From the Guardian · · 1m 10s
Cricketer banned for clicking to trick umpire
Brian Devine was caught on video using finger clicks to deceive an umpire into awarding a catch that was not there.
In brief
Brian Devine was caught on video using finger clicks to deceive an umpire into awarding a catch that was not there. Brian Devine has been banned from cricket for two years after being caught using finger clicks to trick an umpire, and his club Saltburn CC's second XI has been relegated. Originally reported by the…
The viral cheating moment
In July, footage from Division Two of the North Yorkshire and South Durham Cricket League showed Brian Devine, 38, clicking his fingers in the field to trick the umpire into believing a Norton CC batter…
Investigation finds more examples
Devine was provisionally suspended by Saltburn CC for the remainder of the 2026 season. Further examples of the clicking practice subsequently emerged and were circulated widely online before a disciplinary panel reviewed the footage.
Two-year ban and club relegated
Brian Devine is banned from all cricket under the England and Wales Cricket Board until the end of the 2028 season, covering playing, coaching, umpiring, scoring and managing junior teams.
Club fined and penalised for 2027
Saltburn CC have been fined three hundred pounds and their 2nd XI will start the 2027 season with a sixty-point deduction.
“The League recognises the strain this has placed on many people, especially those who were abused online and in person.”
The essence
Brian Devine has been banned from cricket for two years after being caught using finger clicks to trick an umpire, and his club Saltburn CC's second XI has been relegated.
