SOMERSET County Cricket Club has confirmed that batting & assistant coach, Lachlan Stevens will be leaving the Club this winter.

Stevens will return to Australia with his family, after just one season with the club.

He said: "I’m very sad to be leaving and it’s a shame that we won’t be able to finish what we started.

“It just hasn’t quite worked out for myself or my family as much as we would have hoped. We’ve had a number of challenges along the way; from getting ourselves over here in the first place to the emergency appendectomy surgery that I had. That illness was a really difficult thing to go through and to get over and it gave us time to reflect on a few things.

“I’ve really enjoyed my time with Somerset. The playing group are a terrific bunch of people to deal with. They’re supportive, energetic, good humoured, good natured and everyone’s been very kind to my family and I. We’re going to miss the group enormously.

“We are going to go back to Australia, and my wife will continue her work back there and I’ll be looking after our son for a while.”

Somerset CCC Director of Cricket, Andy Hurry said: “Everyone at the Club would like to thank Lachlan for his insight, knowledge, enthusiasm and hard work during his time with us. He has been a very popular figure with the staff and playing group, and it has been a pleasure to observe the development work he has undertaken with the players.

“We wish him and his family all the very best in Australia and he will always be welcome in Taunton. The recruitment process for finding a new Batting Coach will commence imminently and we will make a further announcement regarding this in due course.”