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There is a reluctance at the heart of cricket in south Wales to investigate allegations of racism, a whistleblower has told Caerphilly Observer.
As part of our investigation into racism in Welsh cricket, we have also learned that governing body the English Cricket Board, which ultimately oversees the sport in Wales, do not collate figures on the reports made alleging abuse.
Wales has an ethnic minority participation in cricket at 10.17% – twice the national average.
Our investigation began after a recent independent report found 448 examples of institutional racism at Cricket Scotland.
We wanted to find out how many reports of alleged racism had been made in Wales.
When we asked the ECB, we were told it did not have publicly available stats. We have since discovered these statistics do not exist at all.
The need for these figures was highlighted last month when a game between Pontymister and Crosskeys, and Crumlin was called off following an allegation of verbal and physical racist abuse.
The captain of Pontymister and Crosskeys said he feared for the safety of his players and took them off the pitch.
Crumlin denies all allegations while an investigation takes place.
With both the ECB and Cricket Wales refusing to comment on what figures they have available, or the procedures in place when someone comes forward with allegations of racial discrimination, we asked people to come forward to share their experiences.
“No policy for discrimination: they’re frightened of racism”
A high-ranking administrator involved in the game contacted us with their concerns.
In all of their many years dealing with reports of racial discrimination, cricket authorities “have never once found anyone guilty”.
The whistleblower said: “They write every complaint off as hearsay. From the outset they are completely reluctant to investigate and battle racism in cricket.”
Although the ECB claims all complaints were sent to them and looked at “carefully”, the whistleblower refuted this as false.
They said: “My understanding is that all complaints go directly to the local leagues. It isn’t taken seriously, or any further than that, with a panel of just three deciding on the outcome.”
The whistleblower and the ECB agreed an increase in allegations in recent years was largely due to it being easier to report them.
Asked whether this improved platform meant improved attitudes, the whistleblower said: “They have a very ‘old fashioned’ mindset. I hear a lot of ‘back in my day’ type comments and things are dismissed.”
In response to these allegations, Cricket Wales said it “has a long-standing and evidencable commitment to ensuring that equity, diversity and inclusion is embedded into all we do”.
The body continued: “We also recognise our responsibility to be the driving force in making sure that the culture of the cricket across Wales is as inclusive and welcoming as possible to all. We do not, and will not, tolerate discrimination in any form.”
When pushed for this “evidencable commitment” Caerphilly Observer was told that two case studies will be published towards the end of the year.
As well as speaking to someone from within the cricket setup, Caerphilly Observer also spoke to a player that recently reported an alleged racist attack on a cricket field.
The player, who wished to remain anonymous, reiterated many of the concerns raised by the whistleblower, and said: “We felt ignored.
“We, as a team, experience racism all of the time. We were told that there wasn’t enough evidence to take things further. It hurts.”
Cricket Wales said: “If incidents are reported to us, which is, thankfully, mercifully rare, we will always ensure that allegations are thoroughly investigated, using third-party experts where necessary. There are robust processes to gather evidence and determine proportionate sanctions where they may be required and appropriate.”
The current investigation between Crumlin and Pontymister and Crosskeys is being dealt with by the South East Wales Cricket League.
It has said the investigation is still ongoing and is unable to comment until it has concluded.
The ECB declined to comment on the whistleblower’s claims, although it is due to publish an updated plan tackling racism later this month.
The whistleblower said: “If I lose my job…so be it. Things need to change.”
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