Today, in the Sunday Times, a story has been published, with the headline claiming that Middlesex Cricket is considering a move away from Lord’s Cricket Ground, the Club’s home since 1877.
The Club wishes to issue this statement to offer some clarity and context to the content of the article, which was first published online yesterday evening.
Andrew Cornish, Middlesex Cricket’s Chief Executive Officer, commented:
“Earlier this week, both Angus Fraser and I were interviewed by the Times cricket writer, Simon Wilde, which led to the publication of the article.
“Quite naturally, the headline of the article has raised some eyebrows and created some concern with our members, which is why we felt it necessary to write this statement.
“As we all know, Middlesex Cricket is unique in many ways – most significant of which is our existence at Lord’s, a ground we do not own, yet have played at for the vast majority of our 160-year existence and will continue to in the future.
“This poses many challenges, not least of all that we have severe restrictions on the growth potential of the Club, with little or no opportunity to secure additional revenues from the ground we play at. The reality is that Lord’s cannot accommodate all our home games and that is only likely to get tougher. London needs another elite cricket facility.
“As a Board, we are duty bound to do all in our power to ensure Middlesex Cricket not just survives, but grows in this rapidly changing cricket landscape. In order to achieve this, the Board and Executive Team need to explore multiple options, both short and long-term, that can then be discussed with members.
“We continue to explore numerous options, but to put minds at rest, Middlesex Cricket is not about to end its long-term relationship with Marylebone Cricket Club and is not about to leave Lord’s.
“First are foremost, the Club is not in a financial position currently where it can even consider this as an option, secondly, we have no site to consider moving to, and thirdly, if we did have, bringing this to fruition would be many years away and we would still hope to play as much cricket as possible at Lord’s.
“As little as three years ago the Club advised members that it was looking at alternative sites which might prove suitable for a home venue – with advanced investigation into Barnet Copthall as a suitable site ultimately not leading to a successful outcome.
“So, in short, right now, and in the immediate future, we are considering a move from Lord’s no more intensely than we were back then, although we remain committed to reviewing all options to ensure the Club thrives in the future.
“Whatever happens in the future, we will of course keep members and stakeholders fully informed of potential options and will actively seek their views, but rest assured, we aren’t going anywhere any time soon, and we look forward to our partnership with Marylebone Cricket Club continuing to thrive moving forwards.”
We hope this helps clarify any misunderstanding that the headline of this article may have caused.
Read the Sunday Times article HERE