Plenty more fallout to come from all this. Stay tuned for all that, but for this liveblog, that’s all for now. Thanks for reading, and here’s the news report:
A word on the Players’ Pact, which in comparison to The Ethics Centre review is entirely non controversial. This would undoubtedly have been the easier of the two documents to compile.
“We recognise how lucky we are to play this great game. We respect the game and its traditions. We want to make all Australians proud,” the document states. “Compete with us. Smile with us. Fight on with us. Dream with us.”
Paine, Rachael Haynes, Pat Cummins, Shane Watson, George Bailey and Justin Langer were consulted by former player Rick McCosker when he put together the document.
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Suffice to say, reaction to today’s events hasn’t been uniformly positive.
Since the Cricket Australia report was submitted The time since seems to be about protecting people from outside scrutiny. the organisation won't change the attitude of living in a bubble until it chooses to expose itself to the outside and right now it’s unwilling to do so.
— Chris Stevens (@TheLadfromAus) October 29, 2018
So #CricketAustralia Board commissioned a report on ethics, but the Chair David Peever saw nothing unethical in going ahead with scheduled AGM & seeking his re-election BEFORE any of the reports criticising the Board were released to those who had a vote in re-electing him #Joke
— Cheryl Kernot (@cheryl_kernot) October 29, 2018
Peever’s grilling has ended, and we’re left to contemplate the reviews’ findings. In short:
- Damning report finds game’s reputation has been tainted
- CA accused of playing a part in ball tampering affair
- CA found to be “arrogant and controlling”
- Instances found of disrespect within CA, including an example of bullying
- A culture of disrespect runs through men’s cricket
- David Peever accepts “full responsibility” for events in Cape Town
- Ethics Centre review makes 42 recommendations; CA accepts 41
- Women’s cricket untainted and unaffected
- A players’ charter has been established to uphold game’s traditions on pitch
Another important point to note is that women’s cricket has not at all been implicated in or affected by any of this. In the review’s executive summary, it states:
“Australian cricket has lost its balance ... and has stumbled badly. The reputation of the game of cricket, as played by men, has been tainted. Women’s cricket remains unaffected. The leadership of CA should also accept responsibility for its inadvertent [but foreseeable] failure to create and support a culture in which the will-to-win was balanced by an equal commitment to moral courage and ethical restraint.”
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As Peever continues to take questions from journalists, he refutes a continued suggestion that he is “embarrassed” by events. He’s keeping his cool under pressure, but not everyone is convinced by his performance.
Wow watching Cricket Australia try and spin this report in the press conference is painful to watch
— Brian MacNamara (@BMac_TLDR) October 29, 2018
David Peever Chair of #CricketAustralia Board says he accepts full responsibility for CA culture issues BUT he happily put himself forward for re-election as Chair just last Friday. Not heard of accountability evidently #auspol
— Cheryl Kernot (@cheryl_kernot) October 29, 2018
It’s important to note that every measure suggested by The Ethics Centre report has either been accepted by CA’s board or is now under consideration. There is just one exception: No 17 from that list below. CA has not endorsed the request that Test and ODI players are excused T20 internationals to play at least two Sheffield Shield games and one grade game per summer.
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Other notable take-homes from the damning report include:
“The ball-tampering incident ... can be seen as an aberration. It can be dismissed as the failure of a handful of players. However, to think this would be mistaken. We have spoken with players who are reluctant to challenge the errant behaviour of their teammates - just in case it puts them off their game and leads to a loss.”
“People expressed deep regret over CA’s tolerance of poor behaviour among elite male cricketers and the origination’s consistent failure to hold players accountable.
“A lack of appropriate sanctions, including the absence of ‘call out culture’, has allowed behaviour by players and coaches to diverge from community standards.
“A culture of disrespect for the opposition, as seen in the common practice of abusive sledging, runs through Australian domestic and international cricket, to a degree not practised by other nations.
“There is nothing enjoyable or fraternal about abuse. It is simply crude and brutal.”
There are plenty of redactions in the Ethics Centre report, with just Smith, Bancroft and Warner mentioned by name. Jacquie Hey now explains they took external legal advice on that matter, and without the redacted parts, they would not have been able to publish the report publicly in full. And the whole point of undertaking the report, and for it to be “fully impactful”, was that it was transparent.
And here’s David Peever now, to talk about the organisational review. He begins by thanking everyone involved in the two documents.
“We wanted to know what was wrong and what could be done better,” he says. “We voluntarily commissioned the review because we wanted to look in the mirror. It is completely independent.
“I accept responsibility for what happened in South Africa, but we’re in a good position to move forward.
“The silver lining is that [events in SA] have precipitated this work. We’re committed going forward for cricket to be the best it can be.”
Just Warner, Smith and Bancroft are mentioned by name in the report, which makes 42 recommendations – 10 for Australian cricket, seven for the national men’s team and the rest for CA. Here are some of the main ones:
Cricket
1. Australian cricket establish a three-person ethics commission, which would have no formal powers. Its purpose would be to hold everyone in Australian cricket “accountable to the ethical foundations for the game”
2. The establishment of the Australian Cricket Council, a consultative body to meet twice a year
3. Require CA to set up a mechanism for consulting with fans
5. Player honours, such as the Allan Border Medal, take into account character and behaviour as well as performance
7. CA and the Australian Cricketers’ Association to start a process where they establish a constructive working relationship within 30 days
9. Umpires have the power, after one informal warning, to send off players in Test, Sheffield Shield and grade matches
National Team
12. The current performance bonus is converted so it recognises contributions to the game such as positive relationships with fans and sponsors
14-15. The vice-captaincy is de-coupled from being the heir apparent to the captaincy. Players with leadership capacity have formal leadership training
16. Players on CA contracts encouraged and enabled to have active involvement with Shield and grade cricket
17. Test and one-day players be excused from playing international T20 cricket so they can play in Shield and grade matches
Cricket Australia
19. CA leadership accept its share of responsibility for the circumstances that gave rise to the ball-tampering scandal
28-29. CA amend its anti-harassment code so that the definition of harassment includes sledging. Also, CA makes explicit a general prohibition against bullying conduct
37. High Performance Unit staff are banned from industrial negotiations with players. CA says this recommendation is under consideration
41. Selectors be required to take into account a player’s character as well as their skills when picking teams.
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It’s pretty damning stuff. The report states: “The most common description of CA is as ‘arrogant’ and ‘controlling’. The core complaint is that the organisation does not respect anyone other than its own. Players feel that they are treated as commodities. There is a feeling amongst some state and territory associations that they are patronised while sponsors believe their value is defined solely in transactional terms.”
CA accused of being 'arrogant' and 'controlling'
The 145-page report in CA’s culture, delivered by The Ethics Centre, has accused the organisation of being “arrogant” and “controlling”. CA has also been found to be just as much to blame for the ball tampering scandal as those players already banned.
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David Peever has released a statement. Here it is in full:
At Cricket Australia our purpose is to unite and inspire communities through cricket. There’s no doubt that the ball-tampering incident in South Africa was extremely regrettable and caused distress across our country.
It has been a difficult and confronting time for everyone involved in Australian Cricket, and for that I am sorry. Mistakes have been made, lessons have been learnt, and changes are and will continue to take place.
Our response to the ball tampering incident was necessarily tough, and we acted swiftly and decisively. At the same time, we voluntarily commissioned an independent organisational review into Australian cricket and launched, concurrently, a player review to establish a renewed behavioural charter.
To help restore faith in what we do, today CA is releasing the review in full and publishing the players’ pact.
The organisational review, carried out by The Ethics Centre, is a summary of the views of 469 people representing a 58 per cent response rate. This included current and past players, CA and state and territory cricket associations, employees and board members, the Australian Cricketers’ Association, umpires, sponsors and media.
While at times difficult to read and in some instances, difficult to agree with what has been implied – CA respects the findings of the review and what needs to be done to restore faith and prompt change.
The review includes various assessments that inform 42 recommendations, and CA is already well advanced in some areas with more than half of the recommendations in development or already implemented before we commissioned the review.
Having considered the recommendations, CA is committing to enacting and exploring further the recommendations and actioning where appropriate.
The players review has resulted in a meaningful players’ pact. This project was carried out by Rick McCosker, with support from Peter Collins, George Bailey, Pat Cummins, Rachael Haynes, Tim Paine, Justin Langer and Shane Watson.
It’s important to note the Argus Report of 2011 into high performance has been diligently applied, however the opportunity for us all today is to ensure a greater focus on the game’s ethos and the spirit of cricket.
Our love of cricket is in our blood. That’s why today is an important step to continue to move cricket forward. We’ll continue to work with, and listen to employees, fans, players, partners and volunteers, to ensure we all shape Australian Cricket in a way that everyone can be proud of – with a unity of purpose like never before.
We can’t change the past, but we can mould the future of cricket in this country and ensure cricket remains Australia’s favourite sport, and a sport for all Australians.
Paine: “To sit here and blame people isn’t going to help anyone. This is about the future.”
Here’s Tim Paine. He says the players want to be “recognised as role models” before saying: “We’ll compete hard but fair but always in the spirit of the game.”
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Not long to wait now. Paine and Hazlewood will be first up at the MCG, to speak from the players’ perspective.
With the release of the reports imminent, it’s worth remembering that much of the Australian cricket landscape has changed already, since those lamentable events at Newlands. On the pitch there is a new leadership team and a new coach; off it, CEO James Sutherland has been replaced by Kevin Roberts, although David Peever has been re-elected as the chairman. It remains to be seen if any further changes in personnel will be made.
While his former team-mates were struggling against Pakistan in Dubai, David Warner grabbed the headlines on Saturday, when he staged a walk-off protest during a grade cricket game for Randwick-Petersham in Sydney. His problem? He was subjected to some sledging when at the crease, with some reports claiming the brother of the late Phillip Hughes, Jason, called him “a disgrace” in reference to his involvement in the ball tampering scandal. So much to pick through there. Anyway, his protest didn’t last long – two minutes to be precise – and he came back out to notch a century and remind everyone of his capabilities as a destructive batsman.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, things on the pitch haven’t been going entirely to plan since sandpaper-gate and the men’s national team’s latest outing ended predictably poorly in the UAE overnight.
Fairfax are reporting that the review has found Cricket Australia’s failures contributed to the ball tampering scandal in Cape Town. The report claims CA had “strong systemic and organisational input” to what happened at Newlands. Of course there will be no official line until 1pm, but if confirmed there could be knock-on effects for the banned trio, David Warner, Steve Smith and Cameron Bancroft. Any admission of culpability from CA would likely prompt calls for their bans to be reduced. Smith and Warner are currently serving 12-month bans for their part in the scandal, while Bancroft is serving nine months.
Here’s more from Mark Taylor, speaking on Channel Nine on Sunday.
“Everything is on the table. All of us have had too much negativity around the game. [Monday) is the opportunity to get it out there. There is no doubt there is a mandate, as I would look at it, in these reviews for CA to make some change, to get better at what we do, and also, most importantly, to get on with how we do business with people. And we have got to get that better. No doubt about that. I have said that before.”
Australia’s Test captain, Tim Paine, and co vice-captain Josh Hazlewood, will present the player review in just under an hour at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, before CA chairman David Peever and Jacquie Hey – the chair of the review sub-committee – will present the organisational review from The Ethics Centre. For the record, the player review has been overseen by the former Test opener, Rick McCosker, and overseen by the director of Australia’s Centre of Ethical Leadership, Peter Collins.
Preamble
Well, this could get interesting. We’ve been promised everything will be put out on the table today, when Cricket Australia responds to the findings of two concurrent reviews – one into the national men’s team’s on-field behaviour and the other into the wider organisational culture – following March’s ball tampering scandal in South Africa.
Mark Taylor, the former Australia captain and now CA board member, says the reviews make for “confronting” reading. He should know; he’s seen the documents and the 42 recommendations made.
First up, we’ll find out whether CA will accept those recommendations, although one assumes they will, given they commissioned the reports amid promises to distance themselves from the “win at all costs” mentality of the men’s national team in Australia.
Then the fun can really begin. Will CA take any responsibility for the events in Cape Town? What will that mean for those players banned? Will heads within CA roll? The findings will be made public at 1pm AEDT. Stick with us until then. In the meantime, please feel free to get in touch on email or Twitter with any thoughts, concerns or recommendations.
