[Cricket] Salt and Jordan to leave Sussex... and now Ben Brown

[Kalimantan Gull]

Its just weird when you watch the excellent T20 side, full of players that don't turn out for the CC side. A bit like watching Yorkshire playing an away home match without Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan because the schedulers think it makes sense to schedule important quarter-final matches at the same time as a test match.

was thinking the other day, if we were back in the 80s and 90s, when championship games had the priority in the schedule, three-day and one-day sides were basically the same, test players turned out for their counties, and there were far fewer injuries around, we'd be rolling out a pace bowling line-up of Archer, Jordan, Mills, Garton, Robinson week-in week-out, plus whatever tricksy leggy we wanted to pick that week. What a side that would be!

But that was another age. A fact reinforced to me on Tuesday watching Archie Lenham twirl his stuff and recalling how I watched a young Neil Lenham making his way at Sussex.

 

[Kalimantan Gull]

I believe the 100 is the death of non test ground counties like ours. Like the Prem in football it will make agents and individuals around the game very rich and bring big profits into the Test venue counties.

We will be left developing youth players and then losing them into the profit making systems with no financial gain.

It's like the Premier League and the Big Six isn't it? There are the Test ground counties and then the other First Class counties, and whilst we're all nominally equal there is no doubt that it's the bigger counties calling the shots. The Hundred could well be the first act of an eventual permanent schism with the First Class game (in all formats) being concentrated in the big counties, and Sussex etc become a sort of mid-ground between First Class and minor counties.

Bollocks.

The Hundred has a lot of good about it, and it makes sense to have a reduced number of teams. But why can't they group grounds together to ensure the benefits are shared. The Southern Brave is clearly meant to be 'our team', with several Sussex players, and I found myself supporting it in the finals, so why not play half their games at Hove, why should they all be at Southampton? Why can't Trent play games at Derby and Leicester, and so on. I get that this works better for us than some other teams, not sure who would share with the Welsh Fire, and the Oval Invincibles may need to change their name, but surely making it more equitable for the clubs and for cricket fans is a good thing.

The Hundred will grow, presumably with a big influx of proper international stars when covid recedes, creating a proper window for it, and perhaps they'll play each team twice or add a couple of teams, and by playing games at other grounds it would allow more of us to share in the event. Having Cummins and Archer steaming in at Gayle and Buttler down at Hove would be awesome. Or is it the case the the test match grounds have got themselves in lots of debt and are dominating the ECB?

 

[Horton's halftime iceberg]

Its just weird when you watch the excellent T20 side, full of players that don't turn out for the CC side. A bit like watching Yorkshire playing an away home match without Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan because the schedulers think it makes sense to schedule important quarter-final matches at the same time as a test match.

was thinking the other day, if we were back in the 80s and 90s, when championship games had the priority in the schedule, three-day and one-day sides were basically the same, test players turned out for their counties, and there were far fewer injuries around, we'd be rolling out a pace bowling line-up of Archer, Jordan, Mills, Garton, Robinson week-in week-out, plus whatever tricksy leggy we wanted to pick that week. What a side that would be!

But that was another age. A fact reinforced to me on Tuesday watching Archie Lenham twirl his stuff and recalling how I watched a young Neil Lenham making his way at Sussex.

We are also in an age where players like Khan and possibly in the future the young Lenham, can earn a better living just playing all over the world in the short formats of the game 20/20 and 100 ball cricket, and never having to play the long form of the game. Possibly soon never having to have a contract with a county side even.

 

[dazzer6666]

Heading towards a two-tier county system with test ground counties in T1, and everyone else in T2. Simply can’t compete on financial grounds.

 

[Fignon's Ponytail]

We are also in an age where players like Khan and possibly in the future the young Lenham, can earn a better living just playing all over the world in the short formats of the game 20/20 and 100 ball cricket, and never having to play the long form of the game. Possibly soon never having to have a contract with a county side even.

Hate to say it, but even though he enjoys all formats of the game its pretty much that which my son is thinking about if his career takes off....

 

[Horton's halftime iceberg]

The Hundred has a lot of good about it, and it makes sense to have a reduced number of teams. But why can't they group grounds together to ensure the benefits are shared. The Southern Brave is clearly meant to be 'our team', with several Sussex players, and I found myself supporting it in the finals, so why not play half their games at Hove, why should they all be at Southampton? Why can't Trent play games at Derby and Leicester, and so on. I get that this works better for us than some other teams, not sure who would share with the Welsh Fire, and the Oval Invincibles may need to change their name, but surely making it more equitable for the clubs and for cricket fans is a good thing.

The Hundred will grow, presumably with a big influx of proper international stars when covid recedes, creating a proper window for it, and perhaps they'll play each team twice or add a couple of teams, and by playing games at other grounds it would allow more of us to share in the event. Having Cummins and Archer steaming in at Gayle and Buttler down at Hove would be awesome. Or is it the case the the test match grounds have got themselves in lots of debt and are dominating the ECB?

It is a format devised to make money and distribute that money to players, agents, test ground counties and individuals at the top of the ECB. It may be fun to see at Hove but has nothing in place to develop young players. We get a £1.3 million sweetner to have dropped our objections, which must cover our yearly running costs. If it becomes successful it will quite quickly take our best players and stop other forms of cricket being played in the middle of summer. It would be like the Albion merging with Southampton for a superleage and getting nothing in return, no home games, none of the profits but gets to choose our best players.

 

[Gwylan]

Matt Prior is hopping mad on Twitter. Good to see that he still cares

Matt Prior
[MENTION=26863]mattp[/MENTION]rior13
·
3h
Sussex offered them MORE money let’s just put it that way! The issue at Sussex is not about the money

 

[DJ NOBO]

I saw the headline they were leaving and thought….not Surrey, not Surrey , not Surrey.
Horrible news.

Matt Prior “ CJ did not want to leave Sussex and hasn’t left because of money. There are other reasons he left and people need to start asking the right questions. CJ & Salt are not the only ones either!”

 

[vegster]

I take this non-news with a pinch of sodium chloride.

But this is potassium cyanide for the County if they go.

 

[Brovion]

...
Matt Prior “ CJ did not want to leave Sussex and hasn’t left because of money. There are other reasons he left and people need to start asking the right questions. CJ & Salt are not the only ones either!”

Really? That puts a different complexion on it. Will we ever get to the bottom of it?

 

[Eeyore]

I was told about Salt and Jordan at a match last Sunday. Folk have known about it on the circuit.

It's a real shame. But it seems that post Covid money is a major issue for the non appointed counties too.

Given that what I have been told is correct, we may need to be prepared for other departures in the future.

 

[vegster]

Really? That puts a different complexion on it. Will we ever get to the bottom of it?

More likely " The top of it " is the problem. It seems to me that bringing in Rob Andrew has accelerated our decline regarding players and coaches. Them old Mushy glory days are not coming back.

 

[Paulie Gualtieri]

Has she completed Sussex?

 

[Gwylan]

I was told about Salt and Jordan at a match last Sunday. Folk have known about it on the circuit.

It's a real shame. But it seems that post Covid money is a major issue for the non appointed counties too.

That seems to contradict Prior's repeated assertions that this isn't about the money or the Hundred. Matt is still very much involved in Sussex, so he probably has a lot of inside info here

 

[DJ NOBO]

I thought the club strategy was to blood youngsters in long form and one day, and go all out to win t20.
Not a bad plan IMO.
Losing four of our best t20 players within a year, destroys that.
If we can’t compete in any of the competitions, what exactly is the point of us?

 

[Horton's halftime iceberg]

I thought the club strategy was to blood youngsters in long form and one day, and go all out to win t20.
Not a bad plan IMO.
Losing four of our best t20 players within a year, destroys that.
If we can’t compete in any of the competitions, what exactly is the point of us?

Local Club for local people

 

[Steve in Japan]

https://www.theargus.co.uk/sport/19541057.rob-andrew-responds-sussex-lose-chris-jordan-phil-salt/

Rob Andrew says suck it up and it is what it is.

 

[Brovion]

More likely " The top of it " is the problem. It seems to me that bringing in Rob Andrew has accelerated our decline regarding players and coaches. Them old Mushy glory days are not coming back.

You might well be right for your first point, and sadly I think you are spot on with your second. It feels a bit like the time before the Members Revolt ushered in the Adams Era. Can history repeat itself?

 

[DJ NOBO]

Local Club for local people

If that’s the best we can aspire to, it’s a sad and massive demise from not that long ago.
And I’m not sure that localness is enough to sustain a professional set-up.
Worrying times for our great club.

 

[Eeyore]

That seems to contradict Prior's repeated assertions that this isn't about the money or the Hundred. Matt is still very much involved in Sussex, so he probably has a lot of inside info here

I don't know about that, but Briggs and Evans went to Test counties too. So there is something in it. But, as I say, this stuff gets out pretty quickly.