English cricket is vibrant again and Peter Moores is determined to do his bit over the next three months to make sure it stays that way.

The memories of England's first series victory in Pakistan for nearly 40 years will still be fresh when Moores leads the A team to the West Indies just after Christmas.

By the time they return in early March, the Sussex coach is convinced one or two of them will be on the verge of reviving their international careers while others will be closer to forging new ones.

"There is going to be a lot of interest in how the team is doing because of the success of the England side in the last year," said Moores. "People are going to be looking to see if guys on the tour who have international experience are ready to make the step up again and what youngsters are emerging."

Moores was thrilled when the call came from Lord's in August asking if he would like to coach the team, an offer apparently made on the recommendation of England coach Duncan Fletcher who has been impressed with Moores' diligent approach and willingness to work hard at all aspects of the coach's role during his sojourns around the county circuit.

The only drawbacks are that he will be away from wife Karen and his two young children for ten weeks and that there aren't any Sussex players on the trip, although James Kirtley remains on stand-by and has taken part in all the training camps.

But Moores heads to the Caribbean with two big advantages over previous England A team coaches which he is anxious to make the most of.

The 16-man squad over which, incidentally, Moores had no say in selecting, is the most formidable ever assembled, containing 11 players with international experience including skipper Mark Alleyne and Lancashire's John Crawley, who played the last of his 29 Tests two years ago.

And for the first time the side will be playing competitive matches after the West Indies Board of Control invited them to take part in their own domestic inter-island tournament, the Busta Cup.

There will be no gentle warm-ups after the party arrive on December 28. A week later they take on West Indies B in the first of seven group games which will also include ties against Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados and Jamaica. They will come across some of the West Indies' established stars, anxious to maintain form before the home series against South Africa starts in March, and others just as keen to take their places.

Moores said: "We are going to come up against opponents who will raise their game simply because they are playing an England team, even more so after our series win over them in the summer. Their cricket has copped a lot of stick recently and they will be anxious to show that their domestic game is good."

Among the other players keen to make the most of an opportunity to press their Test claims again are Lancashire leg spinner Chris Schofield, quicks Chris Silverwood and Alex Tudor and Leicestershire batsman Aftab Habib, all of whom have played for their country in Tests in the last 18 months.

Then, representing the more inexeprienced element, are wicketkeeper James Foster who has been fast-tracked after impressing in his first season with Essex.

Moores said: "It's a fantastic opportunity and they all know there is a lot to play for. It's obviously easier to develop players in a winning environment and that's what James Whitaker (Tour manager) and myself will be trying to do.

"One of the most important things is that players learn about playing in conditions they are not used to. There is a main tour to West Indies in two years time and I'd like to think that some of them will have progressed onto that and will have learned from any mistakes they make this time. Only if that happens will the tour will have been worth it.

"The thing I like is that Duncan (Fletcher) gives the coaches space to do their own thing although he expects things like fitness, fielding and team spirit to be good."

It's also an important few weeks for Moores himself.

It wouldn't have been a surprise if some self doubt had crept in after he shouldered a lot of the blame for Sussex's disappointing finish to the 2000 season.

Coaches of A team tours aren't normally asked to do another one, regardless of how successful they are, and it's not inconceivable that, this time next year, Moores might even be out of a job altogether. His Sussex contract expires at the end of next season and if there isn't an improvement in their results in 2001 he could well be made the scapegoat.

However Moores, who celebrates his 38th birthday on Monday, has ambition and faith in his own ability in equal measure.

"I don't see this as a one-off but part of a career progression, I've got very strong personal ambitions," he said. "I suppose I'm on the same journey of self improvement I was on when I was a player.

"I like to think people know I have ability as a coach and the different skills that involves. I know in a year's time I might even be out of a job but you get conditioned to that as a player. If you're in a contract-based job you're sometimes only one bad season away from losing it."