Dickens upbeat despite unsure Red Bulls future

Over the last month, the white smoke has been pouring out of the chimneys at Kingston Park with almost daily regularity.

Newcastle Red Bulls have announced the arrivals of 10 new players for next season and agreed new contracts for six of the current squad.

But one of the biggest question marks surrounds the future of head coach Alan Dickens, whose own contract expires this summer.

"Nothing on me," he told BBC Sport when asked about his own situation.

"I'll keep working hard. My responsibility is to the players and to the club. I'm probably in a similar situation to a lot of players where nothing's been decided.

"I need to stay positive with this group and we need to continue."

Dickens was brought to Kingston Park in the summer of 2024 by previous director of rugby Steve Diamond to join the coaching set-up.

But when Diamond left after the opening game of this Prem season, Dickens was promoted to head coach by the club's new ownership.

Events in January have been the clearest indicator of Red Bull starting to flex their muscles with such heavy focus on player recruitment.

Dickens has been very public in stating that he has no involvement on that side of things, and the name to appear on all the club's press releases is Neil McIlroy, the sporting general manager, who took on the newly created role in November.

Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend also now has a 30-days-a-year consultancy role with Newcastle, although his contract with the national team runs until the end of 2027 after the World Cup in Australia.

'I've always been team-focused'

For now, Dickens carries on as the team prepares for the second half of their Prem campaign.

Although they sit bottom, the Red Bulls are only five points adrift of Harlequins in eighth - the final qualification spot for next season's European Champions Cup.

They also have a last-16 Challenge Cup tie against French side La Rochelle on the horizon.

Against that backdrop, Dickens remains as upbeat and positive as ever.

"Ultimately, that's my job and that's the character I am," he said.

"I've always been team-focused. I honestly care about the players. I care about what's the best for them.

"We're pretty tight-knit as a group. A lot of the players have gone through some tough times.

"It's going to be a big turnover here, we've got to accept that, and we've got to take the best from the situation we're in at the minute."