ANNUAL REPORT 2019

13 CHIEF EXECUTIVE’S REPORT “THAT CRICKET SUPPORTERS RATED US AS DELIVERING THE BEST CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE FOR BOTH THE WORLD CUP AND BILATERAL INTERNATIONAL CRICKET IS TESTAMENTTO THE HARDWORK, SKILL AND DEDICATION OF OUR OFF- FIELD STAFF AND VOLUNTEERS.” Lisa Pursehouse as delivering the best customer experience for both theWorld Cup and bilateral international cricket is testament to the hard work, skill and dedication of our off-field staff and volunteers.Their ability to combine the harsh realities of oper- ational delivery with the warm and friendly welcome for which we are renowned is remarkable and they have my sincere thanks. All of the above are important measures for any county club and international venue in the modern game. However, we are a cricket club and I am – of course – acutely aware that success or failure on the field of play does impact at every level.The sentiment that everyone involved with our club feels most keenly in any calendar year is always decided by what happens out on the field. With the bitter disappointment of red-ball relegation and our white- ball performances – impressive and consistent though they were – failing to deliver a trophy, it’s a reflective feeling of frustration that prevails when I look back on 2019. Whilst we must acknowledge that our playing squad has undergone a great deal of transition in recent years, the nature of our red-ball per- formances fell short of expectations, which is not something we can accept at a club of our stature. Our playing squad understand that ultimately the responsibility for improvement is theirs, both as in- dividuals and collectively as a unit. As we endeavour to achieve future success, we will continue to recruit cricketers who fit the right profile in terms of their experience, potential and ambitions for the future. However, successful recruitment is only one strand of the cricket strategy we developed three years ago. It’s vital that, alongside considered rec- ruitment, we continue to focus on bringing young players through our county age-group system.The award of professional contracts to Liam Patterson-White, Joey Evison and Sol Budinger means we now have ten home-grown players in our professional squad. The challenges presented by the 2019 season served to further increase our determination to do all we can to assist our players in their endeavours for improvement.We will continue to invest in a coaching and support setup at all levels that nurtures young talent, so that with hard work and dedication they can forge a successful career with Notts and ultimately go on to represent England. Kevin Shine, our newly appointed Assistant Coach, is uniquely placed to inform that process having spent the past 14 years as Lead Fast Bowling Coach for the ECB. Hav- ing Andy Pick now dedicated to de- veloping young players through our talent pathway provides priceless opportunities for them to work with an elite coach of vast experience and knowledge, dovetailing with the expertise of the former professionals that also form part of that setup. Nobody in the modern era, mean- while, has registered achievements in county cricket to match that of our Head Coach, Peter Moores. He is absolutely committed to rebuilding and bringing success to our club following the difficulties of 2019. I’m sure you all join me in wishing him, our Club Captain Steven Mullaney and the team all the very best for the new season. Off the field throughout 2019 there has been a significant amount of work undertaken by the counties, the Professional Cricketers’ Asso- ciation and the ECB to completely redefine the working relationship between the parties as we strive to deliver on the ‘one game’ approach cricket needs to grow and prosper. That has not been without its challenges, as we worked collec- tively to navigate the tricky waters of complex negotiations and legally binding contracts. The staging agreements between the ECB and venues that host major match cricket andThe Hundred are demanding and cover areas such as facilities, infrastructure, broadcasting requirements and the expertise of the host venue off-field team. Encapsulated under the terms of the new County Partnership Agree- ment, we will also be tasked to deliver against key performance measures that underpin the foun- dations of the game’s Inspiring Generations strategy, which covers a five-year period commencing in 2020. This document will confirm the club’s core funding from the ECB and outline the detail of additional pots for infrastructure and commu- nity projects that will be available through a game-wide bid process. It should be completed by the end of March 2020. If we are to meet the challenge of growing and nurturing our core audience whilst diversifying our customer base, investment in our facilities and infrastructure will be required in the years ahead. The Radcliffe Road development, completed in 2019, was a significant