There is something rotten about an accountant picking the team.
But when sport is a business, the bottom line is just as important as the result. And if expenditure outstrips income, then you either make cuts or increase revenue.
That is where the warring factions separate into two camps: those who want to slash the wage bill, and those who firmly blame management when a sports organisation encounters financial strife.
No surprise which side New Zealand Cricket Players Association chief executive Heath Mills takes. It is his job to advocate for the players, something for which he offers no apology.
Mills is aware there are plenty who cast an envious eye at the salary packages of New Zealand's top cricketers and question whether there is value in their six-figure incomes.
But he firmly believes the players deserve every cent.
"There is no way you could suggest our players are overpaid," Mills said.
"If sporting organisations are struggling, which clearly they are, then we need to find ways to solve that, and that will come back to governance and structure ... and creating a commercial model that works.
"These guys are in an industry where they are the key component in generating all the revenue, not too dissimilar from any other entertainer in the world. They need to share in the revenue they generate.
"If you look at the model, the players are actually in partnership with New Zealand Cricket, so it is not an employee-employer relationship. They are partners in the game, they help grow the game and they get a return from that. That is how the money is worked out.
"I could quote examples in American sport where the players receive 60% of the total revenue. In cricket, we get about 27%.
"Is it fair to compare with America? Probably not, because it is a different model. But I think we are about right in terms of our percentages."
New Zealand Cricket contracts range from $72,000 to $177,000, and the players also paid a range of healthy match fees: $7508 for a test, $3254 for a one-dayer and $2127 for a twenty/20.
Income varies depending on how often an athlete plays, but an average Black Cap might expect to earn between $150,000 and $170,000.
Domestic players do relatively well, with contracts ranging from $20,000 to $37,500, and match fees set at $1495 for a Plunket Shield game, $720 for a 50-over game and $470 for a twenty/20 fixture.
Perhaps the average salary would be about $45,000 to $50,000. Not bad for a summer job.
The down side, of course, is a cricket career can be pretty fickle. You are at the mercy of injury, form and the whim of a handful of selectors.
To perform at the top level, players have to devote an enormous amount of energy.
They make sacrifices both professional and personal to reach the top. Careers are put on hold, relationships are tested, income and other opportunities are lost.
Everyone will have their own opinion, but Mills believes it is only reasonable to expect to be compensated for that effort and that the right balance has been struck.
