Greg Shipperd, one of the most renowned coaches in Australian cricket, has been named new head coach of the New South Wales men’s team with the task of reviving the state’s fortunes after their first winless Sheffield Shield campaign in 84 years.
Shipperd, who has previously coached Tasmania and Victoria, guiding the latter to four Shield titles, has been in charge of Sydney Sixers for the last eight seasons, which brought back-to-back titles in 2019-2020 and 2020-21. He will now combine both roles.
It had been a highly expected appointment after Shipperd stepped into the role in an interim capacity following Phil Jaques’ sacking midway through last season.
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NSW finished bottom of the Sheffield Shield, and are currently on a record run of 12 matches without a win, and fifth in the Marsh Cup with two wins in seven matches.
“I have enjoyed immensely my involvement with NSW cricket over the past eight seasons,” Shipperd said. “I feel I can make a contribution to this current playing group as they embark on an exciting future out of our new home, Cricket Central.
“The NSW cricket system remains strong and enjoys a storied history of excellence. I am drawn to providing my experiences to meet the expectations of that history.”
NSW managed just four centuries in the Shield season although there were some encouraging signs from youngsters Ryan Hackney and Jack Edwards who contributed one each. However, of the more senior batters only Daniel Hughes averaged over 40. Allrounder Chris Green, who was not contracted, was their Shield Player of the Season.
One of the key decisions that will need to be made early on by Shipperd will be the NSW captaincy with Kurtis Patterson having been dropped at the end of the Shield season. Moises Henriques stood in for the final match and would be a contender if the job changed hands permanently.
There has also been a change behind the scenes with Greg Mail, NSW’s chief of cricket performance, now taking overall charge of the men’s program with Michael Klinger, currently the head of male elite cricket, focusing on T20 cricket across Sydney Sixers and Sydney Thunder as well as NSW’s links with Major League Cricket in the USA with Washington Freedom.
“While Greg’s record as a senior coach speaks for itself, his passion for delivering success for NSW is evident,” Mail said. “We discussed the role with a number of highly credentialed domestic and international coaches, and it quickly became apparent Greg was the right person to lead us forward.
“I’m looking forward to building the coaching team around Greg and working closely with him. No one here is happy with our recent performances, and we are determined to do what it takes to improve.”
NSW are due to announce their men’s and women’s contracts list for the 2023-24 season in the next few days. Jackson Bird and Sarah Coyte have already been announced as signings from Tasmania.
Source: ESPN Crickinfo
