Two East Asia-Pacific Region representatives selected on ICC 10-man Associate and Affiliate Umpires Panel

The International Cricket Council today announced the composition of the first ever umpires panel for officials from ICC Associate and Affiliate member countries, with two East Asia-Pacific (EAP) Region umpires - Tony Cooper from Fiji and Hameed Shahul from Indonesia - appointed to the 10-man panel.

In addition to Tony and Hameed, uumpires from Bermuda, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Kenya, Nepal, Scotland and Singapore have been appointed to the ICC Associate and Affiliate Umpires Panel following a review of their performances and ability at the ICC World Cup Qualifying Series Division Two tournament in Malaysia in February 2005.

ICC Global Development Manager Matthew Kennedy commended the officials and said that umpire development was an important element of the ICC Development Program.

"It is important that we target officials as well as players as part of the ICC Development Program as they are a vital part of the game," said Mr Kennedy.

"The 10 members of the ICC Associate and Affiliate Umpires Panel can take pride in their selection and I hope that it will inspire them to work with other umpires in their respective regions to raise the overall standard of umpiring in the developing cricket world."

ICC EAP Regional Development Manager Tim Anderson congratulated Tony and Hameed on their selection in the inaugural panel.

"The EAP Region is delighted that two of its umpires have been selected as part of the panel. Both Tony and Hameed join the panel with strong credentials. Tony has been the voluntary EAP Regional Umpiring Coordinator for the past few years, facilitating Umpire Education courses throughout the region, while Hameed has impressed with his performances at last year's EAP Cricket Challenge in Japan and at the recent New Zealand Cricket Under 17 Championships."

Members of the new Panel will be appointed to ICC Intercontinental Cup matches and other Associate and Affiliate tournaments. High performing members may also be considered for other ICC events including the ICC Trophy 2005 and the ICC U/19 Cricket World Cup 2006 and could even be invited to be involved in the ICC Champions Trophy and ICC Cricket World Cup.

The establishment of the new Panel is part of the ICC's commitment to raising the standards of decision-making in international cricket. It comes just three years after the introduction of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires as an independent panel for Test match and One-Day International cricket, and opens up the pathway to top level umpiring for officials from the 82 Associate and Affiliate Member countries.

Members of the inaugural ICC Associate and Affiliate Umpires Panel:

Tony Cooper - Fiji (EAP)
Hameed Shahul - Indonesia (EAP)
Trevor Henry - Ireland (Europe)
Roger Dill - Bermuda (Americas)
Subash Modi - Kenya (Africa)
Sarika Siva Prasad - Singapore (Asia)
Buddi Bahadur Pradhan - Nepal (Asia)
Paul Baldwin - Germany (Europe)
Niels Bagh - Denmark (Europe)
John Thallon - Scotland (Europe)

These officials were selected from a group of 20 umpires recommended by their regional offices who attended the ICC World Cup Qualifying series event in Malaysia earlier this year.