Date-stamped : 28 Jun96 - 02:15 28 June 1996 Curtis brings academic touch to union world Profile by Mark Nicholas Counties as good as word in resting of Test men ALMOST exactly a year ago Tim Curtis stood down from the captain- cy of Worcestershire. One grim evening at New Road, beneath the lengthening shadow of that magnificent cathedral, Wasim Akram and the lively Lancashire tail-enders stole a Benson & Hedges semi-final that Curtis`s team had all but won. Akram had done this sort of thing before but the proud, successful Worcestershire team of the late Eighties and early Nineties had not often suffered such a past- ing. During the debilitating aftermath of post-mortems the gentle and modest English master from the nearby Royal Grammar School decid- ed enough was enough. He was knee-deep in cricket administration as it was and the time was right for the equally modest but rather more modern Australian character of Tom Moody to have his head. Curtis had inherited the job from Phillip Neale just three years earlier. Semi-finals are dismal things to lose. Timothy Stephen Curtis was born in Chislehurst in Kent, 36 years ago. He was educated at the school where he now teaches - his parents moved to Malvern when he was a young boy - and at Durham and Cambridge Universities where he earned a 2-1 in English. He played in five Test matches, two aganst the West Indies and three against Australia, during a time when England were chopping their captains and changing their players often enough for anyone in nick to get a gig. He failed, painfully, to make it to fifty in any of his nine innings and would admit that though he was flattered to be chosen, he probably did not make the best of the honour. He is the chairman of the Cricketers` Association which, in fact, is the players` union. Fancy so studious a fellow running the shop floor. "I wanted to stand with my team-mates and sing the national an- them in full voice, wanted to feel the bloody pumping through my veins," he says, "but opening batsmen need to be calm in the moments before battle not hyped up so initially I think I missed a little of the magic. The magic came at the Oval when I hooked Malcolm Marshall for consecutive boundaries, the roar was ex- traordinary, and for a second I felt I was the champion of Eng- land." Now Curtis has an even wider brief than fending off the new ball and getting kids through exams in the off-season - "results are out soon, it`s the first year in five that I`ve had an A-level class all the way through, it will be interesting" - for he is the chairman of the Cricketers` Association which, in fact, is the players` union. Fancy so studious a fel- low running the shop floor. "Well I don`t really, at least I`m not the front man any more, not since we employed David Graveney as the full-time chief exe- cutive," he says. Actually, the calm influence of Curtis is more invaluable than ever as more money arrives in the game and negotiations with the players` paymasters, the Test and County Cricket Board, achieve a deal more through discussion rather than confron- tation. "Yes in many ways you could say my role is as demanding as it ever was. We have tried to focus on five main areas which give the players better support and protection. For example, the wage structure is more enticing now with youngsters coming into the game on anything between #8-12,000 a year and capped players up to #18,500 as a minimum and well beyond for the vast majority. "Standard contracts are in place which ensure players cannot be taken advantage of, after all it`s a nice way to earn a liv- ing and the clubs know it, and all areas of insurance have been properly organised." Maybe, but what do these blokes with what is still such an ordi- nary salary and only half a year`s guaranteed employment, get up to in the winter? "Well, in fact, I`m particularly encouraged by our efforts in doing things for cricketers in the off- season. "At the end of this summer there are computer courses avail- able to everyone and further opportunities to learn about sports science, business studies and, believe it or not, the plan- ning and writing of CVs, which we began last winter and which is so important and so often ignored. We`re trying to make our pro- fessional players aware of the world outside, cricket can be a very insular game. `The reality is that English cricket is a profession and few people are prepared to shoot their career in the foot.` "Best of all is the wonderful improvement we`ve made in the arrangement of pensions. Allan Lamb finished playing a couple of months ago and received just #22,000 for all he`s put in - how absurd. Now, if you are 25 and over, the club put 10 per cent of your salary into the fund and the player puts in five per cent. Twenty-four and under it`s eight per cent and four per cent. If you are as old as me it gets quite substantial." Ah, age. It comes to us all. So why pray Tim, play on? "I think the question is the crux of the debate in English cricket right now. What the counties and what England require are dif- ferent things, they don`t pull in the same direction. "When you think of the runs scored by people like Tim Robinson and Martyn Moxon you see their value to the counties who are impatient for success. For me there is the satisfaction of grinding less and flourishing more, and anyway, I don`t want to be seen jumping ship in these leaner years. "Though overall I agree with the principle that everyone should have the chance of playing for England, the reality is that English cricket is a profession and few people are prepared to shoot their career in the foot." Curtis will bat for Worcestershire today and bat diligently. He is a stubborn and efficient player. At his best he was worth a run with England for he understood the mental requirements of the big innings. His county career has been outstanding and is highlighted by consecutive championship medals in `88 and `89 and his lifting of the NatWest Trophy in 1994. He is close now to his 20,000th first-class run and that considerable milestone may encourage him to his pupils full-time and to the negotiating table for his charges. Source :: Electronic Telegraph (http.//www.telegraph.co.uk) Contributed by Shash (shs2@*.cwru.edu)