Darren Burchall hopes to restore Southampton Rangers to their former glory and make cricket an integral part of the community again during his term at the helm as coach.

The former Rangers wicketkeeper officially took on the role this week after agreeing to the terms of an initial one-year deal.

He has wasted no time settling in, having already shared his vision with the players and begun putting them through their paces in preparation for the upcoming season in the First Division 50-overs and T20 competitions.

“Our motto this year is going to be rebuilding the dynasty and I gave the guys a history lesson in Rangers and what all those pictures on the wall are really all about,” Burchall told The Royal Gazette.“I gave them a lecture and told them we have to rebuild that dynasty in cricket.

“The short-term plan is to instil the tactics of the game into the guys because a lot of cricketers in our team are not actually cricketers.

“They just love cricket, but a lot of them are football players.

“We have a few cricketers but I am looking to instil the basic tactics, so that when they get out there and have to produce a skill they will produce it on demand.

“So we are going to start from the bottom teaching them the basics.

“It’s all a player-centred focus where the development is going to be focused on what the players want to develop.

“The player has to have set their own personal goals and we have some team goals we are going to look to work towards.

“One of those team goals is to regain the Western Counties and to also challenge for promotion.

“I am not going to come out and say we’re going to get promoted, but we want to challenge. We want to be there and about and do better than we did the last time, every time.”

Burchall is excited to be working with the enthusiastic group of players he has at his disposal.

“I have taught and coached cricket and football in all different parts of the world but there’s something special about this particular group of players,” he added.

“They work hard and they want to learn. They remind me of my first day at school where you have these children in front of me with big eyes and willing to learn and eager to take on whatever is coming.

“I have just finished my foundation ICC course and started my Level One course.

“I am using some of the stuff from that, coupled with my cricketing background playing almost 20 years for Rangers and adding that with my teaching background.

“So, hopefully, I can instil something in these guys, so that next year when we want to be promoted, we will have everything in place.”

Rangers captain Dalin Richardson views having Burchall’s services as a “big asset”, especially with his teaching and leadership capabilities and close ties he already has with the players, club and greater community.

“He is an outright teacher and one big thing you need as a coach is the relationship with your players, and that’s one thing he has with us,“ he said.

“He is more than just a coach, he’s our friend.

“We have that connection so there’s not really any conflict.

“You could tell that from the first training session we had, so that is a big asset to the club for sure.”

Burchall jumped at the opportunity to take on the job after the club decided to part ways with former coach and player Curtis Jackson and move in a new direction this season.

“I was asked if I would come on and help support the programme in light of taking it in a direction they wanted to take it in,” he said.

“So it’s an honour for me to do that, having played my whole career at Rangers, been a former executive at Rangers and live a stone’s throw away from Rangers.

“I can throw a cricket ball from my house onto the field basically, so my blood is blue and once I was given that opportunity, I took it with two hands and went to look for two more.”

Burchall has urged former club players to lend their support to help bring his vision of making the club a powerhouse once again in local cricket to fruition.“

“I would like to make an appeal to past players and I spoke to Quinton Sherlock Sr and another past player and asked if they would give us a hand,” he added.

“I want to have some time when the former players, the likes of Olin Jones, Keith Wainwright and Dwayne ‘Pickles’ Steede, come around and have a camaraderie with the players and pass on some tips to them.

“I want the community to embrace cricket because cricket at Rangers used to be a festival, and that’s what my vision is.

“To help get back to that, where the community comes out and cricket becomes a part of the community again.”