SAINTS have finally confirmed today that Lee Briers will join the club as assistant coach on a two-year contract ahead of the 2025 season.
It means St Helens-born Briers returns to his hometown club 27 years after he departed for Warrington and a journey that has also taken on coaching roles at the Wolves, Wigan and Brisbane.
Briers, who is also one of Shaun Wane’s England assistant coaches, has spent the last two seasons with NRL side Brisbane Broncos.
Today’s announcement will come as no shock, having been heavily linked with the post at Saints since he made it known he was leaving Australia.
And recently, on renewing head coach Paul Wellens’ stay at Saints by another year, chairman Eamonn McManus stated that he would be backed up by new recruits on and off the field.
Three new NRL signings have ensued, and now Saints have brought in someone with his own ideas on rugby league – particularly with the ball.
McManus said: “Lee will undoubtedly constitute a key component in strengthening our coaching team and set up for next season and beyond.
“We are confident that he will add a new and important dimension to our coaching team and that we will benefit in particular from his most recent experience in the NRL at the Brisbane Broncos.
“Lee is now back in the St Helens family after a 27-year absence and I am sure that he will be warmly received by his coaching colleagues, players, and fans alike.”
Briers came through the Saints Academy ranks and played six times before transferring to Warrington in April 1997.
During his time at Warrington, Lee racked up an astonishing 425 appearances for the Wolves, becoming their all-time leading points scorer with 2,586 points recorded.
Following his retirement in 2013, Briers began working as a youth coach with Warrington, before becoming First Team Assistant Coach in 2018, a role he would hold until late 2021.
His next move saw him join the Wigan Warriors and he was part of their coaching team which won the 2022 Challenge Cup before flying out to Brisbane.
In his first season Down Under, Assistant Coach Briers played his part in getting the Broncos to the 2023 NRL Grand Final. That same autumn he was named England Men’s Assistant Coach, and the national side earned a victorious series whitewash over Tonga.
Head Coach Paul Wellens said: “Despite being away from the Club for a long time, he has never thought of himself as anything other than being a St Helens lad.
“It's great to welcome him back and he’s going to add knowledge, experience, enthusiasm, and a passion for the team and the Club to our coaching team.
“Funnily enough I was in the Academy as a young kid and one of my first games was playing alongside Lee as my half-back partner. It’s pretty cool that almost 25+ years later we get to team up again.
“I've had a number of conversations with him, and I can't understate how excited and happy Lee is to get the opportunity to come and work for this club again.
“As a St Helens boy myself, your path can go in a different direction, but in some respects, there is a light that never goes out, and I think that's certainly been the case.”
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