No hiding place for KP, or our Katherine

That honour instead fell to left-armer Mitchell Johnson and it was a moment that the scores of Welsh supporters will remember, despite it being uneventful.

With three slips and a gully, skipper Andrew Strauss was able to leave the delivery well alone and England were able to go on their merry way on a ground that had become the 100th Test venue in world cricket.

It left the Glamorgan staff and officials to reflect on a job well done after producing a stadium and occasion to be proud of.

They have needed a granite chin to take the criticism of those who resented Cardiff getting a Test, let alone an Ashes opener, but they allowed the cricket to rightly take centre stage with a flawless performance.

There were no disasters for the cynics to get their teeth into and the only slight dampener was the lack of Welsh involvement on the playing front.

However, as the Celtic Manor will find out when the Ryder Cup comes to town, that is certainly not essential to make a raucous occasion.

There was a mix of flags bearing Welsh dragons and the cross of St George, with their owners all backing Strauss' boys to the hilt.

Cheeky Australian hopes of tapping into an anti-English approach over the Severn Bridge were unfounded – that can wait for Twickenham next year.

Praise for the ground came from those who have previously had some misgivings.

“Well done Cardiff,” said former England skipper Mike Atherton. “Glamorgan have shown ambition and got their reward.”

While Ian Botham, fresh from a day of golf at the 2010 course at the Celtic Manor, lauded the buzz and the atmosphere. And that was before the Brains had really tightened its grip on the masses.

Of course the sun helped as did a pre-match special that featured anthems, Jerus-alem, Calon Lan and, perhaps most strikingly, Katherine Jenkins in a tight red dress.

Once that was over and the real action started there was an expectant hum rather than the Lions-like atmosphere that Kevin Pietersen was looking forward to, but that was to come later in the day.

It was the calm before the storm both in the slightly-subdued stands and out in the middle where a placid, lifeless strip saw openers Strauss and Alistair Cook in watchful mode.

But it swiftly turned into an Australian morning with England's top three back in the hutch, all in disappointing manner.

The tourists were sparked into life by a magnificent acrobatic catch at gully by Mike Hussey to get rid of Cook and that brought the excellent aggressive paceman Peter Siddle to the fore.

He greeted new man Ravi Bopara with bowling that was shorter than the hotpants on the Betfair girls who were engaging in marketing warfare with their npower rivals beneath the stands.

The Essex man was smashed on the jaw and hit on the elbow before getting off the mark with a Chinese cut that gave the Barmy Army bugler the chance to bash out 'four more for the England'.

But after Strauss gloved a ball to first slip Michael Clarke, Bopara's scratchy innings was brought to an end after the number three was done like a kipper by Johnson.

The left-armer followed a 89mph deliver with a 79mph cutter to entice a loopy drive that was safely pouched. It didn't make for good viewing on the big screen on the long walk back to the pavilion.

Pietersen and Paul Collingwood came together and endured a few nervous moments (with KP's judgement of a quick single of particular concern) to make it to lunch with the score on 97-3.

The much-maligned Hauritz was brought into the attack just after the break along with part-timer Michael Clarke and England proceeded to cruise through for more than an hour.

Both Pietersen and Collingwood got to their 50s before tea and it was a session that merely served to show how dearly the Aussies miss Shane Warne with 97 runs coming without loss on a turning wicket.

However, the Aussies came roaring back in the ding-dong battle with Collingwood snaffled by a superb catch by keeper Brad Haddin and Pietersen going after another brainfart.

Facing the unthreatening Hauritz he premidated a sweep shot but instead gifted a catch to Simon Katich, via his helmet, after reaching for a ball that would have been a one-day wide outside his off-stump.

It was a massive wicket and put England on the back foot with the prospect of the tail being exposed to a new ball.

The England talisman once again found himself in a position of being pilloried despite being top-scorer, and deservedly so. There is no hiding place when such a daft shot is played.

Thankfully, Matt Prior and Andrew Flintoff were able to steady the ship once again – and England will be frustrated that they are not in a totally commanding position given the amount of starts made by batsmen – and then rack up the runs late in the day.

The Barmy Army were in good voice with their hero Freddie making hay in the middle to the tipsy strains of Delilah and Bread of Heaven.

But then Australia grabbed a pair of late lifelines when Flintoff played on to Siddle, who then demolished Prior's stumps to leave it finely poised on 336-7.

There will be many twists and turns over the next four days, and England hope those turns will be sharp. But after a great opener for Glamorgan it is the cricket that is, and will be, the talking point.