Greg Shipperd keeps rolling. The 68-year-old, already the longest-serving head coach in the Big Bash, has agreed a fresh two-year deal that ties him to both New South Wales and the Sydney Sixers until mid-2027.
It is another vote of confidence in a man many players simply call “Ship”. After long stints with Tasmania and Victoria – four Sheffield Shield titles between them – he drifted north in 2022-23 to steady a struggling NSW side while still steering the Sixers. By May 2023 the caretaker tag was gone; this extension means four full winters in charge of the Blues and a 12th summer with the magenta.
“You have to be careful not to overstay your welcome,” Shipperd told ESPNcricinfo. “But I’m particularly thrilled in being involved with Cricket New South Wales. It’s steeped in history and it’s got high expectations, and I like to operate within that framework. We’ve got an exciting opportunity with an emerging group of players to build a foundation that can stand the test of time.
“The mind still is going at 100 miles an hour, but the body’s slowing down. But I’ve got some wonderful support coaches around and the system itself behind the Blues team that represents in the Shield and other competitions is first-class.”
Recent results back him up. The Sixers have not finished outside the top three for six straight BBL seasons; they have sat first or second on the ladder five years running, snaring two trophies and falling at the final hurdle twice more. Such consistency is rare in a salary-capped, short-form competition that regularly loses internationals to national duty.
The Shield, though, is where Shipperd feels there’s unfinished business. NSW were bottom in 2022-23, their first wooden spoon in 13 years. They have since closed the gap, ending third and fourth, and twice went into the last round with a shot at the final. In the 50-over Dean Jones Trophy they reached the 2024 final, losing to Western Australia, and only just missed another tilt last season.
“Progress is being made,” Shipperd said. “We had some real challenges in terms of the depth of our squad and our Australian player representation across the course of the year took away some of our next level players in [Sean] Abbott, [Ben] Dwarshuis, and [Tanveer] Sangha, and so for us to be playing off for a grand final spot in the last game of both competitions meant that we’re very, very competitive. And so I’m really pleased about that.
“The next step for us is to win those crunch games more often than we did, in particular at the back end of last year.”
Observers inside Cricket NSW say the next 18 months are critical. Fast bowlers Jack Edwards and Ollie Davies showed glimpses in 2024-25; batter Sam Konstas is highly rated; Sangha’s return from Test tours will bolster the spin stocks. Shipperd’s job, essentially, is to knit those strands into a side that can again dominate four-day cricket without sacrificing the Sixers’ white-ball edge.
It is a big ask for a veteran who admits the body needs managing, but most around Australian cricket would still put their money on Ship finding a way, just as he has for nearly three decades.
