HERE at Rugby League World we’re fairly sure many of you spent several hours over the last month trawling the internet for Christmas presents. We did the same and were slightly surprised by the range of rugby league items available. Other then the usual kits, calendars, badges, car stickers etc, the Super League clubs in particular have upped their game when it comes to gifting. Here are six of the more unusual products available to supporters of Super League clubs.
GOAL KICKING GNOME (£24.00, https://shop.warringtonwolves.com)
Whether they’re willing to admit it or not, everyone loves a garden gnome don’t they? So what could be better than a garden gnome resplendent in your club colours. This is one of three Warrington Wolves gnomes, we prefer the try scoring one, but so do others it seems as that one was sold out even before Christmas, so we’ll go for this goal kicking one instead.
DOG COLLAR AND LEAD (£12.99, https://leighleopards.co.uk/shop)
Support for Leigh can now come from fans’ four-legged friends with a dog collar and lead set available in the club’s distinctive red leopard print design. But please only use this item for its intended purpose, not as one of our team jokily suggested when they said: “given some of his outspoken comments in the past, maybe this could be used to keep Derek Beaumont in check.”
MEN’S PERFUME (€39.00, https://www.dragons-boutique.com)
Catalans Dragons have ventured into new territory with their very own official club perfume for men called ‘Force XIII’. The description of the scent says it has ‘notes of lavandin (similar to lavender, but a slightly stronger scent and good at repelling insects), bergamot, cedar wood, tonka bean, amber and leather’. We’ll maybe reserve full judgement until we’ve smelt it for ourselves.
PETAL HIGHLIGHTER (£4.00, https://salfordreddevils.net/shop)
Admit it… a highlighter pen is something we all use at some point, and it probably cheers us all up a little bit too. It’s probably the bright fluorescent colours. But why settle for just one colour when you could have five. And not just any five, five in the shape of a flower. How practical it would be to use probably depends on the size of the hand, but team RLW love it.
TAPE MEASURE (£8.99, https://shop.hullkr.co.uk)
What more could the most dedicated of Hull KR fans want than their very own club branded five metre tape measure? Surely nothing. It’s certainly unique, we’re not sure we’ve seen any other clubs venture into the DIY market – but maybe more now will. One slight improvement we’d make though, would be to change the yellow casing to red and keep it in club colours.
CAR AIR FRESHENER (£1.80, https://store.wiganwarriors.com)
Wigan Warriors are certainly living up to their ‘Pie Eaters’ nickname with this car air freshener. The big question about this product that isn’t answered online is what scent it is. Is it sweet and floral like other car air fresheners? We certainly hope so, as we’re not too sure about driving around surrounded by the whiff of meat and potato or chicken and mushroom.
First published in Rugby League World magazine, Issue 492 (January 2024)
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