The future of Northamptonshire County Cricket Club looks uncertain after a request to the ECB for emergency financial help and an examination of the benefits of selling their ground and moving to an out-of-town location. The club, who have already borrowed several hundred thousand pounds from a group of directors earlier this year, have been instructed by the ECB to undergo an independent financial review to ascertain whether they fill the criteria for borrowing. It is believed they require around £500,000 to meet urgent financial obligations. The ECB has assisted counties in the past but with a full-scale review of the professional game in progress, it cannot be assumed that further largesse will automatically be forthcoming.
Northants have asked the England and Wales Cricket board about financial help, but have denied reports that they require an emergency loan. The Division Two club declared a loss of £305,636 last year, and a Cricinfo report claims they now need £500,000 to meet urgent financial obligations. "We've gone to the ECB asking what financial support is available," said Northants chief executive Ray Payne. "There's nothing new about Northants and the situation we're in." He added the new board at the ECB was "talking to all of the clubs". Payne denied Cricinfo's claim that Northants had asked for an emergency loan from the ECB, and said the club is in the first year of a three-year plan to try to make it more sustainable. "It's not an emergency loan, it's about longer-term cashflow and ensuring the losses reported last year are not reported this year," Payne told BBC Radio Northampton.
