Krisnan Inu gained ‘respect’ for Salford boss despite telling him he wasn’t needed

New Salford assistant Krisnan Inu has revealed that he gained respect for Paul Rowley after his direct approach to telling him he wasn’t going to be kept by the club as a player last year.

Rowley was named Salford head coach in November 2021 and quickly after his appointment, he informed Inu that he wouldn’t be kept due to the club’s lack of options in the pack.

Inu subsequently signed for Leigh via Lezignan and helped the Leopards back to Super League, but following a call with Rowley at the end of the season, Inu has hung up his boots to become assistant coach at the AJ Bell Stadium.

“It wasn’t a hard decision,” Inu told Salford’s YouTube channel. “Rowls (Paul Rowley) made it easy for me. He was always honest to me when I was playing so that is something I respected.

“We were really close and kept a close relationship even though I left the club.

“He told me straight up last year that the club needed more forwards and not another back so I really respected him for that from the get-go.

“We were still friends after that. That led me to know what I wanted to base my future in coaching off and around.”

Inu, 35, also revealed that prior to the call from Rowley, he was looking to prolong his playing career.

“It was eye-opening, I wasn’t expecting it,” he added. “I was looking to continue playing and then Rowls gave me a heads up asking if I would be interested in helping him out as his assistant.

“That was something I didn’t expect straight away and made me change my mindset from a player to a coach straight away.”