Moores to stay with Notts as consultant

Peter Moores has signed a two-year contract with Nottinghamshire to remain as a coaching consultant.

Moores, who was sacked for the second time as England coach last May, joined Nottinghamshire on an initial three-month deal in July 2015. But with the move helping precipitate a dramatic improvement in the team's results - Nottinghamshire were bottom of the Division One table at the start of July, but finished third after winning 14 and drawing two of their 20 remaining completed matches across all competitions - the decision to retain him is no surprise.

The move does not constitute a coaching restructure at Nottinghamshire and Mick Newell will remain as director of cricket.

While Moores will be full-time with Notts from the start of March to the end of September, he will only work part-time in January and February. He will be free to accept work elsewhere during the bulk of the winter months and the club would not prevent him coaching in some foreign domestic franchise leagues if the opportunity arises.

The development will dampen speculation linking Moores to the England women's coaching role. While Clare Connor, the head of women's cricket at the ECB, had suggested the ideal candidate would have experience of coaching in man's international cricket, Moores could be forgiven for resisting any approach from the organisation who presided over a situation whereby he learned of his sacking from Twitter.

Equally, Andrew Strauss, the director of the England team, suggested Moores was tainted by the perception of past failures and sacked him only a few months ago. It would have sent an odd message about the importance of women's cricket to the ECB if a man not deemed good enough for the men's team was viewed as ideal for the women's. Richard Halsall, the former assistant coach of the England men's team under Andy Flower, would be a strong candidate if he applied.

After a traumatic second spell with England, Moores enjoyed getting back to basics at Nottinghamshire. Freed from the demands of long-term planning or media commitments, he was able to spend greater time with individual players in the nets as well as providing a mentoring role to coaches. He has also relished the proximity of Trent Bridge to his family home; barely half-an-hour away.

James Taylor, the Nottinghamshire limited-overs captain, credited Moores with the improvement of form that helped him regain an England spot. "It's brilliant," Taylor said a few weeks ago of working with him. "I'm desperate for him to stay at Notts." Alastair Cook also praised the contribution of Moores following England's Ashes victory, saying: "We need to thanks Peter Moores. We did make strides under him. This is for you Mooresy."

"Bringing Peter to the club, alongside the emergence of our young bowlers and Chris Read's return from injury, helped turn the second half of our season around," Newell said.

"He brought enthusiasm and energy to the role as well as a lot of experience that our players and coaches really benefited from.

"It was originally a short-term appointment but, with Peter very much enjoying being a part of things, we had the opportunity to make it more permanent, which is terrific for us.

"He'll continue to work alongside the existing coaches - something that has worked well in 2015 - and hopefully he can help us enjoy a successful next couple of seasons."

Moores was coach of Sussex, in 2003, and Lancashire, in 2011, when they won the County Championship. He was also the ECB Academy director for two years from 2005.

"Working as Coaching Consultant at Trent Bridge has been a fantastic fit for me, giving me the freedom to work closely with both the players and coaches on a day to day basis," Moores said.

"The role gives me the opportunity to do specific one-to-one work with the players to support them to be at the top of their game throughout the season.

"The goal for all players is to play internationally and it's great to see so many of the Notts players involved with England squads this winter.

"Our performances in the second half of last season showed the potential of the group and if we can build on that next season, we will put ourselves in a position to enjoy some success."