St.Helens R.F.C is delighted to welcome former Halifax Head Coach Richard Marshall to the club as Assistant Coach on a deal running until the end of the 2020 season following the exit of Sean Long.
Long left the club earlier this week to take up a position at Harlequins RU with immediate effect and Saints have moved quickly to appoint Marshall who left Halifax earlier in the season after four and a half successful years with the club.
The 43-year-old has earned praise as one of the sport’s most promising coaches after taking part-timers Halifax to three top-four finishes in his four seasons at The Shay as well as developing a number of home-grown talents.
And Marshall, who has worked in Super League before having been an assistant to Tony Smith at Warrington Wolves, now brings his experience to the Saints to work alongside Justin Holbrook in the first team set-up.
Marshall said of his new role: “I had a number of options after I left Halifax, but I met Mike and Justin last week and when a club like St. Helens comes calling you jump at the chance.
“This is a wonderful opportunity to continue my development at a fantastic club and I cannot wait to get started.”
Head Coach Justin Holbrook is delighted Marshall is joining Saints: “It’s great news for our club that Richard has decided to join us as Assistant Coach.
“He had a few offers and opportunities he could have taken up elsewhere, but he has chosen our club which is a great sign of the direction we are going as a club and it is great to have such an experienced coach join us.
“He has proven himself as a great assistant early in his career at Warrington and has obviously done a fantastic job at Halifax as Head Coach over the last four and a half years so I am looking forward to working with him.”
St.Helens R.F.C Chief Executive Mike Rush said: “We all welcome Richard to the club with open arms. I have known him for over 15 years having seen him rise through the ranks at Warrington and more recently at Halifax.
“He absolutely fits the culture of the club. He is hard-working, driven and a talented individual who will bring further experience to our coaching staff.”
As a player, Marshall represented Ireland and played at club level for Halifax RLFC, Huddersfield Giants, London Broncos and Leigh RLFC, as a prop or second-row between 1995 and 2007.
Marshall will start his role at Saints with immediate effect and will be alongside Holbrook and fellow assistants Paul Wellens and Ian Talbot for the visit of Huddersfield Giants on Friday at the Totally Wicked Stadium.
