… Outgoing assistant coach takes thinly-veiled swipe

OUTGOING Australia assistant coach Steve Rixon has taken a parting shot at Cricket Australia (CA).CA announced on Wednesday that Rixon will not continue in his role as assistant coach of the Australian men’s team, as part of broader changes to team support staff.
Rixon then told a radio station on Thursday he has ‘very little respect for the organisation’.
While senior coach Darren Lehmann wasn’t in Rixon’s firing line, the former Test wicketkeeper made it clear CA High Performance Manager Pat Howard was.
“I don’t like a lot of things they do. They interfere basically with a lot of the cricket decisions over the period of time and I don’t necessarily agree with that,” he told Sky Sports Radio.
When quizzed as to whether Howard was the CA staffer he was specifically talking about, Rixon said: “Let me say, I hope he was a good rugby player.”
However, Rixon said Lehmann and captain Michael Clarke were well-placed to continue building the success the Australian team has enjoyed this summer against England.
“With Michael now being very content with where he is, Boof’s obviously come in with a stronger approach to that,” he said.
“That’s why I think cricket’s in a very good shape with Australia, we’re starting to get all those bits and pieces (together).
“Darren will eventually get a team around him that he’s very, very comfortable with and that’s fine. That’s the way life is, that’s the way it is with coaching.”
The former New Zealand coach will again work with the Chennai Super Kings and hopes to pick up a job with other Twenty20 teams down the track, including in the KFC Big Bash League.
Discussing Rixon on Wednesday, Lehmann said: “I’ve taken the opportunity to look at our current coaching structure and the levels of support I feel we need moving into the future.”
“I’ve mentioned previously that I believe our players can really benefit from more dedicated skill-based training, which means more regular support from technical experts to help work on specific areas of performance.
“This will see various coaches and experts in their field working with the team as and when it is needed. In recent times that’s included people like Mike Young to work on fielding while Shane Warne is going to work with our spinners in a short-term capacity ahead of the ICC World Twenty 20.
“These changes to how we support our players means it is no longer necessary to have a full-time assistant coach travelling with the team.”
Lehmann also thanked Rixon for what he achieved during his time with CA.
“Steve has made an outstanding contribution to Australian cricket over a long period of time and played an important role with the national team since 2011,” said Lehmann.
“We’d like to thank him for his hard work and commitment over the years and wish him well in his future endeavours.” (CA)