Ex-Wales and Lions international joins Newcastle Red Bulls’ coaching staff
Stephen Jones during his time as an assistant coach with Wales and Moana Pasifika (inset).
Newcastle Red Bulls have bolstered their backroom staff after announcing that former Wales and British and Irish Lions fly-half Stephen Jones has joined their ranks.
Jones will join the Prem Rugby outfit as their senior assistant coach, responsible for the backs and attack.
The 47-year-old has plenty of coaching experience as he was the backline coach at Moana Pasifika during the past two Super Rugby Pacific campaigns and prior to that he had similar roles at international level (Wales), in the Premiership (Wasps) and the United Rugby Championship (Scarlets).
Jones also represented Wales in 104 Tests at fly-half or inside centre between 1998 and 2011 and won numerous titles as a player at club and international level.
Helped with Moana Pasifika’s improvement
He made a huge contribution in helping Moana Pasifika show considerable improvement over the last few seasons in Super Rugby Pacific.
Moana were a club that was at the bottom of the Super Rugby Pacific table when he arrived but were the surprise package in the 2025 season when they won six of their matches, including historic victories against the Crusaders, Blues, Highlanders and Hurricanes.
Jones will start his new role at the beginning of December, further reinforcing Newcastle Red Bulls’ ambition to immediately develop their performance environment.
He is looking forward to adding value in his new position.
“I’m incredibly excited to be joining Newcastle Red Bulls at such a pivotal moment in the club’s journey,” said Jones.
“This is a team with huge potential, a passionate fan base and an ambition that matches my own. I can’t wait to get started, and to build strong relationships with the current staff and players.”
Latest addition to Newcastle’s coaching staff
Jones is the latest addition to Newcastle’s coaching staff after they parted ways with their director of rugby Steve Diamond and announced changes to their management structure after the opening game of the Prem Rugby season six weeks ago.
Diamond’s departure was offset by the arrival of Neil McIlroy, who joined Newcastle‘s ranks as their sporting general manager while Alan Dickens, who was serving as the club’s senior coach, took over the reins as head coach.
Despite those alterations, the club are still struggling and currently languishing at the bottom of the Prem Rugby standings with five defeats sustained from as many matches played.
Newcastle Red Bulls acknowledged Manoa Pasifika’s understanding in releasing Jones to pursue his ambitions with regard to their project, and to be in closer proximity to his family.
Jones also thanked Moana for understanding his reasons for leaving them and said he enjoyed his stint with the club.
“I’ve loved my time here with Moana Pasifika,” he said. “From learning about the culture and customs, and getting to see the growth of our players not just on the field but as people too.
“The Moana movement is something special that I’ve never experienced before, and I’ll always cherish the memories made.
“It has been awesome to work alongside some legends of the game in our coaching group. We all got along really well and it was always great to come into work every day and have that open discussion.
“The club is in good hands and I look forward to following their journey from afar.”
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