Former Proteas assistant coach Enoch Nkwe back at Lions on temporary basis

Johannesburg - Enoch Nkwe has made a tentative return into South African cricket structures by taking up a part-time consultancy role with the Central Gauteng Lions Union.

Nkwe quit as Proteas assistant coach in August last year, citing concerns over the national team’s environment and culture. He has since spent time dealing with personal matters, and rebuilding himself, but in line with recent remarks is now ready to resume working within South African cricket, albeit at provincial level. Nkwe will be  “a strategic cricket consultant” at the union from March until April this year.

The Lions CEO, Jono Leaf-Wright said Nkwe’s role had been negotiated for some time. Nkwe had said in recent interviews that he was ready to return to cricket, but implied that he no longer saw coaching as being part of his future, rather a role in administration that would allow him to create structures in which development, coaching and the playing of the sport occurred.

“It all comes down to high performance – we strive for setting up structures that will drive high performance, impacting men and women,” said Leaf-Wright. “Enoch will work with our framework coaches and our system in this space as well as the semi-professional Imperial Lions women’s team and the Imperial Lions mens team.”

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It is a return to Nkwe’s original home where he first played professionally and later coached in the junior structures before leading the then Lions franchise to two titles - the T20 Challenge and the Four-Day Sunfoil Series in 2019. Later that same year he was made interim Team Director for the Proteas tour to India and following the shake-up at Cricket SA that led to the suspension and