Millionaire cricket celebrity Dickie Bird is worried that cash-starved Yorkshire's belt-tightening measures will force him to stump up £450 from his own pocket.

As has been Yorkshire's normal practice, the county club invited their honorary life members to attend this week's Headingley Test match between England and India - and bring a guest with them.

But that was before the committee invested all its powers in a four-man management team whose brief is to turn the club round and save it from bankruptcy.

Now Dickie and other honorary life members are being told they must fork out £75 to cover the costs of the hospitality - and also pay for their guests!

"I have already accepted invitations to come on the first three days of the Test and have also invited my guests," said Dickie, who made a fortune out of becoming the best known umpire in the world.

"I think its unfair being invited to attend and bring a guest and then being told afterwards that I should pay. I really don't know what to do about it. Paying two lots of £75 each day for three days is £450... £450 after being invited for nothing!

"I won't complain about paying it next year because we will all know about it in advance then, but this time we have had no warning. No warning at all."

Yorkshire's honorary life members' list includes many of the county's former greats like Fred Trueman, Geoff Boycot and Ray Illingworth.

"Yorkshire's affairs were the talk of the committee balcony at Old Trafford during the Roses match," said Bird.

"Somebody from Lancashire even spread a rumour that I had agreed to pay off all Yorkshire's debts at Headingley."