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Post by Deleted on Oct 15, 2014 11:01:33 GMT
I asked an ECB contact yesterday when they will be published and was told they are aiming for w/c Nov 24.
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Post by flashblade on Oct 15, 2014 11:19:03 GMT
I asked an ECB contact yesterday when they will be published and was told they are aiming for w/c Nov 24. Thanks, BM. Let's hope the ECB has sufficient humility to take on board the response to the wretched 2014 fixture schedule. However, in the interest of self-preservation, I'm not holding my breath . . . |
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 15, 2014 11:33:12 GMT
What we do know:-
: The T20s will be based around a Friday evening throughout the season
starting in May.
: The 50 over 'Royal London Cup' will continue as a short sharp competition in August.
: The Championship fixtures will continue to be higglety pigglety with as much
logic to their setting as Spock's opposite twin.
: And various Championship matches will start on a Sunday.
: Therefore, ECB business as usual.
At least, the ECB can look forward to an Ashes Summer which may attract more
people to county cricket. Although, that increased popularity may depend on the
temperamental 'Jet Stream'. We have had two decent summers in a row. Can we
dare hope for a third?
Even so, I am convinced the ECB fixture planner is on drugs when he designs the
fixture list. Probably on some form of bad acid.
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Post by hhsussex on Oct 15, 2014 12:19:29 GMT
What we do know:- : The T20s will be based around a Friday evening throughout the season starting in May. : The 50 over 'Royal London Cup' will continue as a short sharp competition in August. : The Championship fixtures will continue to be higglety pigglety with as much logic to their setting as Spock's opposite twin. : And various Championship matches will start on a Sunday. : Therefore, ECB business as usual. At least, the ECB can look forward to an Ashes Summer which may attract more people to county cricket. Although, that increased popularity may depend on the temperamental 'Jet Stream'. We have had two decent summers in a row. Can we dare hope for a third? Even so, I am convinced the ECB fixture planner is on drugs when he designs the
fixture list. Probably on some form of bad acid.Meanwhile, at the ECB fixtures planning meeting some unexpected problems emerge.... |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 15, 2014 12:52:48 GMT
What we do know:- : The T20s will be based around a Friday evening throughout the season starting in May. : The 50 over 'Royal London Cup' will continue as a short sharp competition in August. : The Championship fixtures will continue to be higglety pigglety with as much logic to their setting as Spock's opposite twin. : And various Championship matches will start on a Sunday. : Therefore, ECB business as usual. At least, the ECB can look forward to an Ashes Summer which may attract more people to county cricket. Although, that increased popularity may depend on the temperamental 'Jet Stream'. We have had two decent summers in a row. Can we dare hope for a third? Even so, I am convinced the ECB fixture planner is on drugs when he designs the fixture list. Probably on some form of bad acid. Of course, when the fixtures are published we should also learn of some interesting decisions that are solely down to Sussex CCC and are nothing to do with the ECB. Horsham ? Arundel ? Eastbourne? Or perhaps it might all still be up in the air and there will be several Sussex fixtures which the venue column will tell us are 'tbc'. |
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 15, 2014 13:07:41 GMT
bm,
TBC, I suspect that is the case.
The Club face difficult decisions.
: Horsham council show little interest in financially supporting the festival - yet the coach and players want to play there.
: Arundel has the financial support yet the club don't make as much money from the festival as they feel they deserve and the pitch
is terrible and will take several years to rebuild - yet Members love attending this 'quintessential setting' and some have threatened
to stop their Membership if Arundel is erased from the fixture list.
: Whereas, Eastbourne tick all the boxes. Their Council is 100% behind bringing the festival back to their town. The finances are already
in place. The pitch is in the top 3 of the best in Sussex. And the public will come in their high numbers, given the last festival held here
was back in 1998.
Decisions, decisions, decisions... I wouldn't like to be in Zac's position.
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Post by flashblade on Oct 15, 2014 13:10:31 GMT
bm, TBC, I suspect that is the case. The Club face difficult decisions. : Horsham council show little interest in financially supporting the festival - yet the coach and players want to play there. : Arundel has the financial support yet the club don't make as much money from the festival as they feel they deserve and the pitch is terrible and will take several years to rebuild - yet Members love attending this 'quintessential setting' and some have threatened to stop their Membership if Arundel is erased from the fixture list. : Whereas, Eastbourne tick all the boxes. Their Council is 100% behind bringing the festival back to their town. The finances are already in place. The pitch is in the top 3 of the best in Sussex. And the public will come in their high numbers, given the last festival held here was back in 1998. Decisions, decisions, decisions... I wouldn't like to be in Zac's position. Neither would I. His job has become a bit of a poisoned chalice, IMO.  |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 15, 2014 13:15:10 GMT
bm, TBC, I suspect that is the case. The Club face difficult decisions. : Horsham council show little interest in financially supporting the festival - yet the coach and players want to play there. : Arundel has the financial support yet the club don't make as much money from the festival as they feel they deserve and the pitch is terrible and will take several years to rebuild - yet Members love attending this 'quintessential setting' and some have threatened to stop their Membership if Arundel is erased from the fixture list. : Whereas, Eastbourne tick all the boxes. Their Council is 100% behind bringing the festival back to their town. The finances are already in place. The pitch is in the top 3 of the best in Sussex. And the public will come in their high numbers, given the last festival held here was back in 1998. Decisions, decisions, decisions... I wouldn't like to be in Zac's position. Neither would I. His job has become a bit of a poisoned chalice, IMO. I do hope his chalice has't been spiked with the bad acid that s&F reckons the ECB are on!!!  |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 15, 2014 13:38:23 GMT
To be serious for one moment - it is unfair to say that "Horsham council show little interest in financially supporting the festival."
The issue is not lack of interest but lack of money. Due to central government cuts in grant, over the last couple of years local government exopenditure in England and Wales has been cut by £20 billion and councils face further cuts of at least 8.5 per cent over this year and the next.
Last December there was an angry demostration in Horsham by local residents agasinst the cuts which have reduced services which the old, disabled and other needy groups rely on.
In these circumstances, it would be little short of obscene to demand that the council should siphon off money that could be spent on essential services in order to subsidise Sussex county cricket club.
The Horsham festival needs local business sponsorship (Gatwick is just up the road. Has anybody asked Richard Branson? He likes cricket; I even played against him once on his private ground in Oxfordshire and he's got Virgin sponsoring the Antigua Hawksbills in the CPL). But in the current climate of austerity and massive cuts in local government services it would be irresponsible even to ask Horsham council to finance it.
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Post by theleopard on Oct 15, 2014 14:19:44 GMT
Hello to the new message board.
On what date is the season starting?
Presumably this must now already have been decided and set in stone: in 2013, during the last CC game at the Oval in September, I overheard someone (who was obviously involved with the club) saying the starting date for the Championship would be April 6 (in 2014) and that turned out to be exactly right.
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Post by hhsussex on Oct 15, 2014 15:11:36 GMT
Hello to the new message board. On what date is the season starting? Presumably this must now already have been decided and set in stone: in 2013, during the last CC game at the Oval in September, I overheard someone (who was obviously involved with the club) saying the starting date for the Championship would be April 6 (in 2014) and that turned out to be exactly right. Welcome back theleopard. In 2015 Easter Sunday is on April 5, so I would guess the start date would not be until April 12, though if the calendar of fixtures is as crowded in the early season as last year, that might lead to some compromises....like games starting on Tuesday 7/Wednesday 8 etc. |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 15, 2014 15:50:32 GMT
I would expect the season to start on Easter Sunday. There were seven LVCC matches that started on Easter Sunday in 2014.
Sussex wasn't one of them; as we asked the ECB for no cricket in late September so that the grass could grow, perhaps we also asked to keep April 20 sacred, so that our god-fearing players, led by our Irish captain ( who I believe went to a Catholic monastery school founded on the principles of "poverty, chastity and obedience"), could attend church?
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Oct 15, 2014 21:20:16 GMT
bm, I accept it can't be easy for Horsham Council to syphon off money given the cuts but the difference and attitude between them and the Eastbourne Borough Council are marked. Back in early June Councillor David Tutt, Leader of Eastbourne Borough Council, said, “It would be terrific to see Sussex County Cricket Club return to Eastbourne. Like many I recall seeing stars such as Tony Grieg and Imran Khan in their pomp playing at The Saffrons. “Jumping forward to the present day I know that there is real determination at Eastbourne Cricket Club to bring the likes of Luke Wright and Matt Prior to the town. Eastbourne boasts a superb calendar of events, including top class sport, and the council will certainly support any sustainable plans to once
again host Sussex County Cricket Club at The Saffrons.”www.eastbourneherald.co.uk/sport/cricket/chairman-fletch-determined-to-bring-first-class-cricket-to-eastbourne-after-14-year-absence-1-6092238 |
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Post by theleopard on Oct 16, 2014 9:18:27 GMT
Thanks.
OK, so the likely bet must be an April 5 or April 12 start to the CC, with the first MCCU matches on either March 31 or April 7 respectively (though I guess with the outfield work Sussex may have requested not hosting one of the initial MCCU games and/or Championship games?).
As usual it will be an extremely crowded season so I wouldn't be surprised to once again see the season begin in March, as it did in 2012, with the CC starting at Easter, especially then with the bonus of the Monday being a bank holiday, though this doesn't seem to be something the fixture planners give a lot of weight to.
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Post by hhsussex on Oct 16, 2014 9:31:14 GMT
Thanks. OK, so the likely bet must be an April 5 or April 12 start to the CC, with the first MCCU matches on either March 31 or April 7 respectively (though I guess with the outfield work Sussex may have requested not hosting one of the initial MCCU games and/or Championship games?). As usual it will be an extremely crowded season so I wouldn't be surprised to once again see the season begin in March, as it did in 2012, with the CC starting at Easter, especially then with the bonus of the Monday being a bank holiday, though this doesn't seem to be something the fixture planners give a lot of weight to. All good points - perhaps we can get a comment from Jon Filby about the likely condition of the outfield early on and the stance Sussex will be taking over fixtures? |
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