No 50, May 18 - The Grumbler's County Cricket Newsletter
🔴ECB CEO Tom Harrison goes... finally 🟣Have bad balls helped batters? 🐝Bees stop play 🔵Where you get in free after tea ⚫️Why should we listen to ex-players? 🟤All the Championship previews
Finally, Teflon Tom Harrison has come unstuck.
I have been banging on about the shortcomings of the ECB CEO for so long that when his departure was finally confirmed this week, I struggled to understand my own emotions. But it appears that others have always had much more clarity. Such as the person who sent him a phony dog poo in the post in admiration of his work.
I was angry throughout his tenure but, in truth, I am more fearful than ever now it is over. Fearful of what he might have saddled us with as he swans off to spend that immoral bonus and fearful that factionalism might mean English cricket yet again fails to grasp a host of unnecessary nettles he allowed to sprout or failed to kill during his time in charge.
Thank heavens for the wonderful distraction of the next round of Championship games on Thursday. Then there’s the Blast.
Hopefully, I’ll be able to write about a bright new dawn by the time Harrison’s pet project barfs into being in August.
Of its two chief instigators, ex-chairman Colin Graves was out before it began and soon-to-be ex-CEO Harrison only saw one edition.
Despite all the bluster and bullshit, that should tell you all you need to know about their credentials to lead a sport as sacred as English cricket.
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County Championship Previews
Click on each team name for a different preview.
Northamptonshire vs Kent
Somerset vs Hampshire
Yorkshire vs Warwickshire
Middlesex vs Durham
Nottinghamshire vs Derbyshire
Worcestershire vs Leicestershire
Lancashire vs Essex
Callum Parkinson replaces Colin Ackermann as Leicestershire four-day captain (Cricinfo)
Players and Coaches: Dal (Derbyshire - contract), Waite (Worcestershire - loan), Hurt (Derbyshire - loan), Shah (Middlesex - coach).
Injuries: Fisher (Yorkshire)
Teenager dubbed 'new Jofra Archer' tipped to play for England after signing first pro deal (Mirror)
Talented player but, like Bethell, there is more to this than meets the eye.
Goodbye Teflon Tom
Here are all the main stories on Harrison’s departure. The tone is almost universally damning. Note how often the word ‘division’ crops up. This is the opposite of what good leaders try to achieve. Seismic shifts like the tournament-that-shall-not-be-named do not leave the consciousness quickly (just like Brexit still ripples through British politics seemingly every day) and resentment over the manner of such change often leaves a permanent scar.
When well-regarded people like ex-Surrey CEO Richard Gould use words like “ambush” you know others will be looking to settle scores. I am not defending the counties but my perception has always been they were shafted and they won’t forget it any time soon. That is why a reaction like this was almost inevitable - Counties threaten 'breakaway' as Tom Harrison resignation plunges English cricket deeper into chaos (Telegraph) ($).
Anyway, read through some of these and then you’ll get my take.
Tom Harrison brought in the money but left cricket smaller, poorer and divided (Guardian)
This is my favourite of the pieces on Harrison. A cold, factual dissection of a cynical and ruinous reign. The key takeaway is the man himself being non-plussed by criticism. I have found this to be a trait of money-first sports executives. They sincerely feel they are saving the game. This is why the board that appoints them must be so careful regarding character and outlook. Harrison was enfranchised to make huge changes during his seven-year spell. If the board does not alter its approach then they are just going to bring in the same person in a different suit. Lower down their structure, ECB have tended to appoint from within. The game cannot afford that this time.
Poorer, more-divided game the bottom line of Tom Harrison tenure (Cricinfo)
Tom Harrison leaves English cricket divided despite World Cup glory (Times) ($)
Tom Harrison and the death of a salesman (The Cricketer) ($)
Good riddance Tom Harrison, English cricket’s recovery from his disastrous ECB reign starts now (iNews)
This piece wasn’t typed, it was bashed out in fury. Entertaining though.
Tom Harrison to step down as ECB Chief Executive Officer (ECB)
It is utterly bizarre that the story on the ECB website does not mention the tournament-that-shall-not-be-named. But I appreciate the irony.
Good Riddance To Tom Harrison (Full Toss Blog)
Right then, here’s my bit…
Like referees, the best sporting CEOs are the ones you do not notice. It is rare for the ‘chief suit’ to be lifted shoulder-high when they depart, they are more likely to be picked up by the lapels and shoved through the revolving door of their headquarters. Short-term success can be classed as merely failing to win an unpopularity contest.
In the long-term, there is ‘being missed when you are gone’ and, of course, legacy. Yet it is still possible for the incumbent to have a modicum of respect if their decisions possess common sense, morality, strategy, consistency, transparency and a wider view of the game.
Unfortunately, in the eyes of many fans, Tom Harrison is cricket’s public enemy No 1, 2 and 3. His failures run so deep there is no room for anyone else on the podium.
Let's deal with his successes first. It won't take long.
Harrison increased the revenue for the ECB's media rights. Given his background at IMG, you could argue this was the reason he was appointed in the first place but, still, money is critical.
He also acted swiftly to shore up the game at the start of the pandemic. Contrary to fears at the time, we have not seen any major professional sporting teams go under in the UK but the concerns were real and the ECB allayed early fears. (Then again, thinking about it, if the ECB now want to reduce the number of counties then this would have been perfect time to let a couple go under).
The Inspiring Generations plan has some merit and I have always liked the All-Stars coaching scheme for children. However it is club-based and does not properly address the elephantine issue of cricket in state schools. This and the loss of free-to-air coverage are generational problems. Participation went down 25 per cent in Harrison’s tenure, the rot started before him but his focus was on money not arresting that alarming decline. Getting some sort of cricket back on the BBC was important but he mortgaged too much of the game to achieve it.
On the negative side is… well… pretty much everything else.
I have seen the World Cup win marked as a Harrison achievement. It is not. There is an influence in terms of resources, focus and appointments however, just like Team GB’s success at London 2012 was set in motion during John Major’s leadership, sporting success is longitudinal. If Jos Buttler had fumbled that all-important run-out in the final then it would not have been Harrison’s fault so how can he take any reasonable measure of credit for its success?
By the same token, Harrison cannot shoulder the long-term blame for our slide in the Test standings. But yet again, in the short-term, he did precious little to stop the rot. His schedules and the Covid bubbles sapped the strength of the side, leading to the nadir Down Under last winter.
At every level, the red-ball game has withered further under Teflon Tom. His ECB gave no indication they cared about the County Championship and, to a great extent, the counties. Even the Blast, an unadulterated ECB success story, has been put in the shade, perhaps because they invented it but only others could realise its full potential.
Morally, Teflon Tom’s ECB was at best inept, at worst, cowardly. They failed to seriously address the Yorkshire racism scandal, seemingly in the hope it would go away, while Harrison’s personal conducts been under scrutiny for issues at Leicestershire and Essex. His treatment of Pakistan after they came over to ‘save the summer’ of 2020 was awful. When you-know-what was being developed he was virtually silent and, after that, the communications veered between the non-existant, the nonsensical and the North Korean.
So [takes deep breath] here we go… the tournament-that-shall-not-be-named.
I’ve always said it is the wrong answer to the right question about how the game can attract new audiences and replace the dwindling revenue from Test match cricket. The strategists might argue the counties needed some sort of bomb under them order to change. In the end, £1.3m a season did the trick.
Harrison alone was paid more than that in his last year, reportedly he received £55,000 gross per month and the bonus was supposedly a year’s salary. Shamefully, he took the latter after his organisation made 62 staff redundant in the pandemic.
And that’s where we always end up with Harrison - following the money.
His tenure was coloured green. And not the green shoots of growth but the grubby hue of bank notes.
Sport has to be more than that. It has to mean something and, as such, incorporate values such as morality, identity, collaboration and shared goals.
Teflon Tom Harrison offered none of these.
The game has held the door open for the departures of he and former ECB chairman Colin Graves, despite their roles as agents of change.
County cricket is done-for if we have another seven years like the last. It might tick along on life support but the patient is weak and needs Florence Nightingale not Harrison’s Nurse Ratched.
I have worked in sports for 30 years and seen all sorts of administrators close-up, from non-League football to world-level execs in the UK, US and Asia, none has angered me more than Tom Harrison.
The only thing I agree with him about is that change is essential, right now. Especially now he’s gone.
This is a chance for a real reset in the game, not just the red-ball one. But it is going to take more than the CEO’s departure to create it.
A new board, new leadership, new direction and a new strategy. The counties need to gives their collective heads a real wobble too.
And, crucially, everyone must listen to the fans who love the game.
We are the volunteers, the colts’ coaches, the bloggers, the Tweeters, the advocates, the television audience, the ticket-buyer and, as parents and grandparents, the true inspirer of generations.
We’ll do it for free, just give the Cricket Supporters Association a seat at the table so we can help create something of which to be proud. Because, despite my nom de plome, I’m really tired of grumbling.
See you later Teflon Tom and close your door on the way out.
English cricket must start clearing up your mess right away.
News, views and interviews
New balls please: counties receive fresh batch after Dukes cricket balls go soft (Guardian)
Dukes admit 'quality issue' with batch of balls for early stages of county season (Cricinfo)
Do pitches really matter when it comes to getting Test-match ready? (Cricketer)
So it is the balls? I’d venture that it is a combination of this, the weather and edicts on flat tracks that has caused the glut of runs this season. As the piece says, “in the County Championship last season there were just 12 scores above 500, while this season there have already been 13 in Division One – including four last week alone – and another seven in Division Two”.
I am mixed on this affair. Part of me feels a bad batch of cherries should not have the influence it has but I also like quotes about the handmade, personal nature of ball-making.
Schedule needs to be looked at, says Gloucestershire performance director (Cricketer)
NB: This was published late last week
Blimey, I must be getting old as I largely agree with Geoff Boycott on this:
"The ECB should be spending money on encouraging school kids. Let them in free to watch county cricket. A national competition for state primary and secondary schools would be a good start and paying some ex-professionals to go and coach."
His pick for ECB chair, Gerald Corbett, looks utterly establishment, albeit Boycott backs up his argument with a list of positive changes he’s made.
And then there's this…
"The ECB should be thinking outside and beyond the 18 counties. When you give them more money all the time, the money just disappears down one big black hole. Meanwhile schools and clubs are struggling. Counties are like sponges, the more you give them the more they want."
However, like Pietersen, ex-players with a long history of self-centredness are not the primary voices we require.
Speaking of which, he did this at the weekend, which is disgraceful and, given his 3.8m following on Twitter, highly irresponsible. But then that is Pietersen. Irresponsible. His personality flaws cut short his England career. There was wailing and flailing but little self-reflection and he never appeared to accept culpability. That is what supremely talented athletes often do. Most of the footballers I knew were oblivious to their faults, safe in the knowledge that others will offer the protection or willful ignorance required to keep them performing. Certainly, the vast majority were selfish, it is an emotion adjacent to the confidence, stubbornness and egocentricity often needed to succeed on the pitch. It is accepted and, in some ways, encouraged. But, for that very reason, they are not qualified to run a sport unless they seriously widen their experience after retirement. Many stay one-dimensional throughout their lives. Pietersen’s arguments are poorly constructed and often feel like provocation. There’s a completely coherent suggestion that county cricket needs a comprehensive overhaul and we need to reduce the number of counties. But, on the basis of his social media, I won’t be accommodating Pietersen’s views. Let's just pat him on the head, maybe ruffle his spikey hair and return our gaze to those who deserve our attention. The clever, well-rounded ones with a holistic view of the game. They are often quieter but they have much more to offer.
I have vocalised my impatience over the racism scandal that enveloped Yorkshire over the winter. George Dobell somewhat tempered my concern on the Talksport cricket podcast when he assured listeners it IS coming.
This piece hints at some of the employment issues caused by the wholesale changes we demanded. Quite understandably, employees who have had little or nothing to do with the problem feel aggrieved and, while I back Lord Patel's changes, I also support the hard-won rights of ordinary workers. This is no time to lose your job.
This is all very expensive. Two staff settled for a combined £500,000-£750,000 and the coaching team are in the process of private hearings at the moment.
This is all complex so let's not judge the process. But, for me, Yorkshire need to be sent a message, especially as some within the county are not convinced of the need for change. I would have demoted them to Division Two this season. It was clear, obvious and would not damage their financial future like losing England games.
With those seemingly off the table, one presumes their punishment will be a mixture of points deductions and fines. They will plead poverty to mitigate the latter. As for the former, if a deduction costs them the title chance there will be more bitterness, if it sends them down then their punishment is extended for another year. This may not have been within the direct remit of the punishment process but the ECB have broken their own rules by not acting in a timely manner and the former Essex chairman has accused them of something similar after they allegedly “forced him out” amid the county's own racism scandal. Even Lord Patel has been criticised over due process.
Once again, this is difficult, we don't know all the facts and universal fairness will be impossible. But once again the ECB have not grasped a nettle, acted in a timely fashion and, if there are reasons why these actions are not possible, told us why.
Home Office visa delays threatening to have major impact on English cricket season (Cricketer)
There is a big story brewing here with the Blast a couple of weeks away.
And, finally, an Alistair Burnett-style ‘and finally’
Torn by war, Ukraine still has cricket (Cricinfo)
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