CRICKET: Skipper Harrison quits Oxford (From The Oxford Times)

CRICKET: Skipper Harrison quits Oxford

9:50am Saturday 24th December 2011 in Cricket By Russell Smith

Oxford first-team coach and captain Jason Harrison has resigned from the club after five successful years at the helm.

The 39-year-old former Middlesex batsman’s arrival at Roman Way in 2007 from High Wycombe was heralded as a coup.

And he made an instant impact, leading Oxford to the Home Counties Premier League title in his first season.

Further success followed under Harrison as Oxford won the Bernard Tollett Oxfordshire Cup in 2008 and 2009, and last season were crowned the Home Counties Premier League Twenty20 champions.

But now he has decided he has taken the club as far as he can, saying he is leaving as a “cricketing decision”.

He explained: “At the end of the season I had got to a stage where I wanted a couple of months off cricket to review where I was and where the club was.

“Within that period I decided the job I came to Oxford to do had been achieved.

“I felt I couldn’t take the club any further.

“There are no hidden agendas. I have no clubs fixed up. I have had a fantastic time at Oxford.

“It is a great chance for whoever is going to take it over, and hopefully take it forward from what I have done and put in place.

“I am still captain/coach of Bucks and I am looking forward to that and I am looking for a final challenge at a club.

“I am in the final phase of my career and I want to do a similar job to what I did at Wycombe and Oxford.”

As for Oxford, he believes he leaves the club in a solid state.

“The club in general is in pretty good health,” he added.

“I always believe when you leave a club in a management role you want to leave it in a better position than when you started.

“It happened with what I achieved at Wycombe and I would like to think people think the same at Oxford.

“I am certainly proud of what we achieved. It is purely a cricketing decision.”

Chairman Ian Pickford said: “We are delighted with the fantastic working relationship we have had with Jason since he joined us.

“I think the club has moved on fantastically on the playing front.

“He has brought a winning mentality to a talented bunch of players.

“We have no regrets. We have parted on excellent terms and we value all the things he has done on the playing front, and we wish him well in the future.”

Pickford added that plans were already under way to find a replacement.

“We have a couple of irons in the fire and once they are finalised we will let people know,” he added.