Dawson named England Lions head coach for Australia tour

Richard Dawson will lead the England Lions on their tour of Australia in the New Year, taking the role of head coach for the eight-match tour.

The Gloucestershire head coach will be joined by batting coaches Marcus Trescothick and Jonathan Trott, pace coach Jason Kerr, fielding coach Carl Hopkinson and wicketkeeping coach Bruce French on the tour, departing Tuesday 21 January.

Trescothick will be with the team for the white-ball leg of the tour, which sees the Lions take on Cricket Australia XIs and New South Wales XIs at Metricon and Drummoyne respectively.

Trott will then join for the three four-day matches, which includes a day/night match against Australia A at the MCG.

Dawson said: “I’m excited for this opportunity to coach the England Lions, working alongside some excellent coaches.

“It will be a challenging tour and one that the coaches and players will all learn a great deal from. Australia is a testing place to tour as an England player, both on and off the field

“I look forward to working with some of this country’s best young cricketers as they progress on the Performance Pathway.”

ECB Performance Director Mo Bobat said: “I’m delighted to have Richard on board as head coach for the Lions’ tour of Australia. He’s an excellent leader and provides great technical knowledge as a spin bowling coach.

“Richard, Marcus and Jonathan all have experience of touring Australia with England as players so the advice they can pass on to our players will be invaluable.

“This tour provides us a good opportunity to recognise two coaches who have excelled in their roles in County cricket in Richard and Jason, as well as two high potential newcomers in Jonathan and Marcus.

“The tour also gives our players a chance to test themselves against their peers Down Under, giving them relevant experience at international venues like the MCG with an eye on creating success in future Ashes series.”

England Lions tour of Australia

Sun 2 February: One-day match v Cricket Australia XI – Metricon, Gold Coast

Tue 4 February: One-day match v Cricket Australia XI – Metricon, Gold Coast

Thu 6 February: One-day match v Cricket Australia XI – Metricon, Gold Coast

Sun 9 February: One-day match v New South Wales XI – Drummoyne Oval, Sydney

Tue 11 February: One-day match v New South Wales XI – Drummoyne Oval, Sydney

Sat 15 February-Tue 18 February: Four-day match v Cricket Australia XI – Blundstone Arena, Hobart

Sat 22 February-Tue 25 February: Four-day match v Australia A – MCG, Melbourne (D/N)

Mon 2 March-Thu 5 March: Four-day match v New South Wales XI – North Dalton Park, Wollongong