Otago cricket may part with tradition and import a coach this summer.
The Otago Cricket Association engaged a Brisbane-based recruitment agency to conduct its search for a head coach following the resignation of Nathan King in April.
The company has compiled a shortlist for the appointments panel to consider and the majority of the six candidates are from overseas.
In the past, the association has tended to opt for a local coach. Mike Hesson was still relatively unknown when he replaced Glenn Turner a decade ago. Vaughn Johnson was shoulder-tapped when Hesson left after a six-year stint.
Dimitri Mascarenhas was the exception. The former England international had a one-year stint in the job but had previously played for Otago.
King served as assistant coach for three seasons before he was promoted to the head role last summer. He resigned during the review process.
Otago Cricket Association chief executive Mike Coggan, who will be joined on the selection panel by OCA association chairman Murray Hughes, New Zealand players association chief executive Heath Mills, former Otago cricketer and OCA board member player Rob Lawson and NZC high performance general manager Bryan Stronach, said realistically it could be a "few weeks'' before they could conduct the interviews.
However, he was satisfied with the calibre of the applicants.
"I've been speaking with Bryan Stronach and he is familiar with some of the names, so we can move forward in terms of looking at some genuinely strong contenders.''
Otago is also looking for an assistant coach but that process could not get under way until the head coach had been appointed, Coggan said,
"We'll be looking for a skills matrix that supports the skills of the head coach. They have to be complementary skills.''
In the meantime, former Otago captain Craig Cumming is filling the gap.
His position of commercial manager was disestablished during the recent restructuring at the OCA but he has accepted a fixed-term contract and has been leading the contracting process. The first round of contracting takes place in the last week of June.
Mark Bracewell has been offered, and accepted, the new role of performance and talent identification coach. He was previously employed at the association as the network coach and starts in his new role on Monday.
Bracewell will report to the manager of performance and talent. However, that is a new position which has not been filled yet. Applications closed late last week and interviews are likely to get under way next week.
