Richard Agar: Leeds Rhinos head coach steps down from role

Leeds have won the Challenge Cup four times since the summer era arrived in 1996

Richard Agar has stood down as head coach of Leeds Rhinos after one win in their opening six Super League games.

The 50-year-old took over in 2019 and led the Rhinos to the 2020 Challenge Cup, their first silverware since 2017.

However, their poor start to the season following high-profile recruitment of players such as Blake Austin and Aiden Sezer, has seen Agar step aside.

Assistant coach Jamie Jones-Buchanan will take interim charge for Saturday's Challenge Cup tie against Castleford.

Leeds have confirmed that Agar will remain at Headingley in a yet-to-be-specified role.

Since replacing former player David Furner on an initial interim basis, Agar has kept Leeds up, taken them to the play-offs twice and won the Challenge Cup by beating Salford.

The 2022 campaign began with optimism amid the arrival of imports such as Austin, Sezer, James Bentley and David Fusitu'a, but after a narrow opening round loss to Warrington, injuries and suspensions have kept key players out.

They were well-beaten by Wigan, edged in a scrappy game by Catalans and after their sole win against Wakefield, lost to Hull FC and Salford - the latter having conceded three tries in the last 12 minutes.

"We all care, about the club and the players," Agar told BBC Radio Leeds. "That bunch of players gave me one of the best days of my life at Wembley and I'll treasure those friendships, but the reality is I just do not feel I've had the required impact on the squad at this moment in time.

"We've had four preseason games and six Super League games and I'm just not seeing, in my opinion, a significant enough change from the playing squad - because I still think it's a pretty good playing squad."

Rhinos chief executive Gary Hetherington added: "We do plan to appoint a new head coach and will apply a comprehensive recruitment process but there is no pre-determined timescale for this appointment.

"Normally with teams in this position, it is easy to identify the causes of a down turn in form such as this but in our case it is a difficult one to solve.

"The team's preparation has been good each week, the spirit within the group has been strong throughout and our coaches and backroom staff have worked tirelessly to provide our players with excellent support."