[9] However, the scorching Queensland sun and an army of staff working day and night dried out the ground and Jones discarded the muddy wicket for the one used in the Queensland-Western Australia state game.
Swanton thought that over use of the heavy roller on the soft ground had created a ridge at the Vulture Street end, producing uneven bounce, but Frank Tyson noted that only Lillee and Thomson were able to get the ball to rise above stump height and that it only became unpredictable on the last day.
The tour selectors Alec Bedser, Alan Smith, Mike Denness, John Edrich and Tony Greig were slightly hampered by rain-affected practice matches and a line of niggling injuries; David Lloyd was out with a broken finger, Geoff Arnold with a strained shoulder and Chris Old with an injured hand.
Boycott's replacement Brian Luckhurst was chosen to open with Amiss, followed by the batsmen Edrich, Denness, Keith Fletcher, Greig, the wicketkeeper Alan Knott, the spinner Derek Underwood and the fast bowlers Willis, Mike Hendrick and Peter Lever.
Edrich started the day making 2,000 runs against Australia, the seventh man to do so after Jack Hobbs, Wally Hammond, Herbert Sutcliffe, Len Hutton, Colin Cowdrey and Ken Barrington.
Immediately afterwards Greig was dropped by Jenner off Lillee and Edrich, whose hand was so swollen from a bone broken on the previous day that he could barely hold his bat, edged Thomson to Ian Chappell at first slip for 48.
On the fourth day Ian Redpath was bowled again by Willis to leave Australia 59/3, but after this Greg Chappell (71), Ross Edwards (53), Doug Walters (63 not out) and Rod Marsh (46 not out) set about extending the lead.
Worse for them Dennis Amiss, John Edrich and David Lloyd had broken hands, Keith Fletcher a badly bruised arm, Bob Willis a groin strain and Peter Lever had injured a side muscle.
In his 20-year Test career he had faced the fast bowling of Keith Miller, Ray Lindwall, Wes Hall, Charlie Griffith, Ian Meckiff, Gordon Rorke, Neil Adcock and even the young Dennis Lillee.
Ian Chappell won the toss and took the extraordinary decision to field, believing that the England batsmen were still demoralised from their experience at Brisbane and that a dose of fast bowling on the quickest pitch in Australia might break them.
Walters reached his century off the last ball of the day by pulling Willis for six and was engulfed by fans as he left the field, as well they might as he was the first batsman since Bradman to score a hundred runs in a session in an Ashes Test.
Cowdrey was dropped by Ian Redpath off Lillee, hit on the arm, survived a confident appeal by Rod Marsh before he was finally caught lbw by Thomson for 41, the bowler's 50th first class wicket, with the score 62/1.
By long tradition the Victoria–New South Wales Sheffield Shield match began on Boxing Day at the MCG, much to the chagrin of the NSW players who missed Christmas with their families as a result.
[39] The deterioration of crowd behaviour in Australia has been marked and easily observable over the last few years...Exhibitionists, generally in drunken stupor, invaded the pitches...attempted to run the gauntlet of policemen patrolling the perimeter.
Thomson was brought in at Lillee's end with the wind behind him and gave Lloyd a rearing ball that moved on the leg stump, struck his hand and lobbed to Ashley Mallett in the gully to leave England 34/2.
The innings now depended on Alan Knott, who made 52, and Fred Titmus who batted until stumps, which were pulled when Lillee bowled round the wicket to the Cockney spinner and Mallett took a catch off his bat-handle.
As at Brisbane Tony Greig restored the situation thrashing 5 fours and a six in his 60 and adding 66 runs with Bob Willis (15) for the ninth wicket before Greg Chappell snatched a catch off a ball heading to the third man boundary.
After some discussion between Denness, Edrich, Cowdrey and Greig the new ball was not taken and Titmus and Underwood – nicknamed "Steptoe and Son" – carried on with defensive fields to a displeased Marsh who refused to make runs in protest.
When Keith Fletcher deflected a ball on to his cap and crumpled in a heap as it dropped just short of cover point, Ian Chappell probably thought his grandafther would approve if he had been alive to witness the carnage.
Thereafter wickets fell regularly with the Hillites cheering on the fast bowlers, but it was Max Walker (2/77) who made the breakthrough when he swung the ball to the edge of Dennis Amiss's bat to see it superbly caught by Mallett in the gully.
The wicketkeeper was finally dismissed leaning back ready to cut the short ball and had his stumps flattened by a Thomson half-volley, but Lillee repeatedly bounced the tailenders and gave Bob Willis a beamer which fortunately missed his head.
Keith Fletcher was joined by Tony Greig who took the score past 100, but the Essex captain, having fended off a sharp bouncer the ball before, played back to a fuller delivery and was caught by Ashley Mallett in the gully.
As it was there was a steady wind which helped dry out the ground overnight, except at the River Torrens end, but the famously long boundary was pulled in with ropes marking a now egg shaped Adelaide Oval.
He is a batsman who depends on his natural aggressive flair and his superb eye...While Jenner top-scored in Australia's first innings it was Walters who not only bore the brunt of the worst of the wicket but also scored freely in spite of the pitch.
When play resumed Cowdrey was dismissed off a Thomson bouncer that swung in and flew off his bat high above Walker's head, only for the 6'4" Victorian to leap up Aussie Rules style to take an 'impossible' catch.
With their two strike bowlers removed and the damp spot drying out Australia struggled and Denness and Edrich took full advantage, taking the score from 18/2 to 167/3 with a third wicket stand of 149 and overtaking the home side's total with ease.
With Australia needing 377 runs to avoid an innings defeat Denness could afford to set an aggressive field, but to no avail as Redpath and McCosker made 32/0 when bad light stopped play.
Though much of the pitch was flat the area around the damp patch of the first day was pock-marked and made the odd ball fly up and hit the hands of the batsmen, who were surrounded by slips, gullies and short-legs.
Redpath (83) added another century stand with Ian Chappell (50) until the captain glanced another catch to Knott off Grieg (4/88), but was unsatisfied with the decision and stayed to argue with the bowler and losing his temper in the process before leaving at 215/2.
The central figure, wearing a large straw sun-hat, was signing endless autographs, posing for photographs and exchanging friendly talk with young and old in the way that has made him as popular a cricketer as has ever visited Australia.