Kent chairman George Kennedy received a rough ride during the club's annual meeting at the St Lawrence ground on Monday night.

Around 200 members attended the meeting and vented their anger on the club's financial results - which saw a huge loss in the wake of two unsuccessful concerts last summer and the writing-off of £140,000 of "bad debts".

As expected Jamie Clifford was unveiled as the club's new chief executive, while Mr Kennedy was challenged over the club's poor financial showing, recording a loss of £800,000 after predicting 12 months ago that the club would break even.

Mr Kennedy (pictured) admitted: "They are pretty bad. I am as embarrassed as anyone in the room by the accounts."

One of the most controversial topics was the big rise in membership rates, many rising by more than 50 per cent.

Mr Clifford said reading letters from members airing their 'discomfort' at increases in membership subscription rates had been "the hardest thing".

He said: "It's been difficult, reading the letters. But (increases) were done with the best of intentions - it was driven by the desire to create revenue. It was not our desire to make people feel alienated."

Mr Clifford revealed subscription rates were down, but added the cash taken from those who had subscribed this season was up 18.9 per cent on last year to £298,798 to the end of Friday.

He said: "(The price increase) is starting to produce the results we had hoped for."

Mr Kennedy said the club "would not make the same mistake" regarding the concerts in the future.

"The Sugababes were the wrong act and we got that wrong," he added: "We will not be making the same mistake in the future. It was very, very disappointing."

Director of cricket Graham Johnson said the club were "committed to having a quality product on the field" despite the financial gloom. He said after the disappointment of the Stuart Clark deal falling through, the hunt for a new overseas player had been painstaking.

He said: "We contacted a couple who were looking for £10-15,000 a week, and those were not necessarily at the top-end.

"We are on the case. We are a way down with a particular bowler - a seamer - and we hope to make an announcement soon."

Other items discussed included the controversial decision to switch a Twenty20 game to the Oval.

Meanwhile outgoing president Carl Openshaw handed-over to Alister Dunning while Mr Kennedy revealed the club would be going out to tender for auditors this year, as well as setting up a governance group and a renumeration committee to look at salaries through the whole organisation.