Newly appointed Dewsbury coach Neil Kelly has admitted that he is faced with a huge challenge with the Rams.
Kelly has returned to the Tetley’s Stadium for a second spell as their head coach, 16 years after his first stint came to an end.
He joins the club with them in the Championship relegation zone after a winless start to the campaign, with the Rams suffering eight straight defeats at the start of the campaign.
The 54-year-old will not be in charge for the Heavy Woollen Derby against Batley, and will instead be there as a ‘figurehead’ before taking the reigns next week.
Ahead of the first game under his leadership, Kelly insisted he can steer the Rams clear of relegation.
“I’m well aware of the situation and I know it’s going to be a big challenge,” he told TotalRL.
“But I’ve got confidence in myself, I’ve got confidence in the club.
“It seems like the right time for me and the right job, so I’m thankful to the board for giving me this opportunity. I’ve got to let the euphoria die down very quickly as we’ve got a job here ahead of us.”
Kelly watched the squad train in the build-up to the Good Friday clash with the Bulldogs, and he believes that his first challenge will be to instil confidence in his squad.
“Everybody tells me that we’re a good side and not far off, but we’re in a position where not far off isn’t good enough,” he said.
“We need to be there and winning games. I told the players we’ve dug a hole, now we have to get out of it.
“Confidence is a big thing when you haven’t won a game. Some games we’ve conceded more points than we’d like to and not scored as many.
“But there’s a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel as we’ve done well for 40 to 60 minutes, but then we’ve fallen away. That’s indicative of a team lacking confidence. The big thing is to boost the confidence.”