Clarke's zero-tolerance message to England players

Giles Clarke faces the media at Lord's the day after his election © Getty Images

Giles Clarke, the soon-to-be-endorsed chairman of the England and Wales Cricket Board, has put discipline - both financial and personal - high on his list of priorities, as he sets out the stall for his time at the helm of English cricket. Clarke, 54, was unveiled to the media at Lord's on Wednesday after defeating his only rival for the role, the former deputy chairman of the ECB, Michael Soper, in a hard-fought two-leg election campaign.

It hasn't been the smoothest of inductions. Yesterday Soper, twice the bridesmaid in ECB elections, resigned from the board with a bitter swipe at the three nameless county chairmen whom he accused of "lying to his face" in the run-up to the elections. Clarke's response to the furore was succinct. "The umpire's word is final," he said, a message delivered with an unmistakably hard edge. His predecessor, David Morgan, may have been conciliatory and softly-spoken, but the new incumbent is already spoiling for a fight with anyone who stands in his way.

"Our game needs clear and decisive leadership and I believe that is why I was elected," he said during a combative debut appearance, in which he targeted the regaining of the Ashes in 2009 as the principle goal of his tenure. Of England's disappointing performances in last winter's series against Australia, as well as their early exits from the World Cup and World Twenty20 contests, he sounded almost schoolmastery. "That wasn't on my watch," he intoned. "It is from hereon in."

In particular, he took issue with the behaviour of England's cricketers on overseas trips, most notably Andrew Flintoff and Paul Collingwood, who were sanctioned for high-profile drinking episodes in St Lucia and Cape Town respectively. "We're not going to get proper athletes and a decent team if people do not have the right attitude as professionals in their sport," said Clarke, who will be introduced to his new charges during the Test series in Sri Lanka. "Peter Moores [the head coach] is clear on what he wants to see happen and has set down parameters on what is expected. We need serious professionalism at all levels if we're going to win the Ashes back."

If Clarke gave the impression that he was fighting his corner before his chairmanship had even been endorsed, then it was merely a continuation of the battles he has been fighting all through his time at the ECB. As chairman of the board's marketing committee, it was he who pushed through the £220 million deal that, in 2004, took England's home Tests away from terrestrial television.

That decision horrified the game's traditionalists and led to questions in the House of Commons, but Clarke remains predictably unrepentant. "This game would have gone bankrupt if we'd taken the alternative route to the Sky [TV] route," he declared, citing the £80million difference that the deal made to the ECB's coffers. "We wouldn't be talking about finances and opportunities. We'd be wondering how to cheesepare our way through."

Our game needs clear and decisive leadership and I believe that is why I was elected

The monetary side of the game has become an unavoidable issue ever since the explosion of the Asian market - earlier this year Clarke pushed through a £40 million deal to show the highlights of English internationals on ESPN, which was eight times the previous figure. But when asked where his priorities lie in English cricket, Clarke was careful to avoid labelling himself a traditionalist. "I love the ebb and flow of the five-day game," he said, "but Twenty20 cricket can be enormously exciting and dramatic, with the behaviour of the crowd in particular." The impression is that the money will lead, and the game will follow.

By all accounts, Clarke has let money do his talking for much of his adult life. As a student at Oxford University he reputedly paid his way through Oriel College by gambling, and though he made his fortune with the creation in the 1980s of two notable companies, Majestic Wine and Pet City, he did not leave with either in the best of health. When he sold his 30% stake at Majestic, he was no longer on speaking terms with his co-founder, Esmé Johnstone, while in 1996, Pet City was making a loss when he sold it for £150 million (making a personal profit of £20 million in the process).

Nevertheless, Clarke is justifiably proud of the war-chest he has built up through his various deals for the ECB. "When I took over as commercial chairman in 2004, our reserves were zero," he said. "Today they are £15 million. We are able to withstand a 'nasty shock' in the centre of our sport, should one occur." At county and club level, however, the situation is less rosy after one of the wettest summers on record, and Clarke hoped that the recent establishment of a £250,000 flood relief fund would be matched by Sport England.

"The game needs a proper financial structure to carry out what it wants to do," said Clarke. "We have to ensure we have modern stadia with modern facilities to ensure the spectators are comfortable and enjoy watching [cricket]. We are competing with other sports for spectators' money as well as their time, so we need to ensure the spectator experience is as good as possible. They deserve value for money, because we are jolly lucky to have their interest and passion."

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