Leeds Rhinos appoint Salford Red Devils supremo Ian Blease as new sporting director

The 59-year-old moves to Headingley from Salford Red Devils after more than seven years as their director of rugby and operations.

Blease will "provide strategic direction, leadership and oversight" of the performance department as a member of the board of directors, including autonomy over player and staff retention and recruitment.

“There’s levels within Super League and Leeds has always been a significant club that I’ve admired from afar,” he said.

“It was a big decision for me and my family having been at Salford for 20 years but I’m so excited to come here now.

“It’s an absolute pleasure to be here today. I’m so excited to be given this role and it’s one that I’ve admired from afar for a while in terms of the club and its brand.

“The role I’ll be coming to do is everything Gary (Hetherington, chief executive) has said. There’s guys here who are embedded in the club already and I want to do that. I embedded myself into Salford for many years and I’d like to thank them for everything they’ve given me.

"I’ll be looking at all things rugby and get under the skin of the Rhinos but I’ll take my time thinking about how we do things in the business and hopefully the fans will back that.”

A former player and agent, Blease – who will officially take the reins next week – has enjoyed a successful spell at Salford since rejoining the club in late 2016.

The Red Devils reached the Super League Grand Final for the first time in 2019 and followed it up with a Wembley appearance the following year.

Salford have enjoyed two strong seasons under current boss Paul Rowley despite a modest budget and regular player sales.

The Red Devils made a profit on the likes of Ben Murdoch-Masila, Jackson Hastings and Tyler Dupree, while Leeds paid a significant fee to sign Brodie Croft and Andy Ackers at the end of last year.

Salford’s ability to rebuild has not gone unnoticed by the Rhinos who quickly identified Blease as the man to restore their fortunes.

The eight-time Super League champions missed out on the play-offs last year and are currently outside the top six ahead of Saturday's trip to Hull FC.

“This role will focus on the growth of our organisation and improving standards at every level, including player and staff retention and recruitment,” said Hetherington.

“The role required someone who has expertise in all aspects of our industry, someone with outstanding personal skills and someone who could make decisions and someone who has financial acumen to be able to manage a rugby league budget.

“We had a number of high-quality applications and we’re delighted the chosen one is Ian Blease. I’d like to thank Paul King on being very approachable and understanding in enabling this appointment to go ahead.”