Kevin Sinfield: Leeds Rhinos legend cites Rob Burrow 'perspective' as a catalyst for his switch
- Published
Sinfield has been at the forefront of fundraising efforts for MND
Kevin Sinfield says the decision to leave his director of rugby role at Leeds Rhinos to take on a new challenge and refresh was inspired in part by former team-mate Rob Burrow.
Sinfield will join Leicester Tigers as defence coach at the end of the season.
The 40-year-old said Burrow's Motor Neurone Disease diagnosis made him consider his own life choices.
"I got some perspective from Rob [Burrow]," club legend Sinfield told BBC Radio Leeds.
"It certainly hammered it home to me that you've got to do something you truly enjoy and get satisfaction from. That's where I find myself.
"I haven't enjoyed it [the job of late] and it's time for me to embark on a new challenge, and do something new."
The special bond between Sinfield and Burrow, former team-mates at club and country level as well as close friends as part of the club's 'Golden Generation' between 2004 and 2015, was highlighted in the aftermath of Burrow's diagnosis.
Sinfield, Burrow and other members of that great side, such as Danny McGuire and Jamie Peacock, took to the field for one last time to pay tribute in a pre-season game against Bradford in February 2020.
Last December he ran seven marathons in seven days and raised £2.2m in support of Burrow.
Sinfield was awarded an OBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours for fund-raising and services to rugby league.
The former England and Great Britain international will always be a legend at Leeds, as the Rhinos' record points scorer, the highest scorer in Super League and the captain in seven winning Grand Final and two Challenge Cup finals.
Oldham-born Sinfield also has a special place in the sport's pantheon of greats as the third-highest points-scorer in British rugby league history. He won 14 caps for Great Britain and another 26 for England - for whom he was also captain.
"I want to stress I absolutely love the club, I love the sport - I've been involved since I was seven - and that will always be the case, it's always in my heart and in my head," he continued.
"I might be doing a role away from the sport but that doesn't mean my commitment, my support and love for the sport will change. I'll always have that. It's time to move on."
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Rhinos chief executive Gary Hetherington said he was "extremely disappointed" to lose Sinfield, but also "understood and appreciated" the circumstances behind his exit.
He will move into rugby union, a sport in which he enjoyed a twilight of the career cameo with Yorkshire Carnegie before hanging up his boots in 2016.
"We couldn't find a solution, so it was the right time," Sinfield added. "This hasn't been something that has happened over the past couple of days, it probably started in December.
"I've had a number of conversations with Gary and we got to the point at the start of this week where it was the right thing.
"It's been an interesting few months, you look at where we've been as a team and having two games postponed. It's not great and it shows the difficulties and some of the challenges the whole club has had to face.
"I have to say the club has been outstanding in its response this past 16 months, but it's made my role very different to the one I came in to do. I'm too far away from rugby and away from performance."
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