Yorkshire bring in Lord Patel of Bradford as chair after emergency board meeting
Two non-executive directors step down in wake of Roger Hutton’s resignation
George Dobell05-Nov-2021Yorkshire have appointed Lord Patel of Bradford as the club’s chair after a board meeting in the wake of Roger Hutton’s resignation on Friday, with two more non-executive directors also stepping down as part of the fallout around the handling of the report into allegations of racism by Azeem Rafiq.Yorkshire’s new chair knows more than most about the evils of racism. Growing up, Kamlesh Patel had to deal with the issue on a daily basis. Now he hopes that experience will serve him well in helping Yorkshire rebuild from perhaps the most serious crisis in its history – which included revelations that the panel cleared a player of wrongdoing over use of the word “P**i” on the grounds that it was banter between friends.”When I was a boy I developed into a very fast runner,” Patel told ESPNcricinfo. “Do you know why? Because gangs of skinheads used to delight in what they called P**i-bashing and you either learned to run or you took a beating.”So that word – the P**i word – has real meaning for me. I don’t need to be told it’s not banter.”Patel looks an astute choice. Born in Kenya, but brought up in Bradford when his parents moved to the UK about a year later, he knows the area, loves cricket and has copious experience. Having trained as a social worker, he was subsequently appointed as Chair of Social Work England and, before that, chair of the Mental Heath Act Commission. He has previously served on the board of the ECB as a senior independent director and had been invited to join the Yorkshire board in recent weeks anyway.His Asian heritage is, of course, also relevant. The club needs to prove to potential supporters, sponsors and players that it is committed to providing a more inclusive environment. Patel provides tangible evidence that times have changed.He experienced, he says, “loads” of racism while playing league cricket in the region as he was growing up. And while he believes the situation has improved somewhat, he is under no illusions.”I grew up at a time when you used to see those ‘No Blacks, No Irish, No dogs’ signs,” he says. “I experienced loads of racism playing cricket.”I think things have improved. But sometimes it just feels more subtle now. Sometimes I still wonder why, if they’re telling me I’m a rubbish bowler, they have to make mention of the colour of my skin at the same time.”He has a tough job, though. While non-executive directors Hanif Malik and Stephen Willis – the latter of whom was on the panel that helped produce the report into Rafiq’s allegations of racism – have stood down, the executive directors, notably Mark Arthur, the chief executive, and Martyn Moxon, the director of cricket, remain. While they do so, it is hard to see the club managing to improve its reputation.Crucially, Patel remains close to Colin Graves, too. Representatives of The Graves Family Trusts, which are owed around £18m by the club, have a veto on anyone joining the Yorkshire board. So while Graves, who is understood to remain loyal to Moxon and Arthur, may have been disappointed not to reclaim the chairmanship of the club, he has accepted the appointment of Patel.”The club needs to learn from its past errors, regain trust and rebuild relationships with our communities,” Patel said. “There is much work to do, including reading the panel’s report, so we can begin the process of learning from our past mistakes.”Yorkshire is lucky to have a vast talent pool of cricketers, and passionate supporters, from all of our communities and we must re-engage with everyone to make a better Yorkshire County Cricket Club for everyone.”