Carr drives in at Fev in bid to help revive a ‘proud club’

RYAN CARR feels he will be a “natural fit” at Featherstone Rovers after being appointed as the club’s new head coach.

Carr revealed that a number of meetings with chairman Mark Campbell swayed his decision to join the club.

The Australian has signed a two-year contract at the LD Nutrition Stadium, with the option for a third year.

He arrived in England yesterday morning before completing all the necessary formalities.

The 30-year-old most recently coached New South Wales Cup side Mounties and has also held coaching roles in the academy set-up at both Cronulla Sharks and South Sydney Rabbitohs.

Carr retired from professional rugby league at the age of 25 due to injury. He had spent time with Wests Tigers and South Sydney after coming through the ranks at Cronulla.

He spent his final playing season in France before calling it a day and moving into coaching at just 25 years of age.

“I have known of the club and of the Championship for a long time now. I know it is a proud club with a lot of history and I have heard a lot good things about it,” said Carr.

“I know people who have come from Australia to play here and I know people who have played against Featherstone. And they have always said that they are really competitive and really hard to beat.

“For me, I thought it was a natural fit. I met with Mark [Campbell], he was out in Australia and I sat down with him and had a couple of meetings and we got along really well.

“So that was probably the main thing that sold it for me, with how well I got along with Mark, how he spoke about the area, the town and how big the club is here.

“I feel really privileged, I am really happy to be here and I am excited for the season.”

Despite his limited experience in the Championship, Carr is under no illusions about the challenges facing Rovers next season. Carr continued: “For me, I have limited experience over here but I have done a lot of reading on the competition.

“Clubs like Toronto, Halifax, Toulouse, Bradford and York have all had great years. Widnes are back from Super League, it is going to be a really strong year.”