Woods wants Whitehaven fortress

New Whitehaven coach Dave Woods is aiming to make the Recreation Ground a fortress on their return to the Championship.

The Cumbrians sealed promotion to the expanded 14-team division alongside local rivals Workington, Barrow and Doncaster, and will line-up against the likes of Featherstone, Halifax, Leigh and Sheffield next season.

Woods, previously coach of Castleford, Gateshead and York, has succeeded Don Gailer in the hotseat, as he looks to return the club to the glory days of 2005, when they topped the National League 1 table, before losing to the Tigers in the Grand Final, coached ironically by Woods.

He said: “I want to make the Recreation Ground a tough place for teams to play at, ideally we need to win all of our home games and try to be consistent on the road as well. If we can get bonus points from our games, we can be up and around the middle of the table.

“I aim to bring discipline in the way they play. I want them to be really strong defensively as well as attack so that we can score a decent amount of points. Try and make Whitehaven a tough place for teams to come.”

Whitehaven lost two of their 10 home games in Championship last season, and Woods knows what he wants from his players.

He added: “I’d like plenty of commitment and enthusiasm from the players that play here. They have to do well and aim to be successful for themselves and the club, which in turn will make them into one of the top teams.”

Woods, who has spent much of the season as a summariser on Premier Sports’ Championship television coverage, last coached in 2011 with York.