Blain out at Yorkshire as relegation fall-out hits

FORMER Saltires cricketer John Blain has become the victim of a coaching cull at Yorkshire.

Blain, along with colleagues Steve Oldham, Craig White and Kevin Sharp, appears to have been made a scapegoat for Yorkshire’s relegation to division two of the County Championship last season.

However, the 32-year-old Scot had little contact with the first XI despite performing four key roles for the Tykes during the last three years.

Blain was player-coach and captain of the second eleven, assistant bowling coach throughout the club and also led the Yorkshire Academy to unprecedented success.

However, the record-breaking Scotland fast bowler has been left out in the cold following a back-room re-structuring at the troubled Headingley county.

Director of Cricket Martyn Moxon survived the cull, despite the first XI’s relegation and reports of unrest among senior players.

Yorkshire last night refused to discuss Blain’s position but said they would be makinge a statement on a new coaching structure next week.

But a club insider said: “Yorkshire has a sad reputation for political in-fighting and it has surfaced once again.

“There has been a lot of back-stabbing and there are innocent victims in this but some people just wanted to wipe the slate clean. It’s a real mess.”

Blain, meanwhile, was unable to comment on the situation for contractual reasons but it is understood that he is considering other opportunities within the game.

The former Penicuik and Heriot’s bowler earned 117 Scotland caps, claiming 188 wickets.

He burst onto the international stage at the 1999 World Cup when he had the best strike rate of any bowler at the competition.

However, he has not played for Scotland since a public bust-up with then captain Gavin Hamilton on the eve of the 2009 T20 World Cup.