On Wednesday afternoon, members of the community gathered at the Civic Hall to celebrate the achievements of the Leeds Rhinos Physical Disability Rugby League team, ahead of the 2025 season.
The event, organised by Councillor Simon Brown, Mayor of Morley and current Leeds Rhinos PDRL Coach, marked a significant moment for the sport and the local community.
Since becoming elected Mayor in May 2024, Councillor Brown has continued to champion inclusivity in sport. A former Leeds Rhinos PDRL player and now coach, Simon has enjoyed a remarkable journey with the team, winning the inaugural PDRL match in the UK in 2018, guiding the team to become national champions in 2022 with a thrilling golden point extra-time victory over Wakefield and coaching multiple players involved with the England PDRL Community Lions squad.
The Civic Hall event provided an opportunity for Leeds City Council and Leeds Rhinos Foundation to celebrate the growth and impact of Physical Disability Rugby League. It also served as the official launch for the 2025 PDRL season, which will kick off this April in Leeds.
As part of his election, Councillor Brown has chosen to support the Leeds Rhinos Foundation alongside Blind Veterans UK, two charities that have made a lasting impact on his life.
Commenting on the event, he said: “As the Mayor of Morley, the Leeds Rhinos Foundation have been so impactful on my life and I wanted to give a little bit back.
“My initial wish was to make the PDRL team feel special, to show them that they are important and what they are doing in the city matters, and I think there is not better advocate of that than the Lord Mayor.
“I also wanted to show that disabled people in the city have a story to tell, and this was a perfect platform for them to come and do that.”
The event featured an impressive lineup of speakers, including Lord Mayor Abigail Marshall Katung, Leeds Rhinos Foundation CEO Bob Bowman QPM, and PDRL player James King, each reflecting on the transformative power of sport and the importance of gaining support from the local community.
Lord Mayor of Leeds, Abigail Marshall Katung, spoke on behalf of the city and the council: “Sport should be for everyone, and today’s event highlights the many opportunities available in Leeds to people of all abilities to get involved, push boundaries and achieve their goals.
“We just want to say thank you so much for representing our city with all that you have done. You represent us with so much pride, and we are truly grateful. We are incredibly proud of you all, and we cannot wait to see what the season brings.”
With the Leeds Rhinos Foundation approaching its 20th anniversary, this celebration highlighted the charity’s mission to Change Lives Through the Power of Sport, and reinforced their commitment to creating opportunities for everyone in Leeds to access Rugby League.
Commenting on these opportunities, CEO of the Leeds Rhinos Foundation, Bob Bowman, added: “I was absolutely delighted back in 2018, when the embryonic chance for people to play Physical Disability Rugby League came about, and ever since then I have had a real soft spot for this group, and the real, genuine passion and advocacy they have for the Leeds Rhinos Foundation.
“We want to be a massive part of the journey to make sure more people have the chance to play our game. We see this area of work as one with no ceiling, we want it to grow, we want it to get bigger and better and we want more people to be involved!”
