Lancashire will look into organising a farewell for bowler James Anderson amid fan unrest over his departure from the club.<\/p>\n
It was announced last week the 44-year-old, England’s all-time leading wicket-taker, has been released<\/a> by the county he first represented in 2001.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n The club, represented by new chief executive Richard Kenyon and incoming director of cricket Paul Farbrace, agreed to look into a solution.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n One attendee among about 200 members at the meeting told BBC Sport the atmosphere in the room remained mixed. <\/p>\n Other members suggested Farbrace had gone some way to calming the unrest.<\/p>\n 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. <\/p>\n He took 50 wickets and was named their Championship player of the year. <\/p>\n A number of counties have expressed an interest<\/a> in signing the veteran for next season. <\/p>\n Anderson first played List A cricket in 2000 as a 17-year-old for the Lancashire Cricket Board against Suffolk.<\/p>\n He made his professional debut for Lancashire a year later and was in the England team by the end of 2002.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n When his England career was abruptly ended in 2024,<\/a> Anderson opted to continue playing with Lancashire in 2025. <\/p>\n At the time, he said he felt he could play for three more years.<\/p>\n