Damning report about English Cricket
Here on the Beeb - https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/66022949
I think this is more bullshit grandstanding from perpetual moaners to be honest. Some observations from the report
- Woman get 20% pay of men. Well, what percentage of revenue to they generate through gate receipts and broadcasting? I bet it's much lower than 20%
- Black cricket has "been failed" - how on earth could this be an official observations? It's a very subjective term.
- ECB must make a plan to revive black cricket - what on earth does this mean? They have to have black teams? They have to force black kids to play? What the fuck, are we living in South Africa??
- The recommendations also include the equalisation of match fees between the England women's and men's teams with immediate effect - fuck off. As per above. When women cricket generates the same level of income, then yes, sure thing
I am so sick of this shit. It's just part of the UK culture continuous drive to be down on white men & be pushing everything else up. It has nothing to do with levelling up and everything to do with levelling down. I am seriously thinking about getting the fuck out of here, as it genuinely seems that people like me are simply not welcome, beyond being anything other than a cash cow for the government.
I love cricket in this country. My children both play for a club (9 year old daughter, 11 year old son) which we are all members of and here are my actual physical observations:
- The girls are treated equally to the boys.
- Everybody, literally everybody, talk up about how great Surrey cricket is going for girls and the growth of the sport
- In both my son and daughters teams, we have proabably 70% white (English, Strain, Scot, Irish, Sith Ifrican), 20% South Asian, some Chinese & Caribbean children
- My sons coach played for Bermuda - he's black
- There are literally no abusive arsehole parents on the sideline at any single match (if thats classism, elitism - I'm all for it)
- Bar is open at every match and everybody is welcome - adult supporters from both sides, kids, casual fans watching - everybody. We have plenty of muslims at the club and when they order coke / juice this is not frowned up, judged.
- At my sons level, kids are getting mouthy / sledging. Referees allow it to a certain level & have the right to kick players out of the match unilaterally. I've seen this happen about 4 times, and every single time the coach of the kid supports it.
It is, unequivocally, the best part of living in this country. So I see this report, and take it personally. AS it means clubs like the ones I'm a member of, are tarred with this exact brush, when the behaviour and observations are 100% completely the opposite.
Maybe it would be best if Putin did actually start nuking so people had the opportunity to realise just how fucking good they have it.
@scribe said in English Cricket - Damning Report:
You have almost to the letter, described my experience with my son at our local club (other side of London, in Kent setup.) It’s brilliant.
Your son's coach played for Bermuda? 
@Catogrande said in English Cricket - Damning Report:
Is it not more of a critique of the elite end of cricket?
At what point on the Beeb does the article say this? It doesn't.
It's just another attack on things that white men enjoy. Thats all it is.
@MajorRage said in English Cricket - Damning Report:
I am seriously thinking about getting the fuck out of here
Where would you go that's anywhere different?
@booboo probably another thread in itself that one ...
Going home for Xmas this year, and visiting a few other places this year for work ...
My brother & I were brought up in a lower middle class household in a post-industrial South Wales valley (Aberdare, Cynon Valley) and both attended the same single sex comprehensive state school
I was there 1978-85, him 1981-88
We played cricket in school and for our local club along with boys & men from working class to upper middle class (my definition, lawyers, bankers, doctors)
It was an all-white experience because our valley was 99% white save for 1 Welsh-Pakistani in the Club team
From that foundation I was able to get to county standard (wicket keeper) whilst in school and my younger brother played for Wales Schools & Universities from U14 through to U21 (all rounder)
There was another boy his age at our Club who played for Wales from U14-U19
My brother's cohort came from both state and private school, predominantly state
A number of boys in his cohort went on to play first class cricket for Glamorgan and one, Robert Croft, went on to play for England
We were very fortunate that
we had a family which ran the local cricket club (the Derricks, one of whom John played for Glamorgan and later coached them)
had access, within walking distance, to cricket pitches
the cost to play each week was free in school and only cost a couple of quid subs for the Club
and we practiced and played at every opportunity, year round
If any of those elements are missing in the 'black community' then I'm sure it's difficult to learn, excel, and break through but in Wales at least my experience is the norm not the exception so barriers are not in place
@MajorRage said in English Cricket - Damning Report:
My sons coach played for Bermuda - he's black
Slightly OT, but we have a couple of white Barbadians in our little village with 3 of their kids born there. If they played in the local cricket team it'd be an all white team and proof "black cricket has been failed"
(We also have 3 NZ born kids in the area. Along with the Bajuns, they are very useful when we have to show "diversity" when applying for grants for youth groups and village amenities)
@MajorRage as we've talked about a few times when discussing leaving, feels like UK is circling the drain a bit.
Just today: this cricket thing, the covid enquiry where everyone who was in charge is saying they should've locked down faster/harder/longer, the oil windfall tax raising way less than expected AND killing investment, Labour putting VAT on school fees.
Maybe I need to lay off Twitter....
@TeWaio I have to agree. You need to lay off Twitter!
The north sea oil thing is a political spat. It's a green thing
Everybody knows should have locked down earlier - nothing new here, but Hancock needs to just fuck off forever.
VAT on school fee's is a proposal with decent intentions, but the consequences are unknown and it will be on a school by school basis. I personally think they'll go half assed, and remove charitable status but not apply the full VAT rate. Disables the way to tax efficient funnel money & allows the middle earners to continue to save the government money.
But coming for my cricket is a step too far.
Wait a minute.
They asked for submissions to form the base of their evidence? And they got 4000.
If 300k registered players in the UK. So around 1.3%.
Athertons take is good. The experience of most is overwhelmingly positive. Why the fuck is that not in the headline.
I’m so sick of the talk of diversity. If that makes me a bigot so be it.
Is this the place to air my grievance about the sudden need to call the Ashes thr "men's ashes"
Get entirely fucked
It's called the Ashes for a fucking reason you silly fluffybunnies. The women's ashes is not even a fucking thing
It's the fucking ashes
Fuck off
(Also It's batsman)
@MiketheSnow said in English Cricket - Damning Report:
Alternative take
100% absolutely spot on.
Spectator take equally as scathing but for different reasons:
Does cricket suffer from ‘institutional racism’?
What a strange document the Independent Commission on Equity in Cricket (ICEC) has produced, in its ‘Holding up a mirror to cricket’ report. Rambling, explicitly political, antagonistic and poorly-argued, it ignores some obvious explanations for the ills it discusses, and fixates on irrelevancies....
Thinking about this and reflecting on things like the campaign to scrap the "Elitist" Eton v Harrow game.
Good mate of mine is an MCC member. I've been to Lords many times, had lunch there more than once and given the chance to put my name on the waiting list for membership as a member of the public. There was something like a 20 year waiting list on that route. But if you play for one of the many MCC teams who tour schools, are a village cricket stalwart or are a groundsman somewhere, your chances are pretty good to almost automatic.
I doubt there's a more diverse and representative group of people in any private club in the UK. You'll find people like Tim Rice next to a council gardener and Mohamed from Leicester chatting to an ex-PM. There're rules you need to stick to, but a passion for the game is what unites them - "diversity" or "elitism" doesn't come into it.
@MajorRage said in English Cricket - Damning Report:
@MiketheSnow said in English Cricket - Damning Report:
Alternative take
100% absolutely spot on.
Spectator take equally as scathing but for different reasons:
What a strange document the Independent Commission on Equity in Cricket (ICEC) has produced, in its ‘Holding up a mirror to cricket’ report. Rambling, explicitly political, antagonistic and poorly-argued, it ignores some obvious explanations for the ills it discusses, and fixates on irrelevancies....
Great article
@Victor-Meldrew said in English Cricket - Damning Report:
Thinking about this and reflecting on things like the campaign to scrap the "Elitist" Eton v Harrow game.
Good mate of mine is an MCC member. I've been to Lords many times, had lunch there more than once and given the chance to put my name on the waiting list for membership as a member of the public. There was something like a 20 year waiting list on that route. But if you play for one of the many MCC teams who tour schools, are a village cricket stalwart or are a groundsman somewhere, your chances are pretty good to almost automatic.
I doubt there's a more diverse and representative group of people in any private club in the UK. You'll find people like Tim Rice next to a council gardener and Mohamed from Leicester chatting to an ex-PM. There're rules you need to stick to, but a passion for the game is what unites them - "diversity" or "elitism" doesn't come into it.
100%
I often wonder whether the people compiling these 'independent reports' have ever played the game and/or like the game
Did they fail to play for England because of perceived elitism or racism or is it that they simply weren't good enough?
@MiketheSnow looked into this, and it turns out one of the panel members I was at uni with, Zafar Ansari. He did play for England then retired at 25(!) to become a barrister. While I still don't agree with the report's findings, I'd say he's a pretty appropriate person to be on the panel.
@TeWaio said in English Cricket - Damning Report:
@MiketheSnow looked into this, and it turns out one of the panel members I was at uni with, Zafar Ansari. He did play for England then retired at 25(!) to become a barrister. While I still don't agree with the report's findings, I'd say he's a pretty appropriate person to be on the panel.
That's great
More of that please