Hudson quits Yorkshire as legal battle turns toxic

The acting chief executive of Yorkshire is to quit as the county continue their toxic legal battle with staff sacked in the wake of the club’s racism scandal.

Telegraph Sport has been told Paul Hudson plans to step down by the autumn, with chief operating officer Andrew Dawson in line to replace him while a permanent CEO is recruited. The news emerged following the first hearing into wrongful dismissal cases brought by six former staff at Leeds employment tribunal, something that threatens to cost the debt-ridden club millions of pounds in compensation.

Hudson, Yorkshire’s finance director since 2014, was appointed acting chief executive after Mark

Arthur quit in November following Azeem Rafiq’s harrowing testimony about the racism he suffered.

The following month, Yorkshire’s entire 16-strong coaching team were sacked, having written to their bosses in October complaining about the latter’s failure to stand up to Rafiq’s “one-man mission to bring down the club”.

A private preliminary hearing was held last Friday into the cases brought by former head coach

Andrew Gale, bowling coach Richard Pyrah, strength and conditioning coaches Ian Fisher and Peter Sim, second XI coach Ian Dews and academy director Richard Damms. Telegraph Sport has been told a second preliminary hearing has been scheduled for June 9, with the case proper slated for late autumn.

The complainants are challenging the reasons given for their terminations – in which they were given no severance pay – the strength of any evidence against them, and whether due process was followed. Yorkshire, who in March ratified reforms aimed at avoiding a repeat of their racism scandal – finally freeing Headingley to stage England matches –have already settled with two other sacked staff members for a combined sum of between £500,000 to £750,000.

Hudson and Dawson did not respond to requests for comment, and the club declined to comment.