It's official. The Ashes aren't coming Down Under. This summer's proposed countrywide exhibition of the four-inch urn has been abandoned. According to the Marylebone Cricket Club, the urn is too fragile to move. In fact, the only travel plan on the agenda is a trip to the boffins for X-rays and refurbishment. Apparently any unnecessary movement or changes in humidity or pressure could cause irreparable damage. In other words, it's staying put in Old Blighty and the odds of it coming south of the equator in the near future are slimmer than a Mark Waugh Test-team return.

For Australian cricket-lovers, however, it's not all bad news. The Travelex Cricket Roadshow is in town, and even the most jaded of sports fans admit it's handy compensation.

Picture a relatively small marquee just outside the Vic Richardson Gates. Imagine a few T-shirted, board-shorted security guards who double as games masters, inviting kids to throw balls at a target for soft-drink prizes. Think of a framing picket fence, several oversized photos of Brett Lee and Adam Gilchrist in full-blown green-and-gold action, and you've got an inkling of the Roadshow.

So far, not much to write home about, but it's the items on display that have had the crowds outside the Adelaide Oval, oohing and aahing in admiration. For the past two days the fans have been snapping photos of some of cricket's greatest trophies. There's the World Cup won by Allan (Capt. Grumpy) Border's 1987 side. There's the Waterford Crystal Ashes urn currently in the possession of Waugh's boys. There's the Frank Worrell Trophy, the International Cricket Council's Test Championship Mace and the womens' Ashes trophy, all currently held by Australian teams.

It's quite a show, made more so by the fact that admission is free and the trophies themselves aren't hidden behind glass in a members' pavilion. This is the peoples' circus.

"It's wonderful to see this stuff up close," says Robert of Adelaide. "It's great to be able to take pictures of it all, show them to the kids when they're older. Isn't it great that they're here for everyone, not just some guys in suits?"

Paul from London agrees. "I don't see why the real Ashes are stuck away at Lord's," he says. "It's about time people stopped being so stuffy about it all. Look at this. These trophies are magnificent. Cricket heritage is about the fans as much as it is about the players."

The cunning plan, according to the Australian Cricket Board, is to take the trophies out of the cabinets and bring them to the punters. "Australia has enjoyed an enviable run of success in Test and one-day international cricket," announced James Sutherland, the chief executive of the ACB, at the Sydney launch three weeks ago. "The exhibition is an opportunity to take the spoils of Australia's cricket success to fans, giving them a chance to get close to this unique collection of trophies."

To date, the plan is (with due literary deference to Edmund Blackadder), so cunning you could put a tail on it and call it a weasel. Huge crowds have been attending the exhibition on its journey around the country. And it's not called the Roadshow for nothing. Before culminating in Woollongong on January 7, the pretty trinkets will have made appearances in shopping centres and cricket grounds from Toowoomba to Mildura, from Adelaide to Orange. (That's a New South Wales town, not a citrus fruit, in case you were confused)

In Adelaide, the Roadshow has also been gathering comment of a socio-political persuasion. "You can't imagine this happening in England can you?" suggests Maureen from Perth. "Just think of what would happen if the boys from MCC were ever asked to display some of their precious stuff like this. It says a lot about the changing attitudes of sport in this country. It's a terrific idea and there should be more of it."

Her husband Mark, meanwhile, is concerned about safety issues. "These trophies would be worth a lot of money," he says. "I don't like to think of what thieves would do if they got their hands on this gear." The T-shirted, board-shorted security guards, however, aren't worried. There isn't a truncheon or a walkie-talkie in sight. "We're not bothered about thieves," says security guard John. "It all goes back into safe keeping at the end of the day, and people are just happy to see the display. It's a great atmosphere wherever we go."

Yes it's official. That 120-year-old urn won't be venturing to the Great Southern Land any time soon. But while we've got the Travelex Cricket Roadshow, we Antipodeans have every reason to keep the grumbling to a minimum.

Christine Davey is a freelance writer based in Victoria, Australia

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