England crashed to an innings-and-80-run defeat against Australia in the fourth npower Test at Headingley to set up an Ashes decider in a fortnight.

Some late-order thrills supplied by Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann entertained a full house in Leeds on the third morning, but only served to mask the gulf in class between the teams over just seven-and-a-bit sessions of play.

Australia developed the momentum mustered from escaping Edgbaston with a draw in stunning fashion, and an England side without either Andrew Flintoff or Kevin Pietersen for the first time since 2003 were blown away.

A resurgent Mitchell Johnson levelled the series at 1-1, with just the Brit Oval finale to play, when he bowled last man Graham Onions at 2.04pm.

But it was undoubtedly the damage inflicted before Onions' previous dismissal in the match, exactly 48 hours earlier, which spiralled Andrew Strauss' men to a crushing loss.

England resumed the third day on 82 for five, still 261 runs in arrears, with defeat inevitable and only pride to play for.

Dashing half-centuries from Swann and Broad restored some of that but it is the health of a more prominent member of the middle-order which will be of the greatest intrigue in the aftermath of this match.

All-rounder Andrew Flintoff, ruled out of the penultimate contest of the series after consultation with the team management on Thursday evening, will be assessed by a knee specialist in London tomorrow.

The 31-year-old intended to bow out of Test cricket at the end of this Ashes campaign and whether he gets his chance will now depend on expert advice.

On this evidence England are in desperate need of the 2005 Ashes hero, for the presence he brings to the side as much as his return with both bat and ball.

England will have other areas of concern in the deconstruction of this heavy reverse, most notably the paltry return of 16 runs in six visits to the crease from Ravi Bopara, Ian Bell and Paul Collingwood, and the fitness of fast bowler James Anderson, who tweaked a hamstring batting on the first day.