Cricket Australia accused of 'sweeping issues under the rug' in scathing response to culture review
CRICKET Australia has been accused of 'sweeping issues under the rug' in a brutal response to the reviews into the culture of the organisation which branded it 'arrogant and dictatorial'.
DESPITE taking on board all bar one of the 42 recommendations from its own independent report, Cricket Australia has been accused of ‘sweeping issues under the rug’ in its highly anticipated review.
Deakin University sport management expert Dr Michael Naraine has slammed the review as offering “little substance” and saying the Cricket Australia remains “a fractured organization with a conservative, elitist view of its governance of the game”.
Cricket Australia was branded “arrogant and dictatorial” by stakeholders in the 145-page report, which paints a grim picture of CA’s culture.
And Dr Naraine doubled down, saying the recent appointment of Kevin Roberts as the new chief executive – replacing James Sutherland – was indicative of the problems within the organisation.
Roberts played a major role in the breakdown of the pay dispute between CA and the players.
“Roberts has an impressive resume, but this action by the board is akin to asking the Wolf to oversee repairs to Hen House,” Dr Naraine said.
“Cricket Australia continues to remain a fractured organisation with a conservative, elitist view of its governance of the game.
“There's not much substance in the review.
“This is Cricket Australia trying to sweep the issues under a rug and pretend they didn't happen going forward.
“Cricket Australia needs a jolt to their board and executive; if they want to be a global sport leader, they need to act like a global sport enterprise when cultural disintegration occurs.”
CA chairman David Peever insisted he wasn’t embarrassed by the findings in the report.
"(I'm) not (embarrassed) at all, because I'm part of an association that is so important to Australia," he said.
"I'm not embarrassed at all. There are certainly elements of the report we need to work on and there are 42 recommendations we have committed to.
"One we have said we won't do. The rest are works in progress and in the case of several, it's not what but how."
Dr Naraine agreed that today was a significant and important step for rebuilding the reputation of Cricket Australia, but said it was simply the first step.
“There are a lot of great people and significant shifts within Cricket Australia, including the rise of women’s cricket and the growth of the Big Bash League,” he said.
“For the culture of the organisation to truly reset, we need to see more women and visible minorities in pertinent, executive leadership roles, and continuing to bring in global sport leaders from the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom to bring new perspectives and philosophies to Cricket Australia.”
Originally published as Cricket Australia accused of 'sweeping issues under the rug' in scathing response to culture review