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The days of Nottinghamshire Captains
being hauled from the field of play to justify
team selections to Committee Members sat
smoking pipes in the Trent Bridge Pavilion
are, thankfully, a thing of the past.
Arthur Carr, the belligerent batsman who
captained Notts for 16 years from 1919,
was once present at an Extraordinary
General Meeting called to depose of him
as skipper but ending in the mass sacking
of 18 Committee Members. They secured
re-election soon afterwards by failing
to communicate the credentials of their
opposition in members’ ballot packs but
Carr himself secured a seat when the
Committee re-formed.
Nineteenth century chairman Henry
Holden, the county’s former Chief
Constable, is credited with motivating the
Nottinghamshire players to strike in 1881
by steadfastly refusing to give professional
contracts to more than six players. His
refusal to provide lunch for the visiting
Australian side on the grounds that they
were amateurs and therefore should fend
for and feed themselves didn’t sit too
comfortably either.
Committee members of yesteryear though
were often expected toprovide financial clout
whereas nowadays, there is an expectation
to give up time rather than money. Sir Julien
Cahn was a big spender and the legacy of
his investment lives on in the form of the
Woodhead Hall behind the Hound Road
Stand. Archived annual reports reveal a
tradition of Club Presidents making annual
donations substantial enough to cover the
wages of several professional players.
In the modern era, the role of the
Committee has evolved to become much
more about long-term strategy of Club and
Venue and much less about team selection,
hiring and firing.
“Over the last decade the Nottinghamshire
Committee has determined that the Club
is best served by being executive-led and
we’re very fortunate that every Chief
Executive that we have appointed in
that period has added something of real
value to the Club,” said Nottinghamshire
Chairman Peter Wright, the Gunn and
Moore Managing Director who’s personal
delivery to the Trent Bridge dressing room
of a repaired bat for Australian skipper
Steve Waugh would not have sat too
comfortably with Henry Holden.
“We believe that the key to a successful
committee is to develop a long-term strategy,
like the ground development plan that has
served us so well over the last 20 years.”
TheNottinghamshireCommittee is 12-strong
and includes former players, avid supporters
and members of the business community
who lend their skill set for the good of the
Club. Elected from the Club’s membership,
Committee Members essentially act as
Company Directors, setting strategic,
commercial and playing priorities for
players and professional staff to deliver.
“We set broad priorities but then we let
people get on with it,” said Peter.
“We set the playing budget, but we don’t sign
players and we set financial targets but we
don’t sell tickets. Nottinghamshire County
Cricket Club is a substantial business and
whilst it’s important that we are informed,
we tend to stand back as much as we can
committed to
the cause
Then & now: committee structure
We believe
THAT the key
to a successful
committee is to
develop a long-
term strategy,
like the ground
development plan
PETER WRIGHT