Ian Healy confirms approach to join Cricket Australia board

Ian Healy has confirmed an exclusive report in The Australian that he has been approached to join the Cricket Australia board.

Former Australian cricketer Ian Healy expected to join Cricket Australia board

Former cricket great Ian Healy has confirmed an exclusive report in The Australian that he has been approached to join the Cricket Australia board.

 “Yes, there’s been an approach to me to come onto the Cricket Australia Board,” he said on his Brisbane breakfast program on SEN Track radio.

Former NSW premier Mike Baird will also join the board courtesy of an audacious manoeuvre by that state to move its representative Richard Freudenstein to a vacant independent position and allow Baird to migrate to the head body.

Healy, the former wicket keeper, will replace Michael Kasprowicz who walked away from the board earlier this year in frustration after 11 years in the role. The former fast bowler still had 12 months to serve before facing re-election.

“It’s nominated by Queensland, there’s six states that can nominate a director,” Healy said.

“The one who is missing is (Queensland’s) Michael Kasprowicz, who stood down after 11 years.

“Queensland has decided to nominated me if I want to do it, I’ve just got to find out if I’ve got time.”

“Yes, I am seriously considering it, I feel like I’m the most dispensable of three options on our Queensland Cricket Board, and that would mean I’d need to get off the Queensland Cricket Board.”

“We’ve got another two options in Chris Simpson and Jon Dooley, but they’re pretty busy at the moment. I’m probably best placed out of us three at the moment, but we’ll see how it goes.”

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Healy’s appointment is likely to be ratified at the Cricket Australia AGM on October 29.

The 56-year-old played 119 Tests and 168 ODIs for Australia between 1988-99 and was so loved by his home state that Adam Gilchrist was booed on debut at the Gabba when he replaced Healy behind the stumps in the Test side.

Healy stayed close to the game as a commentator for Channel 9 before the last rights deal saw the broadcast move to Channel 7 and Fox Cricket.

Fellow commentator and former teammate Mark Taylor was previously a board member but stood down in 2018 after an acrimonious period that included an ugly pay dispute and the cheating scandal.

It has been a tumultuous year for the board highlighted by the departure of chief executive Kevin Roberts in the middle of the year.

Kasprowicz’s departure 12 months before his term was due to expire added to the sense of disorder.

The board consists of six directors nominated by the six states and three independents. The state representatives are essentially independent but are nominated by their associations.

Baird will have to quit the NSW board to accept the role with Cricket Australia.

Cricket NSW has had a major win in convincing the board’s nominations committee to allow its representative Freudenstein to move into an independent seat vacated by Jacquie Hey, which will allow the former NSW premier onto the board.

Hey, who many speculated would become the first female chair of cricket is the chair at Bendigo and Adelaide Bank and indicated earlier this year she would be leaving.

It was understood Dr Vanessa Guthrie was being groomed by Western Australia to move from its board to CA’s but she will miss out which means the board has only two women and is short of its target of 40 per cent female representation which it has resolved to reach in 2022.

Highly respected former player and commentator Mel Jones is on the board as a Victorian representative while Michelle Tredenick is an independent director.

Tasmanian director Paul Green is also due for re-election at the AGM but has been nominated by his state to continue in the role.

NSW’s ability to get two of its people in place comes after a period of hostility between the organisation and head office.

The Blues were one the biggest critics of Roberts and the relationship with chairman Earl Eddings, whose position comes up for re-election in 12 months, has been strained.

John Knox, chairman of Cricket NSW, has a reputation as a power player in the game and has kept directors nervous ever since he took it on himself to call chairman David Peever in November 2018 and tell him he had lost support.

Peever resigned that day after a short fight.

Head office was paranoid the former Credit Suisse chief executive had eyes on the role of chairman of Cricket Australia but those fears were eased significantly when he recently accepted a major job as chair of Ares SSG management.