Part 2: A Replacement for the WICB

by RAWLE BRANCKER

(Editor's Note: This is the part two of a lecture delivered by former Cricket World Cup 2007 chairman Rawle Brancker at UWI's Sir Frank Worrell memorial lecture. Read part one here.)

Ladies and Gentlemen, my philosophy is that we must not make the error of parking by the difficulty or bad past for too long, otherwise, the solution may very well pass us by.

What therefore is the likely future of West Indies Cricket now that I, if not you, have settled that given its present structure, the WICB is irrelevant to West Indies future cricket development. Somewhat like our star batsman, it should disband or dissolve itself and let us look at a new approach.

Neither the Caribbean Governments nor their constituents are direct share certificate-holding shareholders of the WICB, but by virtue of the recent investment of millions in stadia and other infrastructural improvements across the region, - Caribbean people, in my opinion now hold a position where their Governments, either through suasion or direct demand can insist that the people in the region are, the defacto controlling shareholders – and with the WICB losses soaring, could morally demand the closure or phasing out of an entity which is cleary not working and immediately proceed to establish a new pan caribbean entity, owned and financed by the real owners of West Indies Cricket – the people.

Having achieved that, my recommendation would be that a new entity, whatever named, should be formed in this jurisdiction, capitalized by the purchase of shares by as many Caribbean people and corporations at home and abroad as desirous.

• The shareholders will appoint a Board of Directors from among the people of this region, to provide the best business knowledge, advice and guidance, cricket expertise and planning, human resource development understanding and a representative of current players.
• That Board will have responsibility among other things, to develop the policy and plan for a highly successful business, with a mission to develop on a sustainable level, West Indies Cricket and its cricketers to their maximum potential, in the shortest possible time.
• The Board will be charged with the responsibility, among other things, to find the best possible Executives and staff as required.
• A business plan with all its various strategic approaches as well as a ten year cricket development plan will be produced, the architects of which will be the best of our own greats of the past co-opting wherever necessary.
• The Board and its Management will commit to transparency in all its undertakings and be fully accountable at the end of the day.
• Sound management of all resources will and must be the centerpiece of the new organization.

You may be wondering why I am so confident West Indians everywhere will invest in this company. We are all hurting at the demise of our cricket. Across the region the pain is severe and our people would welcome a believable plan, which I think we will invest in the same way we otherwise support, to see the end of this unacceptable drought.

What are the real benefits?

1. West Indies cricket will be fully owned by the people and players.
2. The share issue will provide the cash needed to fund the operations and development plans and programmes without having to seek loans or unfavourable sponsorship, which in the case of loans will have the burden of debt servicing.
3. A Board will be appointed every year at the AGM as is the case in the corporate world and changes made if thought necessary.
4. All Executives, including players will be contracted and conditionality, pay and other details agreed to in a timely fashion. Pay must be performance and otherwise related.
5. The company will be in a position to negotiate with prospective sponsors from a position of strength, thereby facilitating outcomes which are more mutually beneficial than the previous appear to be.
6. Paying dividends would be postponed for the first five years, as the purchase of shares, in this instance, must not only be seen as an investment, but also support towards the redevelopment of West Indies Cricket – after the 1st five years, a minimum of 8% dividend is hoped to be guaranteed.
7. In lieu of dividends for the first five years, Management will undertake to negotiate discounts based on the volume of members, with airlines, cruises, hotels and restaurants to name a few, on an on-going basis.

Shareholders will have access and first refusal of best seating for home series and advance on line and on call ticket purchasing at possible discount prices (the details of course to be worked out).

Management will constantly be exploring opportunities from which shareholders can benefit financially and otherwise – a working committee can critique this proposal and come up with a draft document for discussion.

There is, however, a very pivotal role for corporations and Governments in this redevelopment effort. Governments must be aware of the importance of cricket to their constituents – the people.

The Tourism sector and corporations across the Caribbean must also be aware of that same importance as it relates to their businesses productivity and psyche of their human resource asset and must all be shown the benefit of contributing annually to a fund which will assist with developmental programmes and the general sustainability of cricket.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I cannot close before making you aware of some recommendations submitted to the Board of WICB as far back as 1995 – just when our serious slide began and I am grateful to both Dr. Aubrey Armstrong and Rev. Wes Hall, both of whom, the same year 1995, submitted reports to the Board – Dr. Armstrong in the form of notes to the Board which, if adopted, could have helped considerably and to my mind, an extremely well thought out and documented report with recommendations from Rev. Wes Hall, who was doing so in the capacity then as manager of the West Indies cricket team which toured England that year, and with which I concur and now submit for your consideration.

Rev. Hall recommended the following:

1. I am convinced that the long term interest of West Indies Cricket is best served by the suppression of indiscipline within the team and the restoration of the best traditional values upon which West Indies Cricket success was built.

2. The Board should be prepared to take whatever action is necessary to re-establish discipline and proper conduct at this critical historical moment, otherwise, a great noble tradition of sustained excellence can be destroyed.

3. We must be prepared to invest whatever is necessary in the development and promotion of those young players who demonstrate a commitment to, and respect for those elements of our cricket culture that are recognized as the building blocks of success.

4. An effort should also be made to assist senior players in realizing the benefits to be derived to themselves, West Indies Cricket and West Indian society, through the promotion and representation of the valued element of our cricket culture. For example, development of psychological counseling in developing the character of players, for West Indies Cricket is as important as a coach, trainer or physiotherapist.

5. A systematic effort should be made at this time to target youth players with respect to the inculcation of these developmental values, so that when they become West Indies players, the mission to which they are employed would be clear, unambiguous and consistent with the high expectations of West Indians at home and abroad.

It is obvious, therefore, that significant institutional development is now required. As a consequence, an Academy of West Indian Cricket to analyse and reproduce the finest qualities of all aspects of West Indian cricket performance from generation to generation is now imperative. This way, we can raise the level of intellectual preparation and discipline required for the modern game, as alluded to on page 2 of this report, and I submit that this is the only way to guarantee the sustainability of West Indian Cricket supremacy.

6. Our cricketing heritage must be preserved, and to this end, a Hall of Fame should be established with memorabilia and videos of all the great West Indian players, so that our people and generations unborn will have documented for them, all aspects of our long and enduring tenure as world leaders. It is also recommended that the WICB should establish a public archive where research can be conducted on the development of the game and where footage of old film and other documents can be secured. I am aware, for example that the BBC has available for sale rare footage of all past West Indies test matches in England since the Sir Frank Worrell era.

7. The board should look at formulating a human resources development plan, which could be initiated by the implementation of an annual training workshop. A mix of guest lecturers, ex players and administrators should be invited to participate, with the timetable content designed to discuss all aspects of the game, and to help our players to improve economically, spiritually, socially, mentally and morally. I can guarantee that the cross fertilization of ideas would be appreciated by the players.

8. The time is ripe for the Board to give the West Indian Governments a wakeup call about doing something tangible for West Indies Cricket. I am aware that a few Governments give test players tax exemptions for cars, and that a few dollars were collected about 10 years ago, by one or two Governments, but these fall very short of what is required.

Heads of Governments in the West Indies can contribute to a cricket development fund, as easily as they voted for the regional tourism marketing fund in 1992. They must now go beyond revelling in the glory of the West Indies being a cricket super power.

9. The Board as a body, must of necessity seek further dialogue with the Prime Minister, to ventilate its views, giving the Prime Minister an opportunity to put the matter right. As an economist and very ardent cricket fan, I am sure that the Prime Minister will endorse my sentiments expressed above, and will resolve this matter.”

Wes Hall concluded his recommendations by saying:

Let me end by speaking about the attitudes that will ensure West Indies greatness in the future. To my mind, they are currently embodied in the process that we have witnessed.

And the qualities are:

1. Perseverance in the face of tremendous physical and psychological adversity.
2. Determination to be an asset to West Indies cricket on and off the field.
3. Projection of a mature and moral character with which the future generation of West Indian cricketers can identify in their search for role models.

Those recommendations are as relevant today as they were in 1995 – the board did very little if anything.

Ladies and Gentleman, whether or not you agree with my assessments and proposal – business cannot continue as usual. The board has to take responsibility for the demise of West Indies Cricket. Let us do all we can to ensure that the game we love so dearly is fully restored on a sustainable level and that it develops to be the industry it is potentially good for, remembering that cricket is the only thing we in this part of the world have done to undisputedly conquer the entire world for a decade and a half.

We must again reign supreme and with God’s help and our collective wills -- we shall rise again.

God bless you all and thanks so much for your patience, kind interest and for your attendance.