Meet the couple who are putting their heart and soul into developing a rugby league presence on the Greek island of Crete.
WHEN Dimitiris Katsofrakis and Spiros Terezakis formed the Cretan Gunners, a rugby union club in Chania, ten years ago, the first thought that came into this correspondent’s mind was what a perfect place to develop rugby league.
Living on the largest and most populous Greek island, (estimated population of 625,000), Cretans are known for being passionate about their homeland and possessing a fighting spirit. Just ask British, Australian and New Zealand soldiers who fought in World War II on Crete about the bravery, resistance and loyalty displayed by the local population.
Rugby league development across the globe requires at least one passionate and dedicated volunteer who is prepared to give their time and money to the cause.
Partners in both rugby and life Rania Koutsikou and Nik Stephanou (originally from Athens) have embarked on that journey, moving to the Aegean island from Cardiff, Wales where they had been studying rugby coaching and sports science at university for the last few years.
With the Greek summer sun shining brightly behind them as they sip morning coffees on their balcony, the question on why they made the recent shift seems somewhat redundant.
“First of all we love rugby league,” Koutsikou told Rugby League World.
“We’re both rugby league players and we’ve played for Greece.” Koutsikou has played eight internationals with seven of those as captain of the Greece women’s team, while Stephanou has our caps for the Greek men’s side. “It’s a lifetime goal for us to develop the game. We didn’t have plans to come back to Greece but last year we started thinking we wanted to experience a different country other than Wales. We considered a few different options such as Hong Kong or Rotterdam but we still help and coach many athletes in Greece, and we were communicating with some of the girls specifically from Cretan Gunners. Once they heard we were thinking of moving somewhere else they said we might have an opportunity for you as we are a rugby union club but we want to play rugby league. So we just said let’s give it a try and see where that can go.”
The Greek duo have been busy since they arrived in Chania in April this year, making plans and running a series of training sessions with an attendance high of 48 men and women and averaging over 30 players to practice in the off season.
A recent visit by the Rhondda Outlaws men’s team (the couple’s former rugby league club in Wales) was a special moment. Stephanou said he was impressed with the performance of his Gunners.
“They (the Gunners) only had a month of rugby league training sessions to play against the Outlaws. The Outlaws have won the Welsh premiership a couple of times. They have a few players that play for the Welsh Dragonhearts or for the Wales under 20s and we (Crete) still managed to get stuck in. Aside from me we only had another two players that have played rugby league maybe once or twice and they managed to make it a competitive match.”
On the same day the men played Rhondda, the women enjoyed a friendly match against an Athens invitation side marking an historic event as the first time rugby league was played on the island.
Rania and Nik are keen to see more clubs visit the island and with a quality field, gym and accomodation sorted they can guarantee the players will enjoy the change of scenery and the social aspects as well as the on field rivalry.
Outlaws player and academy coach Ieuan Griffiths was effusive when asked about his club’s recent visit. He is already looking ahead to the next opportunity.
“Our recent trip to Crete was sensational, we as a club immersed ourselves into the local culture. The rugby league was brilliant. The Cretan Gunners are on the right path with rugby league and I predict they will be a force to be reckoned with within Greece both for the men’s and women’s. We made lots of new friends and are proud to call the Cretan Gunners part of the Outlaws family. Special mention to the Youth of Dope hostel (Cretan Gunners clubhouse and hostel) who welcomed us and looked after us for our duration. We cannot wait for our next visit to the Mediterranean.”
The next goal for the couple is to establish a youth academy. They are acutely aware that sustained development requires players being introduced to the sport at an early age.
“The academy is one of the main goals for the next year. The good thing is that we have already spoken to a high school and we are organising a tournament at the school. If that goes well we are talking about having a training session every week,” Koutsikou said.
“I think the other thing that’s become really special here with all the momentum gained is that we have a lot of students because of the university here from different parts of Greece and we have quite a few Cypriots. And with the environment we’ve built as a team off the field, some of them, instead of going back home for the summer holidays, want to stay here just to be with the team,” Stephanou added.
Crete is a long term project for the couple who have plans to introduce an annual 9s tournament as well as host international matches at their home ground. The Gunners intend to enter a men’s and women’s team in the Greek rugby league domestic competition later this year.
Koutsikou, who has recently been appointed Director of Women’s Rugby League by the Greek Rugby League Federation, admits there is something special about her new Gunners family.
“I feel like there’s something unique in this Cretan team. They have something very sweet because they care about each other. They are family. You have the feeling of community but on the other hand they are not afraid and are ready to play rugby league. We have some strong guys, some really strong girls. They are very talented. I can see that we have a future here.”
First published in Rugby League World magazine, Issue 511 (August 2025)