Whitticase left out in the cold

Whitticase gets the knife in the back

After being effectively made redundant (officially), though a change of job description / title doesn't change the actual role fulfilled by an individual and therefore it is this writer's own view, he was sacked after long service at the county, Phil Whitticase has now been told that there will be no place for him at Leicestershire in any capacity.

After watching Phil in action action at Lady Bay against Notts, tirelessly lapping the boundary rope as his young charges were in the field, coaching, advising, mentoring, correcting, during a successful season for the Foxes' second string, I'm sure he will be missed by those players and the club's supporters alike. Phil Whitticase wouldn't be blamed if he felt he'd been stabbed in the back by the club , his employer for the past 31 years and the new chairman, Paul Haywood.

13/11/14

Positive Members

The turnout at the Members Forum (c. 350) was indicative of support for the Club despite recent results on the field. Andrew Boyce gave a wide ranging view of developments behind the scenes and changes taking place intending to put the Club in a much better place.

Whilst it is disappointing to see Players leave , particularly those having come through the system , the replacements referred to (along with adjustments/addition to the Coaching Staff) indicate that such problems are being addressed. The collective timing of Players contracts maturing is also to be looked at.

It was pleasing to hear that Players & Coaches were given the opportunity to air their views to the Board and that such information was considered helpful and taken on board.

Andrew accepted that communication to Members had often been poor and that information will be made more readily available in future.

Merging the Leicester & Rutland Board & County Cricket Club has to be congratulated along with the appointments of Community Development Manager , Events Manager & Finance Manager. Record profits achieved by the Commercial Team , along with securing the appointment of the new CEO Wasim Khan , are further positive signs.

Successfully having the covenant on the ground lifted means the Club is no longer hamstrung and can now go ahead with further ground / facility development. ECB grants of £1M in years 2017 & 2019 will also be provided for such purposes.

A pity that the Club was not able to convey such information earlier as this caused much disillusionment amongst Members.  Nevertheless , the future now looks brighter for LCCC.

JR.Lee  LCCC Life Member

McDonald set to be Foxes coach 

Andrew McDonald is expected to be made coach later this week. - BBC Radio Leicester

So where does long time servant Phil Whitticase fit into the new set-up?

King Khan

Wasim Khan has been appointed as new CEO at Grace Road, making him the first Asian County CEO. Wasm Khan had the backing of Giles Clarke at Lord's and it had been earlier been suggested that Khan's appointment might be a divisive move, with Neil Davidson in the wings. 



BBCSport:

Leicestershire have appointed former Derbyshire, Sussex and Warwickshire batsman Wasim Khan as chief executive.

The 43-year-old, who is the first British Asian to be appointed CEO of a county cricket club, is to take up his position at Grace Road in January 2015.

Khan scored 2,835 first-class runs during an 11-year professional career, including a career-best score of 181.

"I am looking forward to working with the staff and the board because I know they are terrific people," said Khan.

Foxes or Dingos or just Drongos

It is believed former Australia and Leicestershire all-rounder Andrew McDonald has been offered a position on the Foxes’s coaching staff.

McDonald, who has played four Tests for his country, spent two seasons at Grace Road, leading Foxes to the T20 title in 2011, scoring 584 runs and taking 14 wickets in the competition, before leaving due to problems with his visa. Leicestershire are also believed to have approached former Australia one-day batsman Mark Cosgrove as a potential captain of the club across all three formats next season.

The 30-year-old left-hander, played three ODIs for Australia, scoring 74 on debut against Bangladesh in 2006. He is currently playing for South Australia.

Situations Vacant - WANTED A WINNER

Speaking last night at the Grace Road Members Forum

Interim CEO Andrew Boyce says that Leicestershire need to appoint a coach with a "winning attitude".

 "Bringing a first-class coach in will inspire the younger players," he said.

The club highlighted the need to give talented players longer contracts too,  to help with retention.

Unlike Charlie Shreck and Ned Eckersley's  very recently announced one year deals ..... I don't suppose they mean.

First Blood 

- The role of Director of Cricket at Leicestershire has been made redundant. The club will look to maintain, the holder of that position, Phil Whitticase's involvement with the Foxes, however.

Interim CEO Andrew Boyce:

"What normally happens is we get the new structure in place, we look at the position rather than the people involved and that is part of the process that is ongoing at the moment.

"Phil has been a very valuable servant to Leicestershire over 30 year and deserves a proper consideration on his future which the club can support. That decision, at end of the day is, one we will come to mutually."

And naturally PW would have a huge redundancy pay off coming his way, something the club would wish to avoid if possible.............  no doubt.

Ned to stay

13/10

It probably comes as no surprise that when Leicestershire manage to hang onto one of their rising talents, it makes headlines, even if it's only a one year extension on a contract - Ned Eckersley the player concerned; linked loosely with Middlesex in 2013, according to rumours.

followed a day later by Charlie Shreck also adding a year to his contract.

Leicestershire Members' Forum

29/09/14

club (Leicestershire), who are holding a cricket review next month and a members' forum on 15 October, issued a statement in which they:

• accepted that the situation needed to change
• said they were working "tirelessly to recruit new talent"
• regretted that a number of home-grown players have decided to leave, despite being offered good deals
• thanked members and supporters for their support, especially over the last two seasons during difficult times

"For supporters now, even the opportunity to humorously goad ex-players is losing appeal. There are too many of them. The lure of Trent Bridge is understood, if mocked. But local boy Shiv Thakor is going to Derbyshire, big-hitting Josh Cobb is leaving for Northamptonshire. 'Regional also rans' is a very tough status for my generation to stomach. The club stands for far more than that."

Joe Wilson bbcsport

Leicestershire respond

Leicestershire officials have chosen to reply to criticism after last week's BBC Radio Leicestershire debate, which they declined to take part in and yet another poor result this week. The club stated;  "The club regrets that a number of home-grown players have decided to leave Grace Road at the end of this season,those players were offered good deals at the club but sadly decided that their futures lie elsewhere. It is not a case that we are 'letting go' of these players. They have turned down contracts here and signed them elsewhere. Sadly, this is out of our control."

"The club accepts that results over the last two seasons have been extremely disappointing and that Members feel that the situation needs to change. We know that these are difficult times but we are determined to have success in the future."

The club has invited members to forum on 15th October.

Post-War nadir for Leicestershire

In Leicestershire's last game of the season, Derbyshire didn't so much as roll them over, as Leicestershire surrendered in only 29.4 overs, 112 all out, to lose by 408 runs with a day to spare. The winning margin was Derbyshire's all time high and Foxes have become the first county since World War II to go two entire seasons without a championship win. Set 521 to win, victory was never on the cards considering the Grace Road outfit have only mustered a total of 508 runs in total in their last 4 innings this season.

With another 5fer, former Outlaw, Mark Footitt has become Derbyshire's seasonal highest wicket taker since 1965, in all competitions.

Elsewhere, Hampshire join Worcestershire as the teams promoted from Division 2 and Middlesex have six wickets intact, to extend their lead over Lancashire, beyond the current 114, in the now match that if Lancashire win then they will survive relegation at Middlesex's expense. 

Derby dismissal

India Test batsman Cheteshwar Pujara was given out for handling the ball on the opening day of Derbyshire's County Championship match against Leicestershire on Tuesday at Derby.

The 26-year-old right-hander, the International Cricket Council's Emerging Player of the Year in 2013, was dismissed for 6

The last instance of handled ball in England was in 1996, Derbyshire's (again) Karl Krikken (against India again at TCG Derby), the now Derbyshire first team supremo. 

Later on in the day, Mark Footitt took his 100th wicket, in all competitions, this season.

Leicestershire back in turmoil

Leicestershire haven't won a First Class game since 2012 and start their last match of the season tomorrow against an improved Derbyshire.

Key players have been leaving for a number of seasons, the latest being Nathan Buck and Josh Cobb as well Shiv Thakor.


Discontented members have asked Neil Davidson, former chairman to return to the club's committee. Davidson left Leicestershire amid huge upset in 2010, when the entire working staff at Grace Road signed a petition for his removal. Davidson could be up for re-election to the club's board (of 7) in early 2015.

In Davidson's defense, he did invest his own money in a plan to nurture young players, to enable Leicestershire to compete against the bigger clubs; the fruits of the plan now being squandered with the loss of James Taylor, Harry Gurney as well as Thakor, Cobb and Buck in recent times. During the tenure of Davidson as Chairman, the club led by Paul Nixon did win the T20 on two occasions (if you forget about last ball beamers that failed to be called).

Neil Davidson, investor in The Cricketer and the failed Test Match Sofa, also had a falling out with prominent chairman of the ECB, Giles Clarke, over the Stanford Affair and Clarke has backed the future Leicestershire CEO, Wasim Khan, so a rumoured Special General Meeting call from members might ruffle a few feathers high-up if the plan to re-install Davidson as Chairman is on the agenda.

Past players, not fans of Davidson, have expressed tepid backing towards the suggested moves, on Social Media, without endorsing the plan or rejecting it either.