Poor financial management and inexperience combined to send the organisation behind last April?s World Cricket Classic crashing into bankruptcy, according to the man who helped run the inaugural 20-20 tournament.

World Rugby Classic chief John Kane was approached by the now defunct English-based charity, The Get Fit Foundation, last year to act as their local contact ? a role which involved, among many other things, drumming up support from the corporate sector, enlisting volunteers and recommending suppliers.

Having run the hugely popular Rugby Classic for 19 years, Kane was ideally placed to assist the new venture in getting off the ground.

And while he was impressed by the ambition and work ethic of GEFF officials Keith Pont, Caroline Knox and Steve Blackman, Kane said they allowed the cost of running the event ? which saw more than 70 former international cricketers from seven different countries battle it out over a week of 20-20 games at the National Sports Centre ? to ?get out of control?.

But the Irishman also added he had been ?very surprised? by the announcement that they would be placing themselves into receivership after Government turned down their request for a $3 million grant to run the event again next year, insisting there were enough corporate sponsors willing to come on board to make the event financially viable.

?I was very disappointed when I heard the news,? said Kane, who also revealed that the World Rugby Classic never received the $200,000 consultancy fee GEFF had proposed paying them for their local expertise.

?There?s no doubt that they ran an excellent event and all who went to watch I think would agree that the atmosphere at times was first class. But there was far too much wastage and with a little bit more experience it would have been possible to run it in a much more cost-effective way.

?They were desperate to make a good first impression, and they succeeded in doing that ? but at a very high price.

?Saying that, there?s absolutely no doubt at all in my mind that it would still have been possible to run the event next year. When we sat down with them after the Classic finished, we knew that they owed about one million dollars, which included our fee, a $200,000 fee owed to Government and then around $600,000 owed to local creditors.

?When we first started dealing with them we made it clear that they would probably make a loss in the first year, and I don?t know whether they got cold feet once Government had turned down their request for $3 million or what, but I was certainly shocked when the story broke because as far as I was concerned it was perfectly doable.

?Since then I?ve had one potential sponsor, who will remain nameless, tell me how disappointed they were because they were ready to get behind them in a big way.

?So even if they had only got a few hundred thousand dollars out of Government in the end, with the increased corporate backing it would have been possible to pay off the creditors and run the event again at a reduced cost.

?But for one reason or another they chose to back out, which has left a bad taste in the mouth. But I?d like to stress that they were not bad people or anything like that. They worked incredibly hard to try and make it work and the fact that it didn?t I think came down to inexperience more than anything else.?

GEFF was established by Pont ? a former all-rounder for Essex and director of development at the English Cricket Board ? in 2004 as an organisation responsible for promoting healthy lifestyles across the UK.

The intention was to use the World Cricket Classic as a launching pad for GEFF?s global profile ? though in the end it proved the charity?s downfall.

Pont has not returned phone calls since GEFF?s bankruptcy was first announced, while close to 30 local businesses still owed money by them for services rendered are seeking payment through the liquidation process.

The 19th edition of the World Rugby Classic looks set to get underway in early November ? with organiser Kane saying it was ?business as usual? for an event that continues to stand the test of time.

Eight teams will once again converge on the North Field at the National Sports Centre, with defending champions South Africa looking to fend off challenges from the likes of New Zealand, Australia, the Lions, France, the United States, Argentina and Canada.

One new development this year will see the arrival of a production crew from the Gillette World Sports Special to film the event ? a weekly television sports programme broadcast to over 250 million homes. Combined with the 90-minute highlights package shown on Sky Sports, the Rugby Classic will enjoy its biggest ever international exposure.

The Classic begins on Sunday, November 5.