Michael Atherton says the punishment from the England and Wales Cricket Boards to relegate Durham from Division One of the County Championship is harsh. Durham have accepted financial aid of £3.8m from the ECB - but the price for that is relegation, and a points deduction in all three competitions next year. Durham down after ECB sanction Durham relegated to second division after ECBs points deduction While Atherton believes the punishment looks harsh on paper, he says it serves as proof that the ECB dont wish to make a habit of bailing out counties struggling financially. There are a lot of clubs for whom debt has been spiralling out of control, said Atherton. Some are even in more debt than Durham, but have greater revenue streams coming in to help. Durham were unable to provide further revenue streams at Emirates Riverside to boost funds For Durham, without this bailout, it would have been difficult for them to survive.When you look at things in black and white, a points deduction and relegation does look a pretty harsh penalty, but the ECB dont want to be seen as a lender of last resort. Durham have been relegated to County Championship Division Two after accepting a £3.8m rescue payment from the ECB Plus, if the ECB were going to hand out sanctions in return for the money - which they decided they must do - its difficult to know what else they could do. They clearly couldnt give Durham a financial penalty obviously, because that would be self-defeating. Watch NOW TV Watch Sky Sports for just ￡6.99. No contract. Sadly, its the players who are being penalised here with relegation, but Durham have got good young players - they won the second XI championship last year - and some players have re-signed, like Keaton Jennings. England hopeful Keaton Jennings will have to play in Division Two with Durham next year While they have lost one or two - Mark Stoneman and Scott Borthwick both going to Surrey, shortly after the players had been told about the seriousness of the financial situation - theyve got a very able and experienced captain in Paul Collingwood.Durham were very competitive this year, as indeed they have been for a long time. Theyre an unbelievable success story from a cricketing perspective. Sir Ian Botham says he will assist Durham in their recovery following their relegation to County Championship Division Two. Theyve won plenty of trophies, produced more young England cricketers of late by virtually every other county than Yorkshire, I suspect.On a pure cricketing basis, theyre a success story, but theyll now have to haul themselves off the floor after this decision.You can watch Englands tour of Bangladesh, plus Premier League football and the Japan Grand Prix on Sky Sports. 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The 41-year-old Northern Irishman has proved a perfect fit at Liverpool since taking over from Kenny Dalglish in the summer of 2012 and steered the team to an unexpected title challenge in the Premier League last season.Prospective buyers can stroke Brandon Smith off their free agent lists. The Calgary Stampeders announced they have re-signed the veteran defensive back. Terms of the deal were not revealed. Brandon has been an excellent player for us for a number of years and it was good to see him finally recognized this past year with an all-star spot, head coach and general manager John Hufnagel said in a team statement. Im pleased that he has decided to remain in Calgary and look forward to him being an important part of our defence again next season. Smith was third in the league in tackles last season with 85, and added a sack and two interceptions to his CFL All-Star campaign.dddddddddddd. The 30-year-old has been with the Stampeders for six seasons, recording 357 tackles, eight interceptions, and five sacks. Ive enjoyed my time in Calgary ever since I arrived in 2008 and I couldnt imagine playing anywhere else, Smith said in the team statement. Im grateful to be part of a great organization and to have the best group of teammates and coaches anyone could ever ask for. I also appreciate the fan support in Calgary and I look forward to trying to defend the Grey Cup championship in 2015. ' ' '