Worcestershire report financial loss

With the loss of several senior players in the close-season, Worcestershire's wage bill should drop considerably in 2010

Worcestershire have announced a pre-tax loss of £118,439 for the financial year ending September 30, 2009.

The figures compare with a profit of £359,856 for the previous 12 months, and Worcestershire have taken steps to remedy the situation by slashing their annual cricket budget by £300,000.

Opening batsman Stephen Moore, wicketkeeper-batsman Steven Davies, spinner Gareth Batty and fast bowler Kabir Ali have all left the county in the last few months.

A fall in income of 31% and 25% from commercial activities and catering respectively were key components in the changearound in fortunes while expenditure rose by 17%.

Total income remained static but only because of a 19% increase in the distribution from the ECB.

Worcestershire chief executive Mark Newton said in a statement: “These disappointing figures are the result of a number of issues we faced last year.

“Whilst the recession will continue to have an impact commercially, we have addressed the fixture schedule which will be a great deal more spectator-friendly in 2010.

“We invested heavily in the team last year but unfortunately performances failed to meet expectations. A number of senior players have since moved on and our cricket budget has been reduced by around £300,000 this year.

“Other expenditure cuts have been implemented and the benefits of these are already beginning to impact favourably on the business this year. We expect to return to a surplus position this year.”