Players reject NZ Cricket's final offer

New Zealand Cricket's (NZC) final offer to settle the dispute which is threatening the start of the domestic season was rejected by the country's first-class cricketers on Tuesday.

The New Zealand Cricket Players' Association (NZCPA) instead invited the NZC to address players directly on the issues under negotiation and said the two parties could then reconvene with a mediator to reach agreement as soon as possible.

The NZCPA said that if its proposal was accepted "as a sign of good faith and in the interests of completing an agreement, the players will commit to full domestic cricketing duties...with immediate effect".

The 128 members of the NZCPA have been on strike since the beginning of October and have not reported for work with their provinces.

The season is due to begin on November 16 with the "Cricket Max" competition, a mini version of the one-day game. The four-day, first-class matches begin the following week.

NZC chief executive Martin Snedden made his final proposal to the NZCPA on Friday when he upped the cash offer to 11 percent for international players and 18 percent for domestic cricketers, an increase in the overall pool for international players to $NZ3 million ($US1.49 million) and to $NZ2 million for domestic cricketers.

The NZCPA wanted a pay increase of around 60 percent for both international and domestic players.

At a sometimes heated news conference on Tuesday, Rob Nicol, the executive director of the NZCPA, outlined the reasons for the rejection of NZC's offer.

He said the association's chartered accountants advised that the NZCPA could not rely on the forecasted financial information provided until further details were obtained, particularly with regard to payments by the International Cricket Council (ICC) to NZC.

UNKNOWN CONSEQUENCES

Nicol also said the NZCPA's solicitors advised that players should not agree to uncertain terms with unknown consequences. The Federation of International Cricketers Associations (FICA) also advised against acceptance.

Among the other issues in dispute are: player transfers, the professional cricketers coaching in schools programme, the development and implementation of a professional development programme for cricketers, how injury and illness is dealt with, how variations in forecasted revenue will be dealt with, the parameters surrounding a player's ability to play overseas and the implications of cancelling fixtures or scheduling additional games.

"The money is negotiable and has always been negotiable and we have made that clear throughout the process," Nicol said.

"This negotiation is not about personalities and it's not about remuneration. It's about the negotiation of employment terms and conditions which are fair and reasonable.

"The players want to play cricket and the players want to reach an agreement."

Former Test all-rounder Dion Nash, who retired earlier this year following a string of serious injuries, said he was backing the NZCPA.

"The senior guys (international players) are standing up to ensure the first-class players are being looked after," Nash said.

"I admire those guys because they have put everything on the line and I admire the young guys who are as nervous as hell about this. But they are all sticking together."

Also read: Players' union sides with New Zealand Cricket

Mail Cricket Editor