A CRICKET SQUABBLE.

Evening Post, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 9, 11 January 1912, Page 2

A CRICKET SQUABBLE.

A serious disagreement has arisen between the players and the Board of Control over the decision of the latter body to send their own representative with the Australian cricket team to England. Some members of the team resent this, and .demand that the players shall select their own manager, as heretbfore. It is even rumoured that there may be a strike of cricketers if the board persists, and that they x will refuse to accompany the team to England. There is, however, no likelihood of the board retreating. "1 trust," says ,<t hon -,^cretary, Mr. Syti Smith, jun., that the players will look upon, the matter in the right light, and show that their interest in the good old game is really sincere, and not a matter of pounds, shillings, and pence." Rule 9 of the Constitution saye that the appointment of a manager of any Australian team visiting England or elsewhere shall be made by the players interested and submitted to the Board of Control for .confirmation; but unless the board directs that a manager shall accompany the team, there is no manager for the players to select, according to the secretary. It, is the intention of tho board to inform the players when they are selected that, m the opinion of that body, the appointment of a manager is unnecessary. When the last Australian team visited New Zealand, it will be remembered, a representative of the board was sent in lieu of a manager ; and this as what 13 now proposed to be done in connection with the team to visit England. The trouble appears to be duo to the failure of the manager of the last team, Mr. Layer— himself a cricketer of note— to keep books, with full particu lars of the receipts and disbursements. Mr. Layer took up the position that he was not a servant of the Board of Control ; but the board's reply to that is that unless his appointment had been confirmed by it he could not have -gone Home. "The fact is," says Mr, Smith, "that all through Mr. Layer has tried to ignore iihe board ,in , every possible way. Last tour he .divided an equal share with ' the_players in addition to his expenses. -Under 'the, new' arrangement only the expenses of the board's representative will be charged to the expenses of the tour. The £400 salary will come, out of tho board's share of the proceeds."