Glamorgan hunt fourth coach in five years as Dawson joins England

Glamorgan are looking for a fourth head coach in five years after Richard Dawson left to become assistant coach of the England Test team.

The move was confirmed on 12 October 2026, according to BBC Sport. Dawson is 46 and a former Test off-spinner. He now steps back into the England set-up.

He leaves behind a strong red-ball record in Cardiff. Dawson took charge at short notice in December 2024. He then led Glamorgan to promotion from Division Two of the County Championship in his first season.

That is England and Wales' main first-class competition, played over four days with promotion and relegation between divisions. Glamorgan followed promotion with sixth place in Division One. It was the first time the club had stayed in the top flight for successive seasons.

Short-form results were patchier. Glamorgan failed to reach the knockout stages of the T20 Blast in both seasons under Dawson. The Blast is county cricket's fast, three-hour-a-side T20 tournament, where a slow start quickly ends a campaign.

Dawson had arrived after a turbulent spell. He replaced Grant Bradburn, who was dismissed after admitting using discriminatory language. Glamorgan then tied Dawson to a three-year contract extension in 2025.

For supporters, this means another reset. Stability has been hard to find. Bradburn himself had only taken over in January 2024, succeeding County Championship head coach Matthew Maynard and limited-overs leader Mark Alleyne. Maynard had rejoined for a second spell in 2019, having also led the club between 2008 and 2010.

Dawson knew the county game well. He was Gloucestershire head coach for six years from 2015. He won the One-Day Cup in his first season there, a 50-over competition, and reached the T20 Blast knockouts four times.

He also knew the England pathway. He coached the England Lions in Australia in 2020. The Lions are effectively England's second string, a step below the full side. He then joined the senior England coaching team as elite performance pathway coach in 2021.

The search now sits with director of cricket Mark Wallace and chief executive Dan Cherry. They must find a coach who can keep Glamorgan up in Division One and lift a T20 side that has stalled. The red-ball base is solid. The next appointment will decide what comes next.