Attempted GCB coup a failure

Johannesburg - The attempt by local clubs to overthrow the board of Gauteng Cricket appeared to have failed on Tuesday as they did not have the majority vote.

Interim Gauteng Cricket Board (GCB) administrator Ray Mali and four directors were fired by their shareholders in a letter delivered to the GCB offices on Monday.

"The signatories of the aforementioned letter committed a number of errors in their calculations, with the result that they did not, in fact, represent clubs holding more than 51% of the total voting rights in the GCB," the provincial body said in a statement on Tuesday.

The letter was allegedly signed by a majority of the 66 clubs in the region, but a number of them had since withdrawn their signatures.

Cassim Dockrat, the GCB chief executive, confirmed on Tuesday the clubs had the power to fire the directors, according to the Articles of Association of Gauteng Cricket, but needed to follow the correct procedures.

"The clubs are the shareholders and have the ultimate right to fire the board, as long as the proper processes are followed," Dockrat said.

"A decision to fire the board can be taken at a meeting of shareholders and the directors must then be given due notice."

Dockrat said all five directors had contested their removal from the board.

"Mali was appointed by Cricket South Africa (CSA) and is not a concern for the GCB, but the other four directors are also contesting the legality of the document," he said.

In the statement, however, the GCB also disputed the validity of the Articles of Association and said the voting arrangements, as set out in clause 28.1.6, had been suspended for the duration of the interim administration.

The GCB was placed under administration when the Sports Minister at the time, Makhenkesi Stofile, and CSA intervened after a concern about the lack of transformation and issues relating to hosting rights during the 2009 Indian Premier League.