Here at World Cricket Badger, we are introducing a Team of the Week feature where we look in depth into a state, county or franchise. We will be working our way around the globe. This week we start off in Australia with the country’s most successful state during the last couple of years, Queensland Bulls. We will have more to come from the Gabba later this week.
Stuart Law has spoken of his excitement at taking leadership of a state with whom he earned legendary status as a player during a stellar career. But the former Queensland captain also accepts he has one heck of a job on his hands having taken over the coaching reins from Darren Lehmann.
“I wouldn’t only say it’s exciting, it’s also daunting,” Brisbane-born Law told World Cricket Badger. “Three trophies in two years, to take that on, you’ve got to be slightly mad I suppose!”
Law has been in his job for approximately five weeks now, with the majority of that time spent in India with the Brisbane Heat Twenty20 team, who surprisingly struggled to make an impact at the Champions League t20.
But Queensland begin their domestic commitments this coming Friday with a Ryobi Cup clash with Western Australia in Sydney.
Law arrived at the Gabba having worked at the Australian Centre of Excellence as their high performance coach, looking after the country’s under 19s team amongst other duties.
A prolific batsman with Queensland, Australia, Essex, Lancashire and Derbyshire, Law has also coached the national teams of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. He is also a UK Citizen having spent so much time in England. His wife is from St Helens, a North West town more famed for its love of rugby league rather than cricket.
Law moved back to Australia having spent nine months as Bangladesh coach in 2011 and 2012, but this move to head up the Bulls’ pursuit of continued success really does seem like he has come home, however cliched that may sound.
“It’s not just about coming home,” admitted the 44-year-old. “I want to do what’s right for not only myself, but also for Queensland in the fact that they’ve got to a pretty good place.
“The passion’s still there for the game of cricket, and I want Queensland to carry on what they have been doing over the last few years for as long as we possibly can. They’re very well drilled and understand what’s required of them at this level. I don’t want anything else other than for them to carry that on.
“I’m not just coming home just because I’m from here, I’m coming home to make sure that something special, which has been started, continues and is made a lot better.”
And Law is confident that will be the case because, although there will be some inevitable changes here and there, things will not be too different with him in charge than they were when Lehmann was at the helm.
“The thing that rings true is that the players relate to us pretty well,” he added. “Darren and I are pretty similar characters away from cricket.
“We understand the toughness you need on a cricket field, but also the time you need to spend with your family and friends to keep yourself from….well…going crazy to be honest with you. It’s a fair mix.
“The experience I’ve picked up overseas coaching in Sri Lanka and then Bangladesh, hopefully that stands you in good stead for anything that is thrown your way.”
Law played 16 seasons with Queensland, and he ranks third on the state’s all-time runs-scoring list with 9,920 behind Martin Love (11,224) and Jimmy Maher (9,933).
More importantly, he captained his state to five Sheffield Shield and two one-day titles between 1994/95 and 2001/02. He captained the side that won Queensland their first ever Shield title.
Under Lehmann’s reign, the Bulls won the Shield in 2011/12 and the Ryobi Cup last summer. The Brisbane Heat also won last summer’s Big Bash Twenty20 title before Lehmann accepted the offer to become Australia’s new national coach.
It is fair to say that with Queensland, evolution and not revolution is the order of the day under Law’s guidance.
James Buttler
As the editor of World Cricket Badger he is intent on building the website to give quality coverage of the domestic game around the world.
He is also the presenter of the Cricket Badger Radio Show on Radio Yorkshire every Tuesday evening between 7-9pm UK time.
James was the full-time Media Manager at Yorkshire County Cricket Club between 2007 and 2010.
James is a published author, a writer/video contributor to many cricket publications and a complete cricket badger!
Latest posts by James Buttler (see all)
- #UAE15: Bon voyage Derbyshire as Champions Yorkshire land in Abu Dhabi - March 13, 2015
- Sussex sign Mahela Jayawardene for NatWest T20 Blast - March 13, 2015
- #CWC15: Shami books India into World Cup quarter after West Indies win - March 6, 2015
