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Andrew Flintoff releases statement after shock England departure and confirms next job England cricket legend Andrew Flintoff has confirmed he has left his job with England Lions ahead of moving to a role in Australia later in the year Ashes icon Andrew Flintoff has announced his decision to step away from his coaching role with the England Lions. The England cricket legend is set to join Sydney Thunder later this year in Australia's Big Bash League. Flintoff, who started his role with the Lions in September 2024, leaves after less than two years in the position. The 48-year-old earned the job after first working with England's one-day team in an informal consultant role as he recovered from significant injuries he suffered in a car crash filming for the television show Top Gear. The ECB had permitted Flintoff to leave an upcoming tour to South Africa early to coach in the Big Bash, but Flintoff has made the decision to end his time with the international set-up. He has joked that his replacement has 'big pants to fill'. Mike Yardy will step in as head coach for the four-day Professional County Club Select XI match against Pakistan Men next week. Posting on Instagram, Flintoff said; "Unfortunately, I’ve made the decision to step away from my role with the Lions. Not only have I enjoyed my time having the opportunity to work with the best young cricketers in the country, but have taken great pride in seeing them develop. "I’d like to thank the coaches and staff for all their passion, tireless work and support they give everyday. "In particular Ed Barney who I’ve loved working with and was so lucky to have as a performance director, and obviously Rob for trusting me with one of the most Important roles in English cricket. "I can’t wait to get started with the Thunder later in the year and see where coaching takes me. Good luck to whoever takes over you have some big pants to fill." JOIN US ON FACEBOOK! All the best sports news and much more on our dedicated Facebook page Ed Barney, ECB men's performance director, said: "Fred has helped to transform the Lions environment into a programme that has had a major impact on young players. By creating an environment that both supports and pushes excellence at all times he has helped bring forward a new generation of young players. "Coaches have also flourished alongside him, whether early in their coaching journey or with decades of experience, and he has consistently maximised the expertise around the group. We wish him the best in the next stage of his coaching career and look forward to a time he returns to the English game." Flintoff had come under severe scrutiny for his decision to take on the Sydney job while in charge of England's Lions. Managing Director of England Men's Cricket, Rob Key, defended Flintoff, suggesting that his passion should not be doubted, as he could have earned more money doing something different with his career. "I saw something I thought was unfair, actually, on Andrew Flintoff, where it said he shouldn't have been doing that Lions job because he's not doing this job now, the England head coach's job," Key said. "I think that's done a complete disservice to one of our greatest cricketers who, for the last three [sic] years, has done that Lions job when he could have done a hell of a lot of other things, earning a lot more money. But his passion [is] to actually try and bring the next generation through, and people like Sonny Baker, Mitch Stanley… so many of these players have come under his wing." Flintoff's return to cricket came after a difficult time recovering from his brutal Top Gear crash. The former all-rounder suffered serious facial and rib injuries after the open-topped three-wheeled vehicle he was driving rolled over. Speaking on Freddie Flintoff’s Field Of Dreams: Ultimate Test, he said: "It was, what – 18 months ago? And you know, I’ve suffered with things like depression in the past before, but this time was different. I didn’t know if I had it in me to carry on, not that I wanted to die or anything like that, I just didn’t know if I had it in me, and that took a while. “The one thing, I think, getting quite deep here, but the one thing you just want to be is happy in yourself, and try and be accepting of yourself of what you are. It took me a long time to be like that, and then the crash put me back again, and now it’s like finding myself or finding the person I want to be.”