We are very pleased to announce that Ben Whincup has joined the club as an assistant coach and Richard Squires will step up within our new structure as First team coach.Ryan Cousins will also continue his role with the club as First team manager.

Director of Rugby Alan Robinson made comments on the new structure.

“Over the last 3 months I have been working closely to implement a new coaching and training structure at the club we have looked at everything with fresh eyes and put some new systems in place to enhance our environment and make it practical but challenging for players. All staff are full of energy and I am looking forward to working closely with them to keep driving high standards and developing our squad to be more competitive this season.“

Richard Squires - First Team Coach

Rich is a young coach and has connected very well with the playing squad he has experience in both the amateur, university and professional club game and has recently moved to the West Midlands and has been working with our community foundation for the last 18 months. Last year Rich also supported the first team and it was a natural progression for him to become move involved as a senior coach.

Rich said: “It’s great to be recognised for my involvement towards the back end of the year with the Bears. Tom Tsang has done a fantastic job with the Bears and now the baton has been passed to myself to build on what he has achieved and keep developing as a club to where we want to be.

We have a young squad, but working with Alan through the off season we have been able to sign some real talent who will add some experience and class to us. The local midlands lads have also made vast improvements and are keen to learn, hopefully working with the local community clubs we can keep finding players who are ready to take the step up to League 1 and continue there development.

The players have survived a long tough pre season and I’m looking forward to the season getting started.”

Ben Whincup - First Team Assistant Coach

Ben Whincup is another young aspiring coach from the south developing the Swindon St George Dragons Club which plays in the Southern Conference. He has coached at University level with both the University of Gloucester and the Southern programme for England Universities and knows the geography of the region and the talent within it. He has been working with us on performance and statistics for League One games and is a very intelligent and articulate individual. Ben expressed an interest in working more closely with the First team and it was another natural fit.

Ben said:

“I'm excited to be involved in the Bears new coaching team. I'm really looking forward to finishing pre-season strongly and getting the season started.

I have worked with a good number of the current squad from my work in University rugby league so I know first hand the talent this squad has. And hopefully we will see more local community players make the step up into league 1 and I can play a big part in that.”

Ryan Cousins - First Team Manager

Ryan has been with us now for a number of years and has been one of the most professional administrators I have worked with. He has been involved as a coach in the University game with Oxford Brookes and Oxford Rugby League and knows the expectations of League One. He now works at Coventry University and fits in very well with the rest of the On-field team. He works with Ben Whincup in the Southern Universities structure and is another link into the game in the south which is invaluable to the development of the squad.

Ryan said: “ I am delighted to be involved with the club once again this season, and I wanted to thank the club for giving me this opportunity. it is a role that I feel really suits me and its a great club to be a part of and I am looking forward to supporting the rest of the on field team so we can have a successful season ahead. I think we are building something special here in the Midlands and I am looking forward to contributing where I can to build on what we already have in place at the club.”