Stephen Vaughan (no relation to former club legend Michael) has been appointed to the role of Chief Executive Officer to Yorkshire CCC and Darren Gough now permanent Director of Cricket. Vaughan is a former Walsall footballer but started his executive career with Gloucester RFU but more recently was figurehead at London Wasps RFU who some years ago relocated to the former Ricoh Arena at Highfield Road in Coventry but have since gone into liquidation which has once again caused repercussions for the Sky Blues once associated with former Fulham inside forward and chairman of the PFA Jimmy Hill who was responsible for the abolition of the maximum wage, with Johnny Haynes becoming the first footballer to be paid £100 a week.
Yorkshire CCC of course is the most iconic Cricket club in the World; in fact I’d go further than that by describing them as the most ICONIC SPORTS INSTITUTION in the World with a history far exceeding any football club on the planet, and it is to be hoped that their relegation to the Second Division of the County Cricket Championship is short lived .
I hope things go better for Yorkshire CCC in 2023 than they did in 2022. Darren Gough has quite a job on his hands after relegation. Several players have left the club. I think there is STILL an outstanding ECB disciplinary process ongoing against the club, and threats of future international games being taken away/not being granted to Headingley. The members are getting restless and there is a suggestion that the Board which was installed in the shadow of the racism furore might itself be overthrown - and what will the ECB do about that?
YCCC has been doing what it can to show a more diverse side to the world at large, and has just been holding a Diwali celebration/reception at Headingley, attended by many of the Great and Good. I have no problems with that. I have no probelms with employing people with diverse ethnic histories behind them in our team. I'd prefer (if we had enough to make this possible) to have an entire team of people born in Yorkshire or who grew up and learned their cricket in Yorkshire making up the squad, whether they or their parents have an originally UK, Asian, African, American or European heritage. I'm not bothered what colour their skin is but I'd like them to "buy in" to Yorkshire. If we can find a fast bowler who can bowl accurately at 90+mph, his grandparents could have been Eskimoes for all I care: if he plays for Yorkshire he will have my support.
... If we can find a fast bowler who can bowl accurately at 90+mph, his grandparents could have been Eskimoes for all I care: if he plays for Yorkshire he will have my support.
Strange images of snowballs hurtling towards hapless batsmen comes to mind...
It may be a tad early to write about Yorkshire cricket, but what a low life has Azeem Rafiq turned out to be. The fact that he is a Pakistani and used every trick in the book to discredit Yorkshire cricket shows that he had a hidden agenda to bring the Tykes to its knees. No one wants racism in cricket, but it now transpires that there is no proof whatsoever that racism was rife in Yorkshire cricket. In fact Joe Root, Tim Bresnan and even Adil Rashid had no recollection of Rafiq’s quote that racism was rife at Yorkshire cricket. In the meantime Bresnan has stated that the England and Wales Cricket Board had ‘pandered’ to Rafiq’s “well rehearsed” and “ inaccurate investigations” which had cost the club thousands of pounds in compensation claims and sullied the name of Michael Vaughan one of England’s finest captains.
It would appear that nobody questioned the validity of Rafiq’s racism claims at the time, but now it appears to have been a ruse by Rafiq for payback time for his losing his contract.
A few weeks before Christmas Jamie Hood, a former Redcar cricketer was inducted into the North Yorkshire and South Durham Cricketers Hall of Fame in front of an audience of over 300 former friends, colleagues and high ranking officials including former Durham captain Geoff Cook. The arousing applause lasted for several minutes and when I relate his story you’ll see the reason why.
Almost 25 years ago, I remember it well, Jamie was involved in a serious traffic accident which left him paralysed from the neck down for the rest of his life. Not only that, but an accident in hospital later compounded his serious injuries at the age of 21 years. I’ve never met Jamie personally except watching him play cricket on the field of play, but his mother Lynne and my wife Enid were very good friends. Imagine any son being crippled for life, but especially a talented cricketer and one can only imagine at the magnitude of destruction for a young sportsman for the last 25 years.
Jamie began his cricketing career at a very young age, and had been selected for the England under 15 side in 1992 and had won the England Schools Cricket Association batting and bowling awards in that year. Who knows what heights he might have attained in the future. Jamie was once photographed amongst 23 other famous cricketers, 12 of whom became England Test cricketers later in life.
Nevertheless this Hall of Fame injunction was not only granted for his cricketing prowess, but also for his steadfastness in serving the community. Jamie will often be found watching young cricketers starting their careers, giving advice to assist them on their way and always with a smile on his face. He is almost indestructible, and forever cheerful despite the pain and trauma he is enduring, a son that any parents would be proud of. If anyone deserves this honour more, than Jamie Hood I have yet to meet him. Who can forget the scintillating 161 he scored against Northallerton, a club record at the time raining sixes galore and only finished when he was run out. He might well have been the Jonny Bairstow or Harry Brook of his era.
Most of us have health concerns later in life, but what Jamie Hood has endured for the last 25 years is exceptional, and all I can add is my praise to a man with true Yorkshire grit.
@ken - I remember Jamie Hood's name though it can only been for a few years that he played senior NYSD cricket in light of his serious road accident which ended his active participation in sport at the age of 21 years - when he should really have been only just starting out. But very uplifting to hear that his spirit is good and that the Professional Cricketers' Association has been able to assist him in providing help and mobility equipment so that he can get to games despite his paralysis, and equipment to help him communicate.
It may be a tad early to write about Yorkshire cricket, but what a low life has Azeem Rafiq turned out to be. The fact that he is a Pakistani and used every trick in the book to discredit Yorkshire cricket shows that he had a hidden agenda to bring the Tykes to its knees. No one wants racism in cricket, but it now transpires that there is no proof whatsoever that racism was rife in Yorkshire cricket. In fact Joe Root, Tim Bresnan and even Adil Rashid had no recollection of Rafiq’s quote that racism was rife at Yorkshire cricket. In the meantime Bresnan has stated that the England and Wales Cricket Board had ‘pandered’ to Rafiq’s “well rehearsed” and “ inaccurate investigations” which had cost the club thousands of pounds in compensation claims and sullied the name of Michael Vaughan one of England’s finest captains.
It would appear that nobody questioned the validity of Rafiq’s racism claims at the time, but now it appears to have been a ruse by Rafiq for payback time for his losing his contract.
How is the fact that he’s Pakistani relevant?
@Martin
I wrote the facts about Azeem Rafiq as told to me. The fact that he is a Pakistani needs to be told. In my opinion racism works both ways, and Rafiq has always had a chip on his shoulder and a hidden agenda to bring Yorkshire CCC to its knees. The fact that he is a Pakistani IS relevant in my opinion if only to show that Pakistanis should NOT be immune to criticism just as any other race should be.
Why do you need to question some of my comments? This is not the first time you have to pose a question of some of my comments, just get a life my friend!
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@ken. I don’t want us to fall out over any of this - I’m sure you meant no harm in your original post but I took exception to some of your phraseology, which I think I’m entitled to do. The beauty of this Forum is that we don’t all have to agree but it’s important that we treat each other with respect and my respect for you is immense.
Enjoy your weekend and let’s keep our fingers crossed for 3 points tomorrow.
UTB.
I have great admiration for Bajan gospel choirs and their trust in the Lord for judgement day when they will meet their maker and be reunited with their loved ones. Whether one is a Christian or not, there is still a lingering doubt as to the validity of eternal life, and always will be because nobody has actually blown the whistle on ‘paradise’ or the life thereafter.
Nevertheless there has become a groundswell of public opinion in this country that some black people are being blatantly treated differently to white people, and are allowed to play the race card to their advantage as has been proved in the Yorkshire CCC scandal. Azeem Rafiq has always had a hidden agenda on this subject, but suddenly has been found out not only by former colleagues, but even by his own kith and kin.
When my wife was dying in hospital 14 years ago and needed palliative care, I tried to get her into a private ward. I accepted the decision that no private ward was available at the time, and quite rightly accepted the situation, although she in fact died within 6 days. She was allowed no more than 2 people at any one time, quite rightly too. Yet the lady in the opposite bed had a family interspersed with several black relatives, and at one time had 5 people sitting around her bedside at the same time. When I objected to the nursing staff about this situation, I was informed that different regulations were allowed for black persons in case they were to play the ‘race card’ in the future. I’m all for having similar rules for black and white people, but why should the colour of one’s skin give an unfair advantage for black people over white people? That cannot be fair in a multi racial society. And in my opinion I had every right to lambast Azeem Rafiq for his moments of treachery, as have his former colleagues.
Racism is such an emotive subject, but it is found in most countries throughout the world even between those of the same coloured skin. The Second World War proved this to be the case - gentiles against Jews, Catholics against Protestants, etc. Do I object to being called a Sassenach by the Scots, a limey by the Yanks, or a pommie by the Aussies, of course not! Too late for this leopard to change his spots, as I have enough other problems to concern me at the moment.
A family receiving some quite minor (in the grand scheme of things) preferential treatment over another because of the hospital’s fear of bad PR surely pails into absolute insignificance against the thousands of years of discrimination. I appreciate that emotions must have been running very high at the time but this isn’t a reasonable comparison.
I’m fortune enough - through pure luck - to have never wondered if I might not be welcome in a bar or restaurant, shop or even bus. I’ve never thought that I might not get that job interview because my name sounds non-white. These, and many others, are the privileges that many white people (including myself) often take for granted. The movements over the past few years have opened many eyes to that.
Free speech is a pillar of our modern society and I believe in everyone having a right to their opinion but I’m concerned about the undertones when I read comments such as yours Ken.
Thankfully my full name isn’t in my username as I wouldn’t want to be associated with those views. If they are more widespread then I for one would have to consider whether I want to contribute moving forwards.
Apologies to those for whom this comment may be upsetting or irritating but I think there are lines we shouldn’t cross.
I’ll concentrate on the football for now, which is the primary reason for viewing and commenting on the blog for me.
@andy-r Thanks for your comments. I’ve spent the morning trying to work out how (or whether) to respond as I don’t want any conflict with @ken, but equally I vowed as I got older to call out things like this wherever and whenever I saw them. Like you, if they hadn’t been challenged or had seemed to prevail, I’d have had to excuse myself from the Forum.
Irrespective of my personal opinions and beliefs, though I hope I am sufficiently transparent that what I do believe will show through, the one thing that is most important for us all to remember is that this Wordpress account is in Werder's name. I posted a similar reminder a couple of weeks ago in respect of pasting other publications' copywrited material. So here we go again.
Each of us has a responsibility to think twice about what we post in here, especially when we should realise the topic is contentious. There are multiple laws which apply to us and it is not acceptable that we could make Werder's position difficult through careless talk, no matter what we choose to believe from what we have heard or read. If we all do that [i.e. think twice], we are also very unlikely to cause any offence (however unintentionally) in here.
This is not intended to be a call to stop debate and dialogue on any topic that may be topical, but let us all always remember we are privileged that Werder is so tolerant and we must remain alert to ourselves to be aware of what and how we post something and why. Our words will outlive us, but Werder may still be left to hold the baby.
@powmillnaemore Wise words and I’m sure none of us want to put Werder in a difficult position. Whilst we like to think this Forum is akin to debating down the pub, as far as legality is concerned, the written and published word is very different.
Free speech is all well and good, but if you cross boundaries you’ve got to expect a response and I think that has happened here. Maybe it’s time for all of us to move on.
Enough has been said and written about Azeem Rafiq over the last few weeks, that as far as I’m concerned that is the end of the matter. However I can’t agree that because of the fact that because of what happened in the past regarding how England dealt with unsavoury situations, it should be swept under the carpet. I was born in a different situation when the world was divided bybrace into five different colours - black, brown, redindian, yellow and white. I never saw a black person in Redcar during the Second World War, but was aware that England had a terrible reputation regarding its power in the World. When I visited New England I was almost pilloried over the ‘ Boston Tea Party’ as if I was personally responsible for the dumping of chests of tea into the Boston Harbour. Similarly I am not responsible for what happened under the Indian Raj.
The period of my wife’s death was the most emotional I had ever known and I resent that it should be regarded as a trivial local dispute about bed space in the grand scheme of things. I wanted the funeral service to be a celebration of Enid’s life and to that end it achieved that. This is part of the eulogy I wrote at the time of her funeral written on scraps of paper:-
TALKATIVE and INQUISATIVE but as one of her Dutch friends said “in a nice sort of way, but never malicious”. Everyone relied on her for information. I recall once in Yugoslavia she was looking at a ship in the harbour, when a total stranger inquired whether the ship was Russian. Enid said that she didn’t know to which the stranger replied “Oh, I am surprised! You look like the sort of person who knows everything!” You had to know Enid to understand the logic of that.
Enid took after her Grandma for being talkative. If talking had been an Olympic Sport, she would have certainly won at least a bronze medal. Many a time she would sit on our apartment balcony watching someone arrive pulling a suitcase and the conversation went along the lines of “Nice day,isnt it, how long are you here for? Have you must arrived? All stating the bleeding obvious! I knew the ritual off by heart often using my hand as a talking article behind her back. Then came the last piece of the jigsaw. WE DROVE DOWN HERE.On reflection it might’ve sounded boastful, but in reality it wasn’t really.
WE DROVE DOWN? Those words will always be etched in my memory. In fact Enid didn’t drive, having once attempted to park the car in our driveway at home but hit the accelerator instead of the brake as the car wedged itself into our neighbours lounge window. As it happened our neighbours were on Holliday in the Lake District at the time. Enid and I were both breatherllsed and that little escapade resulted in a £7’000 claim for damages to the car and my neighbour’s property. It took several weeks to restore our friendship, but as I caught his eye in the congregation I mentioned the fact that I now had a copy of his front door key so that “ the next time I intended to visit him I would choose a more conventional route of entry”. This caused a burst of laughter ln aisles with an occasional burst of applause, just the type of reaction I had hoped for, as this became a celebration of Enid’s life, the wake and tears would come later in the confines of the vestry. I won’t go into each of Enid’s virtues here - COMPASSION , ORGANISATION and LOVE of OLD PEOPLE and CHILDREN but she would have been a loving mother as well as the loving Auntie she turned out to be .
After each of her virtues I repeated the same words slowly “And that’s why we all loved her”.
Enid was fun to be with and I recalled one occasion when my brother had been teasing her. After a while she paused awhile before stating “You can’t pull the wool over my shoulder” and we lived on that mixed metaphor for the rest of her life. The eulogy took 20 minutes to recite and eventually I was inundated with requests from Australia, Canada, Holland and Portugal,for copies to be sent. As mentioned earlier, I first had to assemble my notes into some intelligible kind of order. Five months later I remember revisiting Cape Town for the first time in almost 50 years feeling guilty as hell trying to enjoy the trip. Enid would have enjoyed the Western Cape and as I drove along the Garden Route explaining what I was observing. The Garden Route is very long and a tad bland in places, so signed off with the words “I’ll take a commercial break for now and get back to you later”. I felt like a roving Alan Whicker, but at that moment felt all my inhibitions about being alone in the World had disappeared as I had started my new life with Enid, my new guardian Angel.
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The County Cricket Championship starts today and one can follow the podcast against Leicestershire on Yorkshire CCC website. The weather forecast for the final 3 days looks satisfactory although there could be the occasional shower today. Last year every championship match at Headingley was televised live, though not sure if that will continue this year.
Also Redcar Bears have won their home leg in the knockout cup against Berwick Bandits 53-37 so that ought to be enough to reach the second round when the second leg is played later this month, but I’m a little concerned whether the Bears have the strength in depth for a successful season.
Terrific win for Leicestershire yesterday, but catches win matches and that was the main reason why Yorkshire lost - dropped catches! This defeat was arguably a greater surprise than Boro’s defeat to Notts County, and lt was again an ex-former Yorkshire batter, Australian Peter Handscomb who had a big say in the Tykes defeat. Nevertheless congratulations to the Foxes on going for the win. But as in football drawn matches should be worthless in my considered opinion.
Following another shambolic display by Yorkshire CCC the news that Jonny Bairstow has repiaced Chris Woakes in the England team is excellent news although where that leaves Yorkshire is anyone’s guess. The recruitment by Otis Gibson and Darren Gough has been calamitous. I have no qualms about Durham winning as they have been shabbily treated over the years, but really Yorkshire should have won this latest match quite comfortably.
I hope this will be a warning to Boro tomorrow night as unexpected results can occur in any sport. For instance Redcar Bears Speedway team have just pulled off an amazing 47-43 win in Edinburgh against the Monarchs, their first win in Scotland’s capital in 10 years.
Oh my God! The pain is so dreadful, I honestly wish that death will come as quickly as possible.
@ken . Have you been checked out to see if you’ve broken something when you had a fall?
philip