by Hand-to-mouth counties face a bleak future unless they innovate as the home game approaches a pivotal year that will shape the direction of the sport for a generation.
Gordon Hollins, Somerset’s outgoing chief executive and former ECB managing director of county cricket, told Telegraph Sport that counties face a very challenging future if they cannot find a new purpose in the changing world of cricket.
In 2024, the home game will vote on the future of the Cents by expanding it from eight teams to 10 teams and also on the acceptance of private investors – the proposal is likely to get the 15 votes needed to pass. Another plan for a 19-team, two-division competition is favored by some at the ECB but met with opposition from the Test institutions. A two-tier league with promotion and relegation is likely to attract much less interest from potential investors.
It is intended to sell equity in the competition to raise much needed funds with the ECB owning 50 per cent of each franchise and the host clubs the rest. Profits from the ECB’s equity sale will be shared throughout the game. A vote is expected in May.
‘Some counties have lost their relevance’
But it is what happens to the smaller clubs that do not host international cricket and struggle to make ends meet that worries those who want to protect the county’s traditional base of 18 cricket clubs. The problem is at what cost? If clubs are draining money and not competing on the pitch, and therefore struggling to attract crowds and investment, is it time to question whether 18 counties are still needed? Also, if investment flows in from the First, is there any point in throwing good money after bad?
“My view is that every county needs to add value to the game and justify its funding from the ECB if it is to be sustainable and help the sport grow,” said Hollins, who has been working with cricket for over 15 years. “Certain counties have lost their relevance as the game and society change. I think what exactly is the point already? It’s not easy, most counties are owned by a relatively small number of members, some of whom want cricket to be as it was.
“The game is in a transformational phase, obviously there will be change. Having strong clubs that have real relevance in their communities and inspire their populations through cricket is extremely important, and that is what we aim for in Somerset [to inspire the south west]it is important that these clubs have a strong future.”
‘It is important that the south-west is connected to the First’
Hollins believes Somerset has a good case to be the home of one of the two new franchises, and fears for the club’s future if he is left out if the competition expands, leaving them starved of cricket in the August window Hundred.
“I’ve been encouraged by some of the talk around the Centenary for the game. It is important for cricket in the south-west that we are involved in the top table competition,” he said. “If not, I’m worried for the future. We have definitely said that we want to be one of the eight or 10. There are six million people in the south-west, all of them alienated and they do not support this competition. [Hundred].
“Sky, the BBC and the ECB have done a great job to make the competition a success but there are still six million people who don’t feel part of it and it’s important that this is rectified. The best domestic competition, if the south west doesn’t play a role in it, our ability to encourage people to play cricket is very limited. We haven’t had a first XI cricket game here for 43 days since the last league final on July 27th, so just in the school holidays and trying to get kids excited.”
Hollins will step down at the end of March and will be replaced by former Somerset opener Jamie Cox, who comes from MCC, where he was head of cricket. Hollins intends to work as a consultant for counties using his experience in Somerset and with the ECB. A new county partnership agreement between the ECB and counties, which provides the funding framework, is to be negotiated next year.
“The reality is it’s very tough [for counties],” Hollins said. “We have older facilities that need investment, less income post-Covid, higher cricket inflation with players taking other options elsewhere and the bigger facilities being able to invest more in cricket. Costs have increased but income has not kept up.
“The easiest thing for us to do is to take money out of the cricket budget and that’s what some clubs have done to balance the books. But then your income decreases because you have less membership sales, and it becomes more difficult for you to stimulate your region and keep the club relevant in the community.
“The money from the First could be the answer but it is not everything. You can bring in the money from the Hundred and build lots of nice new stands in the country but not have anyone sitting in them because that club has nothing to do with it. I think that’s a risk in my opinion.”
