Faulkner touted for county circuit role

James Faulkner is closing in on a county deal that could see him spend the winter playing county cricket in England, according to reports.

Lancashire had their county championship plans thrown out the window when Peter Siddle was named by Cricket Australia in the Test squads for the winter Caribbean and Ashes tours.

Siddle had signed with the division two side back in March and the county said it was now working closely with CA to secure another Australian to replace Siddle – thought to be Faulkner.

Lancashire CEO Daniel Gidney was moved to defend his club's signing of the 56 Test veteran Siddle after his call-up to the Frank Worrell Trophy and Ashes Test squads.

"We're still working hard to get him (Siddle) for as much as we can for the early part of the season," Gidney told Lancashire Cricket TV.

"We're working closely with Cricket Australia to secure a high-quality replacement.

"After we signed Peter he then took an 8-for for Victoria at the end of the Sheffield Shield season and really had an outstanding finish.

"So I'm delighted personally for Peter that he's been selected for Australia."

Siddle is still expected to play in Lancashire's first four rounds of the county championship, starting on April 19 against Derbyshire.

Having claimed the player of the match award in the World Cup final, Faulkner was then omitted from the Test squads and also the Australia A squad that will play a series of four-day and one-day games in India during the winter.

In a column for Hobart's Mercury newspaper, the Tasmanian wrote getting back into the Test squad was his chief objective.

"Some people were surprised I did not make the West Indies and Ashes tours, but I had been informed I would most likely miss out due to a lack of longer form cricket," Faulkner wrote.

"So much of the focus and scheduling leading into the World Cup was focused on one-day cricket. Now this is behind us, I can spend more time in whites playing for the Tigers.

"I would like to play Test cricket, that’s the pinnacle, and the path is pretty simple. I will have the opportunity to play more Sheffield Shield games for Tasmania next season — I’ve just got to make sure I do well with bat and ball and hopefully the rest can take care of itself."

Currently in India with the Rajasthan Royals for the Indian Premier League season, Faulkner would be unavailable for county cricket until after the tournament finishes on May 24, but currently has no further winter commitments until a one-day series against England at the end of August.

"James desperately needs some red-ball cricket," CA's national selector Rod Marsh said when the Test squads were announced.

"It's not his fault that he's not played any red ball cricket, really. We've got hopeful plans, which I can't reveal right now, for Jimmy Faulkner.

"He'll be right; he's a hell of a good cricketer. He's a hard man to keep down as we know. We certainly haven't forgotten him, put it that way."

Faulkner, who played the fifth Test of the 2013 Ashes at The Oval, featured in three Shield matches for Tasmania last season scoring 166 runs at 41.5 and taking five wickets at 34.