Inside Kyle Eastmond's Halifax Panthers revolution: How a bullish mindset sparked a revival
As the 2024 season drew to a close, Halifax Panthers were simply in survival mode.
The Panthers were gripped by financial troubles that threatened the club's very existence.
Halifax raised sufficient funds to stave off a winding-up petition from HMRC, yet their future remained uncertain.
Fast forward a few months and Fax have not only stabilised off the field but are now riding high at the top of the Championship under rookie head coach Kyle Eastmond.
The former dual-code England international has defied pre-season expectations by guiding a squad of just 20 players to seven wins from eight games.
Halifax have not looked back since embracing Eastmond's bullish approach in the build-up to their Challenge Cup tie against Catalans Dragons – a game that convinced Ben Crooks that they could compete.
"I think it's just a mindset thing," said the experienced outside back, who was awarded the captaincy by Eastmond.
"Kyle has managed to instil a bit of a belief that we lacked last year. He's given us a pretty simple game plan and hasn't done anything drastic – it's just a mentality switch and the way we perceive each other.
"I use the Catalans game as a big marker. He doesn't care who it is, he has full confidence that we can get the job done. That started in that game.
"In-house, he was like, 'I'm looking at these and looking at what we've done through pre-season and I'm really confident'.
"The result didn't go our way but the performance was really promising and great for morale. That day gave us an insurgence of belief."
The club's decision to take a chance on Eastmond after a ninth-place finish has so far paid off.
Eastmond served his coaching apprenticeship in rugby union with Rotherham and Jersey Reds before a spell in Super League at Warrington Wolves.
His playing CV – a career that took him from St Helens to Leeds Rhinos via stints in union with Bath, Wasps and Leicester Tigers – ensured he commanded respect but the Fax players were stepping into the unknown when he was appointed.
Rather than struggle with the change of pace, Eastmond has quickly developed an understanding of what works for his part-time squad.
"It sort of came out of the blue to everybody when it was announced," added Crooks. "I didn't even realise he was taking the coaching route.
"But the reason it works is because of how smart he was as a player. He knows how the game is won and lost – and that it's a simple game as long as you get the fundamentals right. We stick to the blueprint we've got and have been getting the job done so far.
"He's a relaxed and reserved character but is up for a laugh with the boys. People probably don't appreciate that he was at the elite level for so long and the mentality can be a little bit different around the lads. They go to work all day and come to training – but he gets it 100 per cent.
"He's been really good working with the lads and using that to get the best out of them. That even surprised me a little bit.
"He's a good bloke, easy to talk to, but is assertive when he needs something done. The boys respond to that.
"He's done a great job so far and hopefully we can keep it rolling."
Fax will learn more about their 2025 prospects this Saturday when they travel to France to take on Toulouse Olympique.
With a bit of luck along the way, Crooks is optimistic that Eastmond's side can last the pace.
"We had a good test against Catalans and then recently against Bradford and we just fell short," said Crooks, who is facing 12 weeks on the sidelines after sustaining a hamstring tear in the Good Friday derby.
"We made some mistakes in that Bradford game that we haven't really made at the start of the year and it cost us. But we took belief from the fact we didn't perform that well and it was still that close (12-8).
"The one thing in the back of our minds is that we have got a small squad and that could potentially be our undoing at some stage.
"Hopefully we keep people fit. Obviously I'm going to be missing for a while which doesn't help but we're a close-knit group.
"That's built around that belief system that, yeah, we've got a small squad, it is just us but the people who play can get the job done."