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The Hundred could be scrapped

Y

Yeoman

U19 Cricketer
They probably aren’t representative however it is sufficient (for me at least) that they are effectively acting as trustees for the traditional first class game.
 
Y

Yeoman

U19 Cricketer
The counties have not always been easy to love. As the telegraph article says, some of them have relied heavily on central distributions for decades. They packed out their teams with Kolpaks when they had the chance and now engage in short term overseas signings and loans rather than develop their own players. Some counties required further bailouts by local authorities and rich benefactors when they pursued ill-advised ground improvements.

Yet for all that, I would still vastly prefer to see traditional sides owned by their supporters, developing their own players and prioritising the first class format rather than franchise-style teams with constantly fluctuating lineups playing T20.
 
Third_Man

Third_Man

U19 Cricketer
I can't think of a single domestic player who hasn't been developed by a County, even the smaller ones develop players. Can't see that being replicated by franchises - ever. I guess when a franchise side is owned by the MI then it may try and take teenagers direct from their local clubs so that they can practice range hitting, reverse scooping and carrom balls all day. Maybe.

If the counties are cut to 8 or 10, the remaining will still have academies taking in 8-10 players a year so the talent pool will shrink.

2nd XI is already shrinking (less matches and joint sides) so those few players being developed by fewer counties will lose a step in their development and potentially find it more difficult to step up from age group cricket to fewer games of first class cricket which we are constantly told will be a higher standard than before, and there will also be less opportunities to be loaned out to other counties for match practice / further development. Can't see all that even helping franchises let alone Counties or England.

I'm sure there is an argument against saying that counties are the holding cricket together even if on a loss making basis. Once they have to be owned by Bostock etc. how long will it continue? The pool of players will be dry up very quickly. At the recent draft franshises took on one new player from the counties between them in total. Otherwise the pool was just being recycled. Increase the franchises, decrease the counties and they will all be drafted. Does that mean the best vs the best, any more than every ball counts?
 
C

Chin Music

State 12th Man
Aidan11 said:
The latest scaremongering.

www.telegraph.co.uk

Future of smaller counties could depend on how Hundred investment is shared out

County matters: The proposal is for the ECB to hand around half of each Hundred team to the host county – which they can then sell off
www.telegraph.co.uk www.telegraph.co.uk

When will the ECB learn that without top Indian players there will be no serious money coming in to this.
Click to expand...
Not only is that fairly obvious, many international players who may have series during that period won't be available, including England this year. No matter how you try and dress it up, there are bigger leagues obviously the IPL and the Big Bash that will likely pay more. Although there are some A listers in the Hundred, I wouldn't have said it is overflowing with them.
 
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