Ex-Hull FC and Castleford Tigers boss Lee Radford discusses 'refreshing' union move and prospect of Super League return

The 44-year-old considered a move to the NRL following his departure from Castleford Tigers before union's Saints came calling.

By his own admission, accepting a role as a defence coach in the 15-man code was a "bit of a left-fielder" – and a considerable challenge at that.

After all, only bottom side Newcastle Falcons conceded more points and tries than Northampton in the Premiership last season.

Defence was their Achilles' heel and the pressure was on Radford to turn Phil Dowson's team into a well-oiled machine.

The early signs are positive and Radford's role in the defensive improvement has not gone unnoticed.

In the aftermath of the recent 18-12 win at defending champions Saracens, England international Tommy Freeman credited Radford with changing Northampton's defensive mindset by demanding energy and intent.

A different code it may be but the fundamentals are the same.

Rather than be discouraged by recent history, Radford viewed it as something of a blessing.

"I'm very fortunate that the team had one of the worst defensive records in the comp," he told The Yorkshire Post.

"The players themselves wanted to buy into making changes and improvements. That always makes your job easier as a coach.

"I'm very fortunate that there are some incredible players in the squad as well. It's a very, very good team.

"We play Toulon on Friday night and their annual spend is up towards 16-17million euros a year but I think the competitiveness of the Premiership will benefit us in Europe.

"There have been no games where you can relax with 20 minutes to go. That's one of the biggest differences to Super League."

From making his professional debut for Hull FC as a 16-year-old to overseeing back-to-back Challenge Cup wins with his hometown club and a short spell in charge of Castleford, Super League was all Radford had known up until last year.

He admits his stint on the coaching staff of World Cup finalists Samoa changed his outlook.

"I went to the World Cup as an assistant with Samoa and absolutely loved it," said Radford.

"I loved being on the grass, just coaching and not having to deal with players' wives not being happy and all the media stuff as well.

"It's a blessing going in and just coaching. I really enjoyed it with Samoa and am really enjoying it down at Northampton as well.

"It's chalk and cheese, night and day (to league). It's a fantastic club with an unbelievable infrastructure and training facilities. The players are incredibly well looked after. If you look at it compared to Castleford, it's slightly different."

After taking over from Daryl Powell at the end of 2021, Radford defied a season-long injury crisis to take the Tigers to the brink of the play-offs.

He left Wheldon Road just weeks into the 2023 campaign – and that may be the last the competition sees of the Hull native.

"If I never went back to Super League, I reckon I'd be content," added Radford, a two-time Grand Final winner with Bradford Bulls as a player.

"I had some fantastic years, even the first 12 months at Castleford.

"It would have been one of my greatest achievements as a coach if we'd made the (top) six that year. We had Greg Eden at six and Paul McShane at seven, and it was like that for large parts of the season.

"I thought we played some really good rugby and our points scored was better than the year before.

"The pre-season and going away with Samoa probably highlighted a few things that became really frustrating for me.

"I made my decision that I wasn't going to be there after my contract expired and have absolutely no ill feeling towards them for wanting to get somebody else in."

Radford's success with Samoa caught the attention of clubs in the NRL, rugby league's premier competition.

But after testing the water, Radford decided it was the wrong time to uproot to Australia.

"I went out there for a month and had some chats so it was definitely on the cards," he said.

"But I've got a couple of pubs and restaurants and own a golf club. My lads are 18 and 19 still living at home so it's something you'd have to plan in advance rather than at the drop of a hat."

In the background, Northampton were monitoring the situation and eventually made their move to become the latest rugby union organisation to turn to league for a fresh approach.

Andy Farrell, Shaun Edwards, Kevin Sinfield and Mike Forshaw all had prominent roles in the recent World Cup to give the tournament a league flavour.

If there is a secret to the success of coaches with a league background in union, Radford is still searching for it.

"I honestly don't know the answer," he said.

"It may just be coming in from a different angle and challenging the norm. Sometimes that can help.

"If you look at some of the coaches that have come across, there have been some pretty successful rugby league blokes.

"You look at how much success Kev had during his time at Leeds and I think Shaun Edwards is still the country's highest medal winner in rugby league. Mike Forshaw and Paul Deacon were very successful in league.

"And in league, your job description is broader. You might have two assistants as a head coach if you're lucky. You cover a lot of bases, whereas in union coaches are very specific to their role.

"I don't know if that helps and league coaches have an appreciation for focusing on one job."

Radford was all set to join Major League Rugby side Dallas Jackals in 2020 before Covid put paid to his plans.

Now he has his feet under the table in union, Radford is ready to put down roots.

"It's been really refreshing and I'm enjoying the new environment," he said. "I definitely won't get bored anytime soon."