Castleford Tigers chief hints at major off-field changes with ‘wheels in motion’ for investment
Chris Chester will coach Castleford Tigers this weekend.
Castleford Tigers director of rugby, Chris Chester, has teased major off-field changes are set to be introduced at the West Yorkshire club, following the full takeover of Martin Jepson.
Jepson, a lifelong fan of the Fords, took full control of the Super League side in October last year after buying out Ian Fulton, and has been open to seeking new investment for the club to secure their long-term success.
Since then, Castleford have also confirmed an entirely new board of directors, with Steve Vause becoming the club’s Vice Chairman, former director of rugby Danny Wilson will take over as CEO, Martin Brown joins as a Board Member and Phil Alexander takes a position as Non-Executive Board Member.
‘It’s such an important time for this club’
The introduction of a new board, alongside the takeover of Jepson, points to a brighter future for the Fords, and Chester is feeling optimistic heading into this new era.
“We’ve got new board members that wanted to see change on and off the field,” he told the media. “The wheels are in motion with a lot of things.
“I just think it’s such an important time for this club. There’s things going on off the field that haven’t been announced yet and there’s a new vision from the board.
“It’s really important that we get the appointment for the new head coach right. If that takes until the end of the season, then we’ll do that.”
While the overriding message was that of excitement, Chester also called for the club to build consistency, both on and off the pitch, moving forward.
The departure of Danny McGuire earlier this week leaves the Tigers searching for their sixth full-time boss since 2023, with Lee Radford, Andy Last, Danny Ward and Craig Lingard all previously serving as head coach.
Around that, too, the Tigers have seen overseas duo Sylvester Namo and Judah Rimbu leave mid-season.
“I keep referencing what’s happening off the field and the board’s ambition, but we can’t keep doing what we’ve been doing as a club, bringing coaches in and getting rid of them after 12 months,” he said.
“We need some kind of consistency on and off the field. We’ve got to start rewarding the fans and the board.
“We’ve got a board of directors there who are throwing a lot of money in the club and we’ve got to start rewarding those guys.”
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