The RFL will break new ground in January by staging a National Coaching Conference with emphasis on best practice coaching in the community game and for women and girls – and a limited number of places are now available.
The Conference will be held at the Village Hotel, Leeds South in Morley on Saturday January 17, with a distinguished panel of speakers already confirmed.
Tony Smith, the former England and Great Britain head coach who also led Leeds Rhinos to Grand Final glory and steered Warrington Wolves to two Challenge Cups, will be the first headline speaker.
He will be followed by James Simpson-Hill MBE, a Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup winner with England in 2022 who has moved into coaching with Leeds Rhinos – achieving all that after he suffered life-changing injuries while serving in Afghanistan.
The women’s and girls Conference will also hear from Genna and Grace Banks, key figures on and off the field in Wigan’s all-conquering season whose mother-daughter relationship lit up their Challenge Cup Final triumph at Wembley in June.
Other specific sessions in the women’s and girls Conference include England Women head coach Stuart Barrow focusing on coaching tackle, Dr Sam Moss discussing the impact of the menstrual cycle and hormonal health, and a workshop led by Danny Massaro on communication, feedback and relationships.
For the community session, the head of England’s male pathways Paul Anderson will join the RFL’s elite coaching manager Chris Spurr to focus on coaching the tackle.
Dr Mustafa Sarkar will lead a workshop on resilience (specifically myths and misconceptions around it), with Richard Marshall leading a separate session on resilience and stress management in coaches, while Martin Rothwell will focus on putting players at the heart of practice design.
There are 50 places on each of the conferences.
Dave Elliott, the RFL’s Head of Education, said:
“We are excited to announce our RFL Coaching Conference for 2026. This has been built on the enormous success, of the inaugural Coaching Conference for women’s and girls’ Rugby League in 2025.
“The coaching conference provides our coaching workforce with a platform to learn about the latest techniques and tools in the sport. They will have opportunities to gain experience and develop, with first-hand insights from expert Rugby League coaches, and vitally from industry experts external to the sport. It also allows a huge opportunity to network with like-minded people and expand the coaching networks within our sport.”
To register for the Community Game Coaching Conference, click here Course Detail Conference
To register for the Women’s and Girls Coaching Conference, click here Course Detail Conference
For further details of both Conferences, click here Coaching Conference
