The Eighties are back in fashion in Yorkshire, where a row has erupted over Geoffrey Boycott’s attempt to win election to the board of directors.
Steve Denison, the Yorkshire chairman, has written to members outlining the objections of the club’s management to Boycott’s candidacy, saying that a return to the board for the outspoken former captain would threaten the stability that has brought consecutive County Championships in the past two seasons.
Denison said that they had “moved on” from Boycott, stating yesterday: “We want individuals that can guarantee the survival of the club. We need specialist skills in relation to finance and construction, that’s the direction of the board over the next few years.”
Boycott is seeking election to the board at the club’s AGM on March 26, saying that “not enough thought” is being given to the interests of the county’s 5,000 members and that, as debts remain at about £22 million, the club “has to start living within our means”.
Boycott said failing to change would put the club’s future at risk. “I’m not trying to cause any problems — I want to help the club,” he said. “If you carry on with the debt as it is, there won’t be a club in existence as it’s a recipe for bankruptcy. The debt’s gone from £5 million in 2002 to £24 million in 12 years, so the board haven’t done a very good job, have they?”
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The dispute carries echoes of the rows that ravaged the club more than 30 years ago, often centring on Boycott. His sacking as captain sparked an outcry and, when he was not offered a new playing contract in 1983, aged 42, the subsequent revolt led several members of the committee to resign. Boycott was offered a new contract and took a seat on the committee, playing until 1986. He remained a divisive figure, though, and a number of players left the county in the 1980s because of the atmosphere surrounding the batsman, who scored 8,114 runs for England in Test matches.
Boycott served on the board for five years from 2007 and acted as president until 2013. He has been offered a role by Denison as “global ambassador” but the opposition to him becoming more influential is clear, despite him having sufficient nominations to stand.
In his letter, Denison stated that the club had enjoyed success under a management structure of Martyn Moxon, the director of cricket, and Jason Gillespie, the head coach, and that it would be “counterproductive to disrupt things”.
Boycott’s candidacy is based on a commitment to increase the club’s membership and to start paying their way financially after taking on huge amounts of debt in recent years. The vast majority of those loans were provided by Colin Graves, the club’s former chairman who now holds the same position at the ECB, but Yorkshire say that their stance on Boycott has the full support of the Graves family trusts.
A £368,000 profit, the first since 2009, was announced yesterday. This included an increase of income from the ECB to £2.4 million, a reflection of the number of players produced for England that in the past year has included Joe Root, Adil Rashid, Jonny Bairstow and Adam Lyth. Further debts are likely, though, as the redevelopment of Headingley continues.
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The club are making three recommendations for election at the AGM: Mark Arthur, the chief executive; Sir Gary Verity, the chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, and Robin Smith, a former president.