KEIGHLEY COUGARS co-owners Kaue Garcia and Ryan O’Neill met Rugby League players in Ukraine after hand-delivering their new kits as part of a remarkable gesture.
As reported last week, the Cougars responded to a call-out on television show The Last Leg by RFL President Adam Hills to provide kits to junior and senior teams in the war-torn country.
That resulted in Garcia and O’Neill flying out to Poland, then taking a 15-hour bus journey to hand-deliver the items to Ukraine.
They met Artur Martyrosian, the president of the Ukrainian Rugby League Federation, before chatting to players and their parents at a training session, posing for photographs to showcase the new kits.
Garcia told Attitude magazine: “We have found an incredible stoicism here in Kyiv. The city feels vibrant, albeit tense. The people clearly yearn for their normal lives back.
“By kitting out the players, from kids to adults, our mission is to give them back some sense of normality.”
A special ‘We Stand with Ukraine’ replica shirt has been released, with all proceeds going directly to support the Ukrainian national team.