England: 'Militant' players in favour of two division system (12 May 1998)

12 May 1998

'Militant' players in favour of two division system

Christopher Martin-Jenkins

THE first signs of a new militancy on the part of the Professional Cricketers' Association emerged yesterday from a special meeting at Edgbaston attended by 210 of the 400 current players.

A combined postal and on-the-spot vote representing 62 per cent of all players expressed strong opposition to the England and Wales Cricket Board on the structure of county cricket, the restrictions on the free movement of players between clubs and the lack of financial support by the board for the PCA itself.

There was a unanimous vote for the PCA to be treated as "the 19th county" when the board distribute their annual profits, increasing their grant from the present £120,000 to something in excess of £1 million a year. As many as 93 per cent of players expressing their opinion also wanted a change in the system of registering county players, calling for the end of lists one and two by which counties keep the lid on 'transfers' from one club to another.

The most contentious issue remains the balance of the county programme. Eighty-four per cent answered "no" to the question "Are you happy with the current system?" but David Graveney, the chief executive of the PCA, explained that this did not necessarily mean that the vast majority wanted two divisions.

"When we began debating it was clear that there are various possible permutations," Graveney said. "Whether there should be eight championship games in two divisions with play-offs, or 12 or 16 games, and how these would fit in with one-day matches, still has to be clarified. We accept that the present structure is in place but the officers of the PCA needed to know how players are thinking. It's clear they would like to consider a two-division system."

That is still some way for calling unequivocally for promotion and relegation, with all the possible commercial advantages for the top clubs and disadvantages for the small ones. The players' chairman, Matthew Fleming of Kent, was in no doubt, however, that the executives of the PCA had been given a mandate to push the board for a two-divisional structure in the championship. It has already been agreed for the one-day league from next season, with the top nine counties in this year's AXA League forming the top division.

Fleming said: "We didn't really go into details but the bottom line is that we don't want our views to be ignored again. The players have given us a mandate and we will now do something with it."

A two-thirds majority of players expressed support for two divisions when the new structure was under debate last season but the First Class Forum subsequently rejected the idea and voted by 12 to seven for a Super Cup one-day competition to reward the top eight teams in the championship. That is the proposed structure for the next three years.

If the association were to get a much larger slice of the board's television income it would make all former professional cricketers associate members so that their interests could be better represented when they retired. "This is a matter very close to out hearts after what happened to David Bairstow in the winter," said Graveney. "We found ourselves in a position where we were helpless. We want increased revenue so we can plough it back into those who play and those who are now retired."

Other examples of players whom the association would like to help are the former Northants and West Indian fast bowler, Winston Davis, who is paralysed after an accident, and the young county cricketer, Jamie Hood, badly injured in a car accident.

Fleming added: "We have not been independent and we think that is a realistic goal. The board have been helpful with our ideas in the past and they continue to be helpful but we want to get away from the scenario that every time we have a new idea we have to go to the board."

These are major issues and the board reacted with understandable caution last night while making the general point that the players have a perfect right to express their views. A spokesman said that they would be happy to discuss the structure again with the players and that discussions were already going on about the question of registration and the PCA grant.

Player power has been dormant in English professional cricket for many years, mainly because the game has been run from the centre by former players. The prospect of a serious clash of wills between administrators and practitioners cannot now be ruled out but it is much more likely that a consensus will emerge, between the centre and the PCA, if not necessarily between the players and a majority of county committees, whose constant struggle to survive financially often leads them to see the professional game through different eyes.

Source :: Electronic Telegraph (https://www.telegraph.co.uk)