Cricket Australia New Chair Met With Opposition From Victoria

Cricket Australia is "embroiled in another dispute" with a member of the cricket family after the appointment of a new chair "met strident opposition from his home state," according to Andrew Wu of THE AGE. The governing body announced on Wednesday that interim Chair Earl Eddings was appointed to the position permanently "but the move has upset Victoria." The Cricket Victoria board issued a statement just minutes after CA's announcement which "refused to endorse Eddings." Victoria's public opposition "caught other states by surprise," with "some shocked" that it "would be so forthright over what is effectively a job title." Queensland publicly endorsed Eddings' appointment, saying that it "allowed the focus to return to on-field action," while the Australian Cricketers' Association "gave guarded approval." CA believes that Eddings' title is important at the Int'l Cricket Council "as it will give him authority" to speak for the organization. Victoria's resistance to the move of Eddings to permanent chair, revealed last week, comes at a time when CA is "working to repair relationships with key stakeholders in the game" (THE AGE, 11/28). ABC NEWS reported Eddings had served as CA's interim chair since replacing David Peever, who was "forced to resign" at the beginning of November. CV Chair Paul Barker said that Eddings' position should not have been made permanent "until all CA board positions were filled." He said, "Cricket Victoria has made its view clear and our preference remains that the interim chairman arrangements were maintained while Australian cricket undertakes a thorough process to fill the recent board vacancies." Eddings' initial tenure will last for less than a year, as he will be up for re-election at CA's 2019 annual general meeting (ABC NEWS, 11/28). The BBC reported CA Dir Jacquie Hey said that it had been a "challenging" year for the organization. She said, "Our aim is to ensure management are empowered to rebuild trust and strengthen the game. Earl's involvement over the past decade provides continuity in a time of change and enables the board to maintain strong relations with the International Cricket Council, other member countries and our valued partners" (BBC, 11/28).