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South Africa's coach has rejected an ECB advance in favour of a radio deal.

BOB Woolmer, the South African cricket coach, has gambled on his England future by making himself unavailable to succeed David Lloyd as coach until next year.

Woolmer, 50, the England and Wales Cricket Board's choice to lead the national side into the next millennium, yesterday accepted ``an offer I couldn't refuse'' to commentate for Talk Radio on this winter's series in South Africa. In effect, the man who will stand down as the South African coach after the World Cup has told England that they will have to wait if they want him to take over.

His decision, based on a desire not to lead England on their winter tour against his former charges, now opens the door for former England captain Graham Gooch to stake his claim.

It represents another blow for Simon Pack, the ECB's international teams director, who flew to Cape Town earlier this month to try to persuade Woolmer to accept the England coach's role. It is Pack who has been at the centre of the controversy over contracts for England World Cup players which was settled, far from amicably, late last week.

Woolmer, renowned as the most innovative international coach of his time, told Pack he wanted a break after the World Cup, ruling himself out of succeeding Lloyd for the four-match series against New Zealand. Now he has extended that, leaving the ECB to decide whether they will go for a stop-gap coach until Woolmer is ready to come 'home'.

There is no doubt that Woolmer is keen to coach England, but on his terms. He is under considerable pressure from Warwickshire to return next year to Edgbaston, where he had so much success, but would prefer to remain involved in the international game and has called the England position ``the biggest job in cricket''.

However, he is reluctant to use his knowledge to take on the South Africans, whom he has guided back to the top of the international stage, even if that means jeopardising his chances of a long-term role with England.

His acceptance of a commentator's role is a considerable coup for Talk Radio, who last week won the rights from the BBC to broadcast this winter's series, but leaves the ECB with a difficult problem one they could have avoided had they asked to Lloyd to carry on at the helm until a successor was found.

England officials are so keen to land Woolmer that they may well decide to wait until next year's visits of Zimbabwe and West Indies, though that would entail recruiting a temporary coach.

Gooch, currently an England selector, would be their preferred choice but he may feel he has nothing to gain by accepting such a short-term role. There would be little incentive for him knowing that he would be replaced by Woolmer even if he guided England to victory over New Zealand and South Africa.

Another option which has support in England circles is appointing a full-time England manager, perhaps Gooch or David Graveney, and asking a number of specialist coaches to work under him. They would include Bob Cottam, who impressed during the winter as bowling coach, and Alan Knott, who works with England's wicketkeepers.

``We've said we want to take our time before appointing a coach and if an individual's circumstances have changed we will respect that,'' said Richard Peel of the ECB. ``Simon Pack had preliminary discussions with Bob Woolmer in South Africa, no more than that, and there are other candidates.''

South Africa, meanwhile, have sprung a surprise by naming Graham Ford as Woolmer's successor. The appointment of Ford, 38, whose playing experience extends no further than Natal's second team, has been greeted by derision among the South African public as he is barely known in the country. Yet he acted as Woolmer's assistant during the recent series in New Zealand and is hugely respected by the players. He begins a three-year contract on July 1.

Woolmer's departure from South African cricket will be followed by a change of jobs for the man who has done most to return the Republic to the top after their years in isolation. Dr Ali Bacher, managing director of the United Cricket Board, has resigned to spearhead South Africa's planning to stage the 2003 World Cup. He will take up his new job as head of the World Cup organising committee towards the middle of next year.