wicketkeeper
Striker
Your last point is one I believe to be correct, in one breath @wicketkeeper states in the 'good old days' players just played for their local club, yet another states if clubs like Horden had been relegated players would have left etc etc.
When the probability is the local players would still have played and they would have been promoted back up and merit and if not so be it, as all teams should be promoted on their cricket ability and not tradition.
The point is the Durham Senior League was managed by the Durham Senior League commitee. It was up to them who they invited into their league.
The same with all the other leagues. They had nobody above them telling them what to do.
Once Durham became a first class county the county administrators began to dictate to individual leagues what they should do.
The Senior League resented this interference and rightly so. Its sole purpose was geared to producing county cricketers and not the good of the clubs.