Canada score PR own goal

A little over two months after being appointed as the Canadian Cricket Association's Marketing and Communications Manager, Eddie Norfolk appears to have been dismissed after falling foul of Ben Sennik, the board's somewhat eccentric president.

Norfolk, who moved to Canada from Essex in 1989, came to the job with a glowing management background and in the short time he was in office, he made big strides in publicising the CCA's work and of bringing Canadian cricket to a bigger audience. Until his appointment, the CCA had rarely issued any media releases or appeared to do much to promote itself.

Insiders say that it was his instant success that contributed to his demise, with Sennik reportedly far from happy that his role as the main man was being overshadowed.

Sennik's credibility was not helped by some ill-advised remarks in may when he claimed that Canada were aiming to become a Test-playing nation within a decade. A few days later, they were defeated by Bermuda and Zimbabwe on ODIs. Those losses were put into context with the revelation that no practice matches had been arranged prior to the Trinidad trip. Insiders claim this was for financial reasons.

Just before Christmas, Sennik told a crowd attending 'Cricket and the Meaning of Life' that cricket would be the dominant sport in Canada in 'about the next ten years' . He has also been talking about a massively ambitious cricket stadium and hotel development at King City. A figure of $300 million was tossed in the air during one discussion and funding appears to be dependent on a mysterious backer. The Maple Leaf CC grounds at King City are held under a trust and are not the CCA's. At the CCA AGM last November, the architectural drawings were unveilled. At the time capacity was around 18,000 - a much higher figure was heard recently. There continued to be mentioned of sharing the ground with soccer but a new stadium is being built at the Canadian National Exhibition Grounds, near the Toronto lakeshore.

As recently as last weekend, Norfolk was to be seen working tirelessly at a domestic event - the CIMA Mayor's Cup - and insiders say that there was growing envy at his high profile.

Sennik's action would seem to ensure that Canadian cricket slips back to the twilight zone it inhabited before Norfolk's appointment. To outsiders, it appears that personal standing and profile inside the country is more important that the overall good of the game.