LLOYD_FAVORITE_ENG_JOB_29MAR1996

Lloyd strong favourite for England job

BY CHRISTOPHER MARTIN-JENKINS

JOHN Emburey has turned down the chance to become England`s coach this summer, which leaves David Lloyd as the man most likely to be appointed. Alan Smith, the Test and County Cricket Board`s chief executive, is co-ordinating matters following the decision of the executive committee on Tuesday to choose a coach for this season only.

Emburey, still not officially retired as a player, told the TCCB he wanted to gain more experience in cricket management and coaching with his new county Northamptonshire.

Officials do not want to pre-empt the recommendations of the David Acfield working party, who will be reporting on all aspects of The Management of the England team by August. Two recent England captains, Mike Gatting and David Gower, were named as members of Acfield`s group yesterday.

Smith indicated last night that Emburey`s decision had simplified matters, but that there was still a good deal of negotiating before a coach could be announced.

Lloyd, 49, Lancashire`s coach, who is currently on the county`s pre-season tour in Jamaica, has indicated his ambition to take on the challenge, but he would be unlikely to work for the time being on anything other than a part-time basis.

`What we`re looking for is a coach to get the best out of players and I think I can do that`

There might be financial compensation to be negotiated with Lancashire, not to mention recompense for a loss of earnings in the BBC radio box, where his ripe Lancashire accent and sense of humour have added colour and fun to ball-by-ball commentaries.

It is just that joie-de-vivre which he might with benefit bring to the England dressing room. In case terms are not agreed, the Board could put out feelers to Cape Town, where Phil Neale, Warwickshire`s chief of coaching in succession to Bob Woolmer, is on tour.

Neale, the successful manager of two England A tours, was not a Test cricketer, but he was a successful county captain, also a professional footballer with a degree in Russian, who is renowned for his quiet, thorough approach.

Throwing his hat into the ring last night, Neale said: "I`d love to be involved in the England set-up in some way. What we`re looking for is a coach to get the best out of players and I think I can do that."

Emburey`s withdrawal was made partly because he has only recently joined a new county in a new job, but also because he has just set out on the coaching road and recognises his inexperience. He would benefit now from spending some time during forthcoming winters at the Victorian Institute of Sport, where Sri Lanka`s coach Dav Whatmore learned his trade.

The Acfield committee, indeed, might be advised to suggest grants for selected county coaches at this and similar institutions.

There is not much doubt that Emburey will get his England chance when he is better prepared to take it

Before leaving for Northamptonshire`s tour of South Africa yesterday, Emburey made it clear that it was his "fervent desire and ambition to work with the international team at some time in the future".

He added: "While being very honoured and flattered at being considered by the TCCB`s executive committee, I feel at this stage of my career that I`d benefit from gaining more experience in a cricket management and coaching role."

There is not much doubt that Emburey will get his England chance when he is better prepared to take it, and one could sense a chorus of approval yesterday from the five men who have been chosen to study all aspects of England management under Acfield.

They are Gatting and Gower - recent England captains who know all about the problems of leading England in an era when the media analyse every twitch of the nose - Micky Stewart, Bob Bennett, who have managed England abroad, and Tim Lamb, the TCCB official, who will act as secretary.

This is a well-qualified group and they will consult widely, but there will be no point in the exercise if they do not put their recommendations into the wider context of English cricket.

Source :: Electronic Telegraph (https://www.telegraph.co.uk)