SOMERSET County Cricket Club has announced the appointment of Jim Troughton as assistant coach.

The 42-year-old captained Warwickshire to the County Championship title in 2012, and also played six One-Day Internationals for England, before injury forced him to retire in 2014.

Troughton - the grandson of Doctor Who actor Patrick - took the role of Warwickshire head coach (after the sacking of Dougie Brown in 2016), but departed Edgbaston in October 2020.

He joins Somerset on a fixed term contract for seven months, and will assist 2nd XI head coach Greg Kennis, working on a one-to-one basis with the players to aid their development.

The role of assistant coach was, until this month, held by Marcus Trescothick - who is now working for the England & Wales Cricket Board as elite batting coach.

READ MORE: Trescothick departs Somerset for England coaching role

\Troughton said: "Once I heard that Somerset were taking applications, I thought it would be a great opportunity to get myself back into the game at a club that is in a really good place.

“Somerset have got a really exciting squad at the moment and it’s a very well-run club.

"I’ve worked with [Somerset director of cricket] Andy Hurry before, with the England Under-19s in Dubai back in 2014.

"He’s an honest guy who is very supportive, and he knows what the culture and history of the club is all about.

“The performances that the players have been putting in on the field have been very good over the last few years, and now it’s really important to make sure that the next generation are ready to make that step up to First-Class cricket.

“It’s an exciting opportunity and I’m looking forward to joining up with [head coach] Jason Kerr and the coaching staff.”

Kerr commented: “Being able to bring someone of the calibre of Jim Troughton to Somerset is an indication of where we are as a club at the moment, and we’re really looking forward to working with him this summer.

“He’s incredibly experienced, and he will be an extremely valuable resource for our up-and-coming players and also for our more established professionals.

"He has a good reputation within the game and there are a lot of advantages to having him in our environment."