County News: Old Trafford Below Average

 

03/06

Cricket Regulator:

"Following an investigation by the Cricket Regulator, Lancashire County Cricket Club have been charged with breaching the ECB Pitch Regulations. The investigation followed the Match Officials reporting the pitch, at Emirates Old Trafford, as below average for the Rothesay County Championship game against Middlesex, which took place between the 6th and 8th of May 2026. The matter will now be referred to the independent Cricket Discipline Panel for adjudication, as proceedings are ongoing no further comment will be made by the Cricket Regulator."

Response to the Cricket Regulator's decision on the Emirates Old Trafford pitch

The Club is appealing for what we believe to be an unfair decision by the Cricket Regulator to mark the pitch used in the Men's County Championship match against Middlesex as "below average". 

This season, the Club’s diligent and hardworking ground staff have taken steps in communication with the coaching team to ensure a greater balance between bat and ball in longer-formats of the game.

These efforts followed feedback from members, players and cricket fans of all clubs who wanted to see more entertaining cricket. The Club noted in the past five years, over 90% of County Championship matches at Emirates Old Trafford ended in a draw.

Emirates Old Trafford has hosted entertaining County Championship matches this season, delivering big scores, players reaching centuries, and teams taking 20 wickets.

Lancashire Cricket Men’s Head Coach, Steven Croft, commented:

“This is a disappointing decision, and the Club will be appealing.

“We all want to see red ball cricket thrive in this country, but that can only happen if we have pitches that deliver greater balance between bat and ball. This is something that we haven’t managed in recent years

“We are asking the Cricket Discipline Committee for an opportunity to explain our rationale and for their understanding.

“We recognised it was not right that almost all County Championship games at Emirates Old Trafford were ending in draws.

“I commend our ground staff for taking innovative approaches this season to try and bring more balance and we hope that the Cricket Regulator will look to support clubs who want to see more positive cricket and more spectators at County Championship matches.

“The preparation of this wicket was very similar to our previous four Championship games and we ourselves were surprised at the amount of movement.”

From LancashireCCM X this morning 31/05

Five SGMs. One Question For You. Are we a Members' Cricket Club?

Lancashire County Cricket Club belongs to its members - not in a property-owning sense, but as custodians, each generation holding the Club in trust for the next. The Board governs on our behalf. That relationship depends entirely on trust.

Trust has been broken. Since Members voted to reprimand the Board two years ago, we have had five SGMs in less than a year. On Sunday 7 June, you have the chance to bring this to an end.

What we are - and what we are not

Lancashire is not a company, even with its commercial business. It is not a PLC with shareholders seeking profit. It is a member-owned mutual society built to bring people together to enjoy Lancashire cricket - in the ground, across the county, wherever the game is played.

In a club like ours, the Board should welcome scrutiny and embrace challenges from people who passionately care. Accountability is not an inconvenience. It is the foundation on which a healthy club is built.

Members are the vital check and balance against power vesting in the hands of a few people.

Five SGMs in less than a year

Five Special General Meetings in less than twelve months is not healthy. It is evidence that something fundamental in the relationship between the Board and a wide cross-section of the membership has broken down. The Board should by now have addressed the concerns. Its failure to do so has cost the Club dearly in time, money, management distraction and reputation. All these legal reviews and public disputes consume resources that should be focused on cricket.

The Board refused to meet its own Vice Presidents

It is no longer just a grassroots section of the membership protesting.

Last year, a group of senior Club members, representing seventy percent of our Honorary Vice Presidents and many former great players, asked for a simple meeting with the Board to work through their concerns. People who have given decades - in some cases sixty years - of their lives to Lancashire Cricket. People the Club itself has honoured for their devotion and service as players, volunteers, directors and senior management.

The VPs waited patiently for a firm date to discuss concerns with the Board. Months passed. The meeting never happened.

Instead, competing SGMs were called this April. One was abandoned amidst complaints of unfair proceedings. Differences that should have been settled privately filled the national newspapers.

"Entitled old white men"

Our Chief Executive described concerned members and Club legends as "entitled old white men" seeking to "intimidate and bully" a diverse Board.

Let that sink in. That is how the Chief Executive of our Club views many longstanding members, Honorary Vice Presidents and former great players: people who have given this Club the best years of their lives.

Does he speak for the Board? If not, what action has the Board taken to distance itself from those remarks? What does the Board really think about the membership?

Promises made. Promises broken.

The Board committed to constructive member engagement at the AGM. Here is what constructive engagement looked like in practice.

Members were not permitted to ask questions from the floor under Any Other Business - an unprecedented step. The entire two-hour meeting allowed just ten minutes of discussion on one rule change proposal. A member raising procedural concerns was denied the chance to make his point. Detailed questions about cricket and membership - submitted months in advance - were put straight to a vote without any discussion, the answers buried in links to AGM papers most members would never find.

The Board arranged the SGM at 9.30am Sunday 7 June and will allow members just ten minutes to discuss the issues before the question is put to the vote. A minimum of 40 members must attend in person or the meeting is null and void.

Members can decide for themselves whether this Board genuinely welcomes member engagement.

Cricket - the thing we are actually here for

Governance matters because it affects cricket. Over the last four years, since the current Director of Cricket was promoted from Second Team Coach, there has been just one Board director with genuine cricket expertise. Members concerned about the cricket decisions taken in recent years tabled questions. Please read the

Board’s replies to members’ cricket concerns

and ask yourself whether they inspire confidence.

The Board's defences - why they fall short

The Board points to five new directors. The SGM petition was submitted on 27 April, the meeting should have been held before the AGM appointed the new Board. One third of members voted against three of them. New faces sitting alongside the same culture is not real change.

The Board also flags the forthcoming governance review. But last year's Member Engagement Review has still not been published - and its findings were used to justify rule changes that would have reduced Board accountability to members. Changes so poorly drafted and so widely opposed that all seven resolutions were withdrawn after ECB involvement following the abandoned SGM.

Before any new review begins, the Board and representatives of concerned members must sit down together, find common ground, and agree what any review needs to achieve. Reviews do not rebuild trust. People's actions do.

What members want

• Members want the Board’s focus to be on cricket and member satisfaction.
• Give members more genuine choice in Board elections, with greater member involvement, still with the necessary business skills.
• Open discussions of major decisions before they are taken.
• Meaningful engagement where the Board acts on clear member concerns.
• A governing culture that listens before it defends itself.

What a vote for the no-confidence motion means

Voting for the motion sends a clear message: focus on cricket and member satisfaction. Treat members with respect, not with lawyers. Listen sincerely, rather than engineering obedience.

If it passes, then those directors who have presided over these four years should reflect carefully on whether they are the right people to lead the rebuilding of trust.

Lancashire County Cricket Club has survived wars, pandemics, financial crises and relegations. A vote of no confidence in the 60s brought to an end amateur privilege in favour of professional excellence.

Today it is a vote to restore trust. A vote for accountability and respect for members. A vote to put the enjoyment of Lancashire cricket - the whole reason any of us are here - back at the heart of everything this Club does.

Lancashire is a great and historic club. The question is whether the current governance is worthy of Lancashire County Cricket Club - and whether it will leave the Club in a better shape for the next generation of members to love it as much as we do.

How to vote

Click here: Vote FOR the no confidence motion.

It takes just two minutes: deadline 9.30am on Friday 5 June. VP Lee Morgan will act as anyone's proxy.

If it is at all possible for you to go to Old Trafford on Sunday morning then please do, otherwise the meeting may simply not happen, no matter how many members vote online. Please do not leave it to someone else.

Lancashire plunged into chaos as chief executive investigated by cricket regulator over 'old, entitled white men' comment

Richard Gibson 20 May

Lancashire chief executive Daniel Gidney is being investigated by the Cricket Regulator for dismissing those who have called a vote of no confidence in the club’s board: ‘Old, entitled white men.'

Gidney was the subject of an official complaint to the regulator after referring to a group of Lancashire vice-presidents – including Michael Atherton, Neil Fairbrother, David ‘Bumble’ Lloyd and Paul Allott – with the description in a Sunday newspaper. The Cricket Regulator declined to comment while Daily Mail Sport also contacted Lancashire and the ECB.

It is the latest tempestuous twist in a saga that has seen the eminent collection of former England internationals with lifelong associations with the club campaign for greater focus to be placed on the cricket side of the 162-year-old county.

They have campaigned for more knowledge of the sport to find its way into executive thinking at Old Trafford and narrowly failed last month with a Special General Meeting petition to increase representation of former employees on the board from two to four. Lloyd, 79, later had an application to join the board rejected without offer of an interview, leaving him ‘flabbergasted’ and ‘embarrassed’.

The ‘rebel’ faction are now pushing for the club’s AGM – which has been squeezed into a 90-minute gap between T20 Blast fixtures for Lancashire’s men’s and women’s sides on the ground next Bank Holiday Monday – to be adjourned. They believe that in addition to its challenging positioning in the season’s calendar, it provides insufficient time for what is viewed as a key meeting for the club’s future.

It has been brought forward from its original date next Friday, which would have post-dated the SGM had Lancashire accepted the petition of no confidence rather than dismiss it as non-compliant.

They also say that the club’s Nominations Committee has exceeded its remit in not interviewing suitable member candidates and in making preferred choices.

Members, they argue, should have a choice of candidates for all positions, and that contrary to current club policy, balanced arguments for member resolutions should be sent out with both AGM and SGM notices. Rather than members being urged by the club, undemocratically, to vote against resolutions without being offered informed choice.

Gidney, 56, is retiring at the end of the 2026 season, after 14 years at the helm, having overseen a comprehensive development of the ground, huge strides being made in women’s cricket – Lancashire were double cup winners last year – and a windfall recouped from the 70 per cent majority stake sale of the Manchester Hundred franchise to the RPSG group.

However, further analysis of the club’s recent accounts suggests that the £29.2million cash injection masks what was effectively a loss of just under £3.5m for 2025.

On the pitch, Lancashire are 10 points off the promotion spots in Division Two after being relegated in 2024.

29/04

Daniel Gidney to step down as CEO at Lancashire after 14 years. On the socials it appears to be a cause for universal celebrations.

20/01

Somerset sign Mark Stoneman as batting coach for three months

19/12

DCCC:

Derbyshire have appointed County Championship winner, Chris Wright, as Men’s Assistant Coach – Bowling Lead.    

Wright, 40, amassed more than 800 wickets in a playing career which saw him lift the County Championship with Warwickshire, as well as multiple white ball honours with the Bears, Essex and Leicestershire, with whom he also won promotion to Division One last season.

Having retired from playing at the end of the 2025 campaign, Wright moves into his first full-time coaching role, and will work with a bowling attack containing Division Two’s leading wicket-taker in 2025, Luis Reece, overseas seamer Mohammad Abbas, as well as a number of players entering their prime years.

Head of Cricket, Mickey Arthur, said: “We had an unbelievable amount of talent apply for this role, but it was Chris’ energy, enthusiasm and his ideas for how he can drive our project forward which impressed me most.

“He’s a very promising coach and, as someone who was playing the game at a high level as recently as last season, he will be able to form a great understanding with our squad and continue the development of our bowling attack.

“Our pieces are coming together for nicely for the new season, our red ball squad has been finalised and now our coaching structure is ready to hit the ground running in the new year. I’m very excited for next season and I know our supporters share that optimism.”

Wright added: “I’m immensely excited to be joining Derbyshire, the squad here is in a great place and I’m looking forward to working with our bowlers and helping them to develop their games further.

“I’ve played with and against a lot of players in this squad and I know all about the quality they possess, now it’s about honing our skills through the winter and going one step further for promotion next year.

“This is a fantastic opportunity for me and one which I’m eager to grab with both hands. This is a Club on the up and working with a coach like Mickey Arthur is something any young coach would relish.” 

08/12

Alec Stewart resumes duties

06/12

And then I put my reading glasses on

17/11

Unlike some positions to be filled, there are advertisements for that position. Middlesex groundsperson

At Trent Bridge it would appear that the Deputy Groundsman has been promoted and their position is now advertised see link on 4/11 below. [salary £32k]

14/11

Those conflicts of interests come thick and fast don't they:

Mick Newell gives his mate Peter Moores the vacant Head Coach's position at the Trent Bridge franchise in his role he's been described as Head of Cricket/ Director of Cricket of Trent R*ckets recently. The Nottinghamshire CCC Director of Cricket needs to have a word with himself,  because if he believes everything he says about Peter, then why would he deprive Notts Outlaws of such a leader during August?

Good luck to Paul Franks, let's hope he's dealt a better hand next season than the cards he was left holding this year, if the general idea of him stepping up is again the case.

Peter Moores has been appointed as the new Head Coach of Trent Rockets Men.

Moores, 62, spent the 2025 edition of The Hundred with the Rockets as an assistant coach to Andy Flower, with the side reaching the final of the tournament.

He moves up to replace the former Zimbabwe batter, who joined London Spirit last month.

“It feels like a good time to be taking over the Rockets, and I’m really excited about the opportunity to lead the team,” said Moores.

“I see this as a great opportunity to continue on from the strong and successful foundations built by Andy Flower.”

Moores is the only man to win the County Championship title with three different sides, completing his trio this year with Nottinghamshire, where he has been in charge since September 2016.

In his first season with the Outlaws, he lifted both the One Day Cup and the T20 Blast trophies, and, including this year’s success, has since won a further three pieces of silverware.

His extensive CV also includes time spent as head coach of Melbourne Stars in Australia’s BBL and the PSL’s Karachi Kings, as well as two separate stints as England Head Coach.

“The investment and energy that’s coming into The Hundred, and the change of ownership at the Rockets in particular, make it a really exciting time," continued Moores.

“I’m especially looking forward to the auction, where we’ll be looking to ensure the squad is as strong as it can be as we continue to strive for success!”

Trent Rockets Director of Cricket Mick Newell added: “We’re really pleased to promote Peter to the role of Men’s Head Coach.

“It’s no exaggeration to say he’s one of the finest English head coaches of his generation, and his strong existing knowledge of Trent Bridge will be of great benefit in his new role.

“His winning mentality, his strong record of improving players, and the experience he gained last year, all make him a superb fit to take over the role from Andy Flower.”

04/11

Trent Bridge Situations Vacant

But they're not advertising for a Head Groundsman...

31/10

Ajmal Shahzad has left his role as Bowling Coach at Derbyshire.

29//10

Glen Chapple a Northants senior...

28/10

New Commercial head at Leicester

24/10

Steven Croft is Lancs Head Coach full time

21/10

Tom Smith Coach at Bristol

LCCC

Craig White leaves Lancashire

Lancashire Cricket can confirm that Craig White has left his role as men’s Lead Bowling Coach by mutual consent.

White has been at Emirates Old Trafford since 2021, working as an Assistant Coach for Lancashire Women before joining the men’s set-up as Lead Bowling Coach ahead of the 2024 season.

Everyone at the Club would like to thank Craig for his hard work and commitment while at Lancashire. We wish him all the very best for the future.

Yorkshire appoint CEO permanently after over a year as interim

Sanjay Patel took on the role in September 2024 amid a tumultuous period for the club and oversaw the sale of Northern Superchargers to The Sun Group

Oscar Rees

Sanjay Patel has been named Yorkshire's permanent group chief executive after over a year in the role on an interim basis.

He joined the club's board in February 2024 before stepping into the CEO role. 

Patel steered the club through a tumultuous financial position in the wake of the racism scandal, in which the club were labelled institutionally racist, handed fines and deducted points by the ECB.

More recently, he oversaw the sale of Northern Superchargers to The Sun Group, owners of IPL Franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad, for £100.5 million.

"When I first came to Yorkshire, it was only supposed to be for a short time, but after a turbulent year, the club is in a great place, and I am excited about the potential," he said. "The passion for the game, the people and the opportunities have made this a challenge I couldn't turn down, and I'm genuinely excited to play my part in writing the next chapter for cricket in this county. 

"I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the board, our staff and players, members and supporters and everyone else who has made the last year at the club so enjoyable. There is some brilliant work taking place that makes Yorkshire what it is, and gives me a lot of optimism for the future."

On the field, Yorkshire Men were promoted to Division One of the County Championship in 2024 before retaining their status this season. And the women's team will move up to tier one next season after winning League Two of the One Day Cup.

Colin Graves, the club's chair, added: "We are delighted that Sanjay has agreed to take on the role of CEO at the club and have no doubt that his impact will be game-changing. 

"Having worked closely with him during my tenure as chair at ECB and over the last year, I've seen first-hand the way that he operates, and I believe he is one of the best leaders in sport."

Patel joined the White Rose after nine years at the ECB, having been chief sales and marketing officer, chief commercial officer and managing director of The Hundred.

It was his last role at the governing body that made him well placed to handle the recent sale of Superchargers.

"The recent sale of Northern Superchargers has given the club a great opportunity, but it is now imperative that we set the business up to be financially sustainable," Patel added. "We've got a challenging couple of years coming up with no men's Test cricket at Headingley in 2027 and 2028, which presents a significant financial challenge and is another reason for us to re-develop our business plan to ensure long-term and sustained success is achievable. 

"I am determined to ensure our pathway for boys and girls remains strong and our Yorkshire men and women's teams are regularly competing for silverware on the pitch."

Graves added: "The club has been given a lifeline with the influx of capital from The Hundred sale, but we must now set ourselves up for long-term and sustained success, both on and off on the field. 

"In Sanjay, we have the best possible person to drive us forward and I, alongside the rest of the board, am looking forward to working with him in the coming years."

15/10

Darren Steven coach at Kent

13/10

Jon Lewis DoC at Bristol

Sussex Interim CEO

09/10

Mark Alleyne to remain Head Coach at Glos