Barmy Army vows to lay off cricketers’ families but won’t stop the sledging
THEY’RE known for their boisterous sledges and have even penned a new song targeting the Australian ball tamperers - but the Barmy Army has vowed not to get personal.
NSW
Don't miss out on the headlines from NSW. Followed categories will be added to My News.
THEY’LL be gleefully waving around wads of sandpaper but England’s Barmy Army cricket fans have vowed not to get personal when they taunt Australia’s shamed cricket stars.
With our new-look side heading off for a one-day tournament in the UK tomorrow, the founder of the raucous fan group said they wouldn’t repeat the appalling personal attacks David Warner’s family was subjected to recently in South Africa.
ANNETTE SHARP: PERSONAL PAIN NO LONGER PRIVATE
“I don’t think it should ever go to that personal stuff,” Barmy Army chief Paul Burnham said.
Candice Warner’s heartbreaking revelation this week that she suffered a miscarriage in the wake of the ball-tampering scandal laid bare the toll of not only that incident but also the torrid personal abuse she and her family were subjected to in the weeks leading up to Cape Town.
At the height of the vile attacks, Warner was too upset and intimidated to take her daughters to the ground, after fans wore Sonny Bill Williams masks — endorsed by South African officials — in a shameful bid to taunt her over her encounter with the rugby star back in 2007.
Last Ashes summer, the Barmy Army also chose to get personal with Warner by referencing Sonny Bill in one of their songs, but the co-founder of the iconic England fan group said in hindsight, those lyrics were regrettable.
The Australian team is bracing for a rowdy reception from English crowds in the UK for a series of one-day matches, and the dose will be doubled in 12 months’ time when Warner and Steve Smith likely return from suspension for the Ashes tour.
Mr Burnham tipped hardware stores across the UK will sell out of sandpaper over the coming weeks in anticipation of Australia’s arrival, but declared Warner’s personal life would now remain off limits.
“We can’t control tens of thousands of people, but it’s not something the Barmy Army will do,” he said.
“Obviously the Barmy Army tries to push up to the limit and every now and then it goes over. I think it did once with Shane Warne (with his family) and it definitely did with David Warner.
“David has had to put up with that for a while and I can understand why he would stand up for his missus, if you like.
“It’s certainly not something we’d like to repeat because we’d like to think there’s new things to do and I think there are plenty of songs about David Warner without mentioning his wife.”
The Barmy Army will debut a new song next month when the Aussies arrive, making light of the ball-tampering scandal to the tune of American Pie.
Burnham said the reception from the Barmy Army would be “above average” but, somewhat surprisingly, believes Warner, Smith and Cameron Bancroft were over-punished.
“I’d like to think that it will be reasonably good hearted and tuneful,” he said.
“You’ll probably find the English public will be very similar to you guys when Stuart Broad famously came over to Australia in 2013-14 after his shenanigans where you accused him of cheating and he was blacked out in the newspapers and everything else.”
Aussie spinner Nathan Lyon said the team would just have to take whatever came their way.
“I’ve never played in England where they haven’t given it to us,” he said.
“It’s good fun, it’s banter. There’s no point taking tissues out with us, (we’ve got to) stand there and cop it.”
Before the ball-tampering scandal took over, Australian officials were already concerned about how to protect Warner’s family in the UK when the Ashes rolled around in 2019.
South African cricket sacked the two officials who posed with Sonny Bill masks — although one successfully challenged his dismissal.