The Ashes 2006-07

Golf guru to lead Ashes inquest

Cricinfo staff

January 16, 2007

England's Ashes performance is to be probed in an ECB inquiry © Getty Images

The worlds of cricket and golf are set to collide in the coming months, after it was announced that the inquest into England's disastrous Ashes campaign is to be chaired by the former executive director of the European PGA Tour, Ken Schofield.

"I've been appointed as an independent voice and I'll do the job without fear or favour," said Schofield, 60, who retired in 2004 after a 30-year career in golf. His tenure took Europe from their days of incessant Ryder Cup defeats, and culminated in the current era of unprecedented success. "We have access to all areas and we know that we have to think quickly on our feet."

Schofield will be aided in his inquest by two former England captains, Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain, as well as the former England fast bowler-turned-journalist, Angus Fraser. All aspects of the tour are set to be examined, from England's performances in the Tests to their shortage of warm-up games to the presence of so many wives and girlfriends for the duration of the tour.

"My passion for cricket is almost as strong as it is for golf and I'm honoured to have been asked," said Schofield. "I liken England's current loss of the Ashes to what happened when the Americans won back the Ryder Cup in 1999. They had lost the trophy two matches in a row and just had to win it back. I think we saw a similar thing during the Ashes, where the Australians regrouped impressively."

Speaking to BBC Radio Four, the ECB chief executive, David Collier, explained the reasoning behind Schofield's appointment. "Ken brings a great deal of independence to the grouping," said Collier. "He also brings the supporters' view and a passion for the game of cricket.

"I think his experience, what he managed to accomplish with the Ryder Cup team, can be translated into a lot of lessons that I'm sure we can learn from. The brief is to regain the Ashes in 2009 and win one of the ICC global competitions during 2007-11.

"We're looking at the whole of the jigsaw, the next four-year cycle, and we have to have people who'll lead us through that," Collier added. "This is not looking at any particular person, it's looking at how we can improve the whole of English cricket to make sure we are in the best possible position to win the Ashes in England in 2009."

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