COVID-19 destroyed much of the world for a number of years.
Hundreds of thousands of deaths, uncertainty over the future and an air of despair transcended the globe, but Covid-19 is no longer a global health emergency it was announced last week.
People have become more confident to travel and try and restore some normality after a disruptive time – and the same can certainly be said for Super League fans travelling to Perpignan for their annual dose of French sun to take on the Catalans Dragons.
Basked in the sunshine in the south of France, the Stade Gilbert Brutus has often become a tourist hotspot for Super League supporters wanting something different to a normal ‘away day’.
Prior to the Covid pandemic, the uptake was often in the thousands, but, like everything else, that number slipped as travel restrictions and general uncertainty influenced people to stay in the UK instead.
However, in recent weeks, fans have turned to Perpignan once more with over 600 Warrington Wolves making the trip last month.
That figure, though, pales into insignificance when taking into account the number of St Helens supporters that journeyed to the south of France over the weekend.
Over 1,300 of the Saints faithful flocked to the Stade Gilbert Brutus, according to L’Independant, and, though their team went down 24-12 on Saturday night, the majority of them partied well over the weekend, taking advantage of the Bank Holiday.
As such, over 10,000 fans filled the Brutus, treated to a spectacle that began with a runaway prized bull attempting to take down Catalans players wearing their red training tops.
Credit to the Merseyside club for such phenomenal numbers.
