By Canadian Press

Former Toronto Wolfpack coach Brian McDermott takes over Featherstone Rovers

Oct 25, 2021 | 7:37 AM

Brian McDermott, who led the Toronto Wolfpack to the top tier of English rugby league as head coach, has been hired to do the same thing with Featherstone Rovers.

Featherstone (20-1-0) finished runner-up in the second-tier Betfred Championship this year before losing 34-12 to league-leading Toulouse Olympique in the so-called Million Pound Game that earned the French side promotion to next season’s Betfred Super League. Rovers head coach James Webster stepped down after the game, citing personal reasons.

Featherstone has seen McDermott’s coaching skills up-close. The former British Royal Marine was at the helm of the Wolfpack when it dispatched Featherstone 24-6 in the 2019 Million Pound Game.

The transatlantic Wolfpack never finished out the 2020 Super League season, which was disrupted by the pandemic. The club stood down in July, saying it could not afford to play out the resumption of the season. Super League clubs eventually voted against a proposal to readmit the Toronto franchise under new ownership.

McDermott’s appointment was announced Monday.

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“I’ve made it really clear in my tenure at the club that I’m committed to giving everything I possibly can to bring Super League status to this club, it is what this club this deserves,” said Featherstone chairman Mark Campbell.

“I’ve known and worked with Brian previously and I know he is the right fit for this club to take us to the next level. We have moved quickly to take this opportunity. It is not every day you get the chance to bring a top-class coach like Brian to your club and we are extremely excited about working together moving forward”.

McDermott, 51, led Leeds Rhinos to four Super League titles, three Challenge Cups and a World Club Challenge title between 2011 and 2018 prior to joining the Wolfpack. He also coached the U.S. national team.

After his time with Toronto, McDermott briefly serves as a consultant to Oldham RLFC.

After five years as a Royal Marine commando, with tours of duty in Iraq and Northern Ireland. McDermott went on to play 251 games for Bradford, earning four Great Britain and one England cap.

His coaching career began as an assistant at Huddersfield before taking over London Broncos/Harlequins RL in 2006. He went to Leeds in 2010 as an assistant coach before taking the top job a year later.

McDermott took over Toronto after the 2018 season when the team lost its first Super League promotion bid to London Broncos. The next year, he led the Wolfpack to a 26-1-0 season and promotion.

The Wolfpack first took the field in 2017 under coach Paul Rowley. It won promotion out of the third-tier Betfred League 1 in its inaugural season.

The Featherstone roster includes Craig Hall, the Wolfpack’s first captain, and former Toronto forward Jack Bussey.

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Follow @NeilMDavidson on Twitter

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 25, 2021

Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press