Brad Haddin, who played 66 Tests for Australia between 2008 and 2015, will be unveiled as the next NSW Blues head coach on Wednesday, according to sources at Cricket NSW. The decision marks a significant leadership change for the state competition, replacing Greg Shipperd, who will continue to coach the Blues in both four-day and one-day cricket for the rest of the season.
The appointment comes after Cricket NSW announced in January it would seek a fresh direction for both the Blues and the Sixers for the 2026-27 season, despite Shipperd being contracted until the end of next summer. CEO Lee Germon explained the decision came from a desire to get NSW back to winning ways, stating that the organisation aims not merely to compete but to win titles.
Yet the timing has proven controversial. Shipperd delivered NSW a One-Day Cup victory over Tasmania in Hobart, with Kurtis Patterson guiding the team home with 52 not out from 57 balls in a rain-affected final reduced to 22 overs per side. Shipperd expressed his defiance by singing Elton John's "I'm still standing" at a Hobart karaoke bar, a choice that carried obvious symbolic weight, recounting the decision made at Hobart airport the night before.
The circumstances surrounding the coaching transition have already soured relationships. Cricket NSW sacked assistant coaches Ali de Winter and Shawn Bradstreet during the final day of their Sheffield Shield match against Western Australia in Sydney. Former NSW spinner Stephen O'Keefe criticised the approach, saying they "grabbed two of the assistant Blues coaches and said, 'Your services are no longer required'" while the final day of play was still taking place, describing the manner as "absolutely brutal and extremely disappointing".
Shipperd told Fox Sports that he was disappointed with the decision, noting he had a two-year contract from his point of view that had not been held up, and expressed hope that negotiations around termination packages would not "get messy".
Cricket NSW officials acknowledged Shipperd's contribution, noting he stabilised the Blues from a position where the team was really struggling and could not win matches to a competitive unit over the last two and a half seasons. Under his tenure, he took over when the Blues finished last for the first time in 14 years and has had them in the mix for finals every season since.
Shipperd took charge of the Blues in an interim capacity in November 2022 before being appointed to the post in May 2023, and has strengthened the state's male programme during a period spanning 31 Sheffield Shield and 22 One-Day Cup matches.
The decision to move on from Shipperd reveals a tension within Cricket NSW between consolidating recent improvements and pursuing a different playing philosophy. While lauding the Blues' competitiveness, Germon pointed to a desire to return to a style of cricket symbolic of NSW teams of the past, saying he believed the state had "gone away over the last 10 to 15 years from a style of playing that has made NSW so successful". Yet critics argue that a coach delivering championship silverware deserves better treatment than dismissal mid-season without contract honour.
Haddin brings Test experience and a deep connection to NSW cricket, having led the Blues to the 2013-14 Sheffield Shield title. He was appointed fielding coach for the Australia national cricket team in 2018. However, his appointment comes at a cost to institutional loyalty, setting a precedent that performance and contractual agreements may take secondary importance to organisational ambition.