Castleford Tigers head coach Ryan Carr has left the club for “personal reasons”.

The Australian was stood down two weeks ago and last week the director of rugby Chris Chester said the club were “following a process”.

Carr, 38, was appointed Tigers head coach on a three-year deal last August after a spell as assistant at NRL side St George Illawarra Dragons.

“The club would like to thank Ryan for his efforts and wish both him and his family all the best for the future,” the club said in a statement., external

Carr won seven of his 21 Super League matches in charge and leaves with the Tigers ninth in the 14-team table.

Owner Martin Jepson said he was “sorry” that Carr had left the club and the search for a new head coach would begin immediately.

“We have had a difficult set of circumstances to deal with and unfortunately not been in a position to provide more information to the fans. However, our actions have been, and always will be, in the best interests of the club,” he said.

Jepson confirmed that Chester, who has led the team in the past two matches, would be assisted by Jason Netherton and Luke Robinson for the remaining four games of the campaign.

The Tigers visit St Helens on Saturday, looking to build on last week’s win at Hull FC.

Matt Newsum

BBC Sport rugby league journalist

Castleford have made the call to part with Ryan Carr after a protracted spell where he was absent from club responsibilities and it is clearly felt that the Australian could not continue.

Carr, who cut his teeth as a head coach at Featherstone where he also worked with Leeds, and in his native Australia with several clubs including South Sydney Rabbitohs, Mount Pritchard and St George Illawarra, had already attracted a number of impressive names to join Cas for 2027 such as veteran hooker Damien Cook and outside back Tyrell Sloan.

What this move could mean for those players who had signed up for Carr’s mission will be an interesting development, as will the identity of his successor.

Luke Robinson has been working with the club during the recent situation although it was stressed this was purely in an assisting role.

Paul Rowley, whose career thus far has been built on building sides such as Leigh, Toronto and particularly Salford, could be an option after his St Helens exit, while Cas might also consider the same route they took with Carr in approaching an ambitious assistant coach or NSW/Queensland Cup coach to take on their project.

Owner Martin Jepson has shown he will utilise his funds to help Cas in the same way Matt Ellis has done at Wakefield and getting this next appointment right will be vital if he is to see that goal of success in the short-term.