Former England player Salliann Briggs has been singled out as the woman to turn around Tasmania and Hobart's fortunes
Tassie, 'Canes turn to English mentor
Cricket Tasmania has turned to an overseas mentor to turn around the fortunes of Tasmania Roar and Hobart Hurricanes, appointing respected English coach Salliann Briggs as head coach for the upcoming Rebel WBBL and WNCL seasons.
Briggs, who coached Loughborough Lightning to the inaugural England Women’s Super League final, replaces outgoing coach Julia Price.
A right-handed batter whose prolific domestic career in the United Kingdom saw her play 114 one-dayers and 28 T20s, primarily for Yorkshire, scored more than 2,600 runs.
Since hanging up the boots, Briggs has gone from strength to strength on the coaching circuit. The 34-year-old has previously coached England Women’s Academy and their Under-19s, while she is relocating to Tasmania from the UK’s leading sports institution Loughborough University.
“I’m looking forward to bringing my knowledge and passion to both squads, alongside my experience with sport science and specialist coaching, to help these cricketers achieve their full potential,” Briggs said.
“I’m proud to play a part in such an exciting time for Australian women’s cricket in general, and I can’t wait to start working with the teams and hopefully attract even more females to the sport with our on-field performances.”
During her tenure at the Loughborough Lightning, Briggs coached current Australian players Ellyse Perry, Elyse Villani and Kristen Beams.
“Salliann has a proven track record in building successful cricket programs and developing players,” Cricket Tasmania Chief Executive Nick Cummins said.
“She is highly regarded by some of Australia’s leading players, including Ellyse Perry who played under her at the Loughborough Lightning in the Kia Super League.
“Women’s cricket is rapidly evolving – last season we saw higher innings totals, more power hitting, faster bowling speeds and better game sense. It is vital that our program remains competitive during this time of great change.
“We believe Salliann is the right head coach for us to capitalise on these changes and bring success to our women’s program.”
The Roar have struggled in recent years, winning just two matches across the last three 50-over WNCL seasons.
The Hobart Hurricanes made the semi-finals of the first two editions of the Women’s Big Bash, but the loss of key internationals Heather Knight and Amy Satterthwaite cruelled the club last season as they finished on the bottom of the table with two wins from 14 matches.