Brisbane Heat: Darren Lehmann forced to defend BBL club's culture

Darren Lehmann has defended Brisbane Heat's culture following Chris Lynn's COVID breach and a scathing attack from a disgruntled former player.

Cricket Australia is investigating Chris Lynn.

Darren Lehmann has challenged suggestions the beleaguered Brisbane Heat has major cultural problems despite being under attack from one of the game's most respected voices.

The Heat were fined $50,000 ($20,000 suspended) and captain Chris Lynn and batsman Dan Lawrence $10,000 ($4000 suspended) each for breaching COVID protocols in Canberra on Saturday after catching a taxi and having a selfie with a fan.

With just one semi-final appearance in seven years and two losses to start the season the Heat are in the gun and former Test skipper Ricky Ponting tore them apart in commentary during their controversial loss to the Sydney Thunder on Monday.

Ben Cutting, who joined the Thunder from the Heat, also savaged the Heat management and accused Lynn of not talking to him for the past eight months. Coach Lehmann refused to bite back.

"Ben is fine,'' Lehmann said.

"I had a good chat to him last night. He has been a great player for us. There is no doubt about that. he played very well last night. That is one of those things that happens. That is his opinion. He is allowed to have that. We respect Ben because of what he has achieved at the Brisbane Heat.''

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Lehmann denied a poor culture has resulted in a large group of players leaving the club.

"There is good lads, there is good learning. We have a good staff. Everyone is working in the one direction to make it a good sustainable franchise. That is what we are about.

"Chris and Dan have obviously apologised to CA and they are working through those issues and have apologised to everyone and we are moving forward the best we can. I thought Chris played really well last under difficult circumstances and CA did a very good job to get them playing.

"We have moved on pretty quickly. They have owned their mistake.''

Ponting blasted the Heat tactics and the bowling of Ben Laughlin in the final over of the game.

"That is always hard,'' Lehmann responded.

Darren Lehmann has defended Brisbane Heat's culture.

"They are commentators and they have to have their opinion. Ricky Ponting is a great of the game. They certainly did not want to bowl like that. That wasn't in our plan. Our bowlers have to be better.''

Lynn has apologised for his behaviour.

"I would like to say sorry to my teammates, the club and the Heat fans for being careless and not observing the protocols that were put in place to ensure the continuity of the competition," Lynn said in a statement.

"Having a photo with a fan at a licensed venue and travelling in taxi seem pretty low risk but they were identified in our briefings as examples of things you couldn't do."

“I was probably lulled into a false sense of security that because everything has been improving around the country, we were getting closer to normal behaviour.''

Chris Lynn has escaped a ban.

Sean Carroll, Cricket Australia’s Head of Integrity & Security, said that they had “the potential to compromise the integrity of and confidence in our bio-security protocols”.

“The Code of Conduct charges issued today relate to alleged breaches of protocols that are in place in order to protect our players, officials, staff and the wider community,'' said Carroll.

“Potential COVID-19 hotspots and related impacts on State borders remain a challenge for the league and it is imperative that all protocols are adhered to, giving us the best opportunity to move around the country and execute the full schedule.”

“While Australia’s current COVID-19 infection rate remains low, we must ensure that appropriate measures are taken to reduce the possibility of any player, staff member or official being connected to a declared hot spot. State/Territory Governments enforced isolation and restrictions for crossing borders for declared hot spots may impact the individuals involved, the team and potentially jeopardise the BBL season.

“Medically, this particular breach was lower risk, but actions of this kind have the potential to compromise the integrity of and confidence in our bio-security protocols.”

Rivals filthy at arrogance of Lynn’s BBL breach

• Ben Horne

Rival clubs are bemused that Brisbane Heat stars Chris Lynn and Dan Lawrence were allowed to play ‘socially distanced cricket’ on Monday night, but administrators have vowed to throw the book at them over an alleged bubble breach.

It’s understood tournament favourite Lynn and English import Lawrence are set to face heavy sanctions from Cricket Australia, but in bizarre scenes they were not stood down from the Heat’s clash with the Sydney Thunder and instead ordered to isolate from teammates during a nationally televised match.

Sources at rival BBL teams were scratching their heads about why the pair weren’t stood down for disciplinary reasons pending the outcome of the investigation.

Some players contacted by News Corp were filthy at the arrogance displayed by the breach when the competition is being confined to hubs and told they can’t see their families for bio-security reasons.

Chris Lynn has been caught up in the COVID protocols drama.

Cricket Australia officials say rule makers simply didn’t have enough time to get to the bottom of the incident after only being notified late on Sunday, but it’s understood once the correct processes are followed, administrators are vowing to come down hard on the pair and send a message.

The incident relates to Lynn and Lawrence going out in Canberra and coming into close contact with members of the public, and comes on the back of former Heat star Ben Cutting slamming the culture and management at the Brisbane club which he says prompted a mass exodus of players this season.

Players are allowed to dine outside, but there were unconfirmed suggestions that a member of the public may have requested a selfie and that the pair may have taken a taxi.

COVID-19 tests have been carried out for all Heat players and all tests have been returned negative, which is why the pair were allowed to take their place against the Thunder and there was no threat to the fixture taking the place.

Rather than be stood down, Lynn and Lawrence will play but be banned from the team dressing room and from getting too close to teammates during celebrations making them possibly the first professional athletes anywhere in the world to isolate while playing elite sport.

Cricket Australia is investigating Chris Lynn.

“It is important we maintain the integrity of the bio-secure hub to ensure the safety of the public, players, staff and officials and minimise issues associated with travel between state borders during the tournament,” said Sean Carroll, CA’s Head of Security and Integrity.

“While we are fortunate to live in a country with a low rate of infection compared with many other parts of the world, we are still in the midst of a global pandemic and, as we’ve seen on a number of occasions in Australia, COVID-19 breakouts and border closures remain a genuine risk.

“We are always monitoring the public health situation and attempting to strike the appropriate bio-security balance between keeping everyone safe on both sides of the hub and providing as much freedom as possible for those within it.”

CA said socially distanced cricket had been achieved already this summer, including with NSW players going back to first-grade cricket after hearing about the COVID-19 outbreak in Adelaide.

While a medical clearance is one thing, the players can’t understand how Lynn and Lawrence are being allowed to play despite a disciplinary breach which may involve breaching several protocols.

CA’s chief medical officer Dr John Orchard said he’s confident Lynn and Lawrence can achieve the world first of keeping their distance from teammates during a BBL match.

“We’re confident this will be successfully achieved again tonight at Manuka Oval,” Orchard said.

“They must maintain a physical distance on and particularly off the field (indoors) with teammates, opposing players, staff and match officials. We have protocols in place for all matches for interaction between those inside and outside the hub.

“Factors including the outdoor nature of the contest, the generally socially-distanced nature of cricket on-field and the fact Canberra is considered a low-risk city support the conclusion that both can play tonight without posing a meaningful risk.”

Originally published as Brisbane Heat: Darren Lehmann forced to defend BBL club's culture