As a selector Barrington watched some 80 days of county cricket each year to check new talent and help choose the team. From 1976 he was the manager or assistant-manager in every England tour. In those days a manager led the social side of the tour with speeches and dinners, which initially caused him some difficulty, relations with the local cricketing authorities, umpires and the TCCB as well as coaching and training the side. His strengths were that he had toured these countries before, had contacts, a natural good humour and was an excellent ambassador for the game he loved. As a coach few were better at fielding practice and helping batsmen with their technique in the nets. While he did not coach bowlers so well he could guide them through the weaknesses of the opposition batsmen and general strategy. Although he often grumbled to his team and off the cuff to the English press he was always diplomatic in his official statements. He was an avuncular figure popular with the England players who held him in great respect and called him 'the Colonel', but could also tease him and "eagerly awaited the traditional Barrington reaction of hands on hips, eyes cast in the air and a resigned shake of the head".