Act to protect the County Championship - Yorkshire CCC members in call to club

A group led by Simon Parsons, a long-standing member and a former representative on the club’s members’ committee, has obtained the necessary 400 signatures to force an EGM in response to plans in the England and Wales Cricket Board’s High Performance Review.

The review, led by Sir Andrew Strauss, the former England captain, recommends cutting the number of Championship fixtures from 14 per county to 10 from 2024 onwards.

Yorkshire are holding a members’ forum to discuss the Strauss review at 9.30am on Wednesday in the Headingley Long Room and they will be sending out an email survey to members in the coming weeks.

Parsons is warning that the membership is ready to rise up if necessary, mirroring disquiet felt across the country.

He told The Yorkshire Post: “From what I’ve seen, there isn’t any appetite for the Strauss report among the Yorkshire members; there isn’t any appetite to reduce the amount of County Championship cricket played. The club has got to give a guarantee that the members will have a say. They have to give a clear indication that each member will have a vote on this matter.

"My findings are that at least 95 per cent of the members do not endorse what is in the Strauss report concerning the reduction of Championship fixtures.”

In a document seen by The Yorkshire Post, the motions that would be tabled at an EGM are as follows:

“A. The club’s chairman will oppose any reduction in the number of first-class County Championship fixtures for future seasons, without the prior consent of the membership.

“B. Any specific proposals for reform of the schedule/structure received by the club from the ECB for a vote of the county chairs will also be put to a vote of members (having given members at least 7 days’ written notice of the proposals prior to the EGM).

"The club’s chair will respect the wishes of the member votes when casting the club’s vote in any decision-making forum.”

Under club rules, Yorkshire would have to convene an EGM within 42 days. The recommendations in the Strauss review need the support of 12 of the 18 first-class counties.

Parsons continued: “The ideal solution for me is the status quo of 14 Championship games. I don’t think 12 games - a compromise that might be foisted on members - is palatable either.

“Clearly, a lot of the problems are caused by The Hundred, which I think is the ruination of cricket. The scheduling is a farce. The idea of a separate competition running alongside The Hundred doesn’t work either; there is no point in having this so-called Festival of Cricket.

“Personally speaking, I would like the Championship to continue alongside The Hundred rather than to cut the number of Championship games. People still came to watch the Royal London Cup alongside The Hundred, after all; look at the crowds at York and Scarborough.”