Team Colostomy UK and the British Asian Rugby Association enjoyed an entertaining curtain-raiser to the recent Betfred Championship fixture between Batley Bulldogs and London Broncos.
BARA, for whom Garry Schofield was director of coaching, included in their line-up founder Ikram Butt, who was the first man of Asian descent to play for England, together with former Batley, Leeds and Great Britain star Carl Gibson and Saima Hussain, who was the first Asian woman to play for Yorkshire and Great Britain.
The match, which was played under Masters rules, was arranged to help raise awareness that having a stoma need not be a barrier to physical activity, and to encourage participation in Rugby League in the South Asian community. It was attended by Kim Leadbeater, the MP for Batley & Spen, and the Rugby Football League’s CEO Ralph Rimmer.
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Head coach Tom Brindle has confirmed his 26-player squad for Wales Women’s forthcoming internationals against England and Italy.
The side hosts England on Sunday (12 June) before embarking on the inaugural European Championship with a home match against Italy seven days later. Both fixtures will take place at Pandy Park, Cross Keys, with 1.00pm kick-offs.
Eight uncapped women are in the party although Bethan Dainton and Rhi Parker are Wales rugby union internationals. Dainton, who has appeared on eight occasions for Wales RU, and at club level for Dragons, Bristol Bears, Harlequins and Barbarians, first sampled Rugby League last year, with the British Army. Parker joined Cardiff Demons RL this season after having amassed five Wales rugby union caps, with stints at the Cardiff Blues, Bristol Bears and Crawshays clubs.
Warrington Wolves’ Fern Davies, meanwhile, is a former Wales netball international and has featured in the Commonwealth Games.
Other potential debutants include Ffion Jenkins and twins Katie and Rosie Carr – all of Bridgend Blue Bulls and Cardiff Demons – and Anne-Marie Sayle (Bradford Bulls). All featured in the 2021 Wales squad but are still to win their first cap. And Brittony Price is also targeting a first outing; the former Pencoed Rugby Union player is now with Cardiff Demons after having launched her League career with Bridgend Blue Bulls.
History will be made if the Carr siblings are selected alongside Ffion and Sara Jones. In that event Wales will have fielded two sets of twins in the same match for the first time in the nation’s international Rugby League history.
Brindle said: “We’ve some new girls coming into the squad, and they’ve all been working very hard, which is what we’ve been asking them to do as we knew we needed to get fitter, faster and stronger. I think we’ve improved since last year since we started on our journey, I can really see the progression.
“The England fixture will be the first time we will play a fully-ranked test match in South Wales, and we’re excited about that. It’s a great opportunity for young girls to see the national side up close and personal, and hopefully inspire more of them to want to play Rugby League. Also, most of the squad are based in South Wales, so it will be special for them to have so many friends and family able to come and see them represent their country.”
He added: “We knew that every year we needed to get better and the England game last year was a chance to benchmark ourselves. These games will be a really good opportunity to see how far we’ve come in the last twelve months. The players’ aim will be to put a good performance in each time, and we’ll see what comes off the back of that.”
The squad is: Anne-Marie Sayle (Bradford Bulls), Katie Carr, Rosie Carr, Ffion Jenkins, Ffion Jones, Sara Jones, Eleri Michael (all Bridgend Blue Bulls/Cardiff Demons), Bethan Dainton, Jess McAuley (British Army), Lauren Aitken, Leanne Burnell, Seren Gough-Walters, Charlie Mundy, Rhi Parker, Brittony Price, Amberley Ruck, Rafiuke Taylor (all Cardiff Blue Dragons/Cardiff Demons), Emily Hughes, Kathryn Salter (both London Broncos), Bryonie King, Joeann McGuire, Molly Reardon (all Rhondda Outlaws/Cardiff Demons), Fern Davies, Rebecca Davies, Keira McCosh (Warrington Wolves), Carys Marsh (Wigan Warriors).
Tickets for both games can be bought by going to https://wrl.wales/tickets
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Scotland have confirmed their 12-player squad for the Wheelchair friendly with Ireland on Saturday 18 June.
Head coach Mark Roughsedge has made only two changes from the squad that took part in last month’s Celtic Cup – in which Wales topped the standings – for the fixture, which will be played at Calderdale College, Halifax.
Dave Anderson, whose last outing was against Wales last October, is in the line-up, and there’s a recall for Dan Grant, who last wore the famous dark blue in September 2019.
Roughsedge, who will cut the squad back to ten players for the match, which is the last before the 2022 World Cup party is named, said: “It’s great to welcome Dan and Dave back in the National Performance Squad.
“Dan has been in impressive form with his club, Gravesend, and deserves to be back involved. We’re hoping that both will impress and fight to keep their places now that they’ve got them.”
He continued: “The game against Ireland at the Celtic Cup was fantastic. We were competitive throughout, even when we were down to four. We want to use this last match before we go into camp to really implement what we’ve learnt from the Celtic Cup. Some players maybe weren’t quite at their best in Wrexham but they’ve got a great opportunity to bounce back here.”
The squad is: Dave Anderson, David Birtles, Connor Blackmore, Midge Hartley, Dan Grant, Neil Johnston, Pete Lauder, Michael Mellon, Cadyn Thompson, Graeme Stewart, John Willans, Callum Young.
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Castleford amateur outfit Lock Lane have announced a ground sponsorship with a leading local mechanical and engineering company.
The National Conference League club’s stadium and surrounding community centre will, for the next five years, be known as the Oak Electrical Sports Complex.
Oak Electrical have been a main shirt sponsor for the last two seasons and director Andy Cook said: “We are thrilled to further support this great local club. Our partnership will provide Lock Lane with much-needed funds for the next five years, and will help ensure that players of all ages will have the facility they need to excel in the sport of Rugby League.”
Lock Lane Chairman Mick Wildey added: “We are delighted to have secured this unique sponsorship deal. I cannot thank Andy enough for his generosity and foresight in agreeing to a long-term commitment to us. We are expanding year on year with teams from the age of six years old right through to open age, including a girls team and another to be formed very soon. We have big plans for expansion in the coming years and this agreement will go a long way to helping us achieve our goals, it’s massive for us.”
Oak Electrical, which was established in 1996, has grown to become one of the leaders within the M & E industry, operating across the commercial, industrial, retail and leisure sectors from West Yorkshire and employing around 100 engineers, offering a full package for electrical, plumbing, HVAC and refrigeration.
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