HEAD coach Paul Rowley has consolidated his Leigh Centurions coaching team by confirming full-time contracts for Neil Jukes, Paul Anderson and Simon Finnigan.

Assistant coach Jukes, aged 38, has signed a three-year full-time contract, reserve team coach Anderson, aged 37, a two-year full-time contract and Finnigan, aged 32, has also been secured on a two-year full-time contractwith a specific role of player welfare officer.

All the respective contracts commence on December 1, 2014.

Head of rugby Derek Beaumont said: "Further to Paul Rowley recently signing a new contract with the club these appointments will further our progression towards achieving our ambition of becoming a Super League club. Paul and I are delighted to have secured the services of Neil, Paul and Simon.

"Neil has proven himself beyond doubt since taking up a full-time role during last year. His commitment to advancing his career in coaching saw him depart a successful job and take a considerable reduction in his income. I am delighted that it has paid dividends for him and that we are able to reward him with a secure three-year contract on improved terms with realistic achievable bonuses.

"He is a strong support for Paul and is very knowledgeable. He is a fun, likeable guy who is well respected around the club.

"Paul has assembled himself a great backroom staff and was very clear on how he wanted to progress that within the full-time structure and I am delighted to support that and to have secured those individuals in their pivotal roles.

"I am particularly pleased for Ando and Finny, who have both made similar sacrifices to prove themselves, to give them a chance of progressing in the game.

"Ando has done a fantastic job with our reserve grade, seeing a number of the players making first grade last season and this season, which is proof of his ability. Paul works for my business so he will be a sad loss there, as he is a quality worker but I genuinely believe he is best placed at the club and to that end it was an easy decision to make.

"Finny has been a great addition this season and has made it impossible not to include him in our structure. He has voluntarily this season taken on the player welfare role to demonstrate to me the value of that and I have seen clear benefits to justify filling that position with him.

"He has a great personality and knowledge of the game. He is respected amongst players within Super League which is helpful when targeting prospects and he has had a clear impact on our back rowers at the club.

"Simon was a clever player and has the qualities and patience to pass that knowledge on."

He added: "The success we are enjoying on the field is a great achievement by the players but I see on a regular basis the hard work Paul and his boys put into it week after week.

"They clearly have a unique bond and good work ethic and it is a very good strong basis on which to take this club forward. It is comforting to know that we have this solidarity for at least the next couple of years to match the on-field contracts we have secured so far.

"It is an exciting time to be a part of Leigh Centurions and today has been a particularly pleasing day to see these guys rewarded with the contracts they deserve."

Rowley said: "Obviously, first and foremost I'd like to thank Derek Beaumont for supporting me and recognising the value of our off-field team. I have a great belief in the people off the field - they are a great team, very loyal, very hard-working and very skilful with varying degrees of experience. Neil and I work very closely together and we will continue to work hard and progress together with the players as we are all very ambitious.

"When I started in my current role I had no staff and had to recruit from scratch. That is very rare but out of adversity there have been many positives, none more so than recruiting Paul. He has done a great job with the reserve side, which goes from strength to strength, and the players and coaching staff hold him in great respect.

"Simon is the most recently retired player and his experience is relatively new in terms of coaching. He has a similar philosophy to ourselves and has made a seamless transition to the coaching ranks. He has a wealth of skill and experience and is a good communicator, both individually and collectively."