ENGLAND prop Matty Lees has been awarded a testimonial year by the RFL.
Next season will be his tenth at St Helens, having progressed through their academy to make his first-team debut against Wakefield Trinity in September 2017.
The 27-year-old has since established himself as one of the country’s top forwards and passed the mark of 200 career appearances in June.
Lees contributed significantly to Saints’ four successive Super League titles between 2019 and 2022, playing in the latter three Grand Finals.
He also played in their 2021 Challenge Cup final success and, two years later, St Helens’ World Club Challenge win over Penrith Panthers in Australia.
Lees has been capped ten times by England and will likely be a key figure in this autumn’s Ashes series.
The durable forward said of his testimonial: “It’s come around much quicker than I thought!”
“I’m really looking forward to it, getting stuck into what we’ve got planned, and what will hopefully be a great year.
“This means a lot to me and my family, to have a testimonial year and a testimonial game too is special.
“I just want to thank everyone who’s helped me get here – Mike (Rush, St Helens CEO), Eamonn (McManus, chairman), all the coaching staff, and of course my family.
“My wife has been through so much with me, so to be able to celebrate this with her and give something back will be really special.
“This club is proud of players having testimonials. We’ve had Morgan (Knowles) this year, Tommy (Makinson), Alex (Walmsley) and Jonny (Lomax) in recent years too, and I think it says a lot about Saints. It shows just how much this club means to players.”
Rush said: “Watching him grow into the man he is today has been a privilege, and we are thrilled that he has been granted next year to celebrate not only what he has achieved on the field, but also the incredible work he has done off it in representing our local community.
“Everyone at the club wishes him the very best for his testimonial year, and we encourage all of our supporters to get behind him and everything he has planned over the next twelve months.”