ECB ACO Newsletter - Spring 2013

Beyond the Boundarycontinued from page 3all fascinated by the topic, regardless ofthe fact that 95% of our members willnever raise their arms to draw that imaginaryrectangle in the sky!So, why don’t we start with the obviouspair of incidents… was Jonny Bairstowout? No, but yes, because India would notwithdraw their appeal. Lots of querieshere even though DRS could not influencethe outcome – which is the strangest pointbecause without the ability for either sideto have an official ‘DRS’ review of the incident,Andy Flower had had to solicit theassistance of the broadcast videos to clarifythe detail of the catch, so it is hardly asurprise that after this, MS Dhoni declinedto accede to the ‘unofficial DRS’ evidence,even though on the last two similar occasions,they have sympathised and acceded.So, next, was Alastair Cook out? Yes. Hewas out of his ground and the fielder(Kohli) threw down the wicket. The mutteringswere to do with ‘self-protection’and ‘avoiding-injury’ obviously, andmaybe appropriately – but without the officialDRS, who was to judge whether theball was indeed either close enough forhim to need to hold back or whether hehad either seen it or presumed its directionof flight, or did not and it was never goingto hit him anyway? On top of this therewas the short video re-run of the umpiresconsulting – may have to ask with respectto the Laws, would any question havebeen relevant?Thus it is that one country, the host nationin this instance, has declined the useof DRS, and the visiting country, Englandin this instance, lost two wickets on appeal– one of which would have been reversedand one that still might not havebeen made any the clearer. And it is onthis last point that India – and others - hasa grip of reality on the debate. It is no usehaving a system using technology if thetechnology is not 100% accurate. And itshould be. Which opens up yet more debateon the contrasting or competing meritsof HawkEye vs VirtualEye… fuelledby Jacques Kallis’ questioning of theball-tracking data.Yet another typical incident – and anothernail in the not-up-to-it techno view –was an appealed-for stumping in the lastODI between South Africa and NewZealand; the batsman’s toe appeared to beon and behind the line from the cameraangle at square-leg but not over the linefrom the camera at point; 2 identical cameraslooking at exactly the same image –and the foot was either ok or not and notboth. And if we would all agree that theTV official could look at both cameraviews and accept one and not the other,how does he know 100% which of themwas truly accurate, and how, with such achoice, can he be 100% neutral? Youmight be tempted to suggest that the benefitof the doubt should – as the Laws state– be given to the batsman, which would beironic as we all do this adequately enoughevery week and without technology?It is a salutary reminder to each of us todevelop that level of personal certainty –the inner confidence to believe in our first,fast, initial judgement, to stay with it, andthen watch it become demonstrably accuratein the video re-run. And we can dothis very comfortably at home duringthese winter months with a whisky-mac inhand watching cricket from the tropics!A ‘Work in Progress’ is what theglobal cricketing fraternity should admitDRS is, but still use it as often as possibleand ‘down-the-ladder’ as far as feasibletoo. So we have an even more challengingseason ahead. And add to this thecap-cameras that the ‘BigBash’ T20 umpiresare wearing and the illuminatingbails and stumps! What else can we expectin 2013?PjTDRSAlastair Cook watching the ball beforeavoiding being struck and in turn being runout after not making his groundFlashing stumps in the Big BashUmpire’s camera visible during theinfamous Warne and Samuels ‘bust up’‘You are the umpire’Sports illustrator Paul Trevillion teams up with ex-professional cricketer and Test umpire John Holder to compile a funand informative guide to the laws of cricket. Based on a Q&A style it is accompanied by official answers andanecdotes from John’s 35 years in top class cricket.42. Graeme SwannJohn Holder’s verdict1) Neither. You can only ever give a batsmanout if you are certain about the method ofdismissal. In this case there’s little or nocertainty – he cannot be out caught if the balldidn’t clip the bat – and so your decision hasto be “not out”. This is one of the challengesof umpiring: you need to take your time,think through the sequence of events and say“Not out” firmly and confidently – even ifthere are butterflies in your stomach becauseof the uncertainty. Ben Collier wins the book.2) The law was changed in October 2010:now the umpires alone decide on the fitnessof the ground for play. Captains are notconsulted, nor are they allowed toaccompany you on inspections. It meansumpires can now avoid the sort of rows thatused to blow up when captains had a say –such as the one in my first year as a first-classumpire in 1983, when the Middlesex captainMike Gatting was desperate to resume, andhis opposite number for Somerset, IanBotham, was determined not to...With Middlesex fielding in Somerset’se-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 4 contact us on 0121 446 2710

second innings on day two, there was a hugestorm just after tea. In almost gale-forcewind, the ground staff struggled to get thepitch covered with the huge tarpaulin – andby the time it was in place the pitch was wetand play was abandoned for the day.The next morning we had brightsunshine but two strips near the still-dampone we were playing on were so wet theywere like jelly. But Gatting had two Englandspinners, Phil Edmonds and John Emburey,and it was ideal conditions for them. So hekept urging me and my colleague to allowplay to start, saying he’d take responsibilityfor any injuries – while Botham refused toaccompany us on inspections and keptteasing Gatting.The ground was gradually drying outunder the sun, and, having taken an earlylunch, my colleague Roy Palmer and Idecided on a 2pm start. Botham was furiouswith us, but we ignored him and stuck to ourguns. Play started and very quicklyEdmonds and Emburey skittled VivRichards, Botham and the rest of theSomerset batsmen cheaply, leaving the hoststo score around 130 to win.Botham refused to speak to Roy and me,but Somerset then bowled Middlesex out forless than 100 and won the match. Bothamwas ecstatic with the result and, as we leftthe field, he told us that Roy and I had gonefrom poor to satisfactory in his book...3) c) Immediately call “Over”. Themiscount can’t be rectified – and it shouldnever have happened. It’s vital that youagree with your colleague before the starthow you will both keep count. It used to bethe norm to signal between you after thefifth delivery, but it is now becominginternationally agreed to signal after fourballs as this gives you more time to make acorrection in the case of miscounting49. Ravi Bopara:John Holder’s verdict1) Whichever batsman was nearest to thewicket at the instant that it was broken isgiven out Run out on appeal. So if they hadcrossed originally and had not crossed againbefore the wicket was put down, and the starman was nearer to that wicket, he is run out.Thanks to Bryan Livermore.2) You cannot let the bowler try to dictateplay in this way: if a batsman refuses toleave the field after being given out or ateam refuses to take the field, thatconstitutes a refusal to play. Tell the batsmanhis action will result in that team forfeitingthe match, which will be awarded to theopposition. That should focus his mind.Thanks to Dan Fleming.3) The striker’s end umpire will call andsignal No ball because the bowler threw theball. The bowler’s end umpire will thenrepeat the No ball signal to the scorers.Finally, the striker’s end umpire will givethe striker out Run out. The ball will notcount in the over – but in thesecircumstances, a batsman can be given outeven from a No ball. The bowler’s quickthinking is rewarded.The guardian website often supportsthe book, if you’re interested by thetwo strips above then werecommend buying the book orheading over to the following linkhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/series/you-are-the-umpiree-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 5 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Classification, Grading and ECB& MCCA Panel AppointmentsOnce again, complete submissions have been received from every County ACO, and each of the County Performance and AppointmentsOfficers has received a detailed analysis of his/her ACO returns with an overall summary from a national perspective.6,741 umpires have been graded, an increase of 5.3% on the 6,400 graded in 2012 – so we continue with the upward trend of‘knowing more about our membership and what they are actually doing in terms of officiating’ - which is good!Of the 6,400 umpires graded, 2,321 or 34% apparently stood in fewer than 6 matches in the 2012 season and are therefore considered,from a grading perspective, to be inactive. On the face of it this is not so good, but as always it probably only tells half a storyand may not accurately reflect the number of members standing at club level and not receiving appointments from their ACO.What is worrying is that the number of apparently inactive umpires has increased by more than 500 in 2012.We have asked ACOs to try to connect with those members listed as ACO members whom they never appoint and we would similarlyask these members (and they will all have received this newsletter and will be reading this….) to connect with their ACO and letthem know what their current officiating duties entail. In this respect, well done to Devon. (See page 21)Members who want to know their individual grade should contact their ACO Performance Officer: and anybody who would like tosee the detailed analysis and summary document is invited to write to Saira Baker at Lord’s - Saira.Baker@ecb.co.uk – and it can bee-mailed back.Many thanks go to Les Clemenson, South & West RAO, who completed the statistical analysis.Below is a table of the national result and two graphs that show the total numbers of umpires in each grade, as submitted, brokendown county by county.Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 3 Grade 4 Grade 5 Grade 6 TotalNo % No % No % No % No % No %2011 751 15 833 16 806 16 567 11 961 19 1178 23 50962012 751 12 974 15 952 15 637 10 1188 19 1897 30 63992013 762 11 946 14 945 14 524 8 1240 18 2321 34 67419080706050403020100706050403020100BedfordBerksBedfordBerksBucksCambridgeCheshireCornwallCumbriaDerbyDevonDorsetDurhamEssexGlos*HantsHerefordHertfordBucksCambridgeCheshireCornwallCumbriaDerbyDevonDorsetDurhamEssexGlosHantsHerefordHertfordHuntsIsle of WightKentLancsLeicesterLincolnMiddxNorfolkNorthantsNorthumbNottinghamOxfordShropshireSomersetStaffordSuffolkSurreySussexWalesWarwickWiltsWorcesterYorkshire% All Umpires G1-3% All Umpires G3-6HuntsIsle of WightKentLancsLeicesterLincolnMiddxNorfolkNorthantsNorthumbNottinghamOxfordShropshireCareer OpportunitiesSomersetStaffordSuffolkSurreySussexWalesWarwickWiltsWorcesterYorkshireThese roles have been created by the ECB to centre around the Membership and Database management at the ECB offices in Edgbaston- and will encompass working with the Coaches Association, the England supporters' 'TwelthMan', and our own ACO... all are full-timepositions;• ECB Education & Training Officer• ECB Customer Service & Administration Manager• ECB Membership Services ManagerFurther details can be found on the ECB web site.– salary £32,000pa– salary £27,000pa– salary £27,000paTo apply, please email a covering letter and CV to fiona.murray@ecb.co.uk - and for any further information about the roles please contactNick Cousins on 07827254970 or Tim Lumb on 07920581388.%%%% %%e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 6 contact us on 0121 446 2710

ECB Full First-Class List 2013Rob Bailey Jeff Evans Richard Illingworth David MillnsNeil Bainton Steve Gale Trevor Jesty Steve O’ShaughnessyMark Benson Steve Garratt Richard Kettleborough Tim RobinsonMartin Bodenham Michael Gough Nigel Llong Martin SaggersNick Cook Ian Gould Jeremy Lloyds George SharpNigel Cowley Peter Hartley Neil Mallender Peter WilleyECB Reserve List 2013Paul Baldwin Ben Debenham Graham Lloyd Alex WharfMike Burns Mark Eggleston Paul PollardIsmail Dawood Russell Evans Billy TaylorMinor Counties PanelJohn Attridge John Attridge Stephen Bishopp Tim BostonRay Burn Geoff Callaway Keith Coburn Trevor CoxAlistair Davies Albert D’Leny Martin Dobbs John DyeBob Eagleton Vernon Fallows Ken Fergusson Andy ForwardPeter Gardner Jonathon Glynn David Gower Mark GumbleyBob Hampshire Anthony Harris Andrew Hicks Chris JonesSteve Lavis Steve Malone Steve Massingham Philip MattenRay Medland Robert Newham Paul Nicholls Garry ParkerDean Price Charlie Puckett Mansoor Qureshi Ian RoyleAlasdair Shaikh Mick Southerton Duncan Warburton Ian WarneMatti Watton Chris Watts Nick Wheatley John WheelerMark WilliamsD Grade ListJim Anning Ian Armitage John Attridge Alan BayleyJeremy Beckwith Stephen Bishopp Ian Blackwell Ray BurnTerry Burstow Alan Clarke Keith Coburn Roy CollinsJonathan Cousins Trevor Cox Alistair Davies Martin DobbsBob Eagleton Hughie Evans Vernon Fallows Kenneth FergussonHarry Fidler Andy Forward Roy Froggatt Peter GardnerRoger Garland Jonathon Glynn David Gower Mark GumbleyGraeme Hall Lyn Hall Nick Hall Bob HampshireAnthony Harris Andy Hicks Keir Hopley Brian JonesChris Jones Ian Laurence Keith Little Tom LungleySteve Malone Gary Marshall Philip Matten Mick NewallRobert Newham Paul Nicholls Bob Owen Garry ParkerAlan Payne Dean Price Dennis Pyke Mansoor QureshiJohn Reed Trevor Riley Niven Roper Steve RossAlan Salkeld Bill Smith Mick Southerton Paul SparshottRoger Tolchard Duncan Warburton Ian Ward Russell WarrenChris Watts Matti Watton John Wheeler Mark WilliamsGeorge WoodECB ACOEducationProgrammesIt is good news that requests are being received for clubnights and computer scoring. As mentioned by GavinLane on page 21, many of these people then “get thebug” and progress to become either umpires or scorers.As part of its commitment to providing a pathwayfrom “playground to Test arena” ECB ACO has an educationprogramme for both scorers and umpires.This starts with a short stand-alone introductorycourse lasting 2-4 hours for both scorers and umpires.The scoring course gives an overview of how to score acontinued on page 9This is a photo of the Level3 cohort at Reading three years ago this month;nine of them on what was just about our first course at this level – so, watch forthe next issue, when we tell you how they have all fared since.e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 7 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Who’s The Umpire – Progress is made withthe provision of an ECB ACO National LicenceOver the last two summers, appointments website WhosTheUmpire.com (known as “WTU”) hasbeen employed by ECB ACO, County ACOs and Leagues, to manage the recruitment, developmentand appointment of Umpires and Scorers to cricket throughout England and Wales.ECB ACO Board are delighted to announce,with ECB’s support, that we have committeda significant sum to acquire a national licencedue to the importance it attaches to a comprehensive,secure, open and transparent vehiclefor the management of cricket officials,which is available to all ECB ACO members.The Board’s target is to have all appointmentsfor its members managed by WTUwithin the next three years.Roger Knight, ECB ACO Chairman, expressedhis delight at the agreement saying“This is a real breakthrough for the ACO andthe umpiring community in the UK. We lookforward to welcoming more County ACO sand more Leagues on board with WTU toreap the benefits of a system that is extremelyuser friendly. The Board has set avery ambitious target, but I am confident thatit can be reached if we can get the messageout that this will save users so much time andmoney.”What is WTU?WTU is a secure, online database that givesadministrators of cricket officials easy access,where authorised, to all the informationthey require to successfully appoint and managetheir officials and games.Tell me more…Wiltshire ACO were the first users in 2010,quickly followed by Bristol & WesternCounties ACU&S. West of England PremierLeague appointer Les Clemenson also usedWTU to manage appointments throughoutthe four areas that make up WEPL.In 2011, ECB ACO reviewed WTU atLord’s and decided to trial the website atboth national and regional levels, also includingmultiple other ACOs to investigate howthe database would cope with multi-organisationscenarios.WTU particularly proved its benefits inmanaging cross-border appointments andalso formalising the collection of feedbackforms from teams, umpires and observerswhich are now securely entered online.Following positive feedback from users ofthe system, other ACOs and leagues wereencouraged to adopt WhosTheUmpire.comin 2012 (see Ed.11, page 20) to help easethe administrative burden of appointers andmanagers.The increased usage throughout 2012had been watched closely by ECB ACO toappreciate how ACOs and leagues havebenefitted from using WTU. ECB ACOwere satisfied that all ACOs and leaguesthroughout the country would greatly benefitfrom its use. Therefore, throughout thewinter ECB ACO, in conjunction with ECB,actively negotiated a three-year nationwidelicence with officialsforsport.com and aredelighted to report that an agreement wasreached. The three-year licence took effectfrom 1 st January 2013.This means that every group (ACO orleague) in England and Wales can nowmake use of the service via ECB ACO’scentral licence.What does this mean for me,the Umpire/Scorer?If your ACO/league uses WTU, thenthroughout the season all your appointmentsinformation will be held in one easily accessibleplace. You will be able to provide andupdate your availability throughout the seasonensuring that you will only be appointedto games for which you are available. Youwill also be able to see, in the interest of fairnessand transparency, who is appointed toany fixture.WTU will send you an email or text (dependingon your preference) to notify you ofyour appointment to a match. This messageallows you to either accept or decline the appointmentwith a single click. The informationreceived will include directions fromyour home address to the match venue andwill allow you to view the others involvedwith your fixture (e.g. colleagues, assessors)with contact information. If your ACO/league takes advantage of the option for onlinereporting, then all your reports will alsobe available for you to view online.Basically, WTU provides a central, easyto-useand secure online system for recordingall your appointments and reports.It is important to note that WTU does notmake appointments or manage officials. It isa tool that makes this job easier for yourappointers!How do I use it?WTU is entirely internetbased so canbe accessed frompcs; laptops andsmart phones.Therefore you canlook at the informationfrom whereveryou are, 24 hours a day, 7 daysa week.If an official does not haveaccess to email or mobilephones, then WTU uses a“buddy” system whereby acolleague/ friend/relation canreceive the information on your behalf.How will ECB ACO supportthose inexperienced users?The vast majority of umpires will only be requiredto do three things on WTU.Firstly to log on, which requires you to set upyour own password. Secondly, to keep an updatedcalendar so your appointers knowwhen you’re available. Finally, you will needto accept or decline your appointments.We have made these processes very simple tofollow and there are detailed user-guides thatwalk through the process step by step. Thesecan be found on both ECB ACO (www.ecb.co.uk/ecbaco) and WTU (www.whostheumpire.com/ecb)websites.For anyone who is unable to get through theprocess we will provide telephone support,but in the first instance please contact yourCounty Appointments Officer.Are my personal detailssecure?Details of all ECB ACO members havebeen loaded onto WhosTheUmpire.comcomplete with your current grades. Allusers have complete control over theamount of personal data that is available forothers to view.WhosTheUmpire.com is registered in accordancewith the Data Protection Act andall data is stored within the UK at secureand professional hosting facilities. Thee-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 8 contact us on 0121 446 2710

website uses ‘https’, therefore all data isencrypted.Passwords are known only to the individualmember and WTU can only “recognise”you by your email address.Access to data and reports is controlledby “permissions” that can only be grantedby an authorised ACO Officer or leaguemanager.What are the benefits toECB ACO?ECB ACO’s overall objective is to ensurethat every umpire gets an equal and fair opportunityto umpire at the highest level theirdesire and ability allows. Training, appointmentsand development are inextricablyinter-linked to enable us to achieve this.Looking forward in the future, umpireswill be required to demonstrate where theyhave been appointed. Umpires will be expectedto show how they have used their appointmentsto self-improve and to collectreports from captains and ACO observersand officials which together demonstratetheir performance.As we move forwards it should be anticipatedthat WTU will be the place wheremost, if not all, of this information is collectedand collated. This will enable us toprovide everyone with the information theyneed to help them develop themselves.What are the benefits to mycounty association?The facilities in WTU will help reduce thecost and hopefully make life easier for officersin local associations. By having availabilitycalendars on line, that can regularlybe kept up to date, we remove the need forpaper versions of these to be posted. Bysending out appointments electronically wereduce post and speed up the process for notifyingumpires where their services areneeded.Appointments Officers will be able todeal with last-minute changes quickly becausethey will know who is available.When online forms, such as pitch markingand captains’ report forms, are required theywill be available immediately and withoutthe need for post.In short, WTU can be used for the followingby local associations or leagues:• Manage meetings and send out invitations,agendas, etc• Communicate via email with selectedgroups of members• Automatically notify teams of who theirumpires will be• Input and process feedback forms onlinetherefore saving on postage costsOk so what next?All that is needed next is for your ACO orLeague representative to input your fixturesand then start appointing!ECB ACO is aware that WTU can beused for much more and therefore further developmentsand upgrades will be made availableand implemented where necessary.Our Invitation…If any organisation would like touse, or trial,WhosTheUmpire.complease contact Ben Francis atECB.ACO@ecb.co.ukThe most important thing toremember is that as a result ofECB ACO’s nationwide licence,your County Association/League can now use WTU forFREE! However, any leagueadopting it will be expected inreturn to do so in close liaisonwith its local ACO(s).Further information on thebenefits, and how to getstarted, can be found atwww.whostheumpire.com/ecbWho’s The Umpire contactdetails:info@whostheumpire.com,01362 692948,www.whostheumpire.comECB ACO Education Programmescontinued from page 7match while the umpiring course covers thebasic Laws of the game. No prior knowledgeis required for either course and bothare designed to introduce anyone with aninterest in cricket (particularly players, captains,parents and coaches) to officiating.Those who do “get the bug” can thenproceed to the Level 1 courses. Both lasting12-16 hours they provide umpires withdetails of the key Laws and basic techniquesof match management, and scorerswith knowledge of scoring symbols, umpiresignals, some key Laws and how tocomplete a scorebook.For those who wish to progress furtherthere is the Level 1a course which is a facilitator-ledparticipative programme whichintroduces umpires to self-appraisal and anunderstanding of the game beyond justknowledge of the Laws, and for scorersthere is the practical application of actuallyrecording a minimum of ten matches. Bothcourses build on the knowledge and skillsgained from the Level 1 course.Both pathways then progress throughLevel 2 for aspiring Premier League umpires,and Level 3 for aspiring multi-daycricket umpires.But this is not necessarily the end of theprogramme for those who have no wish toprogress to Premier League and beyond.As part of its commitment to “Educationfor all”, ECB ACO also has a suite ofcontinuous professional developmentcourses (CPD) for those members who donot aspire to officiate in higher grades ofcricket but nevertheless wish to developand improve their own performance. Forboth umpires and scorers this would startwith the Level 2c (the suffix “c” as it is organisedwithin the counties as opposed tothe Level 2 which is organised regionally).Both the umpires and scorers courses consistof six modules lasting a total of 12-16hours. The umpires’ course covers subjectssuch as preparation and planning for amatch, team work, observation and communicationand consistency of decisionmaking. For scorers the subjects coveredinclude interpretation of Law, other methodsof scoring, working with a colleague,statistics and different competition regulations.Scorers can also benefit from specifictopic courses covering Duckworth/Lewis, linear scoring and computer scoringusing TCS.All the CPD courses are organisedwithin the counties and anybody wishing toenrol for them should contact their CountyEducation Officer (if unknown to youplease visit the directory on the ECB ACOwebsite). Successful completion of thecourse will lead to the award of an appropriatecertificate.Officials who complete the Level 2c foreither umpiring or scoring may be able toconvert it to the full Level 2 at a later dateif they meet the criteria for that programme.So, whether umpire or scorer, whetheraspiring to First Class or even internationallevel or content with your local club, ECBACO can offer something to help all officialsto develop and become the best officialthey possibly can be.e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 9 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Blind Cricket T20 World CupPaul Richardson was the ECB ACO/BCEW representative officiating at the recent T20 Blind World Cup CricketTournament for the Blind. Here Paul gives his views on both the tournament and more generally on this trulyremarkable form of the game.When ‘time’ was called at 3pm on Thursday13 December, it not only signalled the endof the first T20 World Cup tournament forthe blind and a home victory for Indiawhich sparked wild scenes of jubilation forthe thousands of supporters present, it alsomarked the end of a truly incrediblecompetition.Held in Bangalore, the Blind Cricket T20World Cup was without doubt anunprecedented success showcasing the verybest talent in Visual Impaired (VI) cricket.Each match was played in typicalinternational spirit, in the most competitivemanner, without any quarter being askedfor, or given. It must be stressed, however,that the matches were played in atraditionally sporting way, which was verymuch due to the common bond between allplayers, management and officials. Aboveall, the dedication and team spirit shown byall teams was truly exceptional asconsistently evident by the vocal support,encouragement and communication betweenthe players on the field.Nine countries competed – Australia,Bangladesh, England, India, Nepal,Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and theWest Indies - initially in a round-robingroup format, with each team playing oneanother. The top four teams then proceededto the knock-out semi-finals and the winnersthen played in the final.The group games were played at twogrounds – the Central College Groundsituated in central Bangalore and the AdityaGlobal Sports Ground in Nellamangala whichwas situated about 40kms from the city.For 10 consecutive days, four matcheswere played each day – two at each groundwith one in the morning and the otherfollowing in the afternoon – thus one teamhad a ‘rest’ day. Officials were suppliedfrom England, South Africa, Pakistan, SriLanka, West Indies and India with theumpires standing in one game each day,with no rest days!India and Pakistan VI teams areConducting the tossprofessional teams and were very muchpre-tournament favourites, so it was nosurprise the final paired these two giantsof blind cricket.England started slowly – facing India andPakistan in their first two games andalthough putting up a strong show weresoundly beaten. England, somewhatsurprisingly, lost to Sri Lanka in the thirdgame and then had to be content with a pointfrom a washed-out match againstBangladesh. England then got into theirstride and beat South Africa, Nepal, andAustralia – in the game of the tournamentwinning in the last over – and finallyovercoming the West Indies to meet Pakistanin one of the semi-finals.Unfortunately, Pakistan proved just toostrong but England came out of thetournament having met their targets andwith a glimpse of what could be achieved inthe future.When not umpiring, I spent a lot of timewatching the other matches and over thetwo weeks I spoke with a number of thespectators and sponsors who wereastounded not only by the enthusiasm of theplayers, but by the standard and quality ofthe play - when you see a bowler deliveringan under-arm delivery at a speed not farremoved from red ball medium pace,smashed through the covers towards theboundary, fielded on the ropes by a slidingfielder and returned over the top of thestumps to the keeper, it is hard to imaginethat this has been achieved by players withsuch profound visual impairment.There are two different codes of VIcricket, one is domestic cricket and the otheris the international game. The domestic gameis played with a bigger ball – a size 3 footballwith bowling over-arm. The internationalgame is played with a ball which is the samesize as a normal cricket ball and the bowlingis under-arm. Small ball VI cricket issignificantly different from its big ballbrother: small ball VI cricket is fast, and itrequires a greater skill level. Those playing itare the best VI cricketers and this usuallyalso means their spatial awareness is betterthan the majority of VI individuals.Both forms of VI cricket are a delight toumpire, with impassioned players striving toplay highly competitive matches, the qualityof cricket is fantastically high given thechallenges the players are working around,and the organisation at this level is alsoexcellent.It was my first experience of umpiring amajor tournament and also umpiring in thePaul Richardson leftsub- continent. Each umpire was appointedfor the group games with the only regulationbeing that an umpire could not stand in amatch involving his own nation. This meantthat I umpired matches involving all the othercountries and stood with colleagues fromPakistan, India and an old friend from the2012 Blind Ashes series – Michael Clemensfrom Australia.Once the group-stage was completed, theorganising committee then selected theofficials for the semi-finals and for the finalitself. I was very fortunate and extremelyhonoured to be selected for the Semi final(India v Sri Lanka) and then with ourAustralian friend for the final.The final was unbelievable with around5,000 in attendance at the ground, live TVpictures going to 50 countries and thepredictable frenzy and excitement of an Indiav Pakistan match.Umpiring in the sub-continent had anumber of challenges, notably the heat (andsubsequent hydration problems) but also interms of the light. The ball used was a whiteball which was very difficult to see especiallyin the late afternoon when the sun started togo down.All in all it was a great learning experienceand one I will never forget. For those ECBACO members who have yet to eitherwitness or indeed officiate in VI cricket, Iwould strongly urge you to get involved. It isa truly humbling, remarkable and enjoyableform of the game. In addition, it alsodevelops a number areas of our work,notably, the variations in regulations requirevery high concentration levels, verbalcommunication needs to be absolutely clearand concise, and as for gaining experiencewith runners, what better way than havingtwo B1 batsmen and their respective runnersout in the middle at the same time?I would recommend VI cricket to anyACO member.Paul Richardsone-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 10 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Laws – queriesAlthough previously mentioned, Steven Finn continues to be the main topic of conversation in the ‘Law-queries’section, as he continues to dislodge the bails at the non-striker’s end. Speaking to the MCC, the Law is currently“under consideration by both organisations”. We will let you know in future newsletters of any developments.Another incident that has been flagged up in recent weeks took place in the much-talked about Big Bash. Theincident below took place on 21st January and is taken from the MCC website. We would be interested to knowyour thoughts…Kane Richardson treading on his stumps in the BigBash League clash between Adelaide Strikers andPerth Scorchers threw up a complicated pointsurrounding appeals.Australian batsman Richardson accidentally trodon his stumps when playing a shot to the leg-side off the bowling ofNathan Coulter-Nile, removing the bails in the process - a factilluminated by the BBL’s innovation which sees the bails flash redwhen disturbed.However, despite Richardson’s actions satisfying Law 35 (Hitwicket) nobody appeared to have noticed the stumps being brokenduring the stroke and the batsmen set off for a run. This was quicklyratified though, as, after a replay was shown, the umpires assessedthe decision and Richardson was given out.He had not reached the edge of the playing area however, beforeScorchers captain Simon Katich - after consulting with the umpires- called him back, to the delight of the home crowd. Katich latersaid that his team had not appealed for the dismissal, and that hadled him to offer the batsman a reprieve.Richardson continued his innings, making 20, but the Strikerswere already struggling in their chase prior to the non-dismissal,and eventually subsided to a crushing 98-run defeat, knocking themout of the competition.without an appeal having been made.”This may have surprised even some hardened cricket enthusiastswho are used to assuming that, for instance, when a batsman isclean bowled, the stumps sent cartwheeling, the bowler would nothave to turn and implore the umpire to raise his finger.Centuries of cricketing convention have dictated this, but thereare instances where people being bowled is less clear-cut, i.e. whereit’s unclear whether the ball or wicket-keeper, stood up to thestumps, disturbed the bails. An appeal may always be necessaryregardless of the mode of dismissal.It is also important to clarify that a batsman may be out - but notdismissed. The absence of an appeal when a batsman is, say, hit onthe pads plumb-in-front of the wicket, or, as happens occasionally inTest cricket, gets a thin edge behind, would lead to them being out,under the definition of Law 36.1.However, unless the batsman walked in this instance, they wouldnot be dismissed as the fielding team did not appeal for the wicket.Appeal confusionThe incident was confusing and did not appear to have been fullyreached using the Laws of the game – though without knowingexactly what was said between Katich and the umpires we areunable to draw a definite conclusion from this specific event.However, it did raise two interesting aspects from the Laws.Firstly, the nature of appeals and Law 27. Law 27.1 reads: “Neitherumpire shall give a batsman out, even though he may be out underthe Laws, unless appealed to by a fielder. This shall not debar abatsman who is out under any of the Laws from leaving his wicketKane Richardson waits for a review by the umpires before beinggiven out during the Big Bash League match between the AdelaideStrikers and the Perth ScorchersAfter being given out Kane Richardson of Adelaide is recalled tothe pitch by Scorchers captain Simon Katich after consultation withthe umpires.e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 11 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Laws – queries (continued)If only they’d sat a Level 1 course….How many times have you watched First-Class cricket and thoughtthat? Countless I bet… well we want to compile a list of incidentsto aid our quest to convince First-Class Counties that their playersshould sit a Level 1 Umpiring Course.To get the ball rolling we’ll start with the incident mentionedseveral times in this publication involving Jonny Bairstow duringEngland’s second Test match vs. India this winter.Bairstow’s incident when he played across the line to Ojha andthe leading edge flew to Gautam Gambhir at silly point. Gambhirpouched the offering at the second attempt but replays showed theball thudded into his chest and lodged under the grille of his helmetbefore falling out and landing in his palms.Bairstow tucked his bat under his arm and walked beforeumpires Tony Hill and Aleem Dar could make a decision. As we allknow and according to the laws of the game, he would not havebeen given out, since the ball hit a fielder's helmet. Law 32.3clearly states: "The act of making the catch shall start from the timewhen the ball in flight comes into contact with some part of afielder's person other than a protective helmet and shall end when afielder obtains complete control both over the ball and over his ownJonny Bairstowmovement. However, it shall not be a fair catch if the ball haspreviously touched a protective helmet worn by a fielder. The ballwill then remain in play."Continued on page 13MCC introduces newNo ball LawThe MCC Committee has announced that, from 1 October 2013, thebowler breaking the stumps during the act of delivery shall be called aNo ball.MCC has decided to introduce the new Law - following the latestmeeting of its Committee on Wednesday 20 February - after severalrecent incidents involving England’s Steven Finn repeatedly breakingthe wicket at the bowler’s end during his delivery stride.The Laws are currently silent on this issue, although Law23.4(b)(vi) allows the umpire to call and signal Dead ball if the strikeris distracted.The on-field umpires first ruled the disturbance of the stumps byFinn as a Dead ball during the second Test between England and SouthAfrica at Headingley in August 2012.Since then, there has been a great deal of debate on the subjectwithin MCC, by the ICC, and from the wider cricketing world, leadingto this announcement.MCC Head of Cricket, John Stephenson, said: “MCC continues toact as a robust Guardian of the Laws of Cricket, and must ensure thatit consults widely within the amateur and professional game beforemaking changes that will affect anyone who plays the game.“MCC’s decision today to make the breaking of the stumps duringthe act of delivery a No ball provides clarity to the situation and removesthe need for a subjective assessment to be made by the umpire asto whether the striker has been genuinely distracted or not.“It also ensures that the striker will still be credited with any runsthat he scores from the delivery, and will act as a significant disincentiveto the bowler from doing it.”The MCC Laws sub-committee – which includes former internationalumpire Simon Taufel and ICC Chief Executive David Richardson – andthe MCC Cricket committee have discussed the matter at length. Upontheir recommendations, the MCC Committee has amended the No ballLaw accordingly.The 2000 Code 5th Edition – 2013 of the Laws of Cricket will comeinto force on October 1 this year and will feature the new No ball Law.Finn responded in England’s final ODI against New Zealand inNapier by shortening his run up by seven or eight yards which meant heno longer started on the advertising slogan painted on the outfield. TheBreaking the stumps will become a No ballchange seems to have no impact on his pace as the ball, asusual, screamed through to wicket-keeper, Jos Buttler, standingat least a pitch-length back from the stumps.The cricket media have reported that Finn has been workingon this since before the last Ashes tour but had been resistantto implementing the change outside of practise. It nowseems he has found an antidote to prevent him knocking thestumps with his right knee.There may be a sense of déjà-vu among some of you whoremember a young pace bowler around 1973, with a long,lumbering run and heaving action, in the infancy of a Test careerwho frequently knocked the bails - Richard Hadlee.Hadlee was noted for dislodging the bails with his hand as hebowled close to the wicket – it seems no-one was ever distractedby that….e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 12 contact us on 0121 446 2710

If only they’d sat a Level 1 course…. continuedSimon Taufel, with David RichardsonBairstow made the mistake of walking off the field before thereplays came up and once the umpires called lunch, there was nochance of a return.Although we also know, that had the umpires had a clear viewof the incident, that Law 27.7 could have been applied.‘Law 27.7. Batsman leaving his wicket under amisapprehensionAn umpire shall intervene if satisfied that a batsman, not havingbeen given out, has left his wicket under a misapprehension thathe is out. The umpire intervening shall call and signal Dead ballto prevent any further action by the fielding side and shall recallthe batsman.’Over to you…..Richard Hadlee - New Zealand bowler Sir Richard Hadlee iscongratulated on his Knighthood by umpire David Shepherd atthe start of play on the first day of the 2nd Test match betweenEngland and New Zealand at Lord's Cricket Ground in London,21st June 1990.A Strange Dismissal - Do we expect the umpire to see it all?A talking point was the unusual dismissal of the Pakistani CaptainHafeez in the recent T20 international against South Africa. It wasthe fifteenth over and Pakistan were in command at 160 odd for 3with the captain leading from the front being about 80 not out fromabout 40 balls and using the crease masterfully to force off the frontand back foot in turn.Hafeez stood deep within his crease and played another crackingshot for four off the back foot; the runs were signalled and the commentatorswere effusive in their praise when it was noted andpointed out that a bail was onthe ground. It was a televisedinternational, so a third umpirewas in place with a TVreplay, and in short order itwas clear that Hafeez hadtouched his own wicket withhis back foot and dislodgedthe bail. He was duly givenout. No problem - the TV replaytriumphed again and justicewas seen to be done!Two questions arose.Firstly would we have expectedan international umpireto spot such a dismissal withoutthe need for a referral? InEngland batsman Dominic Corkacknowledges the crowd duringhis innings of 56 runs in the 4thTest match against the West Indiesat Old Trafford, Manchester onthe 30th July 1995.this particular incident perhaps‘Yes’ – the batsman haddemonstrated a propensity touse the full depth of the creaseso probably the umpire shouldhave been more alert to thepossibility of the player treadingon his stumps – and of course we are all taught to focus on thecompletion of the stroke before following the ball or the batsmenrunning when standing at the striker’s end…….but the reality is thatmost umpires in this more general circumstance would have followedthe ball and ‘missed’ the dislodgement – wouldn’t they? Certainlymany people will remember Dominic Cork having a similarmishap and then calmly picking up the bail, marking the crease linewith it and popping it back on the stumps without anybody else battingand eyelid – umpires or opponents! He went on to make a fiftyas well!So secondly, what is theprotocol in recreationalcricket if a similar incidentapparently or allegedly occurs?The evidence is there(bail on the ground), an appealhas been made, but forwhatever reason neither umpireactually ‘saw’ the dislodgement– incidentally therewas no wind in this hypotheticalsituation… Does one useinstinct – best judgement orsimply give it Not Out becauseyou have not ‘seen’ it?As always your views arewelcome – Should the umpirehave needed to refer? Whatwould you have done withoutthe benefit of a TV replay, orare you confident that youwould have seen all the relevantaction?Pakistan's captain MohammadHafeez kicks the wicket during theT20 cricket match between SouthAfrica and Pakistan at SuperSportPark in Centurion on March 3rde-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 13 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Friends AfarNow that this Newsletter reaches across the world by the electronic wizardry ofe-mail, web pages, and links through other sites – we welcome contributions from our‘European’ colleagues, and those ‘Overseas’ friends further afield in more tropical climes – sosend your club notes, personal stories, pictures of pavilions (and scoreboxes!), and anythingelse your colleagues would enjoy reading about.ICC Associate and Affiliate International Umpires PanelNeils Gunnar Bagh (Denmark), Ian Ramage (Scotland), Mark Hawthorne (Ireland) and Richard Smith (Ireland) are allEuropean umpires on the ICC A&A panel. In a different look at our ‘Friends Afar’, we asked Neils and Ian for theirexperiences to date.The first thing I noticed coming into thisworld was the difference in the setupsurrounding the matches, with matchreferees present or a telephone call awayand the emphasis on pct. I had a bit ofexperience in that area from the ICCEurope Elite Panel, but only for one-daycricket and being appointed to matches as amember of the A&A Panel, whether itsODIs or 4-day games in theIntercontinental Cup, is a step up and adifferent world, one that I would not havebeen exposed to had I not been selected forthe A&A Panel.The work on the field is not thatdifferent from what one is used to, someareas are actually easier; as for exampleplayers are generally well behaved, more sothan in domestic matches, but the scrutinyand the pressure is more intense. With aprofessional setup the expectations arehigher. But umpiring in a professionalenvironment improves your own game andwith increased knowledge and exposure toa higher level of cricket, greater selfconfidenceis also increased.The first question I am often asked as amember of the A&A Panel is about thetravel and visiting different countries.Funnily enough that is not what I rememberas there is seldom time to be a tourist assuch, and as these matches are rarely a oneoff,the most rewarding time, apart frombeing on the field of play, is actually thetime you spend with colleagues and othermembers of the pct. That is not to say thatyou can´t see things and experience thedifferent countries, but I´m often surprisedhow little of a country I actually get to seeeven though I am there for say 10 days.For an amateur like me, the biggest stepis/was to mentally enter a professionalworld. For many of our colleagues from theICC Elite and International Panels,umpiring is work, but it’s something, likethe rest of your game, to constantly workon. You never stop learning and hopefullyyou improve continually as well.Neils Gunnar BaghUmpiring for the International Cricket Council2012 was my fourth year on the ICC Associate and Affiliate International Umpires Panel and probably my best year sofar in terms of appointments and performance.The A & A Panel is one of three ICC Panels,sitting below the Elite and International Panels,and is considered to be the pinnacle forumpires from non-Test playing countries. A& A Panel umpires can stand in ODIs andT20s involving Associate countries, IntercontinentalCup matches and various high-profiletournaments such as the U19 World Cup andthe Women’s World Cup.In 2012 I was lucky enough to be appointedto several tournaments and seriesboth at home and in other parts of the cricketingworld.Shortly before our domestic season started,I spent two weeks in the UAE with colleaguesfrom the A & A and InternationalPanels officiating in the World T20 Qualifier.This involved 10 match days in 12 days andtwo matches per day at venues in Dubai, AbuDhabi and Sharjah – for me it meant 11 onfieldappointments and 8 as third umpire.Highlights for me were third umpiring thefinal under lights at the Dubai InternationalStadium and standing in a match with SimonTaufel who was there as our umpire mentor.I was appointed to the Scotland v Canadaseries in July but, unfortunately, last summer’sawful weather intervened and, for thesecond time in a row for me, not a ball wasbowled in the four-day match. This was reallydisappointing as there’s little opportunityfor multi-day cricket and it involves very differentchallenges to one-day matches. Wemanaged to play one of the two ODIs on thesecond reserve day thanks to a monumentaleffort by the guys at Ayr.I was delighted to get the chance to umpirea Test playing nation when Bangladesh visitedThe Netherlands to play the home sideand Scotland in three T20s in three days.This gave me the best seat in the house towatch another fantastic hundred from RichieBerrington and to witness first hand Scotland’sfirst win over a Test Country. On dayslike this, you reflect after the match thate-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 14 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Young OfficialsDeveloping cricket officials under the age of 25This feature of the ACO Newsletter is part of ECB’s drive to improve the opportunities available to young officials. Ifyou have any suggestions or anything you would like to be included then we would love to hear from you!A Tale of Two NewcomersECB ACO is delighted to congratulate all umpires who havebeen promoted to the D list or the MCCA panel – whatevertheir respective age or experience. But particularly we notewith great pleasure the promotion of Alasdair Shaikh fromSussex and John Wheeler from Gloucestershire who haveboth joined the MCCA panel at the respective ages of 25 and58 – and it is unashamedly because of their respective agesthat we highlight their achievement. ECB ACO is often accusedof ‘bias’ towards younger umpires and it is true thatNick was given a clear brief when he arrived to promoteYoung Officials and create a pathway for them to risethrough the ranks more quickly than had been possible in thepast. Therefore of course it is good to celebrate Alasdair’spromotion and it is hoped that this will be but the first ofmany such successful movements along that newly-createdpathway. But it is equally good to acknowledge that it isequally possible for more experienced (and older) colleaguesto achieve promotion to the D list and the MCCA panel andJohn in his fifteenth year of umpiring is a great example ofthis – so we salute them both and trust that their respectiveexamples show that it is not about age, it is about competenceand, as far as possible, appointing the best umpires tothe best games.Alasdair has come through the ECB ACO Young Officialsprogramme and, as the first Young Official to make itthrough to the top echelons of recreational cricket officiatingwe hope that he will serve as an inspiration and a role modelto others. He was a 4 th XI cricketer at Stowe School butscored for the 1st XI and was persuaded to think about umpiring.Back in his home county of Sussex he contacted alocal club in Eastbourne; took and passed the ACU&S GL6examination (one of the last cohort to so do), and started hisofficiating career under the tutelage of Terry Burstow, IanFarrell and Roger Garland. With their support and encouragementhe quickly moved into Sussex senior cricket and onto the Sussex Premier League Panel whilst continuing hisacademic studies by completing a law degree at Oxford.Aside from his officiating in Sussex, he joined the YoungOfficials Programme and among other appointments has officiatedat the MCCU T20 finals at Loughborough in each ofthe last two years and is working through the ECB ACOlevel 3 course.John lives near Bristol and is a member of GloucestershireACO and also Bristol & Western Counties ACU&S. 2013will be his 14th year of umpiring; having completed hisACU&S qualifications at the end of 2002, he is also workingthrough the Level 3 course. John has always loved cricket,but a promising playing career (he was school captain and selectedfor Wiltshire Schools) was effectively ended by a nastyback injury when he was only 18. After that it was alwayshis intention to take up umpiring, but family and church commitmentsmeant that for many years nothing happened. Thenin 1998 his son was playing in a Somerset Under-14s trial butonly one umpire showed up, and he stood at Striker’s Endthroughout the match. He told his colleague that he had alwayswanted to umpire - and discovered him to be the thenSomerset training officer. So he started his training a fewweeks later at the County Ground in Taunton, and the rest, asthey say, is history!Once qualified, he gradually found that he was being appointedto games at higher levels in the West of England PremierLeague pyramid, and was pleased to be asked to join thePremier League panel at its inception a few years ago .In2011 he was invited to join the D List and he has enjoyed afew appointments at MCC, University and County 2nd XIlevel. Like Alasdair he is thrilled to be a new member of theMinor Counties Panel for 2013, and is really looking forwardto the season.We wish them both well.Nick CousinsAlasdair ShaikhJohn Wheelere-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 16 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Gough’s Top TipThe youngest umpire on the ECB Full ListThe cricket season is nearly upon us and now is an important time toprepare and get yourself into good shape for a successful season.Now is a good time to have a read through of the Laws of Cricket andalso take time to familiarise yourself with the competition regulations.Don’t be afraid to ask for help and advice in the build-up to thesummer regarding Law and Regulations if you are unsure. It isimportant that you go into the summer with confidence knowing thatyou have prepared well. Set aside some time for your physical wellbeingalso whether it be cycling, walking, jogging or swimming. Theremay be (hopefully) some warm days ahead and being in goodphysical condition will help you to concentrate for longer periods.Good luck and enjoy!The following dates for Young Officialsappointments have been confirmed:Monday 8 th July – Friday 12 th JulySt Peters Festival, York MCC, Lancashire, Yorkshire,Durham +2Sunday 28 th July (6pm) –Friday 2 nd AugustLondon Schools Festival, Bedford (Under 15s)Sunday 4 th August – Thursday 8 th AugustLondon Schools Festival, Bedford (Under 12s)Monday 5 th August – Thursday 8 th AugustNotts Youth Festival (U12-U15s)Monday 12 August 2013Boys U15 National Club Championship – ShrewsburyTuesday & Wednesday 13 th &14 th AugustNotts Youth FestivalWednesday 14 – Friday 16 August 2013Boys U13 National Club Championship – ShrewsburyThursday 22 – Friday 23 August 2013Boys U15 County ‘A Division’ Cup – KibworthTuesday 27 August 2013Boys U15 County ‘B Division’ Cup – KibworthMessage to all keenYoung Officials….• If any young officials have any letters, opinions orinteresting stories they would like to share then do nothesitate to send them in and I will try to include them in thenext ‘Young Officials’ section.• If you are interested in joining the ECB ACO’s YoungOfficials project and having the chance to officiate atopportunities such as those above, then please email yourdetails, qualifications and experience toyodo.cricket@ecb.co.uk• Most of all… we wish you all the best and remember, theACO is here to support you!Email your details to yodo.cricket@ecb.co.uk60secondswitha YoungOfficialName: Jordan Montgomery-ElseAge: 16At the age of 31, Michael Goughis the youngest umpire on theECB 1st class list. At the NatWestPCA Awards Dinner beforeChristmas, Michael was namedas PCA umpire of the year.Somewhat belatedly, but no lesssincerely we are pleased to offerMichael our congratulations onthis excellent achievement.Leagues: Durham Cricket League, HettonLyons Sunday LeagueHow long have you been umpiring?I have been umpiring since the 2011 season.What qualifications have you taken?I have taken both ACO level 1 and level 1AcoursesHow has ECB ACO helped you?ECB ACO has helped by supporting me withmy umpiring and helping with any problemsI have come across in my time as an umpire.Also, being part of the young officials’programme has given me the chance toumpire at some great venues and make somegreat friends with similar interests.What do you like about umpiring?In every game I stand something differentalways happens and I like taking on thesechallenges. Also, the food at the tea breaks ispretty good.What challenges do you face whenumpiring?The main challenge for me is making suremy umpiring ability improves each game. IfI make a mistake I make sure that Iunderstand how or why and learn from it soas not to repeat the same mistake.Where do you see yourself in fiveyears?I would love to be an established umpire inthe North East Premier League who isrespected by my fellow colleagues and allcompeting teams.Any unusual umpiring experiences?I was once umpiring at a particularly smallground and we had to take a ten minutebreak in order to allow the fielding side tohop over the surrounding garden fences toretrieve the 7 match balls that had been hitout of bounds!e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 17 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Hidden talents –An Umpiring Historian Muses from the Field of PlayJohn Chartres retired as Professor of Social & EconomicHistory at the University of Leeds in the autumn of 2011; hehas umpired in the Airedale & Wharfedale Senior CricketLeague for a decade.Cricket and history are intimately linked,often through post-match joshing over Testtrivia. However, for a rural historian likemyself, the links between the past and thecricketing present are two-way, and sights,place names, and the journey to and fromeach match ask historical questions whichsometimes prove as challenging as those onthe field of play. I often find myself checkingout questions of club history, the namesof grounds, and the separation of groundand team name as the questions arise duringthe season. Why is this ground shaped likethis? Why does it have this name? Wherehas this team played before? Where didtheir former ground go? Such puzzles forme are elements of the culture of our game,and provide additional value to the delightsof the recreational game.My own club, Adel, shares with manygrounds the legacy of previous farmingland use. Its outfield contains the regularridges and furrows created by past ploughing.In our case, this was not the ridges ofmedieval ploughs, with their lazy ‘S’shapes, but those of wet moorland fringes,where the ridges were created to assist surfacedrainage. They are almost impossibleto eliminate, and in sunny summers hardento provide challenges to the fielders inbounce and roll as awkward as those ofcurling cut shots.It is also a memorial ground, and as weapproach the centenary of the First WorldWar, cricket’s commemoration of the lostteams of 1914-18 becomes all the morestriking. A large commemorative rock wasbrought by steam tractor and flat wagon tostand at the entrance after the War, with thegift of land to our trustees to mark the comingof peace, and a wooden pavilion fromthe defunct Creskeld club joined it in 1948,.Other clubs too have these memorials,though not always linked as directly:Calverley CC has a number of puzzlesfor the umpiring historian, in that itsname is formerly ‘Calverley St Wilfrids’,but it has no church origins; itstands in Victoria Park, but the cricketground predated the establishment of thepublic park; and it contains a prominentwar memorial added after 1919.Many clubs have business origins, morein my area, in the Bradford League and theDales Council. Sir Titus Salt’s RobertsPark is still the home to two clubs, Saltaireand Salts, land intended for the recreationof millworkers, but competitive cricketsoon became ‘open’. In my league, GreenLane CC started as a dyeworks team, withclosed membership, and many of the 115clubs that have played in the Dales Councilfrom its creation in 1956 have also hadtheir origins in firms. Many marked thechanging fortunes of British business intheir disappearance, often under housing.Green Lane’s origins are now marked by aroad called Cricketers Green, the club beingforced to move with the sale of the land in1973, and in the Dales Council, Smith’sSports, Ives Sports and Butterfields are nowhousing, Pool Paper Mills awaiting redevelopment,and Phoenix Park (English Electric)now the Leeds-Bradford Odeoncomplex. The business historian can thusmap the decline of smaller and family firmsfrom the cricket field.Cricket is an expensive user of land,and thus many grounds are tricky to find,and their histories indicate this. Bolton VillasCC are to be found off All Alone Road,and one of the Tong Park-Esholt grounds isLow Springs, with a tempting millpond locatedat ‘cow corner’. Illingworth CC, thethird of the umpire-testinggrounds in theleague, is one like manyin Yorkshire where, ifyou go wrong, you cansee the pitch withoutbeing able to reach it.More importantly, it lieson the edge of the Pennines,where flat landsare rare, and the originalground was dug flat bycollective effort around1906. Others aresqueezed in besideHeadingley county cricket groundrivers, land otherwise difficult to use, withobvious hazards in recent wet seasons, althoughmy favourite was Morton BanksCC, whose ground at East Riddlesden Hall(NT) lay in a near-oxbow of the River Aire,with third man all too aware of the watersbehind him: the home team were readyswimmers, but also had a box contraptionwith which they attempted to catch ballsfloating downstream. Many of our groundsare thus left on what historically have beenthe less wanted lands: even Headingley islocated on the site of several fields called‘Leaker’, poorly drained before the railwaycutting went through behind the site, andthus unsurprising in presenting a waterychallenge to umpire Dickie Bird.My summers thus mix my historical andleisure interests. Landmarks spotted duringthe walk between overs, or around theground before the start of play, the differentground conditions that relate to the previoushistory of the land, the hazards ofgames near rivers, from waterlogging to theswarms of midges coming, as in Ilkley, toconsume the umpire after tea, and groundssqueezed in between railways, mills, andhidden behind modern housing, all representhistorical evidence as well as the locationfor our greatest game.Harold Dickie Birde-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 18 contact us on 0121 446 2710

The worst over in the history of cricket and other awful ideas…We regularly read several publications and ‘The Spin’ by The Guardian writer Andy Bull is one of those. The latest editioncontained the article below which we thought would be of interest, and it makes Travis Birt in last year’s big bash (Edition13, Page 20) look a mere amateur….The “mad genius” line came to mind on Monday, as it was the anniversaryof the most hare-brained scheme ever concocted on acricket field. And there have been a few. Cricinfo has recently beenrunning a series on the most influential innovations the sport hasseen. So far, three lovely little essays have featured Gideon Haigh onthe leg glance, another on the switch hit from Ayaz Memon, and thelast on reverse swing, by Sidharth Monga. There’s a greater measureof genius than there is of madness in each of those.Flip that ratio around to find cricket’s worst innovations and youmight get a list that looks something like this:5) Dennis Lillee’s clunking aluminium bat (trade name: TheCombat – there’s a touch of genius in that, I’ll grant you), which reputedlyhad “no discernible sweet-spot” and caused such a stink thatit led to a change in the Laws.4) The Richie Benaud rule, which memorably scotched SouthAfrica’s chances of reaching the 1992 World Cup final when it tooka chase of 22 off 13 balls and, after a 12-minute rain break, andtransmogrified it into a target of 21 off one.3) The three-foot high boundary netting introduced by the MCCat Lord’s in 1900 to promote hitting shots along the ground. Truestory: if the ball reached the net, two runs were added to all the batsmenran. If the ball cleared it, the batsmen only got three runs intotal. Which meant that a lofted drive into the stands was worth lessthan an edge through the slips. Worse still, no one thought to cut ahole by the gate so that the incoming and outgoing batsmen couldget on or off the field.2) Sunil Gavaskar’s suggestion that the ICC should spice up ODImatches by introducing ‘Super Subs’, a wheeze which lasted all ofsix months, though it only took all of one match to spot that the teambatting second would automatically wring 10 overs out of theirNo11 then swap him for a specialist batsman.No1 though, a scheme so cunning that, as Blackadder would say,it was as cunning as a fox who has just been appointed Professor ofCunning at Oxford University, has to be the parachute-suit of a plandevised by Wellington on the final day of their Shell Shield matchagainst Canterbury at Christchurch on 21 February, 1990.If Wellington won the match, they would win the title too. Canterburywere chasing 291 in 59 overs, but by tea on the final afternoon,they were 108 for eight, and Wellington were worried the match waspetering out to a draw. So John Morrison, Wellington’s coach, andErv McSweeney, their captain, decided to lure Canterbury into tryingto win their match in the hope that the potential reward wouldencourage them to risk their last wickets. The best way to do this,they figured, was to bowl an over so bad that Canterbury would becompelled to cash in on it. Then Wellington would pull a rope-adope,and bring their best bowler back on just as the opposition werewithin sight of the win.Batsman Bert Vance was the hapless sap who was roped in tobowl, because, Morrison said afterwards, “he was coming to the endof his career and didn’t have averages to protect.”“The idea,” Morrison explained, was “to leave Canterbury about20 to get off the last over so that they might have a crack and throwaway their two wickets.” But “Bert overdid it somewhat. It’s fair tosay he embraced the instructions somewhat more than we imagined.”That was an understatement. Vance’s first delivery was a noball, delivered from two yards down the wicket. The batsman, LeeGermon, was so startled that he didn’t score off it. He did off thenext though, a full toss which he hit for four. Vance’s next 15 deliverieswere all no balls, which went for four, four, six, six, four, six,one, four, one, zero, six, six, six, six, and six.“He would just walk over the mark and toss up these no-ball fulltosses,”Morrison recalled. “It was a free slog to the batsmen, whogot fours and sixes in droves. It all got a bit chaotic. The scorers, theumpires and the players – it got to the point where none of them hada clue how many fair balls had been bowled or what the score was.It was an old-fashioned scoreboard, so there were boys running upand down ladders trying to keep up, but they were all over the place.Halfway through the over, no one knew what the hell was going onand I remember sitting on the side thinking, ‘Oh my God, we’regoing to throw this game away.’”Vance obviously had the same thought. His next two deliverieswere both legitimate, and he didn’t concede a run off either of them.Then there was another four, followed by one more dot and a singleto finish. There were 77 runs off the over, the last of them a littletwist of salt in the wound because it meant Germon would keep thestrike. He had scored 70 runs off the over, and took his score from75 to 145. Canterbury could have made even more, but in all theconfusion the umpires lost count and Vance got away with onlybowling five legitimate balls.Ewan Gray was left to bowl the last over. Canterbury needed 18from it to win the match, and Germon, his eye in, hit 17 from thefirst five deliveries. But the scoreboard was still kaput, with smokestreaming from the ears of the bamboozled scorers. Germon and hispartner Roger Ford, who had added just five runs to his own scorewhile his Germon had been busy making whoopee, were completelyoblivious to the fact that they only needed one run to win. So Fordblocked the final ball of the match, making it a draw with the scoresexactly level.“I nearly had heart failure when I learnt a little time after thegame that Canterbury only needed one to win and we had Vancebowling to a very leaky field,” Morrison explained. The over, themost expensive in the history of first-class cricket, was struck fromthe official records, though the ninth-wicket partnership of 182 isstill a record for the club. “I decided,” Morrison said ruefully, “thatthe tactic, while being innovative, was definitely a once-only.”ECB ACO would like to thank Andy for letting us reproduce hisarticle. You can receive ‘The Spin’ mailing by signing up online –http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/signup/2010/mar/30/1Dennis Lillee argues with Mike Brearley over the legality of Lillee'saluminium bat. Lillee eventually switched to a traditional woodenbat, Australia v England, 1st Test, Perth, December 1979Albert Trott tries to maintain some dignity as he clambers over theexperimental netting during the match between MCC andLeicestershire at Lord'se-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 19 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Best PracticeTHE CRICKET UMPIRES ANDSCORERS TRUSTReaders will recall that in Issue 14 (Autumn2012) of the newsletter there was an article aboutThe Cricket Umpires Scorers Trust (formerlyThe Association of Cricket Umpires and ScorersTrust) now being open to ECB ACO members,as well as members of the former ACU&S.Members may be interested to know that duringits recent financial year the Trust providedfinancial assistance totalling £2,100, comparedwith just £250 during its previous financial year.Although not in a position to provide longtermfinancial support, the Trust will be pleasedto hear from any individual going through adifficult, but temporary, low point in their life.Trustees cannot guarantee to meet every request,but all will be given consideration.Enquiries/requests for help or to donateshould, in the first instance, be addressed to:The Chairman, The Cricket Umpires and ScorersTrust, c/o JF Rushton, Accountant, The SaturnCentre, Spring Road, Ettingshall,Wolverhampton, WV4 6JX, oracustrust@yahoo.co.ukGloucestershireGloucestershire County Cricket League Chairman, Brian Hudson, istaking a proactive approach to increasing numbers of scorers andumpires that are appointed during the season.The following three points were announced and agreed at their winterAGM. Regarding ‘best practice’, this is certainly a method that we, as anAssociation, fully endorse.Point 1On a rolling 2-year basis Division 1teams (the current beneficiaries ofappointed officials) will need to sendone successful candidate to a Level 1Umpiring Course, or be deductedpoints. This approach will be extendedto Division 2 teams as soon as itbecomes clear that the next round ofrecruitment will enable umpires to beappointed to Division 2 matches...and soon through the divisionsPoint 2On a rolling 2-year basis Division 1teams will need to send one successfulcandidate to a Level 1 Scoring Course(to enable them to support the appointedumpires), or be deducted points. Thisapproach will be extended to Division 2teams as soon as it becomes clear thatthe next round of recruitment willenable umpires to be appointed toDivision 2 matches...and so on throughthe divisionsPoint 3To continually improve the quality ofplayer umpiring, on a rolling 2-yearbasis all teams not included in thedivisions above will need to send onecandidate to an Introduction to UmpiringCourse, or be deducted points.CornwallCornwall ACO’s committee meeting in Truro on 9th December was attended by South and West Regional Chairman, TonyHemmings, and ECB ACO Executive Officer for the South, Eddie Lunn. They were there to speak to the members on mattersdiscussed at the South & West Region Conference to which CACO was unable to send representatives and for Tony to make apresentation on behalf of ECB ACO to John Ford and Ron Fenton in recognition of their contributions to cricket in Cornwall overmore than forty years.John and Ron were delighted to receive their long service ties and assured everyone that they would wear them with much pride,on many occasions.Ron FentonRon started his playing career in Plymouth and played Club andservices cricket (RAF) until 1989 when he burnt his bat and startedUmpiring for his local team in Porthtowan, Cornwall.In 1994 he joined the Cornwall Umpires and stayed as a PanelUmpire until 2007 when ill health forced him to stop.In 2005 he joined the Cornwall Umpires Committee and becameTreasurer and Appointments Secretary.He remains theCACO Treasurer anddespite healthproblems he is one ofthe County’s topassessors and hisstraw hat is regularlyseen on the boundaryof one of Cornwall’scricket groundsJohn FordJohn started his association with cricket when he used to change thefigures on the scoreboard for Troon second team. In 1935, at the ageof 10, he was approached by the Troon second team Captain andasked if he would play as they were a man short, the game wasagainst Falmouth Docks X1. John played that game and fielded butdidn’t bat or bowl. The following week he was selected to playagain and soon became a regular in the side. He played on a regularbasis for Troon for the next 35 years.In 1971, afterhe had retiredfrom playing,John was invitedby Bill Bosanko,the Chairman ofthe CornwallUmpires, to jointhem and John didso thus starting aforty-one yearassociation withUmpiring.During his time as a member of the Cornwall UmpiresAssociation John became Treasurer, then Secretary and Chairman.He was also President of CCUA for 15 years as well as the Presidentof the Cornwall ACO.John joined the Minor Counties Panel and stood for 5 years untilhis work meant he had to retire from the Minor County scene but heremained a Panel Umpire for a number of years. He did most of hisUmpiring through the heyday of Troon’s Village Cup campaignsAfter representing the umpires on the League Committee for anumber of years he was elected as a life member of the CornwallLeague as well as a life member of the CCUA.John says he has enjoyed his 40 years as a member and willalways support umpires and he wishes them well in all that they do.He counts himself as fortunate to have made so many friendsthrough his umpiring career.e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 20 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Devon Association of Officials (DACO)A Christmas Grading Tale (see page 6 for gradings)It is a dark and windy and wet evening, the delights of summer andthe sound of leather on willow have long since faded, thoughts areturning to the season of goodwill and presents and family and logfires and warming mulled wine when the ghost of summer past appears:“Fear ye not but harken to do my bidding as swift as ye may,for my hunger is vast and my fury great”. So, on top of everythingelse and far more important than any other matter, despite the appallingweather and the floods and winter colds and chills, it is timefor “gradings”.The gradings of umpires has become an art form: it has been happeningfor some years. In DACO land (Devon), it was a closelyguarded secret that I only came to know about by happenstance. I attendeda county meeting as a “stand-in” and at this meeting it was announcedby the Education Officer that he had completed the annualumpires’ grading report and had sent it to ECB. I enquired what thiswas about and was politely informed that it merited no debate.I then became the Education Officer at short notice. Along withmany other matters, I discovered I was now responsible for “Captains’Marks on Umpires” and the annual grading return to ECB.Since that time, the grading methodology has altered and is now amuch simpler and clearer process – in theory! In practice, I quicklydiscovered that Devon had told ECB only about those umpires whostood in the top tiers of the Devon Cricket League – DACO is askedto appoint independent umpires to the Premier, A, B and C Divisions,40 umpires each weekend. Captains’ marks are processed by DACO.Thus, we know our umpires who stand in the Devon Cricket League– or do we? After all, with 75+ matches every Saturday over 150umpires and 150 scorers take part, in theory, and we know well just60 to 70!In recent years, DACO membership has been around 250 but ourgrading return has only catered for about 70 to 100 umpires, entirelydependent on the dedication and enthusiasm of the author of the report(me!). At the end of 2011, I decided to see if I could genuinelycater for more, even possibly all, DACO members.This not inconsiderable task needed serious assistance from theDevon Cricket League. Together we changed the result sheet used forall league matches to include the names of the standing umpires andsitting scorers. At this stage, I had not considered how to sift through75 or more result sheets every week for 18 weeks.The Devon Cricket Board have a website on which all matterscricket in Devon are portrayed – including “live” scores for cricketmatches and all the results. The “webmaster” was able to provide mewith a printout of all the data about umpires and scorers and, suddenly,I had data never before truly available.From this data source, I was able to “evidentially” grade all umpiresthat stood in Devon in the Devon Cricket League in the other 11divisions. I could do the same for scorers. My grading list for 2012was therefore more inclusive than any previous list, and revealed tome those members who had moved off the radar screen, from beingpanel umpires, to support their club 2 nd XI or other teams. More importantly,it made me realise just how many umpires and scorers performeach Saturday who are not members of DACO – 162 of themumpires! Not all these umpires stand every Saturday as some clubshave an umpiring roster. Meanwhile other clubs have no umpires orscorers at all.As a result of this exercise, DACO has a better understanding ofthe shape of its membership – the membership list is not particularlyhelpful in identifying a name as either an umpire or scorer or both – Ihappen to be both, so my number should be ACOxxxxUS (U = umpire,S = scorer and US does not mean “broken”!) Now we know farbetter who is an umpire, who is a scorer and which names we are notsure about. We have graded more accurately down to a lower levelthan ever before but this also means my little exercise now needs tobecome the norm, for continuity and to provide the correct service toour members. As an aside, the gradings process has re-ignited someindividuals to see if they can achieve a higher grade in 2013 – I considerthat to be brilliant!Also we have realised that many games only have one or no umpire,similarly with scorers, and just how many individuals who arenot members of the ACO. In addition, it is clear that a serious numberof individuals who officiate are untrained and that we need to beable to provide more available, flexible education. This latter point isquite interesting. ECB ACO educational courses are invaluable andpopular but they do not meet all requirements. There is a real need toshow people how to officiate “quickly” – be it scoring or umpiring. Amodified, tailored to suit, version of “An Introduction to …” is popularat club nights to encourage parents and others to have a go and thebiggest initiative is to get people scoring on a laptop or telephone ortablet – the demand to know is very real.What now? Requests for club nights and for computer scoring continueto roll in and this demand is good because many who “get thebug” then want to undertake umpire or scorer Level 1 courses. Thisall started as an exercise to assist me with grading our umpires better– and look at the fine mess it has landed me in!“And then the great ghost of summer past growled “Ye have beenidle these many years and so must toil and toil anew to placate mylusts and desires. Too many rains have dampened my fires and I amchilled by thy lack of data – give me more, give me more to restoremy rightful balance”. It is still dark and wet and windy but hey, itmust be time for beer!”Have a great 2013.Gavin Lane, DACO Education Officer(ED: In response to Gavin’s article above the Editor asked ECB ACOExecutive Officer, Glyn Pearson to comment on the established educationalprogramme – see page 7)Leicestershire and Rutland Umpires receive awardsLeicestershire and Rutland Association of Cricket Officials’ treasurer Richard Whateley-Knight [right] celebrated hisninetieth birthday in September. To mark the occasion, present and past committee members entertained him to dinnerat Southfield College where he was presented with a plaque, by L&R ACO president Dick Spires, commemorating themilestone and his services to the Association of Cricket Umpires and Scorers and the Association of Cricket Officialsover many years. Richard was re-elected treasurer at the recent ACO AGM for the thirty-third year.Leicestershire andRutland ACO memberDave Goodacre [right]receives his 40 year tiefor long service toACU&S and ACO fromL&R ACO PresidentDick SpiresECB ACO has been recognising its members who havegiven long service to umpiring in their counties.Leicestershire and Rutland President, Dick Spires[second from right back row], presented a 40 yearservice tie to Dave Goodacre [back row right] and 25year ties to Derek Jordan and Roy Rodwell [back rowleft] and Alan Jordan, Keith Towers and GordonHubbard [front left to right] at the Branch’s AGMrecently. Ian MacCleod and Ray Rowley also received25 year ties but were unable to be at the AGM.e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 21 contact us on 0121 446 2710

‘By-the-Byes’Australian Big BashAustralia’s BigBash continuesto be revolutionaryin theway it developsdifferent ideasto attract the viewing public each year, andthis year was no different.The 2012 tournament saw theintroduction of the Octocopter – ahelicopter with a camera strapped to it thattook the viewers closer to play than everbefore – and a camera in the umpire’s hat.This year they again breathed new lifeinto the tournament by using stumps thatflashed bright red when the bails weredislodged. The use of a camera in theumpire’s hat has also provided memorablefootage, such as Shane Warne’s run-in withWest Indian Marlon Samuels. It certainlykept us watching!Law changesNatWest CricketForce 2013(5th, 6th and 7th April)The 4 th Edition of 2000 Code of Laws isbeing updated, with a view to beingreleased as the 5 th Edition later this year.In the first update of the Laws since2010, there are a number of Laws that arealready at the drafting and rewriting stage.An example of the Laws underdiscussion is Law 17 (Practice on theField) A change was made in 2010 whichstated that bowlers would no longer beallowed to bowl the ball into the groundin preparation for starting their spell, as itwas felt that this could alter the conditionof the ball.However, this Law is now beingaltered. In future, bowlers will be allowedto deliver their practice balls into theground but there will be more scope forthe umpires to step in if they feel that theball is being damaged, deliberately or not,as a result of this Law change.ECB ACO is a keen supporter of NatWest CricketForce.We believe that it’s a great way to bring the cricket communitytogether. A weekend revamping a club pavilion, trimming theboundary hedge or even constructing a new score box are allvaluable hours put back into the game prior to the first ball ofthe season.NatWest CricketForce 2013 will take place on the 5th, 6th and 7th April, and thegood news is it’s still not too late to sign up!Bring your players, officials, members and community together to get your groundready for the season and improve team spirit. By signing up you can benefit from thefollowing...• Eligibility forthe JewsonPrivilegeAccountScheme whereyour club onlyneeds to pay£100 into aJewsonaccount andECB will add£400. There’sno catch, it’sthat simple.• Monthly competitions in the NWCF newsletters giving away fantastic prizesincluding flat sheet covers, boundary ropes and waterhogs.• The first 1,600 clubs to sign up get 30 free t-shirts each and with over 1,200 clubsalready registered you need to hurry!• Get exclusive deals on building materials, cricket equipment and groundsman’smachinery.• A host of online tools including posters, templates and logos for your club todownload to help plan for the event.Find out more and register at www.ecb.co.uk/natwestcricketforceECB ACO Membership CardWhen you received notification of your 2013membership you will have noticed, and ifyou hadn’t you’d have received a letter explaining,that this year there is no little plasticmembership card contained but just anotification of your membership status andnumber.The reason for this is that the ECB ACOBoard, following a recommendation fromthe Membership Services Committee, decidedto stop issuing cards from 2013.The reason for this is two-fold, andlinked:• The cards no longer serve any direct purpose.• Therefore the annual cost of circa £10,000a year to produce them is unjustified.I hope this is an understandable decision, butwe are a membership organisation and theBoard’s decision is based on membership‘feedback’ – so if you have a view, pleaseexpress it directly to your Regional MembershipServices representative (Contact detailscan be found in the ECB ACO Directory onthe web site).(Ed: Your membership number will have alsobeen included within the confirmationcorrespondence. In the spirit of openness andtransparency we have copied two conflictingreplies below:Douglas Miller, of Buckinghamshireemailed “Hooray! Well done, so many organisationshand out plastic cards becausethey think it’s smart to do so.The ECB ACO card never earned the statusof going into my wallet because I havenever needed it. Thank goodness the numberhasn’t changed because the old card can sitwhere it always has in case I need to quotemy number.”James McKirdy, overseas member fromBermuda, has emailed to tell us that ourview is highly negative, and challenges us tojustify our 'weak, regressive, and poor' decision.He was also highly positive in suggestinghow we might embrace partnerships toenable us to produce cards without financialstrain on the ACO. His very detailed notecovered all the points we had considered atvarious times in the last 4 years, and so, toboth do him the courtesy and at the sametime explaining it to you all, the previousChairman of the Membership Services Committee,Pierre Tartari, will give the debate afull airing in the next issue. So those of youwho still have views to give, please sendthem to the Editor. Thanks.Website Re-VampThe ECB ACO website has undergone a revamp.We have tried to make it much easierand simpler to navigate by reducing the ‘tabs’on the home page and including hyperlinks inthe main text to take you to the necessary informationin a click. Under ‘Contact Us’ youwill find the complete ECB ACO directory.We’re aware that it is not perfect andwould appreciate any constructive comments.e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 22 contact us on 0121 446 2710

UMPIRING 1744 STYLEAn Ashes SummerTwo Cumbrian umpires have agreed to stand in a "Demonstration" game at the KeswickCricket Festival in July 2013. These two brave individuals are Albert D`Leny and DougBeebe, assisted by Mrs Carol Sharp, the Scorers Secretary for Cumbria ACO, who will be the"Notcher". The ground staff has agreed to leave one pitch at the end of the square un-rolledtill after the event.The "Demonstration" game is to be played under the first "Laws of Cricket" published in1744, and the participants will be dressed, as far as possible, in clothes of the period. Kneebreaches, long sleeved shirts with buttoned cuffs, buckled shoes, tri-corn hats and staffs forthe umpires are also being manufactured. Curved bats are in the process of being made, andthe wickets (stumps) plus bails have already been cut from a local tree.This evening event is rapidly developing into a very practical history lesson for all concernedand we do hope the sun will shine, as I am sure it did in the summer of 1744.(Ed: The "Demonstration Match" will take place at Keswick Cricket Club, Fitz Park, Keswick, onThursday 25th July 2013 starting at 6-00pm. It is one event in the five evening program. Theother events include an invitation "Single Wicket Competition" and a "Five a Side Competition".)2013 Duncan Fearnley RangeNEW to the 2013 range arethe Hooded Sweatshirtwhich is a great additionto the leisurerange, LargeWheelieHoldall,CoolMaxCricketSocks andMicrofibreBallTowel. Youmay also notethat we havechanged the materialfor both the onfieldSweater and Slipover; both are now madefrom a new performance single sided fleece.Duncan Fearnley can also supply Leaguepanel branded onfield jackets and shirts,please see the contact details in the catalogueinserted.Directive cards and insertsAccompanying this edition are a number ofinserts for your information prior to the startof the season:NEW 2013 Duncan Fearnley catalogue(see page 13 for the Duncan Fearnleyreport)NEW 2013 Asics trainer offer – ECB ACOhave negotiated this offer on behalf of allECB ACO members.I addition to the above items we also enclosecopies of the most up to date ECBACO Directive Cards (five in total) thatcover areas such as ‘Pre-match ritual’,‘Scorer’s briefing notes’, ‘Penalty-run’,‘Safety Guidance’, ‘Fielding Regulations’,‘Fast Bowling Match Directives’ and‘Guidelines for Junior Players in Open AgeCricket’.Finally, there is an ECB ACO DisciplineReport Form inserted into this edition.Standardised Captain’sMarking formIn the previous edition (15, page 26) JohnFinch raised the topic of creating a standardisedmarking form. Paul Bedford, Headof Non-First Class cricket, responded askingfor ECB ACO members to send theirfavoured template for consideration. To datea very muted response. More templates requiredplease!An Ashes summer is nearly upon us and itwill be followed by an Ashes winter downunder – yes for those who didn’t know aback-to-back Ashes series is soon uponus. It may not be popular for cricketpurists but the rest of us won’t mind a jot.There’s nothing quite like watching Englandlock horns with the ‘old enemy’ torenew the age-old rivalry as illustrated onthe Lord’s match tickets…An Ashes Summer – Followon… One for the statisticiansAfter the 2nd Test vs. India at HyderabadAustralia has become the first side in Testhistory to lose by an innings after declaringin their first innings.This was the 11th instance of a team losinga Test after declaring in its first innings,but the first in which the team declaring haslost by an innings.The match was also special for India’swinning captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni,who with 22 Test wins out of 45 (winning48.88%), has set an Indian record for mostvictories as captain, bettering Sourav Ganguly'stally of 21 victories out of 49 (winning42.85%).India’s record breaking Captain and batsmanMS Dhoni celebrates after victorye-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 23 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Your letters…The DRS has been in use, out of use,and back in use throughout variousTest series’ over the winter. Our firstletter comes from Brian Butson on thatvery topic:DRS should be mandatory in all formats ofInternational matches. There should not bean opt-out option.In the recent series India versus Englandthe umpires have made some wrongdecisions. They were not deliberate but theywere still wrong. A good example is LBWwhen the ball has hit the bat.DRS will support your appointed umpiresand ensure that the correct decision is made.Also it will eliminate the very unfortunateintimidatory scenes against the umpires thathave occurred in the final Test in India.If the ICC is in charge of the game it needsto be very firm. Acquiescence is not anoption. For the sake of this great game dothe correct thing and make DRS mandatory.MS Dhoni of India talks to umpire BillyBowden about a decision during the OneDay International match between Australiaand IndiaJames Emmerson, Cheshire, mentionsthe disparity between international umpiresand recreational umpires out in themiddle every Saturday, including StevenFinn and a lengthy drinks break:The more Test cricket I watch, the more frustratedI find myself becoming at the often glaringdisparity between the role andperformance of the umpires there, and the restof the cricketing world, from County Championshipright down to the recreational levelwhere the likes of myself and many others areinvolved. It is not so much the standard oftheir decision making, which is generally goodand impressive, more their role as defined inthe Laws of cricket as ensuring “the conductof the game is strictly within the Laws” andbeing “the sole judges of fair and unfair play.”By this I am referring to several examples inrecent series where the umpires seem unwillingto use their authority within the Laws toensure the game is played properly, which inturn has implications for club match umpireslike myself.The Steve Finn dead-ball incident is perhapsthe most glaring example. My ‘take’ on thisSteve Davis (R) signals a no ball afterEngland's Steven Finn (L) removed the bailswhilst bowling during day one of the secondinternational test cricket match betweenEngland and South Africawas that Steve Davis, for reasons passingcomprehension, allowed himself to be hoodwinkedby the SA batsmen complaining aboutbeing distracted - when in fact they were moreinterested in unsettling the bowler. It seems asthough Davis’ own personal irritation withhaving to replace displaced bails got the betterof him, and he permitted this nonsensical situationto develop whereby dead ball was called- despite the SA batsmen being quite obviouslynot distracted in the slightest. ObviouslyI am hypothesising but the ludicrous situationnow exists in ICC controlled (i.e. international)games where the regulations have beenaltered because of one player’s idiosyncrasies.In another example, in the India/Englandtest in Kolkata, a drinks interval on day onelasted for over six minutes, after which the Indianbowler and captain discussed field placingsbefore eventually deciding to actuallyplay, then delaying things further by makingmore changes. On the final day, one suchbreak lasted ten minutes! The umpires wereclearly visible standing in their positions, butseemingly having no control over the playerswho were slumped in groups over the outfieldwithout a care in the world! Why on earth theybother withdrinks intervalsanyway,when a veritableposse ofsub fielders,spare umpires,physios, icecreamvendorsetc swarm ontothe field withrefreshmentsand kit atevery availableopportunity, isanother matter!But why theAustralian bowlers BenHilfenhaus and Peter Siddlecheck the pitch during anAustralian nets sessionumpires stoodidly by andpermitted somuch time tobe wasted, when sizeable crowds had paidgood money to watch, was, I thought, highlyregrettable.The whole business of players leaving thefield and having substitutes come on for them,in direct contravention of Law 2:1c, has longbeen a blight on the game and yet continues togo unaddressed.I did also hear a piece of radio commentaryin the early hours of one morning of the secondIndia-England Test, where the commentatorremarked on the players practising on thesquare between innings! The umpires did notseem to be anywhere in the vicinity.My point is that these types of occurrencesmake the job of the recreational umpirethat little bit harder. People rightly commentabout professional sportsmen setting good orbad examples to the thousands of amateur orrecreational players - and it’s no different forofficials. The umpires at the ‘top’ of the cricketingtree in terms of officiating seem to havea disregard for the wider implications of theirjob - and little things, like the Steve Finn incident,or players coming and going off the fieldwilly-nilly - feed down to recreational levels,when players start to expect that they too cando similar things, or will get similar adjudications,because ‘they saw it on TV’.I’m aware that the ICC regulations are whatgovern some of the examples I mention, butthis is simply a recipe for confusion andgreater difficulty for lower-level umpires. Isthere anything ECB ACO and/or MCC can doto get the ICC to recognise their wider responsibilitiesand stop meddling with the Laws ofthe game?ECB ACO Response: Not surprisingly, weare as one with James on this 'apparent' timewasting.We chose to say 'apparent' in deferenceto our superior colleagues who,according to the Laws, should take action ifsuch time-wasting was absolute, deliberate,and against the spirit-of-the-game takingplace. Whilst agreeing that so many of theseinstances are obvious, it is - when even notbeing a 'jobsworth' - a very fine line to pickbetween 'patience' and 'positive match management'as opposed to being totally pragmaticand saying 'get off' as the flood ofapprentices, farriers, pie-sellers, quacks-withpotions,embalmists, and equipment suppliers,cascade onto the playing area after every 10seconds of nothing happening!It is - we might as well say it - quite ludicrousas well as frustrating, and though wefeel sympathy with our elite colleagues, itwould be good if just one or two of themwould scare the mass of 'pigeons' away - orat the very least, be seen to be encouragingtheir dispersal back to the boundary boards.In wanting more than this, we await actionby the ICC.e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 24 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Mankading has also been in the newsrecently. Here Gary Dickinson hashis say:It seems this has come more into focus withthe advent of highly sponsored TV coverageof T20 cricket, I am referring to events likethe IPL and The Big Bash. Laws 42:15 and42:16 make it very clear that it is an illegalact and a bowler is quite entitled to run abatsman out whether or not it is unsporting.This is because the unsporting behaviourapplies more to the batting side as they arethe ones trying to “steal a run” in the firstplace maybe to get their best batter on strikeThis is an area of the game where TVcoverage can actually help by showing howfar down the pitch a batsman is at the pointof delivery and why the bowler feelsjustified in running him out. We mustremember that if the bowler oversteps themark before releasing the ball it is called aNo ball and he can be penalised by as manyas seven runs and the batting side given afree hit if the rules of the competition statethis, so for over-stepping slightly a bowlerand his side could be penalised as many asJames Franklin, New Zealand bowls withAlastair Cook out of his ground during thethird game in the International One Dayseries between New Zealand and England13 runs providing the free hit isn’t a no ball.Whilst Mankading is mainly a feature oflimited-over cricket the Laws apply to allforms of the game at every level and need tobe penalised by the umpires with warningsand penalty runs metered out. Like diving infootball the only way to stamp it out isrepeatedly punish it, football doesn’t punishdiving regularly enough so therefore it is acontroversial topic. If Mankading waspunished in cricket the way the Lawsprovide it would no longer be controversialGraham Thomas, Cumbria, alsomentions Steven Finn:This matter could easily be resolved. As thecall of dead ball is based on whether it is adistraction to the batsman.If before the game the officials met with thecaptain of the opposition and asked him howhis team wonted the matter to be dealt with(i.e. do they feel it is a distraction or not?)The team may say that they do not class itas a distraction but our no 6 batsman does socan you call it a dead ball for him alone. Sobe it. Then announce to all, how the matterwill be dealt with if it happens. Providedeverybody knows how it will be dealt withbefore it happens, I do not see a problem.On page 11 of Issue 15 we produced anarticle about the History of Umpiring.Barry Stent, Essex, speaks about the onebatsmen hate to see most – the raising ofthe dreaded finger:I read with interest the article in Issue 15titled ‘History of the Umpiring Signal’. Itseems as though over the last 100 years orso these signals have hardly changed at all.When I took the level 1 and 1A courses in2011 and 2012, my mentors at the BrentwoodACO stressed the importance of clearsignalling (and calling when required) soeveryone on the field of play and the scorerswere left in no doubt as to what has just happened.However, since becoming a panelumpire in two of the Essex Saturday andSunday leagues I have noticed just howmany variations people use for some of thesignals. The most notable one being the signalfor giving a batsman ‘out’. I can safelysay each week I encounter a slightly newvariation but rarely do I see the one shown inthe handbooks or training material. Nowmore often than not this isn’t an issue andeveryone knows the umpire has given thebatsman out. However, the one variationwhich I find more and more umpires usingbut which I personally find quite rude andhas actually caused some confusion is wherethe umpire points straight down the pitch atthe batsman, almost as if he has an imaginarypistol! On one occasion last season thishappened and everyone including myself juststood there looking at each other wonderingwhat the umpire was pointing at. Onlywhen he then shouted “You’re Out” did weall know what had just occurred.I have noticed that many county andinternational umpires signal ‘out’ in this waytoo so it’s not surprising that many leagueumpires do the same. Most of us seem ableto signal correctly, or near enough, for allthe others but the ‘out’ signal has for somereason created more variations than I cancount on many (raised) index fingers (abovethe head).Peter Griffiths from Hertfordshire asks‘Which foot is the front foot?’This was thequestion Ihad to askmyself in agame I wasumpiringbothends, in aSaracensHertfordshireleaguematch betweenPrestonII andAsad Shafiq of Pakistanreacts as Umpire SimonTaufel signals lbw toPakistan batsmanSaeed AjmalCockfostersII. The questionwouldnot haveneeded to beasked beforethe Law changes that were introduced in2010, because the question related to Law24.b (i) The front foot crossing the centrestump line.The bowler had a unique action, bowlingright arm over, but rather than bringing thearm over vertically, the arm was swung fromthe side. At the same time, he swung hisright foot forward in a curve while releasingthe ball. When the right foot landed itcrossed the centre stump line and straddledthe popping crease. The bowler insisted thathis left foot was his front foot and his rightfoot was just following through. I disagreed,as the bowler was gaining an unfairadvantage by delivering the ball on theopposite side of the stumps. After no ballinghim 3 times and talking to the captain, thebowler eventually moved his run up to theleft and thus avoided placing his right footover the centre stump line and finishing theover without further incident.After the game I looked up Law 24, butcould not find any mention on determiningwhich foot is the front foot, either in theLaws of Cricket, or Tom Smith’s. I askedsome experienced colleges and was toldseveral conflicting answers. So, which footis the front foot? Is it always the oppositefoot to the arm he bowls with, or is it downto what foot is in front at the end of thedelivery stride? I.e. the stride in which theball is releasedSouth and West’s Membership ServicesOfficer, Geoff Lowden, has been incontact to give us a gentle nudgetowards re-opening the can of wormsthat contains the naming debate of thisvery publication.A quick note to enquire whether there is anymileage in re-opening the debate on the titleof the newsletter. Perhaps the membershiphave some new suggestions that we coulddiscuss at the next MSC meeting in April?These came to mind:The Quartet / All Square / Time OutAlso, I have been trying to find anabbreviated wording to 'The Spirit ofCricket'…..no luck to date!While I’m on, the below was taken fromthe very first edition of How's That? in1953. Which goes to prove that umpireshave always had a sense of humour.A young keen umpire, after a day'scricket, woke up in the early hours to findhis wife asleep on the floor. He askedwhy, and was told 'I am waiting for thatbowler you keep no-balling to come off.You've already given me two black eyeswith your signals.'(Ed: Thanks Geoff, with regards to thenaming debate my personal favourite in‘Over and Out’. The Membership ServicesCommittee and ECB ACO Board read thiscover to cover so we’ll wait and see if thetopic progresses…. Does anyone know ofany other printable umpire or scorer relatedfunnies out there? Please send them inalongside your naming suggestions….)e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 25 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Leaving the CreaseKen James (1944 – 2012)It was with great sadness that the cricket community in South Walesheard of the death of Ken James, after a courageous and determinedfight against cancer, on Sunday 23rd September, 2012, aged just 68. Heis survived by his widow Jayne, two children and four grand-children.Born in Llanelli, he moved to Gowerton after his marriage and spentmany years of his working life in engineering before becoming a driverfor the local ambulance service. Ken was actively involved in severalaspects of sporting life in the village of Gowerton. He played rugby forthe local club and served on both the rugby and cricket committees andbecame Secretary of Gowerton Athletic Club.After his rugby days, Ken developed a love for cricket and he will bebest remembered as a leading light in the umpiring fraternity in SouthWales. Initially, he had stood as an umpire for the Gowerton third elevenbut later felt the need to develop his cricketing knowledge further byattending regular umpire meetings, eventually qualifying as a FullMember of ACU&S in 1989. Ken was a very active member of theLlanelli branch of ACU&S and later ECB ACO, where he acted asSecretary and also an umpires’ instructor. Even when Ken was ill, hestill found the strength to attend meetings, where his advice andknowledge was always welcomed.Ken was a familiar and highlyrespected figure amongstumpires and players. Heofficiated at all major matchesorganised by the W.C.A. andthe S.W.C.A. , be they localcup finals, both senior andjunior, or Welsh Cup and theTriple Crown Trophy. Hetoured the SouthernHemisphere with theS.W.C.A. and alsoBarbados and Spain withthe Wales senior team.He always gave freely of his time to all levels of cricket, such was hislove for the game.It is an understatement to say he will be greatlymissed by his family, friends, umpiring colleagues and all those whowere privileged to know him.Summers will never be the same for cricket in South Wales.Gowerton Cricket ClubLlanelli Branch of ECB ACO, S.W.C.A.Peter TylerThe following is a tribute from Sam Peates, BerkshireCricket League Chairman, ACO umpire and family friend ofPeter:“Peter Tyler was a long-standing member of both Berkshire CricketOfficials Association and prior to that Berkshire ACU&S. Although hehad many interests such as Jazz, Steam Locomotion and Art hisgreatest love was Cricket. Peter was for many years the onlyindependent non club Umpire in the Berkshire Cricket League andwas a founder member of the Berkshire Cricket League Panel. Sadlyhis health meant that his 2012 season was cut short but appropriatelyhis last game was to Umpire on his own village green at Woodcote inJuly 2012. Peter will be remembered by many Cricketers not only inBerkshire but in neighbouring counties of Buckinghamshire,Hampshire and Oxfordshire”Photo of Peter Tyler (specs & beard) accepting awardfrom Sam Peates, Berkshire Cricket League Chairman onbehalf of his local club.Tim GraingerI am sorry to report that Tim Grainger, Worcestershire, died peacefully but suddenly at home on last week ofFebruary.Recently Tim had acted as the Membership Services Officer for the Midlands and Secretary to the Midlandsregional committee as long as being a long standing and well respected umpire and tutor in Worcestershire.The funeral was on Monday 4th March at 2.00pm in the Methodist Church, Evesham. A more suitable tribute willbe included in the next edition.Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Gill and the family.e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 26 contact us on 0121 446 2710

David Edwards (20 July 1941 - 4 February 2013) … by Bob McLeodIt was immediately obvious that a rare umpiring talent had arrived on thescene in the early 1970’s when David passed not only the 1973 ACU&Sumpires’ examination with ease but was awarded their national prize forbeing the outstanding candidate - “the most promising new umpire”. Hehoned his umpiring skills with Spencer CC in Surrey and BrondesburyCC in Middlesex. His knowledge of Laws, regulations and playingconditions was exemplary. This, together with his authoritative yet nonthreateningmanner, quickly led to Club Cricket Conference (CCC),Minor County and MCC appointments. Surrey County appointed Davidto County Championship Second X1 matches for 25 unbroken years.He was a founding member of the Surrey Championship Umpires Paneland retired only last season after 26 years’ service. He stood in manycup finals including the French Cup Final. In an Evening StandardChallenge Trophy Final at the Oval he had the strength of character togive out a leading batsman, at a critical stage of the match, forobstructing the field. He stood in the Surrey CCC v Pakistan match atthe Oval in 1983 in a World Cup warm-up match. He toured with theCCC, the Surrey Seniors and the MCC to all parts of the world and wasappointed by the Abu Dhabi Cricket Authority to stand in the Emirates’inaugural tri-nation one day competition between India A, Pakistan A andSri Lanka A. He also gave his time to the Cricket Foundation to stand intheir Chance to Shine – Six in the City Competition, from its inception.David Smith of Slough CC and later of Gerrards Cross CC andcaptain of both Buckinghamshire and the CCC records that in MinorCounties matches David “was always considered extremely fair by bothcaptains and players alike” and they “were always extremely pleasedwhen we saw that David was standing in our match”. Of the CCC tour toAustralia in 1987 he said that “David was an excellent tourist …alwaysvery much one of the party…involved in all aspects of the tour and verypopular with the opposition.” A rare accolade indeed! Stuart York ofHigh Wycombe CC and President Elect of the CCC recalled that David“retained his keenness and sense of humour” whilst “standing in 90degree heat for up to seven hours a day” throughout that tour.Such a record on the cricket field would be remarkable alone but, ifanything, it almost pales when considered with David’s achievements asa cricket administrator. Beginning at Spencer CC and later throughoutSurrey he immersed himself in many facets of administration andsucceeded in all. He was an ACU&S examiner for many years andeventually acted as Secretary to the Examination Board. He became avalued member of the Surrey Championship Executive Committee.When the Surrey Championship decided to set up an Umpires Panel in1987 he was part of the small team that achieved a flawless changeover.He took it upon himself to arrange the supply of Championship brandedclothing for the umpires. He was the Secretary of the Panel and laterbecame the Secretary of the Executive Committee. When the ACU&Smerged with the ECB (to become ECB ACO) David was part of the teamset up to advise the new body on smoothing out the wrinkles. With thecoming of the ACO, David was instrumental in setting up a SurreyCricket Board ACO - now one of the largest in England – and he was itsinaugural Chairman. Since 2009 that body has overseen the training ofmore than 100 new umpires in Surrey. When the Championship decidedto move half of their Premier Division matches to the limited overs formatDavid successfully used his wide knowledge of events in other countiesto introduce the necessary playing conditions. When, last season, theChampionship decided to use Duckworth-Lewis in its shorter form of thegame he was the mastermind behind a smooth start. From 2000 he wasSecretary of the ad-hoc committee that arranged exchanges of umpiresbetween Premier Leagues in the home counties. Recently he undertookthe planning and implementation of the Surrey T20 Competition onbehalf of the Championship.Every Saturday at the conclusion of his match he would retire to thepavilion to join his wife in taking the phone calls relaying the results forall matches in all divisions of the Championship. The results and tableswould appear unfailingly early on Sunday morning on the Championshipweb-site. (David, of course, was instrumental in setting up anddeveloping the site!) As Richard Spiller of the Surrey Advertiser reported“As a way of ruining 18 of the best weekends of the year, it takes somebeating” adding that David’s civil service mind “was probably the secretin making the Surrey Championship one of the best run sportingorganisations of its kind.”His devoted wife, Virginia, worked with David, creating a formidableteam in which he claimed modestly to be the junior to her “seniormanagement”. For about 20 years they patiently and painstakinglymade the umpiring appointments for the top 4 divisions of theChampionship – over 700 appointments per annum. Crispin Lyden-Cowan of Wimbledon CC, the current Chairman of the SurreyChampionship, whilst recognising David’s “tongue in cheek” humour,said that many Chairmen of the Championship had benefited from “thisutterly loyal, reliable and dedicated man” and that “our own local countyhero was the Surrey Championship”. He spoke for everyone in sayingthat “Our thoughts and love are with Virginia at this tragic time.”David was awarded a Surrey CCC OSCA (Outstanding Service toCricket Award) in 2009. Surrey CCC Chairman Richard Thompson saidof the “real Surrey stalwart” that “Having played club cricket myself Iknew David well – as did so many amateur players across Surrey. If theplayers are the bricks then David was the mortar in keeping club crickettogether in Surrey. He had an intimate knowledge of cricket across thecountry and his tireless work and effort is almost irreplaceable”.In 2010 David was awarded a National OSCA. Paul Bedford, Headof non-First Class Cricket at the ECB and a former Chairman of theSurrey Championship, said that David had been “a great servant to thegame, not just as an administrator but also as a friend to all colleaguesand captains acting in a selfless way”. David was created an HonoraryLife Member of ECB ACO last year. The flags at both the Oval and atLord’s were lowered to half-mast on the news of David’s sudden andunexpected death.David’s involvement in cricket was immense and the above merelytouches on some of his many achievements. David was a true giant inour cricketing world. The results of his labours are to be seeneverywhere. The theory that no-one is indispensable is about to beseverely tested in Surrey.David’s funeral at Croydon Crematorium and later at Old WhitgiftiansCC was attended by friends and colleagues from right across thecricketing spectrum. Virginia’s guess that 50 or 60 might turn out was alittle conservative. 300 or so would have been nearer the mark.e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 27 contact us on 0121 446 2710

ScorersA New Year and further evolutionfor ECB ACOOn the appointments front I am hoping thatwe will again be able to offer scoring appointmentsto the MCC Universities XI, theMCC Young Cricketers Ladies XI, the MCCCorporate Six-a-Side event and the JP MorganCup, as well as providing Duckworth-Lewis managers for the final stages of theNational Club Championship (formerly theKingfisher Cup).For the MCC Corporate Six-a-Sideevent, which will be held on Thursday 23May, we pair young scorers with more experiencedmentors for a full day’s cricket atLord’s – if you would like to be consideredfor this event in either category, please letyour County and Regional Scorers Officerknow.Duckworth-Lewis managers will be requiredfor the quarter-finals of the KingfisherCup (4 th August), the semi-finals (1 stSeptember) and possibly the final (15 th September).As this is a knockout event wewon’t know the venues until much nearerthe time.An exciting new development for thisyear has been a request from ECB to identifya scorer to work in the media centreat Cardiff and the Kia Oval. We will beholding a selection process for this prestigiousopportunity following advertisementof the role on the ECB ACO website and viaour Regional Scorers Officers. The successfulcandidate will need to provide statisticaldata to the World’s media as well as scoring,so it should be an exciting and busy time!!A way to generate further opportunitieslocally is for CSOs and RSOs to engagewith their local 1 st class/minor county andCounty Board. I visited GloucestershireCCC in December and emerged withagreement to form a pool of Level 2 scorersto act as cover for the County scorers,the prospect of scoring opportunities for theAcademy side and occasional prestigiousmatches held at Bristol, prizes for a newlocal ACO draw for members and the promiseto support certificate ceremonies. Scorersare also given opportunities to score forCounty and District youth matches fromU11 to U17. Furthermore the West of EnglandPremier League and GloucestershireCounty Cricket League have agreed tosupply financial support to scoringcourses in the County, making our coursesmore accessible to a wider range of scorers.It would be great to see this sort of arrangementreplicated around the country to themutual benefit of counties and scorers alike.We are now midway through the trainingseason. My annual survey shows that 31 ofour 40 counties have held a scoringcourse, are planning to hold one or haveheld some other form of scoring event.Particular praise goes to Suffolk,Cambridgeshire, Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshireand Lincolnshire for holdingcourses in 2012/13 after a blank year in theprevious season. It was also very gratifyingto see ICC Europe running Level 1 coursesin Germany, the Netherlands, and Romania.I know that some counties really struggleto identify volunteers to run courses and actas County Scorers Officers so I am planningto visit these counties before the seasonstarts, armed with latest scoring courses ondisk and other good news stories with whichto promote the cause! It should be an aspirationthat every county has its own CountyScoring Officer and that that person shouldhave responsibility for all scoring mattersacross the County.An innovation for the Level 1 scoringcourse this year is a video: a real T20match. The first innings can be used forpractice during the course, the second inningsfor the assessment and we have updatedthe questions that form part of theassessment process. My thanks go to EddieLunn for doing the majority of the work onthis project.The new Level 2 course and modules forTotal Cricket Scorer, the Duckworth-Lewismethod and Linear Scoring have begun toroll out and I know that training events havebeen arranged in South & West, London &East and the North during the winter.Finally, Mark Shepherd is standing downas the Regional Scorers Officer for London& East, although he will remain an activemember of the Association. Mark has beena lively contributor to our work and I wouldlike to thank him for his contribution to theScorers Sub-Committee. We are hopeful ofannouncing Mark’s successor shortly.Geoff TrettCarl, Emma and GeoffICC Champions trophy-2013Kia OvalBeer Mat challengeWe are investigating the use of beer mats in clubhouses as a way of promoting ECB ACO. We would like to come upwith some cricketing conundrums or challenges that could be put on one side of the beer mat, with the answer on thereverse plus advertising for ECB ACO, of course!So if you can think of an umpiring or scoring poser that will intrigue cricketers across the country and can fit on toone side of a beer mat, please send it to editor@ecb.co.uk and there will be a prize for the best teaser.e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 28 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Martyn Fryer contacted us with a different point of view about some traditional concepts on thechanging role of scoring at 1st Class level.Having, last season, been appointed asMiddlesex 2 nd XI scorer, after many yearsscoring, umpiring and coaching around thecountry, and having been engrossed by themany words written by, and in response to,Keith Booth’s ‘Whither Scoring’, I wouldlike, if I may, to add my two’penneth.My approach to scoring has always beentraditional (before A Scarlett Esq jumps onthat – I am not talking about my use oftriangles for byes!). I was always taught,and practiced, that the Scorer is part of ateam of 4 – 2 Scorers, 2 Umpires. Thatthey, the Officials team, are responsible formanaging the game and ensuring thatfairness is safeguarded for the benefit of‘the game’. I have also noticed, althoughnot been particularly happy with, theslightly subservient role of the scorer – asort of ‘seen not heard’, ‘speak when youare spoken to’, ‘medals for the umpires’,‘for the love of the game’ attitude. Really,as Keith Booth is writing, scoring is seenby many to be more of a hobby than aprofession and as such we should justcapitulate under the threat to our positionsfrom OPTA, some parts of the ECB andprobably others. Because of this ‘2 nd classofficial’ tradition some, if not most, areregarding the whithering of scoring as afait accompli.Since my appointment with Middlesex,my view has changed somewhat.I am, as all aspiring officials are taught,part of a team. That team, though, isMiddlesex CCC.During a match, I work alongsideanother scorer, two (or sometimes moreUmpires and Referees), maybe ascoreboard operator (or two). But pleasenote I work alongside them. The team I ampart of is Middlesex CCC. My ‘chain ofcommand’, my bosses are the Second XICoach, the Head Coach, the Director ofCricket and the Chief Executive. As withall employees of Team Middlesex, ourresponsibilities are really to our Members,and to the success and development ofMiddlesex CCC.What has changed, with myappointment, is that I am now a Scorer inProfessional Cricket, the change fromscoring in recreational cricket is subtle, butat the same time vast. Firstly, my paychequeis not signed by the ACO, nor byChris Kelly, nor by the Umpires andScorer, that I happen to be workingalongside at any particular time. My paychequeis signed by Middlesex CCC. Withthat comes the first indication of which isactually the team that I am mostresponsible to. Secondly, let’s take thecalculation of over-rates as an example. Aswe all know, Umpires are responsible fortheir calculation. We also all know,although in our ‘slightly subservientposition’ we have often been reluctant toScorer Alan James works during the Friends Life T20 match between Middlesex andSomerset at Southgate Cricket Clubsay, that the Umpires are not always right.In a professional environment, whererelegation could be determined by the lossof a point for a slow over rate, wheresomeone’s career could be affected by sucha relegation, where membership dwindlesbecause of a lack of success, where theClub’s income suffers because of theirSecond Division status, surely it is onlyright, and, indeed my duty as part of the(Middlesex) team, as an employee of theClub, to help the Umpires come to aconclusion that would not be sodetrimental to MY team. To point out, thatmaybe the batter changing gloves everyfifth over is worth a minute or two, or themoving of screens for the right, left battingpartnership slowed us down a little, issurely part of my duty to my team. Asanother example, last season in one of my2 nd XI games, a ball was returned from theundergrowth, by a dog walker, 30 oversafter being lost and replaced. The Umpirethrew it to the (opposition) bowler andbrought the ‘old ball’ over to the scorebox.I carried out my duty to my team(Middlesex) and informed him that thiswould be quite unfair to my batters. Aftersome discussion, he agreed.I am, and do feel, more a part of TeamMiddlesex CCC than I do, for instance feela part of the ECB ACO, or indeed theAssociation of County Scorers, proudthough, that I am, of being a member ofboth organisations.I have tried to ensure that MiddlesexCCC get very good ‘value for money’ fromme. I have made the position of 2 nd XIScorer my own. I do not just put dots in ascorebook, do a few statistics and blendinto the background. As many of my peersdo, I get involved in players expenses,mileage calculations, yearbook reports andmany other things that gravitate towardsbeing the duties of a first class scorer.However, I do not stop there, I have takencoaching courses and regularly ‘take themit’ during warm-ups. I have devolpednew ways of presenting and collectingstatistics that have more relevance to thepoints that our coaches are coaching.During the winter I am at Lord’s orFinchley working with the full-timecoaches to help our players develop andimprove. I have approached companiesregarding being potential sponsors of theclub. I have taken players to the airport fortheir BPL stints. I have even helped movefurniture from one player’s flat to another.I visit clubs to talk to junior membersabout scoring, and visit maths classes inlocal schools to help present the use ofmaths in sport and the workplace. This useof my time, along with many other ‘nontraditional’duties means that rather thanwithering away, my future is looking goodand my job as a 2 nd XI scorer is far morethan just a hobby. In fact, perhaps becauseof the effort I put in, and my realisationthat my responsibility is to a different teamthan has been traditional, the SeniorManagement of Middlesex’s first reactionto the recent ‘perhaps we don’t need awayscorers’ discussion was, “We can see nocircumstances where we will not have afull time Scorer”.To summarise, there is no need for theposition of First Class Scorer to whither.What is needed is the recognition that thetraditional view of the duties andresponsibilities of such a post holder havechanged. The game has changed. Theofficiating has changed. The Laws havechanged. The job has changed. I am not forwithering, I am for working hard for MYteam and securing MY position. If you as ascorer, or indeed you as a body representingscorers stand still then you undoubtedlywill wither under the fast paced change ofmodern professional cricket. I won’t bestanding still, I will be developing myposition and my job for the benefit of myteam and myself, and perhaps wavinggoodbye to a few of the witherers?e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 29 contact us on 0121 446 2710

The pilot recreationalscorer Level 3 (RSL) courseReport by Andrew ScarlettIntroduction - Three tutors and 11 candidates turned upin London at the end of last year to check out and runthrough a pilot Recreational Scorer Level 3 course(RSL 3). The candidates were drawn from the London& South East region and the South & West region.This course is aimed at Scorers who wish to developtheir skills and knowledge to the required level formulti-day cricket. Following a previous pilot coursefor RSL 3, it was considered that linear scoring, Duckworth/Lewisand Computer scoring should be removedfrom the initially agreed syllabus. These elements ofscoring are now available as standalone courses andform part of the pre-requisite for attendance on a RSL3. The revised syllabus has been approved by theScorer Sub Committee.The day started with meeting and getting to knoweach other and understanding the reasoning behind thecourse. The candidates then considered the differencebetween preparing for a one-day match and a multidaymatch. This included both the requirements forscoring and, more importantly, the many other peoplethat are involved with multi-day cricket. They went onto understand the need to look at match regulations inorder to know what would be necessary. Timings andovers were discussed, along with carrying out the calculationsthat are involved. There was also a brief lookat other methods of scoring and a good number of exampleswere available for the candidates to examineand discuss.Prior to the course, the candidates were asked toconsider some questions relating to statistical knowledge.The answers to these questions formed the basisof a discussion of the use of statistics in cricket. Duringthe lunch break, candidates discussed the morning’swork and were introduced to guests Don Shelley andMartyn Fryer of Middlesex County Cricket Club, plusNeil Bainton of the ECB First Class Umpires Panel.After lunch, everyone was reminded of the need toconsider their health when scoring. Whilst the playersand umpires are all mobile and exercising in the field,the scorers are like passengers on a long haul flight;there is limited space for exercise. The discussions thatfollowed were based on advice from Professor StuartBiddle - School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences,Loughborough University.The final session was devoted to the guest speakers.Each speaker gave an outline of their work either in thescorebox, with their team or on the field. Followingtheir briefings, they answered a number of questionsfrom the floor. This part of the course was particularlywell received, with the candidates able to discuss boththe tasks involved in multi-day cricket as well as therelationship between the Umpire and Scorer.The course closed with a discussion on the wayahead for the candidates and the opportunities thatmight arise for them to apply their skills andknowledge.MCCA Scorers ListBedfordshire Mark Wynn & Graeme PresswellBerkshire Sue JonesBuckinghamshire John Goodman, Bob Lane & Paul DeanCambridgeshire Chris AbbottCheshire JW Law & Jan HerbertCornwallJim O’BrienCumberland Geoff MinshawDevonHarold Shaw, Rachel Tozer & Peter LangfordDorsetChristine DrewHerefordshire Jim MorrisHertfordshire Brian Mulholland, Tony Gibbs & Mike ArnoldLincolnshire Shelly ClaytonNorfolkRalph GrimesNorthumberland Keith TelfordOxfordshire Rodney Clarke & Chris CoxShropshire Colin Barthorpe & Claire GreenStaffordshire Kevin O’ConnellSuffolkAndy BroomeWalesJohn JonesWiltshireSteve RiceACCS - First Class Scorers & County 2nd XI ListCounty First XI Second XIDerbyshire John M Brown Trevor CottamDurham Brian Hunt Richard HiltonEssex Tony Choat Paul ParkinsonGlamorgan Andrew Hignell Byron Jones/Gareth WatkinsGloucestershire Adrian Bull Steve CashmoreHampshire Tony Weld Kevin Baker/Peter DanksKent Brian Rodwell Lorne HartLancashire Alan West Darrin WhiteLeicestershire Paul Rogers Peter JohnsonMiddlesex Don Shelley Martyn FryerNorthamptonshire Tony Kingston Mick WoolleyNottinghamshire Roger Marshall Anne CusworthSomerset Gerry Stickley Polly RhodesSurrey Keith Booth Jennifer BoothSussex Mike Charman Graham IrwinWarwickshire Mel Smith Steve SmithWorcestershire David Pugh Phil Mellish/Sue DrinkwaterYorkshire John Potter Howard ClaytonScorer Required – Brighton and Hove CC, Sussex Premier LeagueBrighton and Hove CC , Sussex Premier League , require a 1st X1 scorer for the 2013 season for SaturdayLeague fixtures from May 4th to August 31st.For further details please contact Anthony Statham (anthony.statham79@gmail.com)e-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 30 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Christmas Challenge 2012ReportThe latest challenge was set in two different publications, Notchers’News, an independent newsletter for scorers, and the ACOnewsletter. Fifty-seven entries were received in all, eleven from NNand forty-six from ACO. Of these, only six were fully correct, butthere were several more who made only one mistake.SolutionScratchersNotchers1 74 02 93 1983 42 74 35 15 45 36 7 77 5 48 0 49 0 510 2 211 10 7Extras 7 24Total 320 262Result: Scratchers won by 58 runsAs always there were a few questions which caused more difficultythan most with Scratchers 5 causing the most problems (31 errors).Many readers thought that, because the said fielder had gone off thefield for only ten minutes for his second absence, then this would makeno difference to the time at which he would be allowed to bowl. Hehad originally been off the field for 39 minutes meaning that he couldbowl at 4.35pm: now he has been off for a further ten minutes, and hehas still has to wait the full 39 minutes while he is on the field beforehe can bowl.Scratchers Extras was the question with the second most errors(26): even though the ball slipped from the fielder’s hand, it wouldcount as an overthrow and the answer would be 3 plus 4 overthrows(7). To those who think that this is unfair and that it should be countedas a misfield, perhaps they should ask themselves whether anyoverthrows, however made, are deliberate.Scratchers 11; twenty people did not realise that the batsmen wouldnot be sent back because the first run had not been legitimate.Scratchers 1 (14 errors); resulted in several miscalculations, whilefor Notchers 5 (12 errors); most wrong answers came from peoplewho thought that a bowler would be able to bowl two accidental highfull-tosses before being removed from the attack. He would, however,not be suspended until after he had bowled his third such delivery.The other questions did not cause too many problems with onlyScratchers 2 (10 errors), 3 (7) 4 (6), 8 (6), Notchers 1 (9) and 2 (7)gaining more than five mistakes.The names of the six fully-correct solvers were Frank Appleyard,Fred Godson, Keith Healey, Cliff Loverock, Garry Rank andMichael Turner. Congratulations to them and thanks to all those whoentered. The two winners are Michael Turner (NN) and FrankAppleyard (ACO).Frank Appleyard receives a Fearnley voucher from ECB ACOfor his efforts.John M Brown(Ed: ECB ACO would like to publicly thank John Brown for onceagain providing another successful Christmas Challenge, withoutwishing away the summer, we look forward to this year’s.)Regional and CountyScorers OfficersAs mentioned by Geoff Trett on page 28, the list below showsthe Regional and County Scorers Officers with their contactemail. ECB ACO would strongly recommend that all scorersmake themselves known to their respective CSO.NORTH – Keith Telford RSO keith.telford@sky.comCUMBRIA – Carol Sharp CSO carol-sharp@tiscali.co.ukLANCASHIRE Karen Knott CSO knott_karen@hotmail.comYORKSHIRE Hilary Oliver CSO hilaryoliver@btinternet.comCHESHIRE Paul Herring CSO herring221@btinternet.comDURHAM Keith Telford CSO keith.telford@sky.comNORTHUMBERLAND Bob Simpson CEO robert.l.simpson@btinternet.comVACANT CSOMIDLANDS – Terry Dorr REO tjdorr@hotmail.comMel Smith RSO mel.smith10@virginmedia.comDERBYSHIRE John M. Brown CSO johnmbrown60@gmail.comHEREFORDSHIRE Janet Herbert CSO janherbertscorer@aol.comLEICESTERSHIRE Dave Goodacre CSO davegoodacre@googlemail.comLINCOLNSHIRE Andy Maloney CEO andyadvantage@btinternet.comRobyn Wilkinson CSO (TEMP) wilkinsonrobyn@yahoo.co.ukNORTHAMPTONSHIRE Mel Smith CSO mel.smith10@virginmedia.comNOTTINGHAMSHIRE Anne Cusworth CSO acosworth@googlemail.comSHROPSHIRE Jim Strachan CSO jimstrachan9@blueyonder.co.ukSTAFFORDSHIRE Keith Healey CEO precisioneer@yahoo.co.ukVACANT CSOWARWICKSHIRE John Jameson CEO johnjameson240@talktalk.netColin McKenzie CSO colinmc32@aol.comWORCESTERSHIRE Philip Mellish CSO philipmellish@hotmail.comSOUTH & WEST – Lesley Morgan CSO lesleyj.morgan@tesco.netBERKSHIRE VACANT CSOBUCKINGHAMSHIRE Julia Farman CSO julesfarman@aol.comCORNWALL Leanne Sawle CSO sawle@hotmail.comDEVON Nick Evanson CSO nevanson@hotmail.comDORSET Alan Mills CSO a.c.mills@hotmail.co.ukGLOUCESTERSHIRE Geoff Trett CSO geofftrett@talk21.comHAMPSHIRE Linda Judd CSO Lindajudd@hantscl.comISLE OF WIGHT Fiona Newnham CSO rosebankfi@btinternet.comOXFORDSHIRE Andrew Scartlett CSO andrewscarlett@btinternet.comSOMERSET Polly Rhodes CSO pollyrhodes@aol.comWILTSHIRE Lesley Morgan CSO lesleyj.morgan@tesco.netLONDON & EAST – Mark Shepherd RSO marks@ndmltd.comBEDFORDSHIRE Mike Archer CSO mgarcher@ntlworld.comCAMBRIDGESHIRE John Gothard CSO scorerman@btopenworld.comESSEX Willie Morrison CSO william@morrison903.freeserve.co.ukHERTFORDSHIRE Mike Arnold CSO mikearnold.home@btinternet.comHUNTINGDONSHIRE John Walker CSO jswalker@care4free.netKENT Andy Bateup CSO andybateup@btinternet.comMIDDLESEX Hugh Chapman Temp CSO hughchapman339@btinternet.comNORFOLK Norman Bygrave CSO normanbygrave@vwclub.netSUFFOLK Andy Broome CSO andy.broome2@virgin.netSURREY Debbie Beesley CSO saintdebs@hotmail.comSUSSEX Nigel Smith CSO npr.smith@virgin.netWALES – John Isterling RSO isterling@btinternet.comICC EUROPE – Rod Lyall RSO lyall173@yahoo.co.uke-mail us at ecbaco@ecb.co.uk 31 contact us on 0121 446 2710

Seagull takes bailAfter receiving a host of entries forour Christmas Countdowncompetition, we are pleased toannounce that the winner drawn fromour ACO sunhat, and taking home aFearnley voucher, is…Robyn Murrayof ICC Europe. He correctly guessedMankading as the Conundrum word.During a Tuesday nightgame, in August last year,something extraordinaryhappened at SidmouthCricket Club in Devon.Following a batsman’sdismissal (having played-onwith the bail on the groundby the stumps) a seagullswooped, picked up the bail,and flew off. The bail hasn’tbeen sighted since!So that got us wonderingwhether such an incident hasoccurred before, andsurprisingly it has.Back in 2009, Australiawere in town to begin theirtour of England in search ofan Ashes Urn that they hadwon back in the 2006/07series down under. Duringtheir first game of the tour, against an England Lions XI, Brett Lee, having got through thedefence of England tail-ender Liam Plunkett, saw the bail hit the deck. Similarly to the storyabove, a seagull swooped, picking the bail up in its mouth before flying off.Much to the amusement of the crowd, the seagull then returned. Lee chased the bird aroundthe outfield, but eventually gave up. A new bail was then called for.What we want to know is if you’ve had anything similarly strange happen during your time inthe middle? Anecdotes on a postcard to the usual address.DIARYThis listing will appear here in everyissue – but we are entirely dependenton you sending us the information.(All meetings start 11.00 unless shownotherwise)National Meeting Dates – 2013Monday 8th April – Executive Team MeetingTuesday 9th April – Membership ServicesCommitteeWednesday 10th April – Scorers CommitteeThursday 11th April – Performance andAppointmentsFriday 12th April – Education CommitteeThursday 25th April – Board Meeting(PLEASE NOTE THAT ECB ACO BOARDDATES ARE SUBJECT TO FINALCONFIRMATION)REMINDER: PLEASESEND YOUR DATES TOeditor.aco@ecb.co.uk‘Valete et Salvete’At the end of January we said farewell to Martin Williams who hadbeen the ECB ACO Project Support intern for the last 15 months.We were sad to see him go, but it is another success story for theinternship as he has become the fourth out of five (the other wentinto full time education) to go into full time employment.Martin writes as follows:‘For a cricket fan, spending over a year working at the Home ofCricket was really as good as it can get. For giving me thatopportunity in which to experience the working environmentwithin ECB ACO and the ECB as a whole, I owe a massivethanks to Nick, Ben and the rest of the ACO team. They havebeen brilliant to me throughout.Working specifically on the newsletter and with young officialsprovided me with the chance to learn about numerous aspects ofthe Association and also to make some good friends in theprocess.I was extremely sad to leave having thoroughly enjoyed my timewith ECB ACO and it is something I will never forget. I wouldlike to wish everyone involved at ECB ACO and the ECB thebest of luck for the future.’As ACO new intern, we welcome John Overton from SouthYorkshire to replace him. John particularly impressed theMartin Williamsinterviewing panel with his preparation, enthusiasm, his clarity ofthought and his undoubted passion for and commitment to cricket.We hope that it will be a mutually beneficial experience with him onboard as part of the Executive team at Lord’s.Published by ECB © – Printed by Premier Print Group – G Photo courtesy of Getty Images