Former Wests Tigers assistant Peter Gentle has been replaced as head coach of Super League side Hull by former club captain Lee Radford.
The 34-year-old has been appointed on a three-year deal to succeed Gentle, who parted company with two years left on his contract in the wake of Hull’s humiliating 76-18 defeat by Huddersfield in the play-offs.
That came close on the heels of Hull’s disappointing 16-0 defeat to Wigan in the Challenge Cup final at Wembley.
“The easy decision – and the cheap decision – would have been to leave Peter in charge for another two years but I just felt we had taken it as far as we could under that regime,” club owner Adam Pearson told a news conference.
“I think we have progressed as a club over the last two years and I think sixth and a Wembley final is okay.
“But there has definitely been a lack of consistency in our performances. Finishing sixth and losing at Wembley in the manner we did is not acceptable.”
Pearson made no apology for setting Gentle a top-four target and admits there will be pressure on Radford to take the club to a new level.
“Everybody says I shouldn’t have said we want to finish top four and go to Wembley but I just don’t buy that at all,” he said.
“I just want us to finish consistently in the higher echelons of the league and to be challenging for Grand Finals and Challenge Cups on a regular basis.
“I don’t see why we can’t have that as an objective. I think Lee is a big enough and man enough to accept that as a responsibility. But certainly we need to give him the time and the resource to be able to manage properly.”
Radford said he consulted the Hull players and staff, including Gentle, before agreeing to take on the role.
“I wouldn’t have made the decision if I hadn’t got their backing,” he said.
“The message that came through was ‘go for it, your time is now and that time may not come again’.
“I spoke to Pete yesterday to wish him well and his response was that he couldn’t think of anybody better to go for the job, which says a lot about the bloke.
“It’s a massive honour and a massive responsibility.
“t’s obviously a huge chapter of my life and it’s not a decision that has come easy to me. I’m fully aware of how massive a job it is.”
