Leah Poulton to Join ECB as Managing Director, England Women

Former batter begins role in November following impressive record driving women's cricket forward in Australia

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The ECB is pleased to announce the appointment of Leah Poulton as its new Managing Director of England Women, charged with overseeing the success of the international team and pathways.

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With England Women having reached the final of this summer’s ICC Women’s T20 World Cup and with the Metro Bank Women’s Ashes on home soil next year, Poulton will take up the job at a hugely exciting time and with an impressive track record driving women’s cricket forward in Australia.

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Poulton, a batter who played 90 times for Australia before retiring in 2015, has spent the past six years as Head of Elite Female Cricket at Cricket New South Wales (NSW) where she oversees all cricket performance operations across two WBBL franchises, women’s State cricket and one of the world's largest women’s cricket talent pathways.

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Prior to that she spent three years at Cricket Australia as a High Performance Coach, leading the design and implementation of Australia’s women’s high-performance pathway including developing the Australia A and Under-19s women’s teams.

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In her new role, she will be accountable for the performances of England Women, England Women A, England Women U19s, and the overall effectiveness and reputation of the women’s high-performance system.

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Working closely with England Women’s Head Coach Charlotte Edwards and Captain Nat Sciver-Brunt, she will set a clear, unified vision for England Women to consistently succeed on the world stage.

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Richard Gould, ECB Chief Executive Officer, said: “With the progress the team has made under Charlotte Edwards and having reached the final of this summer’s ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, England Women are well placed for a successful era.

“I’m delighted to welcome Leah on board to help us build on this and take us to the next level."

Richard Gould

ECB Chief Executive Officer

She has a deep understanding of international cricket from her playing career and has built an impressive reputation in her time in administration. I believe she and Lottie will be a formidable combination, and will continue the team's progress and development as we compete for the ICC Women's Champions Trophy and Women's Ashes in 2027.”

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Poulton will begin the role in November. After finishing her playing career, she became assistant coach of Sydney Thunder and later Sydney Sixers in the Women’s Big Bash League. She spent three years at Cricket New South Wales (NSW) as Pathway Manager and Assistant Coach for NSW Breakers, before joining Cricket Australia as a High Performance Coach. In three years there she coached the Australia A, Under-19s and Under-15s women's teams, as well as overseeing the introduction of the Under-19 and A team programmes, and the first overseas tour of both the teams.

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She became Head of Elite Female Cricket at Cricket NSW in April 2020. She succeeds Clare Connor, who announced earlier this year that she would be leaving the ECB after a career spanning 18 years.

“I'm incredibly excited and honoured to be joining England, and to have the opportunity to help shape our programmes and, most importantly, invest in our people."

Leah Poulton

Managing Director of England Women

"I'm looking forward to working with Charlotte, Nat and the wider team, building on the strong foundations already in place and taking the programme forward.

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“I'd also like to acknowledge the incredible contribution Clare Connor has made to England and to cricket around the world. She has played such an important role in advancing the game, and I'm grateful to be taking on a role she has shaped so significantly.

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“I know how vital strong pathways and a healthy domestic game are to sustained success, so I'm looking forward to connecting with people across the game and helping give the next generation of English players every opportunity to thrive. It's a huge privilege to be part of England Women, and I can't wait to get started.”

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Elevate's executive search team placed Leah Poulton.