decision making that determines the direction of travel in the short, medium and long term. The Executive staff provide the operational planning and make things happen, and the core volunteer workforce( that is all the regional and local ACO officers) deliver at grass-roots level. It is simple in principle but effective in practice, and it provides a model of best practice and a legacy that simply will not change, whatever is swirling about in terms of the need to grow the game as a whole and increase participation in cricket.
He has provided leadership, gravitas, a high level link with both ECB and MCC, and his contribution to the stabilisation and growth of ECB ACO cannot be overstated. To put it bluntly, at a time when participation in the game generally has fallen, he has presided over a steady increase in ECB ACO membership of such that we have doubled our numbers in his time as Chairman.
Clearly, he is a personal friend as well as a colleague. In one sense I will miss his wise counsel and guidance, but in another sense, I won’ t because whilst Chairman and Chief Executives may come and go, the people behind the positions stay the same and I know that Roger will always be on hand to offer help and advice.
Peter Mitchell – Midlands Regional Chairman
In 2006, Peter was invited to stand for election as ACU & S West Midlands Regional Chairman, and was duly elected. At his first national Council meeting in London in October that year, the main item on the agenda was the constitution and the need for its major revision in light of the perilous position the Association found itself in. Peter was immediately elected to chair a committee to write a new Constitution – and given two years to complete the task. It was completed in nine months – and consequently Peter has been sitting on the ACU & S and ECB ACO committees ever since.
When negotiations with ECB began, Peter, along with Geoff Lowden( Chairman of the ACU & S), was at the forefront of discussions regarding a possible amalgamation and the formation of ECB Association of Cricket Officials as the outcome of the partnership.
Naturally, Peter was appointed as one of the first Board members under the chairmanship of Roger Knight, and soon became Vice-Chairman, a position he held for many years.
As a former company secretary and accountant in his professional life, Peter was the obvious choice at Board level to oversee the accounts, working with various ECB finance officers. It was partly due to his stewardship that the most recent Memorandum of Understanding( MOU), signed between the ECB and ACO Board, delegated complete responsibility for the management of ECB ACO finances, budget and management accounts to the ACO Board.
Another of his main achievements as a Board member was the formation of the Midland Region( an amalgamation of East and West), which he has chaired throughout its existence. As the Midlands as a whole falls in line with ECB’ s proposal to move back to two regions, Peter has again led on the setting up of two committees to replace one, and now retires with a job very well done.
We all owe a great debt to Peter who has worked so hard over many years to bring the Association from where it was a decade ago, to its present position of strength and continued growth. On a personal note, I have treasured his friendship, fellowship and unstinting support.
Tony Hemmings – Deputy Chairman
Tony Hemmings has already retired once, when he stepped down as Regional Chairman of the South and West region. But of course old soldiers never die, and in his case neither did they fade away because he returned to be the first‘ independent’ Deputy Chairman of the Board.
In this post he has unstintingly supported Roger Knight as, together, over a seemingly interminable three-year period, they discussed, argued, and eventually negotiated a Memorandum of Understanding dealing along the way with various ECB executives before finally working with John Carr and reaching a three-year agreement that was signed by the Chief Executive in March 2015.
It is right to point out that Tony’ s resignation has much to do with his view that the Memorandum of Understanding( MOU) has not been honoured( by ECB) in the spirit in which it was finally agreed and that he( personally) disagrees with the Board’ s decision and recommendation to align more closely with ECB.
Whilst noting this, I hope he will allow me to focus on the positive contributions that he has made that have so helped take ECB ACO forward:
The most ardent of supporters for Who’ s The Umpire, he has championed its use across the whole ACO( in fact the whole of cricket) and as a former Chairman of the Performance and Development Committee, he was responsible( with Eddie Lunn) for the publication of the first ECB ACO guide to Supported Development- a blueprint that for the first time provided a benchmarking of standards. As a successful businessman in his professional life familiar with contractual discussions, he was the ideal person to lead on ECB ACO contractual discussions with our various partners- and this he has done very successfully, not least with our merchandise suppliers, Fearnley, with whom we now have an excellent relationship.
As an experienced tutor he also took more than a passing interest in education and, as always, was robust in his views about the titling of courses. He has been particularly enthusiastic about the 1A course, being a strong believer in‘ facilitated learning’ rather than the more old-fashioned tutor-centred approach.
As I said, no fading away for Tony, he’ ll continue to chair his local ACO in Wiltshire and I expect to see him as fully committed locally as he has ever been. He is passionate in his belief( as I am) that the work done by volunteers is the bedrock of the Association, and I suspect that as long as there is breath in his body he will lead from the front in this respect.
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