It is with great sadness that the Sydney Sixers announce the departure of Stuart Clark at the conclusion of the upcoming KFC T20 Big Bash League season.
Clark has been the driving force of the development of the Sixers having been appointed the General Manager in May 2011.
He has been responsible for building an on and off field team that has achieved great success in it’s first 12 months. On the field the team has taken out both the BBL|01 trophy and the recent Champions League in South Africa due to Clark’s recruitment strategy for both players and coaching staff, snaring the highly regarded Trevor Bayliss as head coach.
Off the field the Sixers were ranked No. 1 for overall consumer satisfaction in a Cricket Australia run Member and Fan Survey post BBL|01, as well as a number of other areas including memberships, marketing and communications and match day experiences.
His departure, while leaving a huge hole in the organisation, comes at a time when key players are secured long term and the brand is in a strong position following success in BBL01 and CLT20 in South Africa.
“The last two years have been a great experience for me and I thank everyone at Cricket New South Wales for the opportunity. I never started out believing I would ever be a cricket administrator forever and now look forward to the exciting opportunity of moving into the corporate world”.
“I have no immediate plans once I have finished with Sydney Sixers and will look at every possible avenue that is put in front of me.”
“The remarkable success of the Sydney Sixers in its short history is testament to Stuart’s ability to build a winning team,” said Cricket NSW CEO David Gilbert.
“He has made a smooth transition from player to administrator and is well placed for the next phase of his career.
“Whilst it is disappointing to lose a person of Stuart’s calibre, I understand and respect his decision and wish him the very best for the future. In the meantime, I have no doubt that he will be totally focused on the Sixers retaining the BBL title in the upcoming KFC T20 Big Bash League.”
Clark will finish with the Sixers in May at the conclusion of his current contract. The Sydney Sixers will be looking to send him out a winner again for BBL|02.
The Sixers will take on arch rivals the Sydney Thunder in the season opener on 8 December at the SCG before backing up a week later on 16 December at home against last year’s finalists, the Perth Scorchers.
The final two home games for the Sixers fall on Boxing Day against the Hobart Hurricanes and 9 January against the Melbourne Renegades.
Sydney Sixers BBL|02 squad are: Brad Haddin, Josh Hazlewood, Moises Henriques, Daniel Hughes, Josh Lalor, Brett Lee, Michael Lumb, Nic Maddinson, Ian Moran, Sunil Narine, Stephen O’Keefe, Kurtis Patterson, Steve Smith, Daniel Smith, Mitchell Starc, Dominic Thornely, David Warner.
