Featherstone Rovers have appointed former St Helens great Sean Long as their new head coach.
He replaces Brian McDermott, who left Featherstone in the wake of their failure to earn promotion out of the Championship.
Long played more than 400 games as one of the top halfbacks in the game, mostly for Saints as well as internationally with England and Great Britain.
He began his coaching career on the staff of Salford Red Devils and St Helens, but left for rugby union like a number of his contemporaries when he joined Harlequins.
However, in 2020 he returned to the code with Leeds Rhinos, where he was assistant coach until the end of this season.
Long is currently also an assistant coach for France at the World Cup, but after the tournament his focus will switch fully to his first head coaching role at Featherstone.
“It feels really good, I’m really honoured,” said Long. “I had a spell with the club in 2013, I really enjoyed my time there then, the players and staff are great and I’ve kept in touch with a lot of them. I can’t wait to get involved and to get back.”
Rovers chairman Mark Campbell added: “Sean brings a wealth of experience from a glittering playing career and more than ten years of experience as an assistant working with some of the best coaches in the game.
“His name is synonymous with Super League where we hope Sean can take us in 2023 with a style of play that is synonymous with the club’s DNA.”
