Moores departs Lancashire with good reason to be overjoyed.

In his five-year spell as Coach at Lancashire, Peter Moores has been through a lot and the shape that his final match against Warwickshire took was an excellent example of how his fortunes at Lancashire have fluctuated.

From winning the Championship title in 2011, to being relegated the following season, Moores, has seen it all and in spite of his departure, the recently appointed England Coach will leave a strong legacy behind him.

Moores said: “It has been great fun at Lancashire. We have had some highs and some lows. We have been through it together.

“The club has been through all sorts off the field but I have felt privileged to have been part of what has been a great period of change and evolution.”

“In that time we have managed to win the First Division, go down, and then win the Second Division. Mainly we have developed a lot of young Lancashire players who have come through and it is exciting for the club. Hopefully they will go on and have great careers and keep the club in a healthy state.

Commenting on his potential successor, Glen Chapple, Moores has great faith in his potential as a player as well as his influence over the side, having held the role of captain since 2009.

“He has what it takes. He has five years of leadership as captain. He has 22 years in the game so knows the sport very well.

“The important thing is that he is progressive. He has stayed in the game because he has been able to mix the old and the new. Some of the traditions of the game you can never get away from, but you also need to embrace new things. Physically, technically, he is like Cliff Richard – he has reinvented himself and come back each time.”

Moores talks to potential successors, Gary Yates (middle)
and Glen Chapple (right).

Without question, Moores’ greatest achievement at Lancashire was the Championship success in 2011, where he harnessed a mixture of youth and experience to their first title in 77 years.

The 51-year-old said: "When I came here, the draw of the place was to try and win a Championship. In many ways, it was the Holy Grail. The club and players were desperate to do it, and as a coach I was desperate to do it.

"Did I know we'd ever do it? No. But in Glen I found someone who had been at the club a long time and was ready to embrace the new stuff. He's a great example to the other players. 

“When we first met as a squad, Glen was adamant we wanted to start taking about winning the Championship. Kerrigan's performance against Hampshire at Liverpool – I will never forget that as long as I live.

“It is an essential part of being a coach to bring young players through. Jack Bond told me when I first joined the club that I was a 'chance maker'. And that's what coaches do, we give opportunities to people and you hope they grab it. If they do, you get paid back.

“Kerrigan got one early because Gary Keedy got injured and he retained his place. You need stability and senior payers, and you need to bring some players from outside, so it is a balancing act as a coach.”

Lancashire’s return to Division One seemed to be taking a sour twist with successive defeats beckoning, but a bizarre final session earned the hosts a draw, ensuring that Moores’ would not finish his reign on a defeat.

“It was great that we came out with a draw, but what I loved about the game was that we were disappointed how we batted in the first innings and didn't get a bigger score, but we showed a lot of fight all the way with how we bowled and batted to stay in the game.

"It was a funny situation because of the balance of the game. We wanted to save the game, but you also want it to finish as a spectacle. 

"What I really liked about it was that we stayed in the game because two players bowled brilliantly. Simon Kerrigan bowled beautifully and Glen does what he does. He changed his line, and made it very difficult on that surface for them to get him away.

With Moores’ time at Lancashire completed and Paul Farbace named as his assistant, the former Red Rose Coach will turn his attention towards his new job as Coach of the national squad for the second time.

“It has been quick. In less than a week I was interviewed and then in the job. It had to be quick with the cricket coming up.

“I have been in the England process for a number of weeks so they knew there was a chance I could get it, but until Friday they didn't know I had the job.

Commenting on his efforts to persevere with homegrown talent Moores said: “Mainly we have developed a lot of young Lancashire players who have come through and it is exciting for the club. Hopefully they will go on and have great careers and keep the club in a healthy state.” 

Thank you for everything Mooresy and best of luck in your new job.