The coaching staff at Somerset Cricket Club has become a family affair — literally.

Jacobi Robinson, the former club all-rounder and captain, has been appointed as an assistant to head coach Jeff Richardson, who is his uncle.

“Jacobi has come on board as an assistant coach and that’s a really good thing,” Michael Corday, the chairman of Somerset’s selectors, confirmed. “He and Jeff are taking the training sessions.

“We have been talking to Jacobi for a couple of years now. He has recently been certified in certain areas and is very, very keen. He is very interested in coaching and so it’s a good thing he’s on board because him and Jeff sort of remain on the same page.

“When they prepare a session they prepare it together and right now it’s working out perfectly. The training sessions have been good and the guys seem hungry.”

Robinson, who played both league and Cup Match for the West Enders, is excited by the new challenge.

“It’s a new challenge for me and I am excited after retiring from Cup Match and pretty much cricket altogether,” he said. “I just thought of getting into coaching and helped my uncle [Richardson] out in the bowling department in 2019, but this year I am a bit more serious about it.”

The 36-year-old enjoys working alongside his uncle, whom he also previously played under at Somerset.

“It’s exciting and has allowed me to do my thing because obviously with me being a younger coach, I bring new ideas,” Robinson said.

“I have been communicating a lot lately with Carl Hopkinson, who is a fielding coach for England. We have been talking recently and I have been picking his brain. He’s been sending me drills and all of that, so I am excited to get that ball rolling.”

Robinson is a Level 1 coach and is in the process of obtaining a Level 2 certification.

“I am just working on getting my badges and certificates,” he added. “I have been talking to Gus Logie [former West Indies batsman and Bermuda coach] recently about the process of getting all of my certificates and seeing where it takes me.

“I am just waiting on my Level 2 to be complete and intend to go straight through to Elite once it’s available.”

Robinson says the transition from player to coach has been smooth.

“The players have made the transition easy just off of respect of me being a player and playing at the level of international cricket, both as a seamer and spinner,” he added.

Somerset will defend their Cup Match title against St George’s at Wellington Oval on July 29 and 30.

Robinson says the champions’ preparations are “coming along nicely”.

He said: “With the season being what it is, getting the hype into the players has been the challenge. But I guess the guys have been off so long they are hungry as well.

“But with it [Twenty20] not being that long version of cricket, we have to do that much more work, and so that’s what we are working on now.”

Robinson was a 15-year-old reserve in the 2000 Cup Match classic and broke into Somerset's team four years later.

He was appointed captain in 2008 and served in the role for three years before being replaced by Jekon Edness.

“Later in my career I wasn’t as up for it as I used to be, but coming in as a coach now it’s a little bit more exciting,” he said. “The butterflies and feelings are back, and getting ready for this Cup Match has been exciting.”