Rick Stone: Huddersfield Giants appoint ex-Newcastle Knights boss as new head coach

Rick Stone won only six of his 18 games in his second spell as Newcastle Knights head coach

Super League side Huddersfield Giants have appointed former Newcastle Knights boss Rick Stone as their new head coach until the end of the 2018 season.

Giants, who are 11th in Super League and will now compete in The Qualifiers, had been without a head coach since sacking Paul Anderson in June.

Stone, 49, took charge of Knights for a second time in September 2014, but was sacked in July 2015.

He had previously been Newcastle boss from 2009-12.

"It's been a pretty tough year for the club with injuries, tragedy and sacking their coach, so I understand there's been a lot of turmoil at the club." he told BBC Radio Leeds.

"It's a unique situation for us [going into The Qualifiers], but I've got my head around it a little bit and understand the importance and urgency once you get into that bottom eight."

Stone, who was assistant to England coach Wayne Bennett at Newcastle in the time between his head coaching spells, also coached Fiji from 2011 to 2014 and led the country to the World Cup semi-finals in 2013.