Middlesex Cricket can today announce that Richard Johnson will leave his position as First Team Coach with immediate effect.
Johnson, 50, having previously worked as Assistant Coach under Richard Scott, became Middlesex’s Head Coach on an interim basis in 2018. He returned to Middlesex at the start of the 2022 season, as First team Coach, following Stuart Law’s departure at the end of 2021, and has led the Men’s squad since.
In Johnson’s first season at the helm Middlesex secured promotion from Division Two of the County Championship, returning to Division One after an absence of five years, although their stay in the top-flight proved short-lived, as relegation in 2023 saw the side immediately return to Division Two.
2024 saw the side miss out on promotion, finishing third, behind both Sussex and Yorkshire, and in 2025 Middlesex currently lie in sixth place in Division Two, just five points off the foot of the table, having lost three of our opening seven matches.
In white-ball cricket Middlesex have failed to reach the knockout stages of either competition, finishing fourth in the group in 2022, seventh in 2023 and sixth in 2024 in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup, and eighth in the Vitality Blast South Group in 2022, ninth in 2023, and eighth in 2024. The side currently lie in seventh place this season in the Vitality Blast, having lost three of our opening six games.
Speaking of the departure of Richard Johnson as First Team Coach, Alan Coleman, Middlesex’s Director of Cricket, commented:
“Jono has put his heart and soul into the role since he returned to the Club in 2022, and we thank him for all his hard work during his time as First Team Coach.
“Ultimately cricket is a performance business, and we do not feel that the results this season have matched the expectations that we have for the team at our disposal.
“Jono is due a lot of credit for leading the team through the most difficult off-field period that we have had and has embraced the challenge of working within the financial constraints placed upon the Club during his time as First Team Coach. We do though have high expectations for the playing group that has been assembled during this time, and we do feel that the time is right for a change to try and maximise the talent and performances from our squad.
“Jono is a modern Middlesex cricketing great and has served the Club exceptionally well during his time as a player, Assistant Coach and First Team Coach. We thank him for all that he has done for the Club over many years.”
