As a Leeds fan of over 40 years John Barker has clocked up many miles watching his team home and away and earlier this year a trip to Headingley Carnegie led to him getting the opportunity to travel even further to watch rugby league on the other side of the world.
John, who is from Mirfield, was the lucky winner of the Leeds Rhinos Foundation raffle, which gave away an amazing prize of a trip to Australia, courtesy of Rugby League Travel and Tour specialists Rugby League Experience.
Speaking about the moment he won the prize John said: “I bought my ticket on the morning of the draw, which took place at half time during the Salford game last season. I didn’t hear the winning ticket being drawn, so when I got a call from Leeds Rhinos Foundation’s Davide Longo I was in shock and I thought it was a joke! The next thing I knew I was having my picture taken on the pitch as the winner of a trip to Australia!”
Although he admits it took a while to sink in, he said it wasn’t long before the excitement took over and he was counting down the weeks until the holiday, which he describes as a trip of a lifetime.
“It was my first trip to Australia and it will be one I will remember forever. I went with my wife Joan and our 16 year-old son Jack, who enjoyed it so much that as soon as he got back to England he was talking about going back!
“Sydney is a fantastic city and we got chance to see lots of the tourists sites such as Manly and Bondi beach and one of the highlights for us were the Blue Mountains. I can’t speak highly enough about how great the holiday was and we were treated like royalty by Craig Brown from Rugby League Experience, who had donated the prize.
“We went to the Men of League Foundation dinner, which had many stars of Australian Rugby League in attendance. When we arrived we walked down a red carpet and had our pictures taken and my wife said it felt like being at the Oscars. I even got the chance to meet the legendary Leeds player Ken Thornett, which was a huge honour. Another special night was the boat trip around Sydney Harbour, when we heard from a number of guest speakers and I also really enjoyed the trip to the Sydney Cricket Ground.
“The itinerary of the whole trip was perfect, particularly as we had the chance to watch some rugby including the incredible Grand Final at ANZ Stadium. The atmosphere in the stadium, with 85,000 fans, was electric and to say we were there is unbelievable.
“I am so grateful to everyone from Rugby League Experience and Leeds Rhinos Foundation for this trip of a life time for my family that has given us memories we will treasure forever.”