Toby Radford appointed Middlesex coach

Toby Radford: from interim to full-time coach © Getty Images

Middlesex have appointed their former batsman Toby Radford as their first-team coach. Radford, 35, had been filling the role on a temporary basis since Richard Pybus quit four months into a three-year deal in July.

The county also confirmed the reappointment of Ed Smith as the first-team captain. "We feel we can achieve our 2008 objectives with this team, under the direction of John Emburey," said chief executive Vinny Codrington. "We have reviewed the 2007 season in detail and are extremely confident that the Ed and Toby partnership is the way forward."

"We are determined to build on our success in the second half of 2007, when Toby was coach, and continue to improve performances in 2008," Smith added.