Foster’s beer advert pokes sandpaper fun at Australia in taste of what’s to come

And so it begins. The Australian cricket team are set to cop a world of flack in the UK this winter over the sandpaper affair. The first TV salvo, however, has come from an unexpected source.

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And so it begins.

The Australian cricket side is in England ahead of a gruelling summer of World Cup and Ashes cricket, stealing themselves for a barrage of abuse from the locals over the Newlands sandpapergate scandal.

Coach Justin Langer has spoken at length about protecting returning players Steve Smith and David Warner from the worst of it. And is under no illusions as to what awaits.

He might not, however, have expected the first attack — however mild — to have come from what could be considered ‘friendly fire’.

Fosters character Brad (or possibly Dan) gets to work with the sandpaper in the World Cup advert.

Fosters — a beer that markets itself in the UK as a drink as Australian as a boxing kangaroos fighting over the scraps from a sausage sizzle, on a surfboard, etc and so on — have revived their ‘Good Call’ campaign for the English summer, in which desperate cricket punters ring up two true blue Aussie blokes for beer related advice.

The pair take their calls from a beach house in some unspecified coastal beauty spot in Australia, complete with a game of beach cricket going on outside.

When an errant ball comes their way, a quick rub down with a piece of sandpaper takes place before it is returned to the bowler.

It is a trope that is sure to land well with English audiences. Perhaps less so back home. But then no one in Australia ever buys Fosters anyway, do they?