THE troubled Gauteng Cricket Board has been given a "rude awakening" by its players who are concerned about the turmoil that has afflicted the province at administrative level.

Highveld Lions captain Alviro Petersen said yesterday the players made their feelings known at a seminar at the weekend.

Petersen said GCB CEOCassim Docrat and board member Hussein Manack had been invited "so they can understand where the players are going, and the players can also understand them".

"I think they got a bit of a rude awakening," Petersen said. "The players obviously asked questions, and they were tough questions."

At the end of last month, the GCB emerged from two years of administration imposed by Cricket South Africa - time that was used to draft a new constitution for an organisation that never seems safe from rupture along racial lines.

Asked if the boardroom rumbles were being heard on the field, where Gauteng have won just one first-class title - the 1999-2000 Supersport Series - in 22 seasons, Petersen said: "As captain, I like to keep that sort of stuff away from the players: when everyone starts thinking about it, that's when it becomes a problem.

"But it's not ideal, and myself and [coach] Geoff [Toyana] try to deal with it."

He said the weekend's interaction had the potential to keep the dressing room calm, if need be: "During the season, hopefully, when something happens [at board level], the guys who were there will be able to stand up and say: 'I think this is what they are trying to do, and I think they are going in the right direction'."

Docrat said both administrators and players had benefited from the airing of views.

"They [players] need to understand the bigger picture as far as management, finances and what makes a board tick. It was good to tell them where the board was coming from, but it was important to establish open communication between the players and the board," he said.

"The board has tried to keep away from the playing side, but sometimes the players feel they need direction from the board."

The main business of a special GCB meeting last night was to decide whether the draft constitution was ready to be sent to the clubs. The document is required to be adopted by October 27, the scheduled date of CSA's annual meeting.