After playing finals footy in 2023 for the first time since returning to the Shute Shield, Hunter lost a handful of star players to professional contracts overseas and struggled to rediscover their form from the previous season. The Newcastle club has signed former Waratahs coach Darren Coleman as Director of Rugby to work alongside his brother, Scott, and appear eager to take another big step forward in 2025. Overview with Scott Coleman: “It was a really disappointing season on all fronts,” Coleman told Rugby News. “We had a bit of momentum after playing finals in 2023 and thought we’d turned the corner to an extent, but it didn’t pan out as we had planned. “We were cruelled by a few injuries, but every club has injuries so that can’t be an excuse. We need to build out depth and our connection with the local clubs to help with injury hurdles moving forward. "It’s hard to pinpoint anything that was drastically different between 2023 and 2024. Maybe a f