The Leeds Rhinos Foundation Physical Disability Rugby League team are set to play in the UK’s first PDRL game this Sunday against Warrington Wolves Foundation and they have announced a new signing to their squad ahead of the game.
Journalist and television presenter, Alex Brooker, who is best known for starring in the award-winning Channel 4 programme The Last Leg, has become the latest player to sign for the charity’s new Physical Disability team.
Speaking about signing for the team Brooker said: “It’s great to have signed for the Leeds Rhinos Foundation PDRL team and I am really looking forward to getting involved on Sunday. I’m not going to lie, I may have talked up my Rugby League ability up a little bit to get this deal because I have never played before, but I am looking forward to taking part on Sunday.”
The game will see Brooker come up against his Last Leg co-star, Adam Hills, who will be playing for the opposition, and he said he will be hoping his Rhinos team mates will help him to claim bragging rights over the Australian.
“I’ll be telling my team mates to target Adam Hills,” joked Brooker. “That’s what I am there for, I’m there to see him close up and to watch him taken out. I am also hoping to come on at some point and get a little bit of game time.
“Adam is a veteran, he’s so old and he’s been playing this game for a long time so it’s a big thing for him and they take their Rugby League really seriously in Australia and he’s been waiting for this opportunity. Fair play to him, he’s worked hard to help the Warrington team get off the ground as well. There is a small part of my heart that will sort of be supporting him on Sunday but at the same time, just because I never like to see an Australian win at anything and he will be unbearable if they run away with it, so I am there to kind of contribute in some way to seeing an Australian lose that will be enough for me.”
The Leeds PDRL team is the part of Leeds Rhinos Foundation’s commitment to making Rugby League accessible to all parts of the community and trials have been held in January to recruit a team of 13 players and Brooker believes the new team will help inspire more players to play the game in future.
“I think it’s fantastic and particularly for a club the size of the Rhinos and a city as big as Leeds. There is a huge catchment of disabled players who have perhaps may have wanted to get involved in Rugby League, maybe were already playing and they want to carry on, so I think it’s fantastic that they have started a team and those players are going to get an opportunity now to really participate and play some competitive rugby.”
Sunday’s game will kick off at 1pm with entry to the game a donation to the development of the team. For more information on the game contact community@wolvesfoundation.com.
For more information on Leeds Rhinos Foundation's PDRL team contact chris.godfrey@leedsrhinosfoundation.org
Full details
First-ever PDRL fixture
Warrington Wolves PDRL v Leeds Rhinos PDRL
Location: Victoria Park, Knutsford Road, Warrington, WA4 1DQ
Date: Sunday, February 4
Entry: Voluntary donation
Kick off: 1pm