Kevin Walters to leave Kangaroos for St Helens after 2026 World Cup

Kevin Walters will step down as Australia's head coach after the 2026 Rugby League World Cup to become the new head coach of English Super League club St Helens on a three-year deal. The appointment, confirmed by St Helens on August 20, 2026, means the Australian Rugby League Commission will need to find a new coach for the Kangaroos, having only recently extended Walters' contract.

Walters, 58, will begin his tenure with St Helens for the 2027 season, following the conclusion of the World Cup, which opens for Australia on October 15, 2026, against New Zealand. The move ends his current two-year contract with the Kangaroos, which was signed in May 2026 and was set to run until the end of 2028. St Helens chairman Eamonn McManus described the appointment as "a major statement of ambition both by St Helens and by Super League," thanking the ARL Commission for facilitating the move.

The deal is reportedly worth £1 million over three years, making it the richest in the club's history. Walters succeeds Paul Rowley, who departed earlier in the season. Interim head coach Eamon O'Carroll will continue in that role for the remainder of the current campaign. St Helens currently sit seventh...