A technical director for Scottish cricket

Scotland have appointed Peter Drinnen, a former Queensland player, as their technical director. Drinnen, 36, will reportedly receive a salary in the region of £40,000, and has a mandate to help Scotland gain full one-day international status within five years.

Bob Woolmer, the former England allrounder and South Africa coach who is now the ICC's high-performance manager, was part of the interview panel who picked Drinnen from a short-list of 20.

"I very much look forward to helping Scotland further develop its technical set-up," Drinnen told the BBC website. He will be responsible for overseeing training for the entire Scottish national set-up, contributing to selection, identifying talent and educating coaches. He will work alongside Tony Judd, the senior team's coach, as Scotland prepare for the ICC Six Nations Challenge in Dubai next year. Success there would gain them a place alongside the ten Test-playing nations and Kenya in next September's ICC Champions Trophy.

Scotland also have high hopes of qualifying for the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies, after the tournament format was expanded to include 16 teams. "Countries that we seek to emulate already have such technical directors in post," said Gwynne Jones, the Scottish Cricket Union's chief executive. "And with Peter now on board, we have taken a significant step forward in laying the foundations of achieving our ambition to become a major player in the world of cricket."