Player assistant coach Mark Matheson looks forward to his new duties at Sheffield Steelers

Matheson will be the club's first player assistant since Ashley Tait in 2013.

Coach Paul Thompson said: "He is a guy who is very well respected in the locker room and knows what it takes every day to bring a positive performance.

“Mark will have a big workload, but in the first couple of weeks it will be more of Mark the player as we drip feed him into the coaching duties.

“I think we all know Mark is a super intelligent and hard-working man, he can’t wait to get going and working with me and the team.

Matheson commented: “It’s something I’m looking forward to. It was presented to me and was something I thought I could do a good job with. I’m looking forward to working alongside Thommo and gaining some experience with that role.

“My roles will be wide spread, systems and the thinking of the game for sure but also pre scouting but teams and players.

“The first couple of days have been busy but exciting. I have a good feel about the players and the team we have here”