Maynard bats back at Athers

Glamorgan cricket manager Matthew Maynard today hit back at former England captain Mike Atherton following comments that Glamorgan’s redeveloped ground is “a joke”.

Atherton surprised Welsh cricket fans last week while commentating on England’s One Day Test against New Zealand.

When reference was made to the size of the cricket ground in Hamilton, New Zealand, and the number of fans in attendance, Atherton didn’t mince his words.

He said: “I wouldn’t get too precious about coming here because we’re sending the Australians to Cardiff in 2009. It shows a complete lack of ambition that you’re putting on an Ashes Test match in a ground that’s going to hold 12 or 15,000 people. It’s a joke.”

His outburst follows the decision by the England and Wales Cricket Board in 2006 to stage one of England’s 2009 Ashes Test matches against Australia in Cardiff. Glamorgan’s ground in Sophia Gardens, Riverside, was chosen ahead of Old Trafford and Durham’s Riverside stadium.

Maynard, who played for England in the 1992 Ashes series, was unimpressed and leapt to the defence of the ground which has undergone a £9.5m redevelopment. He said: “It’s just sad really for someone who captained the country to come out with those comments.”

“I don’t know if he has been down to see the SWALEC stadium, but it’s a magnificent Test venue and something to be proud of.”

The Welsh-born former England batsman confirmed tickets for England’s one-day encounter with South Africa in September at the SWALEC stadium are selling like hot cakes. A full house is expected to greet the side which represents England and Wales.

Prospective Labour councillor for Riverside and life-long cricket fan Mark Drakeford was another to give short shrift to Atherton’s remarks. He said: “I doubt it will have escaped notice that Mr Atherton is a former Lancashire captain, and that Old Trafford lost out to Cardiff for the Ashes Test.

“Wales has an excellent track record, in the post-devolution era, of delivering major building projects on budget and on time. The new Sophia Gardens will stand comparison with Test venues across the world.

“Local residents have a direct interest in making sure that the event is properly managed, and its impact on daily life is minimised, but no-one will want the Test Match to be anything but a huge success for Cardiff and for Wales.”