THE Castleford Players’ Association have paid tribute to Lee Harland, the former England backrower who has died aged 53.

Nicknamed ‘Hatchet’, he made 227 appearances (and scored 26 tries) for the club between 1995 and 2004.

Having played his early rugby at amateur side Drighlington, Harland started out in the professional game at nearby Leeds, for whom he featured eight times, and also represented Halifax (in two spells), Doncaster and Batley.

He topped 300 appearances over a career which brought two outings for England, both in wins over France in October 1999, 28-20 at Carcassonne and 50-20 at The Boulevard in Hull.

Those followed three Great Britain Under 21 caps, while he also played twice for Yorkshire.

“Hatchet was an attendee of our functions and we are mourning the death of a friend, colleague and Rugby League comrade,” said the CPA in a statement.

“We would like to extend our sincere condolences to Lee’s family and friends as well as to his fellow players across the game.”