Paul Farbrace has said he understands the disappointment in Sri Lanka about his decision to leave after just a few months in the role of head coach and take up a job as Peter Moores' assistant in the new England set-up. Farbrace was confirmed as England assistant coach on Wednesday, having tendered his resignation to SLC the day before. He took up the Sri Lanka post in January after two years in charge of Yorkshire's 2nd XI and oversaw victorious campaigns at the Asia Cup and World T20 but was able to leave without the ECB paying any compensation due to a six-month probationary period written into his contract.
His first major role with England will be to prepare them for Sri Lanka's arrival in May for Test, ODI and T20 series. Farbrace said he would experience "mixed feelings" about such a swift reunion with his former charges but said the opportunity to coach with his own country had been too good to turn down.
"It doesn't look great from the outside, someone leaving a job after four months, and I understand from a Sri Lankan point of view that there is disappointment because it was a successful time," he told BBC Radio 5 Live. "I understand there will be that disappointment but as I went back to explain to them on Monday, the opportunity to work with my own team, my own country, and be working from home was an offer I couldn't really refuse.
"The opportunity to work with your own national team is almost beyond your wildest dreams. It's a fantastic opportunity and a great time to be involved. There was some disappointment but most people in the room understood the situation. I like to think we finish on reasonably good terms.
"It will be interesting for me and the players that the series in a couple of weeks is against Sri Lanka and there will be some mixed feelings because I built some good relationships - not just this time but the previous time - with the players. As a coach you do make good, strong relationships and they're not easy things to put to one side when you're playing against them."
Farbrace was Moores' choice for the assistant role after the former Lancashire coach was appointed to lead England for the second time. Both were at the ECB's National Performance Centre in Loughborough on Thursday for a medical screening of England players and they will now begin the work of planning England's new era alongside the Test and ODI captain, Alastair Cook.
"I've had a good day with Mooresy at Loughborough," Farbrace said. "It's exciting. I shall be working closely with Mooresy, the support staff and players and hopefully doing what I enjoy doing, which is working hard and working with the players.
"I came across Mooresy in international cricket, when he was coach of England and I was assistant at Sri Lanka, and in county cricket when we worked together on the level four ECB programme. We've spent a lot of time together and he's someone I've admired and watched work from a distance for a long time. It's a brilliant opportunity to work with him.
"I still feel I'm developing as a coach and I've got a lot to learn from someone like Peter Moores in this situation. I would like to think Peter will be in the job for many years to come and in a really successful period for England cricket, for the players and for Peter, and it would be great to be a to play a very small part in that."
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