IAN HARVEY is to continue his role as assistant head coach at Gloucestershire CCC until the end of the 2019 season.

Harvey said: “It certainly wasn’t a hard decision to stay. After the last two seasons of working with the players and coaches, we are definitely moving in the right direction and I am excited about what lies ahead.”

A firm favourite with Gloucestershire supporters, the 44-year-old won six One-Day trophies at the club between 1999 and 2003.

As well as being instrumental to Gloucestershire’s success around the turn of the century, Harvey was capped 57 times by Australia and was part of their World Cup-winning squad in 2003.

After helping the club win the Royal London One-Day Cup in his first year on the coaching staff in 2015, Harvey believes there is still more to come from this current group of players.

He said: “As a group, we are excited about the 2017 season and beyond. This season we performed well in the T20, winning our group and will be aiming to reach Finals Day next season.

“Similarly, with the County Championship performances, we just need a little more consistency and are confident that we can challenge for promotion in 2017.”

Chief executive Will Brown added: “Having Ian Harvey extend his coaching contract is fantastic news for everyone associated with Gloucestershire cricket.

"He has shown in the last couple of years that he still has all the passion and guile that has rightly made him a Gloucestershire legend.

"Working alongside Richard Dawson and the other coaches ‘Harvs’ is an integral part of the team in helping the squad develop further and hopefully build on some of our more recent successes.”