NYC premiership-winning coach Todd Payten will join the North Queensland Toyota Cowboys coaching staff for the 2015 season.
Payten has been installed as coach of the Cowboys’ under-20s, kicking off with the start of pre-season training early next month.
A veteran of 259 NRL matches, Payten stepped straight into coaching following his final season as a player with Wests Tigers in 2011.
He enjoyed immediate success, taking the Tigers to fourth place after the home and away rounds and then to the NYC grand final where they thrashed Canberra 46-6.
A repeat finals appearance followed in 2013 – the fifth-placed Tigers were eliminated at the semi-final stage by the Raiders – before Payten became an NRL assistant coach with the Sydney club for 2014.
Payten also coached the New South Wales under-18s to a 56-6 defeat of Queensland in 2013.
“Todd is one of the best young coaches in the game and has already shown he can develop talented under-20s footballers into regular NRL players,” Cowboys general manager – football Peter Parr said.
“He’ll enjoy working with North Queensland’s best youngsters, helping them take their games to the next level.
“The success he had with the Tigers isn’t easy to achieve, but he’ll be given every opportunity to do that here with the Cowboys.
“His addition gives us an outstanding coaching staff for the coming season.”
