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David ‘Bumble’ Lloyd’s bid to join Lancashire’s board has been rejected out of hand in another tumultuous week at county cricket’s crisis club.
Lloyd, 79, has had a lifetime association with his boyhood club, captaining and coaching the team during a career in the game that also featured nine Test caps for England, a three-year stint in charge of the national team and 30 as one of the most popular commentators across sport.
However, it is understood from sources at the club that he was not even invited for an interview after submitting his application. ‘I’m totally embarrassed. Flabbergasted. Dismayed,’ Lloyd said, when contacted by Daily Mail Sport.
It is a turn of events that is likely to further anger a disenfranchised fanbase. On Monday, a petition from members expressed a vote of no confidence in the management at Old Trafford, triggering a third Special General Meeting in just over a month. It was followed by an announcement on Wednesday that Lancashire’s chief executive Daniel Gidney would be stepping down at the end of the season, after 14 years in the role.
‘This has been a big decision, but I feel it is the right time to hand over the reins, leaving the club in a strong financial position to build on,’ Gidney said. ‘The club is entering a new era of financial stability, providing a strong platform to drive our on-field ambitions forward, with continued significant investment in player recruitment, development, and cricket infrastructure – and I think the future is incredibly bright.’
Gidney’s tenure included a huge £75million regeneration of Lancashire’s traditional home and a sale of the Manchester Hundred franchise that has reduced debt to around £10m.
David ‘Bumble’ Lloyd has had his offer to join crisis county Lancashire’s board brutally snubbed
Lloyd (kneeling, centre) has served the county with distinction for decades, but did not even receive an interview from Lancashire
However, a group of Lancashire vice-presidents and other prominent former players have been highly critical of a lack of cricket expertise on the board, which has coincided with a plunge in on-field fortunes including relegation in the County Championship in 2024.
They narrowly failed to reach a two-thirds majority at the second of two SGMs in April that would have addressed this by increasing the number of former employees eligible to sit on the board from two to four.
The objective of a group also including Paul Allott, Michael Atherton and Neil Fairbrother is to put on-field matters back at the centre of a business fronted by interim chair Dame Sarah Storey. Lancashire’s only current ex-employee on the board is John Abrahams.
On the same evening, the first SGM was postponed amid concerns from those present that the club were attempting to rush through changes, without appropriate consultation, which would result in members’ powers being drastically reduced.
Lancashire were also criticised for not providing proxy voters, who did not attend meetings, with the arguments against the board’s proposals, which opponents said denied them hearing both sides of the argument before voting. Daily Mail Sport has contacted Lancashire for comment.
