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Kevin Walters Joins St.Helens: The Reaction

Club, Community, First Team

St.Helens R.F.C. shocked the Rugby League world with the appointment of Australia Head Coach Kevin Walters. Here's a brief look at just some of the reaction to the huge news.

At 5:30am on Thursday, 20th August 2026, St.Helens sensationally announced the appointment Kevin Walters, who will take charge of the Kangaroos at the 2026 Rugby League World Cup and will then head over to the UK to begin his time with in charge of the Red V.

The announcement of Walters shocked the Rugby League world, as the Club, as Chairman Eamonn McManus declared, made a ‘statement of ambition’.

Walters first spoke to St.Helens where he said: “St.Helens are one of the most iconic and successful brands in rugby league. I am honoured to be given the opportunity by the Chairman, Eamonn McManus, and the St.Helens Board to lead a club with so much history.

“I look forward to bringing my experiences as a Coach and blending those learnings into the winning culture of St.Helens.

“For me, the foundation of success is creating the right environment where the players and staff enjoy coming to training and working hard for each other, as well as the Saints sponsors, fans and the wider community.

“At the end of last year, I was in England for the Ashes Series as the Kangaroos Head Coach. I witnessed firsthand how tough, physical, and skilful the English players were. I look forward to being a part of Super League in 2027 with the Saints.”

The breaking news was covered live on Sky Sports News’ television channel and shared on their social media pages.

The written announcement was also published as the top Rugby League story on the Sky Sports website.

In his interview following the news, Kevin Walters spoke to Fox League in Australia about his excitement about joining the Club, drawing attention to our rich history from our founding in 1873.

The surprise of Walters’ fellow Fox League colleagues was clear to see, with the panel all wishing him well ahead of his new role at such a big a club here in England.

Local newspaper the St Helens Star posted several articles following the announcement, highlighting quotes from Walters which shared his positivity and ambition.

Chairman Eamonn McManus joined BBC Radio Merseyside’s Paul Salt live on Tuesday night to offer further insight into the thrilling news that the Saints have appointed the Kangaroos Head Coach.

Meanwhile, over on the BBC Sport website, the Walters news was the top Rugby League story and was featured on the huge website’s main front page as well.

Saints legend James Graham reacted to the news on his podcast ‘The Bye Round’, explaining how he has already sent a video to Walters about our famous mantra: “Never Right Off The Saints”.

The official press release was shared on the Super League website, as it is undoubtedly huge and strongly positive news for our competition with the Australia Head Coach coming to coach in the northern hemisphere.

The NRL itself also covered the news via their website, as part of the global coverage of Walters’ Head Coach appointment with St.Helens.

That’s just a small selection of the worldwide media organisations that published or commented about this huge news.

Independent media group RedVee also dissected the news early on Thursday morning, giving their thoughts on the appointment.

The Club’s main focus, of course, was on our supporters, the Saints faithful.

This announcement was massively responded to with positivity and excitement for what lies ahead.

Take a look at the Club’s social media posts and have a read of the comments, which were incredibly welcoming of ‘Kevvie’.

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