrage over his contentious dismissal was made clear when he batted late on day one, staring down Australia's slips cordon with his bat grounded in his crease in a not-so-subtle message that he still views their actions in the second Test as underhand.

They are feelings that linger despite coach Brendon McCullum, who cast doubt over the Ashes rivals sharing post-series refreshments following the divisive incident, sharing a brief exchange with Pat Cummins before play on Thursday in which the pair smiled and shook hands.

Only Bairstow will know if his discontent was a distraction when he added two more dropped catches to England's tally that has now reached 14 for the series and which, by the crudest measure, cost his side 48 runs on day one on his home ground.

The Bradford-born-and-bred keeper shelled chances off an inside edge from Steve Smith (on 4, before making 22) and then Travis Head (on 9, finishing with 39) on a leg-side glance.

But the disdain shown by Bairstow was nothing compared to the rage exhibited by his long-time county and national teammate Joe Root, whose errors proved even more significant.

Root watched every thunderous Mitch Marsh boundary through the second session with dread from first slip after fluffing a simple chance just after lunch when the recalled allrounder was on just 12, which ended up costing England 106 runs.

The former captain was so disgusted over putting down a second catch (off Alex Carey, on 4) that he pegged the ball into the turf in a fit of rage only moments later when he held onto another chance granted by Head off the very next delivery.

The sheer fury shown by Root required Stokes to put his arms on his close friend's shoulders in an attempt to placate his frustration.

Glenn McGrath told the BBC that "if (England) had taken all their catches, they would have bowled Australia out for 120", a not unreasonable hypothetical given Australia, who would have slumped to 5-98 if the Marsh chance had been taken, eventually lost 6-23 upon losing their fifth wicket a couple of hours later.

Given a defeat here would spell a first Ashes series loss at home in 22 years, Root and Bairstow now have the power to ensure that is not something they reflect on with regret at the conclusion of the match after that pair went to stumps unbeaten on 19no and 1no respectively.

"They haven't said that and we certainly as a group don't feel they need to," speedster Mark Wood said when asked if Root and Bairstow felt they owed the team for their mistakes.

"They work really hard at training, we see the work they put in.

"Of course it's disappointing when catches go down, but it can't be helped. As soon as they go down, you move on, you know they're trying their best and that they're trying to do us a favour by catching them.

"The two that went down – Head and Marsh – they would have been big wickets at the time. They know that, they accept that – they're international sportsmen – but we know how it goes."

Less costly, though equally symbolic of England's struggles, was a mistake by another Yorkshireman who was not among those picked in England's XI but who also found himself on the ground in a crucial moment of play.

Marsh's comeback fairytale briefly looked to be in jeopardy when the 31-year-old, one away from a maiden Test century abroad after moving from 89 to 99 in the space of four deliveries, blocked one straight to point and set off for a single.

Will Luxton, a 20-year-old Yorkshire rookie on the ground as a substitute for Ollie Robinson and described on his club's website as an "outstanding fielder", botched what appeared a certain run-out if gathered cleanly.

Image Id: F1C3C5082369442BA1C9231AC2E29CDB Image Caption: England sub fielder and Yorkshire 20-year-old Will Luxton // Getty

Luxton's Gary Pratt Ashes moment was missed, allowing the century-clinching run to be completed as Marsh's batting partner Head made his ground.

"I put 'Travy' on the barbeque," a smiling Marsh told reporters after his 118 helped Australia reach 263.

"Luckily the youngster fumbled it, otherwise I would have been stuck on 99 and have run my mate out. It's one of those things – bat on ball and I didn't want to spend long on the 90s. I was very lucky."

Whether the presence on the field of a more composed Robinson, who left the field midway through his 12th over due to a back spasm, could have prevented the single and extended the skittish Marsh's wait for a ton was only a passing concern in the end.

The bigger question for England now is whether they can get Robinson up to bowl in the second innings considering his history of fitness issues.

Given the paceman missed an entire tour of the Caribbean after suffering a back spasm in a tour game last year, that obstacle is not one that can be overcome on emotion alone.

Image Id: 6192750D760C496AB2C05A62A9F3C66F Image Caption: Ollie Robinson leaves the field with a back issue // Getty

2023 Qantas Ashes Tour of the UK

First Test: Australia won by two wickets

Second Test: Australia won by 43 runs

Third Test: Thursday July 6-Monday July 10, Headingley

Fourth Test: Wednesday July 19-Sunday July 23, Old Trafford

Fifth Test: Thursday July 27-Monday 31, The Oval

Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey (wk), Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis (wk), Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Todd Murphy, Michael Neser, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc, David Warner

England squad: Ben Stokes (c), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood