GREAT BRITAIN POLICE and the Rugby League All Stars will, as revealed recently in League Express, go head-to-head during the summer in what many believe will be a truly historic game.
The Police will field players from their Men’s, Women’s and Masters sides for the match, which will be hosted by St Helens’ club Portico Vine on Saturday, June 21.
It will be, as far as is known, the first occasion on which men and women will have played contact Rugby League with and against each other.
And the All Stars, who often include the likes of Adrian Morley, may also select a cross-gender team.
Great Britain Police’s Women’s side recently played friendlies against Keighley and Widnes, and the ‘All Stars’ fixture is seen as a further step towards the permanent launch of the side.
Several charities will benefit from the occasion, which will also involve a junior tournament, including the Doyle-Phillips Merseyside Police charity, which was launched following the deaths of two officers while on duty, Life for a Kid and the MND Society.
The day-long event will include stalls, raffles, live entertainment, food and drink and a wide range of family activities.
The announcement is a fillip for Police Rugby League following the withdrawal of the team from the forthcoming President’s Cup, which will be contested this year by holders England Universities, Great Britain Teachers and UK Armed Forces.
Alex Daniels, who is one of the organisers of the festival at Portico, said: “We are really excited about the event and look forward to showcasing all of the hard work put in by all teams from the Policing Rugby League Community.
“It will be the first time in our history that all three teams will come together for one event, which will make it even more special.
“A great deal of thought, preparation and work is going into making this event exciting for everyone, with a large focus on making it amazing for the local community and also to raise hopefully a significant amount of money for three wonderful charitable organisations.
“We cannot wait for day and the initial enthusiasm around the event is really spurring us on in the planning stages.
“We are still looking out for any businesses or individuals who may wish to get involved, either through sponsorship of the event itself or the players.
“We would be delighted to hear from anyone who would like further information, and we can be contacted on gbprla@gmail.com.”
The fixture is part of a restructuring process for Police Rugby League in general.
Daniels explained: “The decision to withdraw from the Presidents Cup gives us the flexibility to not only arrange our own fixtures, but to get our individual force teams back up to full 13-a-side games during that period.
“Unfortunately Police Sport doesn’t have the backing through the ranks that the Armed Forces has.
“Consequently fixed dates for the President’s Cup has led to us occasionally struggling to get competitive squads out, plus we are not in a position to be able to have training camps prior to President’s Cup games.
“We face unique challenges to get the same squad available for two consecutive games so, for this year, and with the need to also try and recruit new players, we decided that we would be better served having flexibility.
“In addition, given the amount of planning and preparation required for the All Stars fundraiser, we were mindful of trying to manage everyone’s time and effort as everyone involved does so on a voluntary basis, in addition to our work commitments.
“We have a war of the roses game pencilled in for early April and hopefully a fixture up in Scotland to take on the Scottish students at the end of that month.”
