Carr was previously an assistant to Arthur at NRL club Parramatta Eels. He also had a spell as assistant-coach for Rhinos in 2019, under Richard Agar, alongside a season-long stint in charge of Featherstone Rovers.
The 37-year-old will complete his NRL commitments as second in command to Shane Flanagan at St George-Illawarra Dragons before joining Tigers in pre-season. Castleford’s director of rugby Chris Chester admitted: “It’s a huge relief, I am absolutely over the moon we’ve been able to get somebody of the calibre of Ryan Carr through the door here.”
He said: “I’ve been really impressed with the way Ryan has come across in interviews and press. He took St George for 13 or 14 games as a head coach when Anthony Griffin got sacked.
“I had a real good conversation with Brad Arthur as well. Brad worked with Ryan at Parramatta, I think it was the year they got to the Grand Final and he spoke very highly of Ryan.”
Chester added: “I’ve known Ryan for a long time and kept in contact with him. I had a look at Ryan when I initially went to Leigh [as director of rugby] and kind of just followed his journey. Everybody I’ve spoken to within the NRL has done nothing but spoke very highly of Ryan.
“I think it was important we took the time we did to make sure we got the right guy for this club to take us forward. The board were very very impressed with what he had to say in the presentation and how he connects with the playing group and the town.
“He’s the perfect fit for this club, the way he sees the game and his vision and how he wants his team to look. Ryan stood out with how he saw the game and how he can improve this team. We share very similar philosophies on how the game should be played [and] I think the fans will be delighted.”
Chester will continue as interim-coach until the end of the season, but Carr will have an input into recruitment for 2026. Chester said: “We had some good chats about what he wants the squad to look like and what a Castleford player should look like.
“It’s up to me to provide Ryan with the calibre of player we need to move up into and around that top-six. We’ve made some significant signings over the last two months. We’ve still got significant cap space to play with and I’m excited with the squad we’ve got.
“He has come up with ideas around personnel and has tipped me off on a couple of players over there as well. Whether we use the full 10 on the [overseas] quota I’m not so sure, but we’ll be there or there abouts.”
But he stressed: “It’s important we get the young kids coming through the system. I’m looking forward to the way he’s going to work with those guys at the younger end.”