Ex-Cricket Scotland chair discredits "damning" report into sexism and misogyny

GEORGE DOBELL: A report commissioned by Cricket Scotland and published on Monday (March 11) concluded that women in the environment had faced prejudice and discrimination

George Dobell | 13/03/2024 at 18:42

A former chair of Cricket Scotland has expressed "serious concerns" over a report into sexism and misogyny at the organisation.

As first reported by The Cricketer, a report commissioned by Cricket Scotland and published on Monday (March 11) concluded that women in the environment had faced prejudice and discrimination. Trudy Lindblade, the CEO of Cricket Scotland, described it as a "damning indictment" of the culture.

"It is evident that Cricket Scotland allowed behaviours to take place that were disrespectful, demeaning and deeply concerning, and that these were allowed to continue for a significant period," Lindblade said. "This is completely unacceptable, and I wholeheartedly apologise to every single person who was affected and let down by the governing body."

But Tony Brian, who chaired Cricket Scotland from 2015 to 2022, claims the report was written without speaking to "the relevant people" and argues that female participation numbers have grown in recent years.

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^{Cricket Scotland are back under the microscope (Getty Images)}

"Again, we have a review with missing input from key individuals and untested statements taken as proven fact," Brian said in a statement.

"An example of the danger of the review trying to make conclusions without investigation is its contention that Cricket Scotland did not devote enough attention and resource to women and girls' cricket up until 2022 and that amounted to inequality.

Fresh crisis facing Cricket Scotland as damning new report emerges

"That conclusion is reached without (a) speaking to the people who set the strategy for women and girls' cricket and who allocated the resources of Cricket Scotland at the time; (b) analysing key metrics such as the trends in participation or of budget spend; or (c) measuring the improvement in national team performances.

"If they had spoken to the relevant people, they would have understood that between 2016 and 2023 Cricket Scotland grew women and girls' playing numbers in Scotland many times over.

"In 2015 there was a tiny number of a hundred or so players, and the women's game was at serious risk of dying. That number has risen to a sustainable base of approaching 1,000 women and girls' participants across all formats in 2023.

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The report found Cricket Scotland "allowed behaviours to take place that were disrespectful, demeaning and deeply concerning" (George Wood/Getty Images)

"Those who read the review need to look at the conclusions with high degree of caution as some lack the supporting investigative work and evidence required."

Brian had a similarly scathing response to the Changing The Boundaries report published in 2023 which found widespread examples of institutional racism at the organisation over a similar period of time.

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