West Indian rebels ignore official talks (5 November 1998)

5 November 1998

West Indian rebels ignore official talks

By Nelson Clare

WEST INDIAN captain Brian Lara, together with vice-captain Carl Hooper and senior player Jimmy Adams, yesterday missed a meeting with officials in Antigua, aimed at resolving a dispute over fees for the forthcoming tour of South Africa.

The three players, with six other members of the 16-man squad - including pacemen Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose - gathered instead at a hotel at Heathrow Airport, where a West Indian Players' Association spokesman said they were having their own meeting.

The spokesman said the board had turned down an invitation to meet the players in London, and instead invited Lara, who is vice-president of the players' association, and Hooper, the players' representative, to meet at their headquarters on Antigua.

The players' association said newly appointed chief executive officer David Holford, a former West Indies all-rounder, and secretary Roland Holder, a West Indies batsman, would be representing the players in Antigua.

Neither side will discuss details of the fees. But the Barbados Nation newspaper yesterday said the players want to be paid above their tour fee for one-day internationals and for a one-week training camp to be held before the Nov 10 start of the South Africa tour. They also want increased meal allowances and some guarantee of security in Johannesburg, where two Pakistani players alleged they were mugged while on tour last year.

The Nation quoted Caribbean sources as saying that players were upset that they would be paid less for the South African tour than for their 1996-97 Australia tour, which also was a five-Test series. The Nation said those who had played in fewer than 15 Test matches would be paid about $16,000 for South Africa, compared with $22,000 to $25,000 for the Australia tour; and senior players $50,000 to $60,000 compared with $60,000 to $70,000 for Australia.

Seven players, plus manager Clive Lloyd and coach Malcolm Marshall, arrived in Johannesburg early yesterday.

Lloyd is determined to bring a cricketing element back to the tour and will hold a net practice at the Wanderers ground in Johannesburg today.

The last major revolt by the West Indians came in 1978 when the then-poorly paid islanders snubbed the regional team and contracted to Australian magnate Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket.

When that was disbanded, the West Indians negotiated substantially better contracts with the board and began a 15-year winning streak.

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