PAUL ANDERSON has joined the England Knights staff.
The Huddersfield Giants assistant coach has been handed a similar role with the England Knights ahead of this October’s two-match international series against Samoa and France.
He will be working with Knights head coach Kieron Purtill as the pair renew acquaintances after working together at the Giants for two seasons, including a spell in temporary charge following the departure of former chief Jon Sharp in 2008.
The Knights squad will play their first competitive game against France on Saturday, October 15, with their second test coming against Samoa on October 22.
Included in that Knights line-up could be a whole host of rising Giants stars in the shape of Dale Ferguson, Michael Lawrence, Shaun Lunt, Jermaine McGillvary and Larne Patrick.
And Anderson, who has spent the last five seasons working with the Giants, is relishing the chance to get involved with the England set-up and lend his experience to the coaching team.
“I’m really looking forward to getting involved with the squad,” said former Great Britain prop Anderson.
“I was fortunate enough to play for England during my career and to have the chance to now coach with England is a great opportunity for me.
“It’s an exciting team to come into and the Knights is a new squad, so it’s all exciting. There’s a lot of great talent and lots of very young players involved, and the prospect for me to work with the cream of the crop in this country really is a mouth-watering one.
“There’s a lot of young talent in Super League at the moment and the Knights programme is there to nurture them along and give them an insight into what it’s like to play at the top level.
“It’s also important that these players, because they are young, remain grounded and professional and that’s another aspect to the system.”
Anderson, who made over 200 Super League appearances during his career, will get to grips with the Knights players for the first time after the Super League Grand Final at Old Trafford on Saturday, October 8 and is looking forward to working alongside Purtill once again.
“I know Kieron very well,” he said. “He’s a very energetic and hard working coach and he actually coached me for a year at St Helens before we worked together at Huddersfield. He’s a very knowledgeable coach and I’m looking forward to working with him again.
“We’ve been working with some of the best coaches in Super League and I’m keen to pick his brain and hear his experiences, and I’m sure that if we can share the tips we’ve picked up it will only serve to help the Knights perform.
“We only have short periods of times with the players, so it’s important we make the whole experience enjoyable for the lads coming in.
“We have two tough games coming up and to have them facing tough opposition, who have played at the international level previously, can only be a good thing for the squad and the competition will help these young players develop.
“The Exiles Origin game was a great example of that for the senior side, because the more games the teams get against tough opposition, then the better they will be on the international level.”