Lives in Cricket No 30 - MJK Smith

134 Mike will readily admit that he is an easy-going type, seldom falling out with individuals. He welcomed Evans’ fresh, energetic approach as chairman, and for a time they worked together harmoniously. But Mike could see it was not to last: ‘After his success at the SGM, basically Bob Evans thought the membership would give him free rein, but this was not to be.’ Central to the next wave of problems to hit the club was Cottam’s frustration with the Cricket Committee which, he felt, denied him freedom of action and, in particular, had vetoed his wish to approach Kevin Curran when the Zimbabwean all-rounder was severing links with Gloucestershire. Mike stresses that the terms of Cottam’s employment precluded him from acting like a football manager. It was for the Committee to authorise any signings and, in the case of Curran, there had been reports that he had been troublesome at Gloucestershire. ‘The chairman then climbed in,’ says Mike, ‘claiming that, if the cricket manager wanted a player, the Committee should support him. This was an interesting line for Bob Evans to take, since a few seasons earlier he had failed to support David Brown when he wanted to sign Ian Botham.’ Cottam had been rebuked in 1989 for interfering with first-team matters that were the province of the captain. When skipper Lloyd complained of similar problems the next year, a working party was set up to look at the wider issues. Its recommendation was that Cottam’s post should become that of senior coach, not manager. That same summer had seen another contentious issue divide opinion in the club: the choice of overseas player for 1991. With new regulations allowing counties to retain only one, should it be Allan Donald or Tom Moody? Donald had joined Warwickshire in 1987 as a 20-year-old of rich promise. By 1989 he was acknowledged as the fastest white bowler in the world. His 86 first-class wickets that year came at 16.25, an average bettered only by the touring Australian Terry Alderman. Nevertheless, for 1990, though allowed to play only one overseas player, Warwickshire had also been permitted to sign the Australian Tom Moody to bolster the batting in one-day matches. Donald, meanwhile, had suffered from fitness problems and from having his run-up tampered with by coaches during the close season in his native South Africa. His best form deserted him and he ended with only 29 expensive wickets. When Moody took an injured Donald’s place in championship matches, he ended his season with seven hundreds from nine matches and an average of 89.46. Attempts to douse down the controversy merely fuelled Triumphs and tribulations as Chairman