Ed Foster welcomes Shropshire cricket coach plan

Foster, who recently stood down as county captain and also relinquished the Shrewsbury captaincy after a successful spell at the London Road helm, stressed he wished his replacement Oliver every success in leading the county side for the 2013 season.

He knows the ex-Whitchurch batsman well, having enjoyed opening the batting with Oliver for Shropshire in recent years. Foster believes the appointment of the experienced Kevin Sharp, a former Yorkshire star, as coach could prove a masterstroke as Shropshire continue to push for major honours in Minor Counties cricket.

Sharp, 53, a top order batsman in his playing days, was at Yorkshire for 14 years before spending five summers as a professional for Shropshire until 1997.

"I think bringing Kevin in as coach is very exciting," said Foster. "He's got a strong background in first class cricket and that can only further help the professionalism we've tried to instil in recent years."

Oliver, who plays his club cricket for Reigate Priory in Surrey, once again topped the batting averages for Shropshire last summer. He is spending the English winter playing in Australia for Geelong in Victoria.

"Richard's had a couple of very good seasons playing for Shropshire," said Foster. "He's really excelled with the bat and with the ball on occasions as well.

"Hopefully the added responsibility of being captain will make him even more successful. I wish Rich all the best and I'm sure he will lead the side with a lot of enthusiasm."

Foster decided to stand down as both Shrewsbury and Shropshire captain at the end of last season owing to his work commitments.

The prolific opening batsman still plans to play regularly for Shrewsbury under the leadership of his younger brother Rob, who has replaced him as captain of the county town outfit, while he also hopes to play for Shropshire as much as his schedule allows.