NSW appoint former Ireland skipper coach

Former Ireland captain Trent Johnston has been named the interim head coach of the New South Wales Blues while they continue their worldwide hunt for a replacement for the England-bound Trevor Bayliss.

Johnston, who was born in Wollongong and made his first class debut alongside Brett Lee in 1999 before moving to Ireland for family reasons, has been an assistant at the Blues for the past nine months.

His primary focus has been coaching in NSW's Pathway program with the under-19s, under-17s and academy players, but has stepped up as Cricket NSW moves to ensure the state is not left behind as the pre-season training begins.

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“It’s a fantastic opportunity for me to taste what it’s like to be head coach of this great organisation,” Johnston told News Corp.

“We are currently in preseason, and it’s my job to prepare the squad for the upcoming season.”

New South Wales suffered a double blow in the coaching ranks in quick succession, with first-team assistant coach Phil Jaques appointed to vacancy at the myFootDr Queensland Bulls just a fortnight before Bayliss was poached by England.

With Victoria having already locked in former state quick and ex-England fast bowling coach David Saker and South Australia appointing local hero Jamie Siddons to their vacancy, NSW suddenly found themselves on the back foot and behind other states in terms of planning and preparation for the 2015-16 Bupa Sheffield Shield season.

Johnston played 67 one-day internationals and 30 twenty20 international matches for Ireland, and was captain in their first World Cup appearance in the Caribbean in 2007 where he lead the team to a famous win against Pakistan in Jamaica.