Head coach Warren Spragg leaves Fylde RFC for Sale Sharks as Alex Loney and Chris Briers step up to top job

The Woodlands club have immediately promoted Spragg’s assistants Alex Loney and Chris Briers to the posts of joint head coaches at Fylde.

Spragg, 38, has been appointed senior kicking coach at Sale, ending his eight and a half years at Fylde.

A versatile back and Italy international, Spragg joined Fylde as a player in 2012, replacing Paul Arnold as head coach in the summer of 2017.

Spragg’s Fylde were runners-up in National Two North last season, though they were denied promotion amid the pandemic and have not played for more than 10 months.

Former Kirkham Grammar School pupil Spragg now returns to the club where he began his professional career in 2002.

He worked as a part-time coach at Sale during his tenure at Fylde, nurturing a relationship between the clubs which brought several of Sale’s exciting young prospects to the Woodlands on dual-registration deals.

Fylde chairman of rugby Dave Young said: “Warren will be a big loss to the club but we are delighted that he has earned the chance to coach in the Premiership after a number of years as a successful coach in the Sharks Academy.

“He is a very shrewd tactician, thinks deeply about the game and is an excellent communicator and manager of players.

“The loyalty shown by his young and talented Fylde squad is testimony to the way he builds relationships and looks after players.

Spragg said: “I feel incredibly privileged to have played a part at Fylde over the past eight years, with my time as head coach being one of my most enjoyable experiences in rugby to date.

“There is something bittersweet about having to step aside at this stage, when I was loving it so much.

“This squad has so much potential and there is fantastic off-field support for the team, even during these difficult times, that will ensure the club returns to rugby stronger than ever.

“Lono and Briersy are going to be excellent coaches and leaders, who I believe will take the team to that next level that I didn’t quite manage, and I know that Ben Gregory will become an outstanding club captain.”

Loney, 37, joined the club from Rotherham in 2011 and has battled back from serious injuries to make more than 30 appearances in the last two seasons.

A hooker and occasional prop, Loney captained Fylde and Lancashire. Like Spragg a former Kirkham GS pupil, his previous clubs include Nottingham and Avignon. Loney is director of rugby at Lancashire Royal Grammar School.

He said: “The club means a lot to both myself and Chris after joining Fylde in the same season just under 10 years ago.

“The opportunity to extend this association brings pride and excitement, and we are confident that we can take the club forward in the next few years.

“Spraggy has been a top-class person to work alongside and he has done a tremendous job building an exciting squad that now performs towards the top of the division.

“He always offered myself and Chris opportunities to express ourselves as his assistants at Fylde, which has been great experience.”

Briers is another former Fylde captain who has made 405 National League appearances, 219 of them as a versatile back at the Woodlands, scoring 63 tries forthe club.

The 37-year-old has averaged 25 league games a season over 16 years, also representing Lancashire and England Counties. Briers is a lecturer in rugby and sport at Myerscough College and is lead coach of the Lancashire Academy.

He said: “I’d like to echo Alex’s comments about how excited we both are to be taking on this role together at the club where we have spent the majority of our playing careers. We are very lucky to be inheriting such a talented squad and we both believe that the best is yet to come from the group.

“The most important thing for us to do now is keep the squad together and engaged with the club at this very difficult time. Nobody knows when rugby will start again, but as soon as it does we will be looking to build and develop from where we left off last season.”