South Africa Tour Goes On, Lara Hooper Still In Charge (10 November 1998)

10 November 1998

South Africa Tour Goes On, Lara Hooper Still In Charge

The Barbados Nation

A players' revolt that threatened cancellation of an historic West Indies cricket tour to South Africa has ended.

The tour will begin tomorrow - one day later than originally scheduled.

The players were not as jovial as they normally are, but were in good spirits as they hurried to a South Africa Airways flight leaving London at 9 p.m. London time (5 p.m. East Caribbean time), said David Holford, chief executive officer of the West Indies Players' Association (WIPA) last night.

Brian Lara and Carl Hooper are back on the team as captain and vice-captain respectively and disciplinary action will not be taken against them.

Those are two key points in a settlement reached between the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and WIPA yesterday afternoon - but the deal almost fell through.

It was "touch-and-go" for at least three tense hours, according to a source in London.

After a six-point WICB proposal was tabled for consideration by the players, a vote was taken.

The players voted 8-7 in favour of staying on in London, said the source. The eight who voted against accepting the deal said they did not trust the WICB and believed it would renege on its promises.

By late afternoon, however, the matter was resolved after an agreement was signed by the players.

The team arrives in South Africa this morning.

After hours of several meetings, including the three-hour stalemate, a tired WICB president Pat Rousseau, who had flown to London, emerged and announced that Lara and Hooper had been reinstated - a key players' demand.

Rousseau said no disciplinary action would be taken against them and they joined the rest of the team for the flight to South Africa last night.

However, in spite of rescinding its decision, Rousseau insisted there had been no climb-down by the board.

"It was not a matter of either side giving way, it was a matter of misunderstanding," Rousseau said in answer to a question.

He said there would be no increase in the players' fees for the tour, but that the payments would be restructured.

The first West Indies tour of South Africa since the end of apartheid had been in danger of being called off in a dispute over pay and conditions.

Rousseau said the West Indies would play their opening match in Soweto tomorrow against a Gauteng Provincial XI.

Earlier yesterday, South Africa's cricket board was forced to call off the first match of the tour - a warm-up between the West Indies and an amateur eleven in Randjiesfontein, near Johannesburg, scheduled for today.

The opening first-class match of the tour is due to start Saturday against Griqualand and West. The first Test is set for November 26.

The tour has deep social and political significance in post-apartheid South Africa, with Lara, perhaps the world's most famous cricketer, leading a black Caribbean team in a country where cricket is mainly a white sport.

In a joint statement, the two sides said the settlement was reached "in a spirit of compromise against a background of international concern.

"Both parties recognise the historical and social significance of the South Africa tour and appreciate the high expectations of everyone in the Caribbean, South Africa and around the world."

The statement cited the "constructive support" of South African President Nelson Mandela, who had sent a message urging the parties to proceed with the tour.

The crisis came to a head last Wednesday when the WICB fired superstar batsman Lara as captain and Hooper as vice-captain.

The two had travelled to London and refused to go to South Africa, demanding better pay and better conditions for the tour.

Team members had insisted that Lara and Hooper be reinstated as part of any settlement.

"Both sides acknowledged that the dispute originally stemmed from a misunderstanding between the two parties," the joint statement said.

Following is yesterday's WICB and WIPA agreement.

Source :: The Barbados Nation (https://www.nationnews.com/)