New Castleford head of rugby lays out vision and 2026 transfer plans

Chris Chester has revealed that the strain of travelling led to his departure from Leigh: before insisting he can see parallels with new club Castleford and the Leopards thanks to the passion of owner Martin Jepson.

Chester has joined Castleford as their head of rugby. He will head up the Tigers’ rugby operations and work closely with Danny McGuire to try and revive the club’s fortunes, with Jepson likely to heavily invest following his takeover approval last week.

The former Wakefield coach oversaw a glittering period of success at Leigh, joining them when they were in the Championship alongside Adrian Lam, before the pair built a squad that won the Challenge Cup in 2023 and established itself as a major force in Super League.

Chester admits while there is a big rebuild ahead at Castleford, the job he has inherited reminds him of the situation he walked into at Leigh – and that the backing Jepson will give the club convinced him it was the right decision.

Love Rugby League understands at least one other Super League club were interested in hiring Chester, and he said: “One of the main reasons I’m here is the excitement I have for the role.

“It’s similar to Leigh in the Championship when I walked in with six or seven players. We slowly added that little bit of quality throughout that first year. I’m not going to say in 12 or 18 months we’ll do this or that but in that time period we’ll be in a much better position than what we are now.

“Castleford fans deserve that, they turn up in their numbers and we’ve got to reward that with some quality players that can improve the team. That’s the challenge, it’s getting the right people in and having a look at the whole performance side.”

Chester admitted of Jepson: “All the conversations I’ve had with Martin, you can feel the passion that runs through his voice. He’s been a fan for a number of years and he’s frustrated like everyone is with the product.

“He wants us to get better. I’m hoping we can do that and with the funding that Martin is going to be investing, I think we can do something. I’m not going to make any outlandish statements though.

“My job is to come in and have a look at the whole football side, how it works and look at where we can fine-tune for the rest of this year as a starting point before going all out for 2026.”

Chester admitted that with a young family back in West Yorkshire, the toll of travelling to and from Leigh for several years ultimately led to his decision to walk away from the Leopards.

He said: “I challenge anyone to drive on that motorway from where I live for four years. The travel was the overriding factor with it all. It just got too much.

“Being away from my family.. with a role like this, you need to be in and around the players and the staff on a daily basis. The toll of that over several years was tough.

“I’d contemplated leaving at the end of last season. But last week, I was able to spend a lot more time with my two girls, taking them to watch football and being able to pick them up from school. I had a thousand reasons to stay at Leigh, but my wife and children and family far outweighed that.”

Chester also admits he will give McGuire his full backing as head coach and free him up to focus on working with the players – with Chester leading the recruitment drive.

He said: “I’ve already had a conversation with Danny that I want him to focus and concentrate and let me deal with all the external noise.

“We’ll have trust in each other to provide the club with the right players and who will fit the culture of the club. This is a hard-working town and we’ve got to bring hard-working players onto the pitch who reflect that. I think I can help him with a lot of aspects and I’ll always be there to advise if he wants it.”

Chester revealed that Castleford have ‘significant’ salary cap space still to play with in 2026, as they eye up an increased spend following Jepson’s takeover.

The Tigers’ new head of rugby also revealed he will attempt to use the Championship as part of Castleford’s recruitment model, like he did at Leigh with players such as Louis Brogan.

He said: “There is some significant cap space for 2026, and we’re looking at the roster and the Championship.

“I pride myself on the job I did at Leigh and Wakefield in terms of looking at the Championship and who I think are the standout players in the Championship and try and look at how they fit into our plans.

“First and foremost it’s doing a bit of homework. I think I’ve got a good eye for players who fit the identity of the team Danny wants to build.”