Adam Redhead has had to win friends, as well as win matches after taking over as Egremont coach!
For Redhead hails from Millom, and played rugby for a number of seasons with his local team.
By his own admission they had some battles with Egremont over the years and the two clubs simply didn’t seem to like each other.
So it might have been with some trepidation that he put in for the vacant coaching job at Bleach Green.
He teaches in Workington and had moved to live in West Cumbria and wanted to get into coaching.
Whatever the Egremont committee felt about Millom has not been recorded – but he got the job, and it’s looking as though it was a sound decision.
For Egremont are a club on the up, and although Cockermouth and reigning champions Upper Eden will be favourites to contest the title this coming season, watch out for Egremont being on their heels and improving.
He says: “I’m pleased with how things have gone at the club because I think we have made progress.
“We are running two teams this coming season and both will be young, keen squads.
“The club’s Colts won the prestigious North East and Cumbria Conference final last season against Redcar at Kingston Park and quite a number of those lads are in the first team now.
“One in particular George Fisher is a prop forward who had spent time at Leicester Academy. He’s a local farmer and a very good prospect.
“He played in the Cumbria Cup game at Carlisle on Wednesday and didn’t look out of place in the front row against a much bigger opponent.”
It was the Egremont performance in a 29-19 defeat which won praise from Redhead.
“To be honest we were all gutted we had lost. They were two levels higher before re-orgnisation and I thought we competed really well against them throughout.
“Both teams were really going at it from the start and a couple of ill-disciplined moments cost us as they led to tries.
“It was a very good work-out before we start our Cumbria League programme next Friday at Wigton. The 2nds start against Whitehaven.”
Redhead’s assistant is Neil Richardson, son of former Cumbria Championship winning captain Mark Richardson who started his illustrious career at Egremont.
A recurring shoulder problem effectively ended Neil’s own playing career and he’s enjoying the coaching side of the game.
