Yorkshire, one of the most well recognised counties in England has been torn apart by racism scandals involving a number of employees. It is also seen as a cultural hub for its Leeds United and Sheffield Wednesday teams.
When former Yorkshire player Azeem Rafiq testified to MPs, he slammed both Moxon (left) and Gale (right).
When former Yorkshire player Azeem Rafiq testified to MPs, he slammed both Moxon (left) and Gale (right).In the wake of the racism incident, 16 employees have departed Yorkshire, including director of cricket Martyn Moxon, head coach Andrew Gale, and all members of the coaching staff.
Former footballer Azeem Rafiq was a victim of “racial abuse and bullying” at Yorkshire, according to a study.
Since 2007, Moxon has served as Yorkshire’s director of cricket.
An examination into a tweet he wrote in 2010 led to the suspension of former captain Gale.
“At Yorkshire County Cricket Club, significant change is needed, and we are determined to taking whatever measures is necessary to recover confidence,” said Lord Patel, the club’s new chair.
“Today’s choices were tough to reach, but they are in the best interests of the club.”
“We won’t be able to move on from the past and become a progressive and inclusive culture until we make significant changes to how we operate.”
A new director of cricket will be appointed “imminently,” according to a Yorkshire statement.
Moxon, a former Yorkshire and England batter, was scheduled to testify before the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) select committee on November 16, however he was unable to attend owing to a “stress-related illness.”
Rafiq, who played for Yorkshire twice between 2008 and 2018, told the committee that racist language was “constantly” used at the club during his time there and that English cricket is “institutionally racist.”
Rafiq said at the trial that the day after his son’s stillbirth in 2017, Moxon “torn tatters” from him in a way he had never seen Moxon do while speaking to anybody else at Yorkshire.
For the first time in September 2020, Rafiq described his experiences at Yorkshire, which left him on the verge of suicide. Yorkshire initially said that no one at the club would be penalized once the report’s conclusions were disclosed a year later.
Moxon and previous chief executive Mark Arthur “failed to recognize the reality of the issue,” according to Roger Hutton, Yorkshire’s former chairman who left in November. Last month, Arthur quit.
The Yorkshire-commissioned study was widely panned when it was disclosed that a discriminatory phrase concerning Rafiq’s Pakistani background was used against him on a frequent basis while at the club, despite the fact that it was judged to be “friendly and good-natured banter.”
Gale has spent his whole career with Yorkshire, first as a player after making his debut in 2004, then as captain from 2009 to 2016, before retiring at the age of 32 to take up the position of head coach.
Emotional Rafiq speaks to MPs about the prejudice he saw in Yorkshire.
Yorkshire became “poison” when Gary Ballance took over as captain, soon after Gale replaced former coach Jason Gillespie, Rafiq stated during the DCMS committee hearing.
Ballance, a former England batter, claimed he was to blame for some of Rafiq’s harsh words during his time at Headingley.
Gale’s attitude about Rafiq’s son’s death, according to Rafiq, was that Rafiq was “making it more than it is,” and that “hardly anybody” inquired about his and his wife’s well-being.
Yorkshire United banned Gale on November 9 after the Jewish News revealed that he made an anti-Semitic insult to former Leeds United media director Paul Dews in a now-deleted tweet.
“We want Yorkshire County Cricket Club to be a destination for people from all walks of life,” Patel added.
“To accomplish so, we must reconstruct our culture and instill good values in all Yorkshire residents. We’re committed to learn from our errors in order to build a club that people can rely on.”
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) banned Yorkshire from hosting England matches at their Headingley ground in reaction to their handling of Rafiq’s charges.
Irfan Amjad and Tabassum Bhatti, both former Yorkshire academy players, have also spoken out about their experiences with racism at the club.
In its first week of operation, 36 individuals phoned Yorkshire’s independent whistleblower hotline, which was set up to enable any additional victims of prejudice at the club to come forward.
Yorkshire will be subjected to an independent examination of club governance, it was announced on Thursday.
The European Central Bank (ECB) has released a five-point plan to combat racism and prejudice, which includes a “complete examination of dressing-room culture.”
