Castleford Tigers have continued their overhaul of staff with a new head of performance appointed ahead of the 2027 Super League season.

After yet another disappointing season, in which the Tigers finished 13th in Super League, the club have appointed Paul Rowley as their new head coach, whilst also making fresh appointments to their assistant coach roles.

Luke Robinson, who joined the club late in the season, will be one assistant coach whilst former Hull FC interim Simon Grix will be the other. The Tigers have also added Marc Sneyd to the coaching staff with the former Lance Todd Trophy winner balancing that role with his playing position at Salford.

Now, Castleford have added another former Salford Red Devils staff member as Gareth Whittaker, who worked with Paul Rowley at Salford, has been confirmed as the Tigers’ new head of performance.

Whittaker joins from Huddersfield Giants, meaning he has also worked with Luke Robinson as well.

Castleford Tigers appoint new head of performance

Confirming the appointment, Castleford Tigers shared a statement that read: “Castleford Tigers are delighted to announce the appointment of Gareth Whittaker to the role of Head of Performance ahead of the 2027 Super League season.”

Having previously worked at Warrington and Featherstone before a code switch to rugby union, Whittaker returned to rugby league with Salford before starting with Huddersfield ahead of the 2026 campaign.

Speaking on his appointment, Whittaker revealed connections with all of the coaching staff, stating: “I think one of the biggest reasons when the club approached me was the joined up thinking and philosophy we share and that I knew and had an existing relationship with the new coaches.

“I’ve worked with Paul, Simon, Luke and Marc before so know them all very well. I worked really closely with Rowls during the four seasons we spent at Salford, so I knew it would be a case of coming in and hitting the ground running. I know exactly what his expectations are, how he wants his days to run, how he wants his conditioning to run. It made the decision really easy knowing that I know the systems he wants to put in place.”

Despite knowing all the coaches, Whittaker admitted that he’s only worked with two of the current players, explaining: “I think day one is just going to be about getting around the lads and meeting everyone. I think I’ve worked with only 2 of the current players previously so I don’t know much about them in terms of as people and as players. Obviously, I’ve played against them with other teams so I think day one is going to be about introducing myself, going over the structure and how I see pre season going, and find out how I can help.”

“I’m not here to throw everything out and start again because there’s some really good stuff that I’ve been unearthing while speaking to the physio staff and coaching team that’s already in place. I don’t want to change everything, I just want sit back, have a look at how it operates and how it works and slowly start to put my input into it. I’m just here to try and improve what’s already been put in place and build on that really.”

TIGERS APPOINT WHITTAKER AS HEAD OF PERFORMANCE 💪

Castleford Tigers are delighted to announce the appointment of Gareth Whittaker to the role of Head of Performance ahead of the 2027 Super League season

https://t.co/YseG9MOZcQ https://t.co/TbwP90hWPQ

— Castleford Tigers (@CTRLFC) November 2, 2026

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