Castleford Tigers legend Danny Orr has mum crying after joining Salford Red Devils

The former Great Britain scrum-half, 42, unexpectedly left his role as Castleford assistant at the end of the season saying he wanted a new challenge having worked on the coaching staff at Wheldon Road for the last seven years.

Orr did not have a role lined up but has now joined Salford where ex-Halifax chief Richard Marshall has taken over following Ian Watson’s exit to Huddersfield Giants.

“My mum’s a huge Salford supporter so when I told her I was joining, she actually cried,” he said, his parents having met when former Castleford prop Paul was playing for Salford in 1970.

“I think this is a really good move for me, working with Rich. He’s an enthusiastic young coach.

“I’ve been speaking to Rich over the past few days and I’ll be focusing on coaching the attack.

“We have the same philosophy on a lot of things, but we’re also willing to challenge each other.”

Marshall has taken over at the Challenge Cup finalists having been assistant at champions St Helens for the last two years.

“I’m really pleased to have Danny working alongside me,” he said.

“I spent some time at Castleford when I was head coach at Halifax and he was part of a strong coaching team there.

“I could see how he worked and helped develop the players. He’s an experienced assistant in Super League and will have input in our back play and attack.

“He also has a sound knowledge on defensive systems and kicking, too.

“Taking all that into account, it’s a really good fit for our coaching team and I’m excited to see him develop further here.”

Orr enjoyed a fine playing career with Castleford, playing almost 250 games for the club where he started and finished his career, featuring with Wigan Warriors and captaining Harlequins in between.

He also won two caps for Great Britain and Salford director of rugby and operations Ian Blease said: “The insight Danny will offer from his years of experience in Super League as an assistant coach and a player will be invaluable to our group.

“He has close ties to the club and has already bought into what we want to achieve.

“Richard knows him well and I am excited to see how the team performs next season, under their guidance.”

Salford say Paul Rowley, who assisted Watson, will continue his involvement with the club, ‘directing his primary focus towards transition, player pathways and talent identification.’