Carlisle Rugby Club’s Matt Shields has announced he will step down as head coach and retire from the game at the end of this season.
He made the announcement on the club’s website.
He said: “I have taken the decision, and informed the board of directors, that I intend to step away from the club at the end of my current contract.
“I came to this decision a little while ago, for a few different reasons, and want the club to have enough time to find a replacement and begin the planning for next season.
“It has been an absolute privilege to be head coach of Carlisle RFC, my hometown club.
“The club has given me and my family so much over the years. As a youngster coming through the ranks, it was a fantastic environment which allowed me to develop.
“Since coming back as head coach we have seen some massive highs. The standard of rugby, structure and individual skill level has come on immeasurably since I joined, and that is down to the effort and commitment of the players.
“We achieved something as a group that no other team in the 150 years of Carlisle RFC had, promotion into National League rugby.
“The manner in which we did so was particularly impressive, winning 22/26 League games, bearing in mind the team only survived in the league by a single place the season before.
“The lads really grafted hard in National 3. Sitting comfortably in mid-table at Christmas before injuries and COVID hit us particularly hard, and we are still suffering from the former now. This year clearly hasn’t yielded the results we wished for. Having said that, with often 50-plus players either injured or unavailable we have still remained competitive in games.
“Many players who were a bit off our 1st XV have had valuable exposure and experience of what it takes, and will be better for it, as the club rebuild the playing squad.
“I would also like to take this opportunity to announce my retirement from playing. I have suffered numerous concussions over the years, and I got a pretty bad one playing against Penrith at the start of November, which I still have bad symptoms from.
“With a young family, I can’t risk my long-term health, and am currently waiting to see a neurologist. It’s a shame my last game was a loss against our rivals, but fairy tales don’t often happen!”
