Former Leigh boss Kieron Purtill appointed Widnes coach
Relegated Widnes have appointed former Leigh boss Kieron Purtill as their new head coach.
Purtill, 41, who was assistant coach of St Helens and Huddersfield before taking charge of his home-town club Leigh earlier this year, succeeds Francis Cummins at the Halton Stadium.
Cummins had been in temporary charge of the Vikings following the sacking of Denis Betts at the end of May but was unable to save them from relegation to the Championship.
Widnes chief executive James Rule said: "Kieron has shown a real determination to build a successful career in coaching and I have been impressed by his excitement at the prospect of helping to lead this club back to Super League.
"We have been looking for a coach who believes in himself, our squad and our mission for this season ahead, and offers both the technical and man-management abilities to be successful in this role, and we believe that Kieron fits the bill."
Purtill, a former coach of England Knights, said: "It is a huge honour to take on this position at such an illustrious club.
"Whilst the Vikings are experiencing the challenges of relegation, I believe that we will see many positives come from this difficult moment.
"This is an opportunity to make a fresh start with players who are more experienced for the recent challenges and motivated to put things right."
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