GEORGE DOBELL - EXCLUSIVE: Hutton's testimony may persuade the ECB Integrity Unit, who have seemed reluctant to investigate a former ECB chair, to dig a little deeper into events at the club. Colin Graves and Robin Smith strongly deny the claims
Roger Hutton has, for the first time, made detailed public allegations of interference in Yorkshire cricket by Colin Graves and other former Yorkshire chairs.
Hutton, who resigned as Yorkshire chair in November, has told The Cricketer that, on numerous occasions, the Graves Trusts summoned him to meetings where they urged him to listen to the guidance of Graves in relation to how to react to Azeem Rafiq's claims of racism at the club, how to deal with the ECB and how to support the executive team. At at least one of those meetings, Graves was present.
When Hutton declined to act as was asked of him, he alleges the trustees tried to have him removed as chair and called for a vote of no confidence at board level. Their aim, Hutton believes, was to re-install Graves as chair of the club.
Hutton also alleges that, at the Leeds Test of 2021, three former Yorkshire chairs (Graves, Steve Denison and Robin Smith) implored him to defend the good reputation of the club and go on the attack. When Hutton declined, Graves told him that he would "leave the club a very unhappy man".
Graves supports the introduction of independent directors – a key part of the governance reforms proposed by current chair Lord Kamlesh Patel – and instigated the same thing during his period at the helm of the ECB.
Graves, Denison and Smith were also concerned that the report into allegations of racism at the club had not been released publicly.
Hutton's revelations suggest that Graves, who has robustly denied the suggestion of any interference, has been far more closely connected with matters at the club than he has admitted. They may also persuade the ECB Integrity Unit, who have so far seemed reluctant to investigate a former ECB chair, to dig a little deeper into events at the club.
Former ECB chair Colin Graves, left
Graves has rejected the claims, insisting he only ever offered "advice and help" to Hutton.
Hutton has also warned that, if the reforms Lord Patel has drafted are not voted through by members on Thursday, the club may well be stripped of its ability to host international cricket and would, as a consequence, become insolvent. In that scenario, the Graves Trusts would, as the club's major creditor, almost certainly assume full ownership of Headingley. That would likely see Graves return as club chair.
The ECB has previously stated it is a condition of hosting international cricket that the governance reforms are agreed by the club by the end of this month. The club requires two-thirds of voting members to pass the reforms.
"In many ways I have not wanted to get involved," Hutton told The Cricketer. "I accept I had my opportunity to make changes at the club and I made mistakes. I am deeply sorry for those mistakes. I've had to move on.
"But I feel compelled to speak now. Partially because I strongly believe in the reforms Kamlesh Patel is trying to bring in and partially because I think it's important to know the background behind those trying to thwart his plans.
"Colin Graves retained a substantial influence at the club during my entire period as chair. He had employed many of the executives and remained sympathetic towards them. He remained in regular contact with executives at the club and the head of HR, who were exactly the people I felt were undermining the board. I spoke to him on many occasions.
"The Graves Trusts are, at face value, run independently of Colin. But on numerous occasions I was summoned to meetings by the trustees at which I was asked to listen to his point of view. At one of them, he was present.
"His point of view? His views were very similar to those expressed in the October letter signed by many of the coaching staff. He thought, like Smith, that we should go on the attack with Azeem. He thought we should discredit him. I was appalled. It really makes no difference what sort of character Azeem is – in my view, there's a lot to admire in him – he had brought serious allegations to our attention, an investigation had verified much of what he said and we had to embrace change. Trying to discredit him was, in my view, entirely the wrong approach.
"When I declined to agree to their approach, the trustees sought to have me removed from the board. They called for a vote of no confidence in me. But the non-executive directors backed me and it didn't go to a vote. I'll let your readers decide for themselves how independent that sounds.
Roger Hutton, right, arrives for his DCMS select committee hearing in November
"Am I surprised to read Colin's denial that the Trusts interfered? Not really. But I can tell that I felt they put me under substantial pressure. When your major creditor wants you out, you do feel under duress.
"I am pleased that Colin has now publicly supported the proposed changes. But it would have been helpful if he had been more vocal at the time for the need to accept the failures of the past and the need to change in the future.
"Maybe more importantly, many of the racist incidents had occurred on the watch of him and Smith. And neither of them had investigated. So it felt as if they were trying to justify their inaction by denying there was any issue. They were trying to protect the reputation of their own tenures. I don't think I've seen an apology from any of them. Not even an acknowledgement that things went wrong on their watch.
"Robin Smith, in particular, has made a lot of criticisms of Lord Patel over procedural errors. But they happened on his watch. They were his proposals. And if he knew that they hadn't been cleared with the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority), you do wonder why he didn't notify the club earlier.
"He was also the man who was chair when Azeem Rafiq brought his claims to the club's attention. He said it would cause disruption. But disruption was exactly what was required. I think you could make a case to argue that, by failing to investigate – a decision he appears to have taken without board approval - he failed in his fiduciary duty.
Smith strongly denies such allegations.
"When Headingley hosted the Test against India in August, all three of them – Graves, Denison and Smith – descended on me in an attempt to impress upon me the need to adopt a fortress mentality,” Hutton said.
Graves' family trusts are the primary creditor of Yorkshire CCC
“I said I wanted us to be more progressive and Graves told me I'd leave the club a very unhappy man."
While the influence of Graves and co. will be minimised if Yorkshire members agree to back Patel's governance reforms, Hutton believes it remains possible that he could find a route back to power at the club.
"While I was chair, I warned the trustees that the club was in danger of becoming insolvent," he explained. "And that danger becomes much more pressing if the club loses the right to host international cricket.
"But as the trusts are the majority secured creditor, it would effectively cost them nothing to buy the club if it went into administration. They could simply offer the administrators the amount they are owed and, unless they were outbid – which seems unlikely – they would take full ownership. In that scenario, I wouldn't be at all surprised if Graves was reappointed as chair.
"I honestly have no idea if that's their aim. But that is the reality of the situation."
In a bid to move on from the Graves era, Hutton was in the process of renegotiating Yorkshire's finances and paying off the trusts.
"Some of the board meetings at the time became very animated," Hutton said. "There was shouting and swearing. I tried to bring everyone together and I tried to bring them on a journey. But I'm sorry to say I just couldn't do it. In retrospect, I knew I had to sack several members of the executive earlier, but I really didn't think the trusts would allow me to do it.
"I failed in my attempts to change the club, but I would love to see Patel succeed. I'd love to see Yorkshire take this opportunity to become an inclusive club that can be a template for the game. It feels like a crossroads moment."
Lord Patel has welcomed Hutton's intervention.
"This is very brave of Roger," he told The Cricketer. "History so far has judged him unfairly. My dealings with Smith show that Roger was trying to do what I have managed to do, albeit with some difficulty, with one hand tied behind his back."
Yorkshire are putting governance reforms to an EGM vote this week
Smith and Graves have a different interpretation of these events.
"I'm afraid that Roger's perspective is a partial one," Robin Smith told The Cricketer. "My own experience of the Graves Trusts was that they never interfered once. I held periodic meetings with them and regarded it as a priority that their confidence in the club should be maintained. It was. Colin Graves was never involved.
"The meeting at the Headingley Test was arranged because all three of us were concerned at delays in the submission of the Squire Patton Boggs report, and the absence of any comment by the club. We all three thought that the Club was suffering reputational damage as a result. We had a good discussion and we all three confirmed our willingness to help."
Smith's understanding is supported by Graves.
"I categorically deny Mr Hutton's claims of interference," Graves told The Cricketer. "His statements are inaccurate.
"On the second day of the Test, there was a meeting involving me, Mr Hutton, Steve Denison and Robin Smith. As former chairs of the club who were concerned by what we saw, we offered our help. He declined our offer.
"At the end of September, I took a call from the trustees. They said things were going from bad to worse at the club and were worried about loan repayments. They had also asked for a copy of the report in Azeem Rafiq's allegation of racism; a request which had been declined.
"They asked me to come along to the meeting as an informed observer; as someone who knew the club and the sport. I agreed.
Lord Kamlesh Patel is the current Yorkshire chair
"The meeting didn't go well. The trustees were clearly losing confidence in Mr Hutton and I remember telling him he was heading towards a massive problem with the ECB.
"Shortly after that, I had a couple of calls from directors. They told me the trustees had called a board meeting for November 5 and they suspected they were going to call a vote of no confidence. I called the non-executive directors and offered my help in any shape or form I could. I didn't say I would be the new chair. I was just someone with a lot of experience of the club who wanted to help.
"I find it incredible that Mr Hutton says he couldn't sack any executive he wanted. If that was true, how was it that Kamlesh Patel did so within a few days of becoming chair?
"While the trustees had a veto in theory, it was never actually used. All I ever did was offer advice and help."
Lord Patel's proposed reforms are expected to be voted through on Thursday, with support from an overwhelming majority of members - as many as 90 per cent of whom have supported the plans, The Cricketer understands.
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