A phenomenal achievement!
East Leeds enjoyed a pristine campaign in 2025, heading the National Conference League’s Second Division without dropping a point and totalling just shy of 1,100 points in the process.
Veteran forward Jake Normington, who played his last match in the final match of the campaign, at home against Hull Dockers, is now East Leeds’ chairman in a remarkably swift change of roles.
He told League Express: “I started here at the age of five and it’s where I think I’ll finish. There are many amazing people in place, not least secretary Paul Greenwood, who had been shouldering the administrative burden. I didn’t want to sit back, I wanted to be fully involved.
“I was scheduled to take on the role from Paula Simpson in November but that’s been brought forward, and I‘m relishing the challenge. We’re a vibrant club and the phrase ‘dying sport’ gets under my skin. The fact that our touchlines seem to have been full this season tells me something so very different.
“Our junior section formed a guard of honour for us before we kicked off against Hull Dockers and our opponents also lined up, which was very gracious and sporting of them. They only had eleven men on the day but they never stopped. Our lads deserve every accolade, but the Dockers showed up and those players absolutely warrant great credit.”
He stressed: “Many of our team came through our junior ranks and it’s vital that local lads are retained. Kieron Brining and Isaac Coleman have come in and they are important, as are the Windley brothers, Callum and Elliott.
“Callum and I were big mates when we toured South Africa together with the England Community Lions and he also played for Oxford alongside Kane Riley, so we had strong personal connections in place.
“I don’t want to see anyone leave here but I do think that, with the merger of the Betfred Championship and League 1, perhaps many professional clubs will seek stronger squads; if so, any of our players who are aspiring to a higher level will go with our best wishes. I’ll be there to give them advice, and we’ll be ready to recruit under our new coach for 2026, Phil Windley, who was previously in charge of West Hull in the NCL.”
He insisted: “Our end goal is the Premier Division, through back-to-back promotions, and once in the top flight our aim is to be in the top six and to maintain that standard.
“Players such as George Clarke, Alfie Crawford and Moris Kamano have all played at a higher level and will go down in history for what they’ve done for our club. Despite scoring over 1000 points and winning all their games (feats that we are sure are unprecedented in the National Conference League) the lads have stayed grounded. Brining has scored 39 tries and Ajay Wilson would surely have been close to that if he hadn’t incurred a suspension through being sent off against Thornhill.
“For all the try-scoring feats, though, the platform set by our starting props is massively important. Kamano and Roy Railton have been huge for us. Roy played a full 80 minutes at a tough Barrow Island side and I’m proud of such individual efforts throughout the team.”
Normington concluded: “I never fancied coaching but I do think I have what it takes to be a successful Chairman of East Leeds, not least because I love this club. I’ve also learned a lot in my working life as a project manager while I also bring a player’s mentality, I hope. I want local kids to enjoy similar experiences to mine, starting here at the age of five before having the same kind of journey.”