ESPNcricinfo provided in-depth coverage of the Specsavers County Championship © Getty Images
ESPNcricinfo has been named Online Publication of the year for the fifth year running in the ECB’s County Journalism awards, after another season of in-depth coverage of the English domestic game, which concluded with the thrilling final day of the Specsavers County Championship, involving the County Cricket Live blog and extensive reports from staff and freelancers writers.
Will Macpherson, a regular contributor to ESPNcricinfo’s county coverage, was named Christopher Martin-Jenkins Young County Journalist, an award which comes with a £3000 prize which will fund a trip to the UAE next March to cover the first North v South fixtures.
Tim Wigmore, another of ESPNcricinfo’s freelancers, was a runner-up in the category alongside Henry Cowan from All Out Cricket with each receiving £1000.
The Cricket Paper was named County Cricket Newspaper of the Year for the second time in three years with last year’s winner, the Times, receiving a commendation.
The Sunday Independent was named Regional Newspaper of the Year for its comprehensive coverage of First Class, Minor County and club cricket in the South West region. It receives a £2,500 prize supported by the Cricket Writers’ Club in association with Benenden Health, Smile Group Travel and William Hill. The Manchester Evening News and the Nottingham Post were also commended in this category.
Dave Fletcher, who recently completed his first season as a county commentator with BBC Radio Derby, was named the Christopher Martin-Jenkins County Broadcaster of the Year and receives a £5,000 prize.
Mark Baldwin, chairman of the Cricket Writers’ Club, said: “The judging panel was impressed particularly by the strength in depth of the entries in the Young County Journalist of the Year category.
“I would like to congratulate Will Macpherson for the quality and range of his portfolio, which won him the main award but the writing of our two runners-up, Tim Wigmore and Henry Cowen, was also exceptional, and had to be, given the quality of many other entries.
“The Cricket Writers’ Club’s continued support for ECB’s initiative in running these awards now includes offering prize monies in the Regional Newspaper of the Year category, precisely because the club wants to do what it can to support hard-pressed cricket writers in the regional press and also to underline its belief in the value to the game of coverage of county cricket in this area.”
Tom Harrison, the ECB chief executive, said: “These awards recognise and reward the vital role cricket writers and broadcasters play in driving interest in all our domestic competitions. My congratulations to the winners and our sincere thanks to all the individuals and media organisations who provided such comprehensive and insightful coverage across a truly memorable county season.”
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Source: ESPN Crickinfo