Paul Cooke admits to it being a ‘no-brainer’ when he was asked to stay with the Knights for at least another year.
The Doncaster RLFC player-boss came to the Knights last summer under the wing of the club’s director of rugby Clive Griffiths despite never having played or coached rugby union.
But rugby league man Cooke quickly established himself as an integral part of the Castle Park club’s coaching staff, helping them on their way to the National One title.
“Last year was unknown territory for me, I just wanted to come in and have the opportunity to work under someone as experienced Clive [Griffiths] and to meet Glen [Kenworthy] and the rest of the staff,” said Cooke.
“I really enjoyed my first season at the club and when Clive [Griffiths] asked me it was a no-brainer.
“There are obviously a couple of areas of the game that are very different from what I’m used to. I probably still don’t know what’s going on at times in the scrums and line-outs but obviously Glen takes care of that with Clive and I focus on set-plays in the backs and player skills.”
Cooke will continue to share his time between Castle Park as well as help drive the Dons up the Championship rugby league table in his player-coach role.