FOLLOWING his retirement from rugby league, Tyrone McCarthy has returned to Warrington Wolves in a coaching capacity.

The Warrington-born academy product, who helped the club win three Challenge Cups in 2009, 2010 and 2012, will help to bring through the next generation of talent at The Halliwell Jones Stadium.

McCarthy – a former Woolston Rovers junior – will take up the role of assistant academy coach and lead scholarship coach, working with head of youth Pete Riding and academy head coach Paul Anderson.

Tyrone McCarthy lifts the Challenge Cup in 2009. Picture by Mike Boden

Tyrone McCarthy lifts the Challenge Cup in 2009. Picture by Mike Boden

Having made 43 appearances for his hometown club as a player, McCarthy says he wants to “imprint what it means to represent the town” on the club’s youngsters.

“I’m really excited about what the club want to achieve,” he said.

“We’ve got a really talented bunch of academy lads and we want to develop them in the right way and create good people.

“The ultimate aim is for them to reach the top and play for the first team.

“For me, I want to imprint on them what it means to represent the town.

“They may be coming from across the country but they’re playing for this club, so if they can have a bit of what the town means and become good hard-working people, I’ll be happy with that.”

Tyrone McCarthy scores for The Wire during the 2012 Challenge Cup Final win over Leeds Rhinos. Picture by Mike Boden

Having come through the Warrington academy himself, McCarthy went on to have a successful career outside of the club before hanging up his boots at the end of the 2021 campaign.

He represented Ireland at two Rugby League World Cups and played in further Challenge Cup Finals and Super League Grand Finals with Hull KR and Salford Red Devils respectively.

“Some of the experiences I’ve had of coming through the system here, hopefully I can now share those with the current players and help them along the way,” McCarthy said.

“I’ve been preparing to step into a coaching role for most of my career so hopefully it’s a smooth transition.

“I’ll no doubt be getting some itchy feet somedays but I know the time is right to transition now from playing into coaching.

“I’m looking forward now to getting to know everyone on a personal level. Hopefully in a few years’ time, we’ll see a lot more knocking on the first team door and playing in the primrose and blue.”