And Geoff Hurst used the phrase on TV in the nineties when commentating on a game with Garth Crooks! Last time I looked he was still a national hero. I only know John Farragher in passing but he, and his father before him, devoted a lot of their lives to the interests of Essex cricket and for very little if any financial benefit. I know he took the time to ring many members during the pandemic to ask after their welfare and presided, in stark contrast to his predecessor, to a period of remarkable on field success. Some of the players allegedly maltreated in the past played at time when he wasn't chairman anyway. He was always accessible to members at forums too in stark contrast to the directly appointed new board members who couldn't even be bothered to turn up at the last AGM. In short I think he has been appallingly treated.
i have no truck with racism, sexism or homophobia and have been threatened physically when confronting the overt manifestations of these things at cricket and football matches but now we clearly have people who see any or all of these things in 'a hand full of dust' and where those terms are close to losing all meaning -a failure to differentiate in relative seriousness between ethnic cleansing on the one hand and the sins of unconcious bias on the other. If you are not in the minority, trying to argue your case is dismissed on the grounds that you are not in that minority and don't understand, so heads you lose and tails you lose.
Where the club, and other organisations are culpable, is apparent laxity( if they exist at al) in having thorough discipline, grievance procedures and other policies associated with behavioural codes of practice and whistleblowing. I get the impression that responsibility for these things at Essex was held by a junior admin assistant at best.If true that has to change but don't leave it either to the HR consultants responsible for selecting Azeem.
