Tony Smith believes Rick Stone is the ideal man to help the Giants re-establish themselves as a major Super League force.
The former Huddersfield boss watched his second-placed Warrington beat the Giants 34-30 to condemn them to a bottom-of-the-table finish at the end of the 23 weekly rounds.
It means coach Stone’s new club are now planning for an assault on the Middle 8s and the battle to avoid relegation.
And having started his highly-successful British coaching career at the Giants in 2000 – where he became the first man to firmly establish the club in Super League – Smith hopes much-respected fellow Australian Stone can use his vast experience with Newcastle Knights in the NRL to get Huddersfield back on the top-flight track.
“Because it all started for me in Huddersfield when they were in a relegation area, I personally find it a shame that they find themselves in their current position,” said former Leeds and Great Britain boss Smith.
“But I’ve got a lot of faith in them as a team that they can come good again. With what they’ve got and the way they can play, I know they have the ability to get back up at the top pretty soon.
“If you look back throughout the season, they’ve been fighting in most games, and if just a few little things had gone for them rather than against them they could easily have been in the top three or four after the opening 10 to 15 rounds.
“So they’ve not been that far off at all and are still a very tough team to beat.
“And I really do think Rick Stone is a very good fit for them right now.
“I don’t know him that well, but he has got a great reputation and those who have worked with him respect his knowledge and respect him as a bloke. That’s good enough for me.
“I certainly wish him and the Huddersfield club well for the future, because I genuinely do want to see them bounce back as quickly as possible.”
