Alan Dickens won five of his 20 games as Newcastle head coach Newcastle Red Bulls head coach Alan Dickens is to leave the club with immediate effect. , external He joined Newcastle in the summer of 2024 to work under director of rugby Steve Diamond, but was promoted to head coach when Diamond left after one game this season. Dickens aiming for positive hand over at Newcastle Wade to stay with Newcastle for further year Newcastle and Italy hooker Faiva retires Dickens, who has coached at Northampton Saints, Leicester Tigers and with England Under-20s, managed just one win from his nine Prem games in charge, with Newcastle bottom of the table, five points adrift of Harlequins. But he did lead Newcastle through their group in the Challenge Cup to set up an enticing last-16 tie against French giants La Rochelle next month. Jones, a veteran of more than 100 caps for Wales and two British and Irish Lions tours, arrived at Kingston Park in December as senior assistant coach, responsible for backs and the attack. Jones' first game in charge will be away to current Prem leaders Northampton Saints on Saturday (15:00 GMT).