Cricket Australia chairman David Peever quits in wake of ball tampering saga
CRICKET Australia chairman David Peever has joined the CEO, coach and captain on the scrap heap in the wake of the ball-tampering scandal and the last remaining link to Cape Town could soon follow.
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THE blood-letting at Cricket Australia may not stop with chairman David Peever as pressure continues to mount on Pat Howard as the last remaining link to the ball-tampering scandal.
Peever resigned on Thursday afternoon after a barrage of criticism for his response to the damning Longstaff review which laid bare the toxic culture that had enveloped Australia cricket from the board room to the change room.
His exit added to that of former chief executive James Sutherland and national coach Darren Lehmann as a result of the Cape Town incident which also cost captain Steve Smith and vice-captain David Warner their jobs.
The latest move isn’t expected to impact the bans on the pair and Cameron Bancroft, and the Australian Cricketers Association was yet to follow through on its push to have them lifted immediately.
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The ACA board voted on Monday to put a submission to the CA board within 48 hours to end the bans, but as of Thursday CA had heard nothing.
But it’s thought the states would not stand in the way if the bans were reviewed.
The president of the ACA, Greg Dyer, is also understood to be under pressure to stand down to help the clean break from the tumultuous past six months, which also means high performance boss Howard could go as a last link to the dark times.
Howard has told CA he won’t continue in his role when his contract expires after the Ashes next year.
But the strong sense of discontent which forced Peever’s hand could put Howard, the high performance chief seen as the man who promoted the “win at all costs” attitude through various initiatives within the game, in the gun.
Howard is seen to have led a program which devalued Sheffield Shield cricket and isolated Australia’s elite players from their peers, creating a culture of “exceptionalism”, as found by the Longstaff review.
Peever was roundly panned for his handling of the review’s findings, and for calling the ball-tampering incident which has forever tainted Australian cricket, a “hiccup”.
On Monday Peever said he accepted responsibility for the incident in South Africa and for “slipping standards”, but was called for failing to truly address the core findings of the review which labelled CA to be arrogant and controlling.
But he refused to stand down.
“I’m not embarrassed. I’m not embarrassed at all. We’re very committed to moving the game forward and using this review as a platform to do that,” Peever said.
It’s understood he was reluctant to resign, but a backroom campaign among the states, CA’s main stakeholders, forced his hand.
Cricket NSW chairman John Knox, believed to be a key agitator, said Peever had done the right thing.
“As Cricket Australia chairman, David has put the good of the game first by taking full accountability,” Knox said.
Peever began calling board members on Thursday afternoon, after offering his resignation via email.
Victorian Earl Eddings, endorsed as Peever’s successor at last week’s annual general meeting, before the Longstaff review was released, will be interim CA chairman.
Peever was re-elected for another three year term at that meeting, before the states had seen the Longstaff review, which added fuel to their ire.
Given the job of mopping up after a horror week, Eddings said it was important to continue the process of “recovering and rebuilding” Australian cricket.
“The Board is keenly aware that we have a way to go to earn back the trust of the cricket community. We and the executive team are determined to make cricket stronger.”
Former Test captain Mark Taylor, a CA board member since 2004, has already ruled himself out as a replacement for Peever, despite being endorsed by former CA boss Malcolm Speed earlier this week.
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