Azeem Rafiq...

100% agree, it's disgusting that some snobbish **** from Harrogate or York gets preferential treatment over someone from the South or West of the county all because mummy and daddy earn a lot of money. It's a mess and and the club needs a complete overhaul from top to bottom.

 

https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/...eem-rafiq-being-called-p-i-was-banter-1286449

I have no words.

 

Unreal is this a cryptic way of saying the senior player is Ballance?

 

Let me check I understand this, because it looks too mental to be real:

1. A player admits to making numerous comments towards Rafiq based on his race, including use of p*ki
2. The player who made these comments admits that they reduced Rafiq to tears
3. The lawyers who gathered evidence accepted that the comments created a hostile and degrading atmosphere, offended Rafiq, and accounted to harassment pursuant to the club's own policies and the Equalities Act
4. The panel ignored all of the above and decided Rafiq was not offended(?!) and the comments were "just banter"
5. The only person the panel think deserves disciplinary action is Rafiq himself, for isolated use of the term "zimbo" (which I have never heard but gather from the article isn't offensive)

Genuinely unbelievable, absolutely disgusting.

 

They think we're all puddings or that white Yorkshire folk will play along and agree with their findings.

 

That’s how I read it.

 

I didn't realise "banter" was still used as a defence these days. Even the word makes me cringe.

 

It's just a bit of bants innit?
The eternal defence of the bully when challenged.

 

I am surprised by how timid the ECB have been through all this. They don't seem to care.

 

The ECB won't be happy, they've now been thrown the live grenade.
If this is correct, then I see why they're keeping a lid on it. There could and should be legal ramifications. You can't just go around making racially aggressive and insensitive comments and then say nothing to see here.

 

Unbelievable.

 

Stinks of Yorkshire CCC just trying to mark their own homework and saying everything is fine.

Which gives more credence to the accusation of institutional racism.

 

There is zero doubt in my mind following this whole saga that the club is institutionally racist. It’s hard to come to any other conclusion.

 

On a human level I just can't see how you could see a teammate in tears and carry on "the banter".

 

Agreed. Difficult to reach any other conclusion when you have reports of racism in pretty much every level within that institution, and the investigation that they commission into it seems to conclude that racial abuse of an Asian is actually ok.

Awful, absolutely awful.

 

Not only that, but the victim is now being accused of racism!

 

It's one thing to have a casual laugh with team mates at someone's expense. It's a totally different thing when it's sustained, racial and makes someone feel so low about themselves.
You can have disagreements in a dressing room, full blown at times near physical arguments. It's unfortunately what happens when everyone wants to win etc. But having played in multicultural teams, race and religion never get mentioned. I'd rip em for which football team they supported, and on more than one occasion dress sense (trying to copy Beckham or another style icon cough!) All in good fun and was always happy to be hammered back.

 

Well there's only one guy with Zimbabwean roots, and it just so happens he's white. Makes it sound such worse.
So is Saffer now a racist term?

 

you know there would have been uproar on here if someone had put some common **** from Barnsley or the ilk don’t you?

 

Don't think Shepley's aiming it at all folk from North of the County. There's a very specific cliché who all happen to reside in certain North Yorkshire towns. The blazer only seems to look good on lads from certain backgrounds.