 Stephenson appears to have expected to return to both the captaincy and the wicketkeeping role, but he was unable to do so in the 1964 season.At the end of the season Somerset appointed Colin Atkinson, the Millfield schoolmaster (and a fellow Teessider) as captain for the 1965 season and recruited Geoff Clayton, the Lancashire wicketkeeper, as first-choice.Stephenson retired from first-class cricket, apparently with some reluctance.