ICU secretary to step down

John Wright, the Irish Cricket Union (ICU) secretary, has announced he won't seek re-election to the role in February 2008 saying the game has moved on and a 'clean slate' is needed.

Wright took over the post in 1997, following the resignation of the previous incumbent, Derek Scott and he said: "The pace of change in Irish cricket is such that the relevance of my experience has little bearing on where we find ourselves. We have just appointed consultants to look at our governance and professional administration, and they should have a clean sheet. Finally, the sobering reality of age has also to be faced."

He added that having a role in the development of cricket had been a privilege and selected some of the highlights from the past 10 years. "The excitement of Kuala Lumpur in 1997, the disappointment of Toronto in 2001, the elation on and off the field in our successful hosting of the ICC Trophy in 2005, and finally, the West Indies this year."

ICU president Tom Prior paid tribute to Wright saying: "He has been a marvellous ambassador for Irish cricket all over the world. His dedication and commitment to cricket in Ireland has been nothing short of remarkable, and I'd like to publicly acknowledge the debt and gratitude of all the cricketing fraternity in Ireland. He will be sorely missed."