WHAT Cricket Scotland achieves off the pitch between now and the next T20 World Cup in a year’s time could prove to be just as important as anything they do on it.
“Brave and bold” was the soundbite captain Kyle Coetzer continually rolled out during this year’s tournament when he addressed the changes needed if the Saltires are to become a team that can properly compete with the sport’s elite.
There had been plaudits aplenty for Scotland’s first round performances in Oman but they were far last effective in the Super 12 phase, well beaten in four of their games and only really competitive in the narrow-ish defeat to today’s finalists New Zealand.
To be blunt, Cricket Scotland needs more money. Not a wealthy organisation to begin with, the pandemic has taken a sizable bite out of their budget. Even the $190,000 (£140,000) raked in from their three World Cup wins and Super 12 qualification doesn’t go into the pot, shared instead among the players and support staff.
Paying for overseas training camps and to lure Test-playing nations to Edinburgh can be an expensive business which is why their small but dedicated commercial team are on the look-out for external help, hoping firms will see the benefit of hitching their wagon to Scotland’s rising star.
“In terms of the profile of Scottish cricket, it’s never been higher globally,” said Tony Brian, chair of Cricket Scotland since 2015.
“The interest both in the media and on social media was incredible. We’ve been talked about in a way we haven’t been before and that opens up opportunities that we have to try to take advantage of.
“The board has agreed a plan on how we can try to capitalise on that in terms of funding. We want people to come with us on what we feel is going to be a very exciting journey, and not just for the men’s team but also the women’s team too.
“I’ve not spoken to Kyle about what he meant exactly but I’d guess he just wants Cricket Scotland as an organisation to be more ambitious. We need to set higher goals and push ourselves more.
“Having more partners on board means we can play more competitive cricket. And we need to play more top-quality full members to let our guys get used to that level.
“It’s not that we don’t have the skills or the talent. We just have to get the consistency of experiencing that.
“But it’s an expensive business and we’re not a rich organisation. Every penny is a hostage to fortune. But with more partners we can get bigger and better.”
The other potential game-changer is to become an ICC [International Cricket Council] full member. Brian has stayed on in Dubai following Scotland’s exit to lobby for the cause, believing they now fall short on only one criterion, and even that one open to interpretation.
The gates last swung open in 2017 to admit Ireland and Afghanistan and Brian believes Scotland a great case to be the next in line. But the 67 year-old also warned becoming a full member shouldn’t be seen as a future cure-all.
“You have to go through different loops and there are more than 30 criteria you have to meet,” he added. “We’ve done our assessment and there’s only one we believe we don’t meet.
“One of the conditions is that over the last eight years you have to have beaten four full members ranked in the top 10 in the world. At the moment we’ve done that only once, which was England in 2018. But there are various arguments we can put forward as to why that one factor should be relaxed or waived.
“We believe we have built a strong case for inclusion. But it’s not all benefits from becoming a full member, there are certain consequences, too. Your cost base will inevitably increase, for one. So it’s not a panacea for all ills. But when the new ICC cycle starts in 2023 we would like to at least be in the equation.”
The ICC’s reputation in recent years for helping Associate nations like Scotland hasn’t always been positive. One noticeable item in last year’s Cricket Scotland accounts was the demand from the game’s governing body for repayment of a loan of £274,000, something that is still being contested.
“There’s been no conclusion on that yet but we’re in active discussions with the ICC about addressing it. There are another six or seven other countries in the same boat. But I’m reasonably confident there will be a solution found.”
Scotland don’t play again now until April but the hope is that Shane Burger will still be around by then. The head coach’s contract is due to expire and Brian appeared to suggest an extension could be forthcoming. “We will hopefully be announcing something reasonably soon,” he added.
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