In a week where David O'Leary admitted he was 'ashamed' and Doug Ellis 'humiliated, disgusted and embarrassed,' by the Doncaster debacle, it was somewhat incongruous that the Villa manager should end up waxing lyrical about cricket.

However, after Villa procured their seventh point from the last three Premiership games following a 1-1 draw at Newcastle there was a valid point to his postmatch comments.

O'Leary has been under the most intense pressure of his three-year Villa Park reign this week after an abject performance in midweek led to their Carling Cup exit in midweek. But if the Irishman was feeling the heat then he only had to glance across to the home dugout to see a man under even more pressure, Graeme Souness.

A midweek cup defeat at the hands of Wigan's secondstring saw knives being sharpened by disgruntled home supporters, yet both managers lived to fight another day after sharing the spoils.

And O'Leary admitted he fully expected the sack race brigade to switch their attentions elsewhere this week in the 'insane' world of football.

"In the modern world, there will always be somebody who is under pressure, as soccer is such front-page, 24-hour-a-day stuff, and then it moves on to someone else," he said.

"That's the way it is and you don't look for sympathy as it comes with the job. I think all managers understand what we go through. There is a club here (Newcastle) which everyone thinks is insane. I have got a wife that thinks football's insane. "I worry about mum and dad who read the papers and have the television on at home in Dublin.

"I was speaking to Rafael Benitez this week and listening to the radio when they lost to Crystal Palace in the Carling Cup the radio presenter was encouraging people to ring in and get him sacked.

"Those same presenters yesterday were telling me how great a job he was doing. It starts like that and you get it all the time.

"I went back to Dublin and asked my mum to put the cricket on and she was a bit shocked as she had never heard me say that, but I have become a fan.

"One minute we win the Ashes and we are the best team in the world and then we lose against Pakistan and we are a load of rubbish. The truth lies somewhere in the middle.

"I have got to take heart because I was watching that fantastic funeral of George Best and I am really lucky. I am alive and walking around and I have got good friends and family.

"I don't want to lose my job but, if I did, it isn't the end of the world in general life. However, if I did, I hope I would get another job again very quickly afterwards."

Gavin McCann's strike 15 minutes from time earned O'Leary's side a valuable point, which could have been three had Gareth Barry not spurned a penalty opportunity two minutes from time.

However, while O'Leary was pleased to get their season back on track, he maintains he hadn't felt under any extra pressure in the build up to this fixture.

"I swear on my mum and dad's life I didn't feel under any more pressure coming into the game against Newcastle," he claimed.

"I can't help what's created outside and you are under pressure every week to perform because the buck stops with the manager. The result at Doncaster is down to me; it was my fault but you have to move on.

"What can you do about it? I thought I was going a decent job at Leeds and until I was told 'you have established us in the top five but we need someone to take us to the next step.'

"On the Bible, that is what was said to me. I don't worry about the sack and that isn't being arrogant as I want to be in football and I want to manage at the top level and I enjoy doing it. But I have learned that you can't control what is beyond you."