Plans for county reform kicked into touch

A wretched 24 hours for the England & Wales Cricket Board, which started with the resignation of Des Wilson, ended with its plans for the reform of domestic cricket being rejected by the county chairmen.

The chairmen met on Monday to discuss the proposals - which centred on the merging of the four-day Championship and the one-day National League, as well as a reduction in the number of players - and unanimously kicked the idea into touch. Not only that, they then voted to set up their own review committee, leaving the official Domestic Structure Reform Group (DSRG), which put forward the proposals, marginalised.

Mike Soper, the chairman of the First-Class Forum, told the Daily Telegraph that the "DSRG paper didn't seem to reflect the views of anyone within the county game. And after discussing it ... the chairmen have decided to take matters into their own hands. I have spoken to David Morgan [the ECB chairman] and he has accepted that decision.

"The DRSG paper appeared to be taking one paragraph from the Editor's Notes in this year's Wisden Almanack and riding on the bandwagon. It said the new system would encourage counties to build a squad which was strong in both four-day and one-day cricket. But you only have to look at England's international squads to see that they are two completely different games."

A third body looking at the way forward, the self-appointed Cricket Reform Group (CRG), dismissed both its rivals' plans. "Frankly the DSRG proposals beggar belief," said Bob Willis, a founding member of the CRG. "Equally, though, we know the county chairmen have little interest in the two biggest problems facing the domestic game - the inadequate grass-roots structure, and the 100 or so first-class players who are not qualified to play for England. All the chairmen are interested in is providing entertainment for their members."