ECB allocates £61 million to help county cricket and amateur clubs
By Tom Banner @TomBannerWN Reporter
Action from day one of Worcestershire's Domestic First Class Multi Day match against Australia at New Road, Worcester.....Adam Finch celebrates with his Worcestershire team mates after bowling Marcus Harris for 14...Pic Jonathan Barry 7.8.19.
CRICKET clubs across Worcestershire including the county side and amateur teams, will be given a share of an "unprecedented" package of support from the game's governing body.
The England and Wales Cricket Board announced on March 31 it had allocated £61 million to help counties and clubs keep the lights on during the coronavirus crisis.
The plans detail a number of measures for the whole sport from elite to grassroots, including the MCC, the First-Class Counties (FCCs) and their County Cricket Boards (CCBs).
Local cricket clubs will also be offered support to see them through the coming months.
The cricket season has been delayed until at least May 28 following government advice.
A number of options have been discussed by the ECB for cricket to begin in June, July and August.
Around £40m will be made immediately available along with a further £5.5m for counties who are not eligible for 2020-2021 ordinary facilities maintenance distributions
Along with these, there will be a suspension of international staging fees for four months and waiving of international staging fees payable in 2020 if the match is not played as scheduled due to COVID-19
An extra budget of just over £20m will become available to the recreational game through a cricket club support loan scheme, grants through the "Return to Cricket" scheme and a 12-month holiday on loan repayments for recreational clubs.
Tom Harrison, chief executive officer of the ECB, said: "We would like to thank everyone within the cricket network who is working tirelessly to protect the game during this period of uncertainty.
"We understand these are challenging times and it has been our priority to provide swift and immediate support to all members of the cricket family at every level in England and Wales.
"We are fully aware that the situation with COVID-19 will continue to develop, and it will be months before the full financial fallout is made clear. We will continue work with all of our partners to protect the ongoing health of the entire game in the short term and beyond."