It’s derby day for St Helens but rather than the talk being about how they will beat Wigan Warriors, it’s instead about who their next head coach will be following the untimely exit of Paul Rowley.
Just a day before the derby, St Helens announced that Paul Rowley had left the club, with his exit coming just nine months and 19 Super League games into a three-year contract.
At the time of the announcement, Saints were teetering on the edge of the top six but Hull KR’s Thursday night win means the Red Vee have dropped out of the play-offs.
The club’s record of making the top six in every single Super League season was certainly under pressure under Paul Rowley, though it must be said that the injury issues that his side went through were unprecedented.
Either way, St Helens have been proactive in this decision and they must be equally as proactive in finding the right replacement, especially given the fact that interim Eamon O’Carroll has already committed to a job in rugby union at the end of the season.
Already, a leading candidate has emerged and given recent events down under, the timing of Rowley’s exit should perhaps not be a surprise.
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St Helens considering coach after NRL snub
Ben Hornby was reportedly gunning for the St George Illawarra Dragons job, a role that had been vacant since Shane Flanagan’s axing with Dean Young the interim coach since then.
However, Young was handed a two-year contract to become the club’s permanent coach and with that, another NRL top job door was closed on Hornby, who could be the man for St Helens.
The South Sydney Rabbitohs assistant coach is believed to want an NRL top job with many thinking he’s ready, however, those opportunities are few and far between and after missing out on the Dragons’ job, there’s a chance he may park those dreams for now.
A club like St Helens hold huge prestige down under and could even be seen as a stepping stone to an NRL head coaching role, with Justin Holbrook and Kristian Woolf prime examples of coaches who have won well at St Helens and earned shots down under.
Hornby’s name was circulated back in October when Paul Wellens left the role and it’s understood that he’s being considered again with the club hopeful the next appointment they make is the one that rights the ship at Saints.
