Darren Gough to sign for Essex

Darren Gough: Heading for Chelmsford Getty Images

Essex have signed Darren Gough on a three-year contract. The news was formally announced at a press conference on Monday morning.

Gough left Yorkshire a fortnight ago because he wanted to spend more time with his family in the south of England. He retired from Test cricket last summer following a long-term knee injury, but is eager to resume his one-day career, which has reaped 188 wickets in 121 appearances.

"Essex are an ambitious club and I believe we can win trophies," said Gough. "There's the nucleus of a good side here and I hope I can help the young bowlers who're here."

Middlesex and Warwickshire are both believed to have offered Gough deals, but in the end the Essex package won out. At Chelmsford, he will be reunited with his former England captain, Nasser Hussain, and his one-day team-mate Ronnie Irani, who was understandably enthusiastic about Gough's arrival.

"He's still one of the best in the world in one-day cricket," said Irani, Essex's captain. "His knee will have to be managed in the four-day game, but he's still going to do an excellent job for us. He plays with his heart on his sleeve and a smile on his face, and he's a No. 1 name in cricket."

Graham Gooch, Essex's coach, said that Gough had been a target for the club ever since rumours of his departure from Yorkshire surfaced. "He's a quality player who can help us immensely," said Gooch. "We knew there was a chance he was going to be available and made our interest known."

But perhaps unsurprisingly, two other former England captains, Bob Willis and Ian Botham, were less than enthusiastic about Gough's choice of club. "In fairness, it's not where I would go," said Botham. "If I were him I would have perhaps looked for a first division club going somewhere, whereas Essex are very much rebuilding and are a young side."

"Essex will always be yo-yoing between the first and second divisions," added Willis, although he did believe that Gough would make a big difference to the side. So long as they look after his knees.