Leeds Rhinos have announced that Richard Agar has stood down from his role as head coach.
A run of only one win from the first six matches of the season has led to Agar stepping down, with his last match being a defeat at Salford Red Devils last Friday.
The Rhinos say that Agar “will have a future role at the club” in a different capacity which will be confirmed at a later date.
Assistant coach Jamie Jones-Buchanan will be the new interim head coach and will take charge of this Saturday’s Challenge Cup tie against Castleford Tigers, working alongside the rest of the current backroom staff including Sean Long and performance director Richard Hunwicks.
Leeds chief executive Gary Hetherington said that there would be “a comprehensive recruitment process” to find Agar’s long-term successor as head coach.
Commenting on the decision, he said: “On behalf of everyone at the club, I would like to thank Richard for his outstanding effort as head coach of the club.
“Normally with teams in this position, it is easy to identify the causes of a down turn in form such as this but in our case it is a difficult one to solve.
“The team’s preparation has been good each week, the spirit within the group has been strong throughout and our coaches and backroom staff have worked tirelessly to provide our players with excellent support.
“We started the season with what we believed was a very strong squad with an outstanding crop of talented young players, but we have simply not converted that into team performances.”
Agar said: “When I first took on the head coach’s job three years ago, I agreed with Kevin Sinfield and Gary Hetherington that I would do so on the basis that I could help take the team forward.
“I agreed a six-month rolling contract and I was happy to continue whilst ever we were making progress. However, I don’t feel like I am having the impact I would hope to on the squad.
“I am proud of our record over the last three years. The club was in a tough position when I took over, we battled against relegation before facing the unprecedented challenges of Covid and an injury ravaged squad last season.
“On the field, we won the Challenge Cup at Wembley, reached the play-offs in the last two seasons and saw the emergence of a number of highly promising young players.
“I really believe we have a strong squad who have the potential to achieve this year. They are working hard in training every day but unfortunately this has not materialised in to results and ultimately that responsibility rests with me.”
