Richard Dawson leaves Glamorgan for England Test assistant role

Richard Dawson has left Glamorgan to become assistant coach of the England Test team, leaving the Welsh county looking for its fourth head coach in five years. BBC Sport reported the departure on Monday, October 12, after a spell in which the former England off-spinner led Glamorgan into Division One of the County Championship and then kept them there.

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Dawson, 46, arrived in December 2024 at short notice following Grant Bradburn’s dismissal. His first season brought promotion from Division Two, and he signed a three-year contract extension in 2025. Glamorgan followed that success with sixth place in 2026, securing consecutive seasons in the Championship’s top division for the first time. His exit comes after those two significant steps in the county’s red-ball progress.

Director of cricket Mark Wallace said Glamorgan had regarded Dawson as one of the country’s best coaches when they appointed him. Wallace also acknowledged that recruiting someone of that standing carried the possibility of an opportunity elsewhere that would be difficult to turn down. Dawson said the decision had required careful consideration, while describing the England role as an opportunity he could not pass up.

Glamorgan chief executive Dan Cherry credited Dawson’s partnership with Wallace with improving the club’s cricket structures, linking that work to its aims of developing players and fielding strong teams. Cherry thanked the departing coach and said the county was well placed to build on his work. Dawson, meanwhile, expressed affection for Glamorgan and confidence in the talent remaining within the playing group.

The Championship achievements were not matched by qualification for the T20 Blast knockout rounds. Glamorgan missed that stage in both of Dawson’s seasons despite some improvement in results, according to the BBC report. The next head coach will therefore inherit a side that has retained its Division One place but has not made equivalent progress through the Blast competition.

Dawson brings previous England experience to his new post. He coached the England Lions on their 2020 tour of Australia before joining the senior coaching staff as elite performance pathway coach in 2021. Earlier, he spent six years as Gloucestershire head coach from 2015, winning the One-Day Cup in his first season and reaching the T20 Blast knockout stages four times.