Lancashire consider Anderson farewell amid fan unrest

Lancashire will look into organising a farewell for bowler James Anderson amid fan unrest over his departure from the club.

It was announced last week the 44-year-old, England's all-time leading wicket-taker, has been released by the county he first represented in 2001.

The topic dominated a tense meeting between the club hierarchy and members at Old Trafford on Monday evening, with many members angered by the decision.

Some raised their upset at the fact the end-of-season decision had denied fans the chance to thank Anderson for his service to the county and celebrate his career.

The club, represented by new chief executive Richard Kenyon and incoming director of cricket Paul Farbrace, agreed to look into a solution.

Farbrace joined the meeting via video from his holiday in the United States and is understood to have taken ownership of the decision when taking questions from members.

The former England assistant coach, who left his role in charge of Sussex before joining the Red Rose county, reiterated his explanation from Lancashire's public statement on Sunday - that he wants to build a squad capable of winning the County Championship within the next four years and does not believe Anderson, who turns 45 next year, will play a part in that.

One attendee among about 200 members at the meeting told BBC Sport the atmosphere in the room remained mixed.

Other members suggested Farbrace had gone some way to calming the unrest.

Anderson was Lancashire's captain in the County Championship last season and while the county finished second bottom in Division Two, continuing a poor run of results in recent years, he remained one of their best performers.

He took 50 wickets and was named their Championship player of the year.

A number of counties have expressed an interest in signing the veteran for next season.

Anderson first played List A cricket in 2000 as a 17-year-old for the Lancashire Cricket Board against Suffolk.

He made his professional debut for Lancashire a year later and was in the England team by the end of 2002.

In addition to his 911 international wickets - an England record and a record for all pace bowlers - Anderson claimed 443 first-class scalps for Lancashire, along with 83 in List A cricket and a further 50 in T20s.

When his England career was abruptly ended in 2024, Anderson opted to continue playing with Lancashire in 2025.

At the time, he said he felt he could play for three more years.

In his first public comment since the decision on Sunday, he expressed his sadness at the situation but stopped short of retiring.

Anderson has also been announced as the co-owner of a franchise in the inaugural edition of an Italian T10 tournament.

He is part of a group which has acquired the Napoli Knights for the Italia T10 - a six-team event which will be held in Rome from 18–29 November.

BBC Sport understands Anderson is also set to play for the Knights in the tournament and captain the team.

Anderson has invested via a sports and entertainment company he founded with former Lancashire team-mate Luke Sutton and said he is "excited" to be "involved in the game in a completely different way".

"The Italia T10 is an exciting concept, and there's a huge opportunity to help raise the profile of cricket in Italy while bringing together some fantastic players and creating an entertaining tournament," Anderson said.

"Of course, we want Napoli Knights to be competitive and challenge for the title, but we also want to contribute to something that continues to grow well beyond the tournament itself. I can't wait to get involved."