HALIFAX PANTHERS, by their own standards, struggled during the 2024 Championship season.
A regular play-off side in previous years, the West Yorkshire club finished eighth after a dismal start to the year.
All in all, the Panthers did only finish outside the top six play-offs by two points, but the damage had been earlier on in the season as head coach Liam Finn departs for Huddersfield Giants for 2025.
Finn, who had achieved promotion to the Championship with Dewsbury Rams the previous year, found the step-up difficult to manage, though Fax did struggle greatly with injuries at various times during the season.
For chief executive Damian Clayton, 2024 was definitely not one to remember.
“2024 was undoubtedly a challenging year. On the field, results didn’t reflect the potential of our squad, and off it, financial constraints added to the pressure,” Clayton told League Express.
“Several factors contributed, including injuries, inconsistency, and underperforming in key games. However, as a club, we’re resilient.
“We’ve taken significant learnings from this season, and those will inform our approach moving forward.”
Moving forward into 2025, the Panthers have appointed former St Helens dual-code international Kyle Eastmond in his first head coaching role in a professional environment.
It was an appointment that came out of the blue, so why did Clayton and Fax go down that route?
“Kyle brings an exceptional wealth of experience and a winning mentality that we believe will inspire our squad and significantly enhance the club’s performance.
“As a dual-code international, Kyle has been exposed to elite-level performance environments in both rugby league and rugby union.
“This unique background not only sharpens his understanding of the game but also provides him with a vast and diverse network of colleagues across both codes.
“His connections and insights into elite athlete development and coaching are invaluable as we strive to elevate standards across the club.
“Moreover, we see Kyle as a fantastic figurehead for attracting young talent into our ranks, further strengthening our Panthers Talent Pathway and advancing our broader development goals.
“His appointment sends a clear signal of our intent to build a competitive, exciting team capable of achieving sustained success.”
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