‘It’s been great for me’: Kyle Eastmond on his ‘learning’ journey as Halifax Panthers earn ‘mental break’
Despite everything that has been thrown at him, Kyle Eastmond is loving his “learning” journey at Halifax Panthers.
From guiding Fax, in his first-ever season as a head coach, to the 2025 Championship play-off semi-finals, to managing to “piece” a team together every week over the past few months having seen the club placed into liquidation in February, it has certainly been a rollercoaster ride for the former cross-code star.
But despite the struggles, he has led the Panthers from minus 10 points in March, to plus-four points in the Championship following the sensational second-half-comeback win at Dewsbury Rams last Sunday.
Asked if he was enjoying his time at the club, Eastmond told the Courier:
“It’s been great for me. There is loads of learning. You learn different things. Last season I learnt some things slightly different to this year. This year I’ve been learning about piecing the team together, losing players during the week, blah, blah, blah.
“It is all a learning curve. We have all just got to keep turning up, keep adjusting, keep playing hard, and keep learning.”
There will be time for a minor rest this weekend as Fax enters a bye round.
“It is a weekend off in terms of there being no game but we will train and the lads will get a couple of days off during the week and rightly so,” Eastmond said.
“They work hard and they deserve a bit of a mental break. It is a very long season. We will give them a couple of days off and then get them back in to get ready for the following week.”
Ben Will continued his exceptional form with another two tries in the 36-18 win at Dewsbury, leaving Eastmond delighted.
He beamed: “He’s a good player, he’s hungry, and he’s got the right attitude, although his head might get a bit too big!
“He’s doing great and I’m just over the moon for him. He puts the work in and he gets his reward.”