Chris Bates leaves manager role at Salford Red Devils Women

Chris Bates has left his role as manager at Salford Red Devils Women after the conclusion of the 2023 campaign.

The season saw the Red Devils Women finish 4th in the Women’s Super League Group 2.

Chris Bates has been in charge of the side since 2022 and has overseen a huge period of growth in his two years in charge of the side.

In the club’s inaugural season, the side clinched the League Leaders Shield, alongside the League Cup and earned promotion to the Super League.

During the 2023 season, the side beat Castleford Tigers and Bradford Bulls twice on their journey to securing a fourth place finish, meaning playoffs for the rugby league.

Despite losing out to Leigh Leopards in the semi-final of the playoffs, the performance of the girls in just their second season was hugely encouraging and leaves something to build on going forward.

Reflecting on his time at the club, Chris Bates said: “It has been a really hard decision to step back from my role with the women’s team at Salford.”

“I am really proud of the group and the work that we have done to get to where we are now, but it’s clear to push and reach the heights that the group are capable of, they need more time than I can currently give them currently with work commitments and a young family.

“I’d like to thank Matt, Dawn, Marce, Harry and Paul for all the help and support, I’ve absolutely loved my time at the club and I can’t wait to see how they go on next season”.

Managing Director Paul King added: “Chris has been a fantastic servant to Salford Red Devils and leaves our club with the absolute best wishes.

“He has achieved so much in his time here, leading the women’s team to their first piece of silverware, topping the Championship and earning promotion to the Super League.

“It gave me such pride to see the level our girls competed at this season and I know they will continue to move forward.

“With the restructure of the Woman’s Super League, this gives a new head coach a clean slate to implement their own ideas and earn promotion back to the Super League – which is ultimately our main goal.”

With 2024 just around the corner, the club are still actively looking for a new head coach and updates will be shared when appropriate.