Cornwall Cricket is just past the halfway mark of the 2026 season. Unfortunately, we are witnessing a damaging trend: an increase in poor behaviour, both on and off the field of play, compared to previous years.

This has to stop. And it has to stop quickly.

The Reality: No Respect, No Game 

Every single person involved in Cornish cricket is responsible for safeguarding its future. The game relies entirely on people, to play, to officiate, to run committees, and to maintain our facilities.

If we do not support and respect everyone involved, there will be no cricket in Cornwall's future. Volunteers and players are already walking away from the sport. We cannot continue to drive them out with toxic behaviour. We must set a positive example, playing hard but playing fair.

Intimidation, inappropriate banter, sharp practice, and offensive language have absolutely no place in our sport.

What We Are Seeing and Will Not Tolerate.

The Cornwall Cricket Board, the Cornwall Cricket League, and the Cornwall Association of Cricket Officials are united: current standards of behaviour are unacceptable.

We are directly demanding an immediate end to:

• Intimidatory and offensive language directed at young batters, and inappropriate "send-offs."

• Vulgar behaviour, dissent, and gamesmanship designed to psych out opponents rather than outplay them.

• Consistent, excessive foul language that can be heard beyond the boundary.

Our Collective Responsibility

We want the game to be competitive. Emotion and passion are part of cricket. But the outcome of a match must be decided by the quality of the batting, bowling, fielding, and captaincy, not by who can shout the loudest or insult the hardest (please refer to League Rules 25 and 29 for precise clarification).

If we want young players to thrive, if we want volunteers to dedicate their time, and if we want independent umpires to stand at our matches, our culture must change, starting today.

Our challenge to everyone in the game:

We owe a strict duty of care to the next generation of cricketers. They deserve clean, family-friendly environments, encouragement, and fair play.

Let’s make a stand right now. Bring respect back to Cornish cricket and remind ourselves why this sport is so vital to our communities.

Play with passion. Play with pride and above all, let your cricket do the talking.