The world of county cricket has been hyper-active for the past few weeks, with players changing counties with almost undue haste. In most cases the move has been from a so-called 'smaller' county to one of the bigger, Test ground clubs, who have the greatest income to enable them to make an offer that cannot be refused, or to simply buy out a contract.
While the move of Alex Lees from Yorkshire to Durham bucked the trend, he was a peripheral figure in the white rose camp and his move can be firmly labelled under 'greater opportunities'. Yet Durham have also signed Ben Raine, a cricketer I admire, from Leicestershire, who have spiralled after a decent mid-season spell. They also look likely to lose Zak Chappell to Nottinghamshire, which is hardly untrodden turf from a movement angle.
Aneurin Donald has gone from Glamorgan to Hampshire, Liam Norwell and Craig Miles will leave Gloucestershire for Warwickshire, while Ben Duckett and Ben Slater have moved to Nottinghamshire. The list is not exclusive but is indicative of a trend - the rich are getting richer AND they are taking the cream of the talent from elsewhere. The poor are not just getting poorer, they will soon be in a state of penury.
I have no issue with people moving to further their careers. We all do it and it is a right for everyone to improve their lot in life. Yet the counties who in many cases spend years in the development of a youngster from a very early age lose both the player and his ability to win games, yet get no compensation whatsoever. That money might enable them to retain another talent, or at least recruit someone from elsewhere who may go some way to being an adequate replacement.
Football is far from perfect, but if player A from a smaller club is the target of another, they get compensated to their valuation of the player, quite often with add-ons if that player moves elsewhere or gains international recognition.
Cricket clubs get nothing.
If the sport is to continue to be a competition between eighteen first-class counties, rather than one between eight elite and ten feeder ones, there needs to be recognition of the work and money that has gone into player development.
Take the case of Ben Slater. He was at the end of his contract, so was within his rights to look at the best offer available to him. Derbyshire, with a playing budget substantially lower, offered the best they felt they could do. Nottinghamshire simply trumped that figure, as you can when you have more in the first place.
If they had to pay Derbyshire a fee of, say £25K on top that, it might level the playing field a little. In the case of players in contract, if they had to pay £25K per year outstanding on that contract, as well as that transfer fee, you might see greater loyalty and less of the movement that resembles the national train network at times. At the very least, it would be money to put back into player development or to make a difference to their own signing budget.
There may be a greater chance of players gaining national selection from division one, but there would be a delicious irony if either Lancashire or Yorkshire, as seems likely, get relegated to division two this year.
Such status is unlikely to see Jos Buttler ignored, while one assumes that the raft of Engand players in the Yorkshire camp, including Joe Root, will not be blanked because of their only occasional appearances in the game's second tier. Either way it means a Test ground county will play at a lower level, which may provoke a few wry smiles around the circuit.
My even greater concern is that the game goes the same way as Scottish football, where Celtic have such a monopoly that you can largely predict the winners of trophies before the season starts. It is going that way with Surrey, who are strolling division one to be county champions and have already reinforced a squad awash with talent by signing Liam Plunkett from Yorkshire and Jordan Clark from Lancashire.
Maybe it is to reinforce their appeal 'oop north', but they look set to dominate the county game over the next few years. With a playing budget that is to ours what Moby Dick is to Nemo the rainbow fish, the playing field is not just unlevel, it has more of a 'north face of the Eiger' perspective.
As always, I appreciate your thoughts, but would be surprised if there was great dissension on this one...
The ECB do not care about the small counties Peakfan. They never have, and unless there is a major change, they never will.
ReplyDeleteMany people I speak to, and indeed if reports are to be believed, many ex county cricketers think the three division county championship would be great for the game.
This would slightly reduce the county championship fixtures, but allow the T20 to become a competition where every team in a division plays each other home and away. Have the ECB done anything about it, no, they persist with this ridiculous 100 competition that pretty much nobody wants.
With regard to your specific question about transfer fees, the answer is yes, of course the 'big', monied counties should pay when they lure a player away from a smaller county. But that would be fair wouldn't it?? And the ECB don't do fair !!
Something certainly needs doing. the other symptom of the same issue is the increasing use of loans, these are normally from the wealthy counties to the poorer ones. This is part of the same issue as these players are not getting games for their home teams as their way to the first team is blocked by recruits.
ReplyDeleteWhat the answer is I am not sure. A fixed compensation fee may be better than a football type transfer system which is market driven. the other option is for the ECB to adjust monies to counties to reward playing academy produced players. I think they do something like that now, but obviously not enough.
Excellent post. The problem is very clear. Working out a long-term solution that works in legal terms and is generally acceptable is bound to be a challenge. What it needs is for the ECB and the biggest counties not only to accept that it's important to preserve all 18 first class counties at a competitive level but also to commit to taking effective action to ensure this happens. The less competitive the four day game is, the more likely it is to wither. If the will is there, it should be possible to find a solution. If it isn't, then in the long run, everybody will lose, not just the smaller and poorer counties.
ReplyDeleteCOULDNT AGREE MORE WITH ALL THE COMMENTS MADE PF.
ReplyDeleteWILL ANYTHING HAPPEN ? I DOUBT IT. I AGREE WITH DW. ECB DONT GIVE A FLYING YOU KNOW WHAT ABOUT SMALLER COUNTIES. MAKES ME WONDER BASED ON THEIR LONG TERM PLANS THAT THEY WOULDNT LIKE TO SEE THE FIRST CLASS COUNTY NUMBER DROP AND CREATE A SMALLER NUMBER OF FIRST CLASS COUNTIES WITH THE BEST PLAYERS SHARED BETWEEN A SMALLER NUMBER OF CLUBS. THIS WOULD I GUESS MAKE THE OVERALL FIRST CLASS STANDARD HIGHER.