BEHIND every great team is an unsung hero.

The great France team that won the World Cup and European Championships had Dider Deschamps, ‘The Water Carrier’, while the all-conquering Manchester United team that won the treble had Denis Irwin. There are countless more in the world of sport.

And the successful England cricket team of the last two years has had Paul Collingwood.

While he might not have scored a huge amount of runs in this Ashes series, he has more than played his part in the development of this fantastic team and, for that, he should be applauded in the aftermath of his retirement from Test cricket.

Before the Ashes series, Steve Waugh was quoted as saying he knew the current England team was a force to be reckoned with because they showed real tenacity to stave off likely defeats on three occasions - at Cardiff in 2009 and twice on the tour of South Africa in 2010.

The man responsible for batting the majority of the final day each time? Paul Collingwood.

The modern-day inquests that would have followed such heavy defeats were replaced with a feeling of euphoria that helped to build the momentum that swept Andrew Strauss’s men into Australia on the crest of a wave.

Critics will point to the fact that he has struggled for runs in recent times, but he has more than contributed in other areas.

His fielding has saved countless runs, keeping on the pressure for the bowling attack, and some of the catches he has been taking have underlined his billing as one of the best fielders in the world.

Throw in the odd important wicket and his calming influence within the camp and it is easy to see why he is held in such high esteem by his team-mates.

He will never be remembered as a great player, but he has certainly proved a more than capable foil for his more lauded team-mates.

He was a team man until the end - as can be judged by his selfless retirement decision.

I am sure his replacement, likely to be Eoin Morgan, would settle for more than 4,000 Test runs and three Ashes victories from his five-day career if offered it right now.