Rohan Smith says he’ll “put a fresh coat of paint on the way Leeds play” as he sets about the challenge of reinvigorating the Rhinos.
Headingley chief executive Gary Hetherington has raised eyebrows by making the Australian the troubled Super League club’s new coach on a three-and-a-half-year contract.
Richard Agar’s successor, who moves from Norths Devils, having guided Brisbane Broncos’ feeder club to the Queensland Cup title last season, hasn’t previously led a team at the top level in either hemisphere.
But the 40-year-old is confident that more than 20 years of working in a variety of coaching roles at a string of different clubs, including stints in charge of the Tonga national side in 2009 and Bradford Bulls in the Championship seven years later, will help him not only steer Leeds away from relegation danger, but lead them to far brighter times.
And while the son of former Hull, Bradford and Wakefield Trinity coach Brian Smith and nephew of Hull KR and one-time Leeds team chief Tony Smith openly admits to gaining experience and taking advice from both, the ex-London Broncos, Newcastle Knights, Sydney Roosters, Penrith Panthers, New Zealand Warriors and Gold Coast Titans assistant coach insists he is very much his own man with his own methods.
“I was in my fifth season in the third-best tier of Rugby League in the world with Norths Devils,” said Smith, who hopes to be in England in time to lead the preparations for Leeds’ visit to Salford Red Devils on Sunday, May 15, with caretaker Jamie Jones-Buchanan taking the team for Friday’s key home clash with Hull KR before reverting to his previous role as assistant coach.
“I have spent time under some of the greatest coaches of our era, going back to Daniel Anderson when I started out at New Zealand Warriors (as a video analyst in 2003).
“I have experienced a lot in my coaching career and had a crack at a lot of different roles and competitions.
“You can only get experience of doing a big job by being in a big job, and plenty of coaches have come over from Australia with a similar background to myself – look at Kristian Woolf, Justin Holbrook, Trent Robinson and Michael Maguire.
“I have been chasing the dream of being a Super League coach for a long time.
“I understand the immediacy of the task and the need for quick improvement, but I also have a vision of what can be created and my longer-term objective is to take Leeds as far as we can go.
“I want to carry on evolving, and I want to make sure we all have that mentality.
“I am looking forward to reconnecting with a number of guys I have worked with previously who are now at the Rhinos, but I am excited about meeting and working with everyone else as well.
“I know I can influence people in their behaviour. I’ll be finding out what each individual as well as the group needs from me and I’ll put a fresh coat of paint on the way Leeds play.
“And as a development-minded coach, when I look back on my career, the clubs I have enjoyed working at most are those who develop their own and I know that is part of the Rhinos’ way.”
Smith says he is looking forward to teaming up with the existing Rhinos coaching staff, which as well as Jones-Buchanan, includes Chev Walker, his former assistant at Bradford who is now in charge of the Rhinos’ Reserve and Academy teams.
“While I’m awaiting the paperwork to get over to England, I’ve made contact with a number of staff members, and I’ve had a good conversation with JJB, so we’ve got the ball rolling,” he added.
“I’ve always kept in close contact with Chev Walker, and I have a deep trust and belief in him. He has always spoken well of Leeds as a club.”
Smith also took advice from his uncle Tony, who coached Leeds from 2004 until 2007, but has played down speculation that the 55-year-old Hull KR coach could return to the Rhinos after announcing he will leave Hull KR at the end of this season.
“I exchanged a few messages with Tony during the (appointment) process,” he continued.
“The perception of Leeds from the outside is of a well-resourced, well-managed club, with everything in place, although performances on the field have fluctuated from season to season.
“I asked Tony if there was any reason not to pursue the job, and he said no,” continued Smith.
“He and I have regular texts about life and footy and I’m looking forward to spending time with him.
“He’s been a guiding influence and helped me get my first start at London with Tony Rea but I actually haven’t spent a lot of time in his presence, so I’ll look forward to that.
“At this stage though, it’s as an uncle, not as a colleague.”
Smith believes his stint at Bradford, beginning in May 2016, when he succeeded James Lowes, and ending in January 2017 after the Bulls were liquidated, benefited him hugely.
“The experience I gained there was invaluable,” he said.
“I gave up a job in the NRL (with Gold Coast) to take it on, and it cost me a lot of money in the end, because I came back to Australia with nothing lined up.
“There were hard times and big decisions and pressure, but I learned so much.
“We turned the playing roster over, changed the staffing and the mentality, and it was all pointing in a good direction.
“Several players got signed up by Super League clubs, and some of them have done really well.
“Norths Devils was also an incredible learning experience for me, working closely with Brisbane Broncos as an affiliate club.”
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