Adam Griffith retires from Tasmania

	Adam Griffith took 158 first-class wickets for Tasmania © Getty Images Enlarge
Related Links Players/Officials: Adam Griffith Teams: Australia | Tasmania

Adam Griffith, the Tasmanian fast bowler, has retired from first-class cricket to take up a position as Western Australia's bowling coach. Griffith, 33, played just two Sheffield Shield matches last summer but he will leave the game as Tasmania's fifth-highest wicket taker in the Sheffield Shield/Pura Cup, having collected 158 at 32.77.

He also played five first-class matches for Leicestershire and represented Australia A in one-day cricket. However, injuries took their toll on Griffith, who will go down in history as one of the 11 men who won Tasmania's first domestic first-class final, against New South Wales in 2006-07.

"I was coming to the end of my career with the Tigers and had to look beyond the playing field," Griffith said. "I have many fond memories from my time as part of the Tigers squad and have been fortunate enough to have been a part of two winning finals, with the Pura Cup win in 2007 a moment that I will never forget."

The move to Western Australia will allow Griffith to work under Mickey Arthur in developing a young group of fast bowlers, including the promising Ryan Duffield and Nathan Coulter-Nile. Griffith, who has a Bachelor of Human Movement and is studying a Masters in Sports Coaching, will also take charge of Western Australia's Under-19 side.

"It's fantastic to have a designated bowling coach and I believe we have secured a real coup by obtaining the services of a man who has only just retired from interstate cricket and has long held a desire to enter the world of coaching," Arthur said. "We have a very talented but very young group of fast bowlers in the system and this necessitated the recruitment of a specialist coach to work with these promising quicks."