SALTIRES chiefs are poised to hand former supremo Tony Judd a key coaching role.
Judd, who guided Scottish cricket through one of its most successful periods, quit Scotland last September to take up a position with the Victoria Cricket Association in his native Australia. However, he returned to Greenock for family reasons ten da
ys ago and has already been approached by national coach Pete Steindl.
It's understood Judd will join the Saltires staff as assistant coach for the European Championships in July as well the crucial Twenty20 World Cup qualifiers and the historic ODI against England the following month.
Steindl revealed: "I've made contact with Tony and have discussed his plans and ours. It has always been my intention to get an assistant on board and I've been waiting for the right guy. In my opinion Tony would be a fantastic addition to the staff. Nothing is finalised yet but hopefully we'll be able to get him on board."
Judd, 44, was part-time Saltires coach in 2003 when they entered the English one-day league for the first time and sensationally beat three counties in 20 days – more victories against county opposition than they had managed in the previous 20 years. He was also in charge when Scotland won the inaugural Intercontinental Cup in Sharjah the following year, but commitments to Greenock Cricket Club meant he was unable to apply when the national post was made full-time in 2005. Judd's return is likely to be welcomed by the players who responded to his motivational skills.
Meanwhile, Steindl declared himself satisfied with Scotland's first warm-up match in the build-up to the Twenty20 World Cup qualifiers. The Saltires brushed aside the challenge of Dunfermline Knights at McKane Park on Friday night in a match to mark the Fifeshire club's 150th anniversary.
Skipper Ryan Watson top-scored with 41 while Qasim Sheikh hit 31 and Richie Berrington 22 as the Scots posted 150-7. However, the find of the night was Arbroath teenager Matthew Parker who claimed 4-21 to seal a convincing 53-run win. Steindl declared: "
The guys showed a great attitude and we learned a lot about a few fringe players and also were able to consider various tactical aspects of the shorter game. Young Matthew has done a fantastic job. With injuries to John Blain and Gordon Drummond it was a good chance for us to bring him in and have a close look at what he is all about. He bowled extremely well and it capped a great week for him because he also went south with the Scotland Lions and got wickets and runs against a very strong Lancashire side.
"Matthew is a great example of the benefits we are getting from the more competitive structure we've put in place for our under-age and A teams."
The Twenty20 World Cup qualifiers in Belfast will be contested by the ICC's six leading associate members with the top two going through to the main event in England next summer.
Meanwhile, Parker is likely to feature for the Scotland Lions again in their latest 2nd XI County Championship match against Derbyshire on Tuesday.
The Scots have suffered a torrid time in their opening two games, losing both inside two of the scheduled three days.
Lions coach Andy Tennant believes the championship has become a much tougher environment this season. His side managed one win and a draw in their inaugural campaign a year ago but have been outclassed against Notts and Lancashire this term. Tennant said: "Playing Lancashire last week was like playing a First Class team because they had about seven guys who have lots of top-team experience.
West of Scotland batsman Dougie Lockhart replaces Steve Knox as skipper for this week's game at Belper Meadows.
The full article contains 639 words and appears in Scotland On Sunday newspaper.
