Rugby League World Cup 2021 is delighted to announce that Leigh Miners Rangers is the latest recipient of RLWC2021 CreatedBy programme receiving £336,000 of funding which will be used to install a new training facility at the club. 

Already a very successful community club boasting over 20 teams, nearly 400 players and over 60 volunteers, Leigh Miners Rangers have bold ambitions to grow their membership, create more volunteer openings and provide more opportunities for local schools to bring their pupils to try the sport for the first time.

Once completed the new facility will ensure the club’s teams can train at the same venue throughout the winter months rather than hiring out additional facilities. This significant cost saving and the prospect of being able to hire the training pitch to outside parties will provide a sustainable revenue opportunity which can be invested back into the club.

Jon Dutton, Chief Executive of Rugby League World Cup 2021, said: 

“Rugby League World Cup 2021 is all about being ambitious and challenging ourselves to ensure that we deliver a tournament that makes a positive impact on people’s lives, which is why we are absolutely delighted to be awarding £336,000 to Leigh Miners Rangers as part of our trailblazing Social Impact programme today.

“We were incredibly impressed by the club’s application and their plans to grow and make Rugby League more accessible to people of all ages in the local area. Not only will it enable them to provide an excellent training facility for their own players and teams to use, particularly during the winter months, it will also provide the club with vital extra revenue ensuring they continue to thrive for many years to come.

“This project would not have been possible without the incredible fundraising efforts from the club, the support from Wigan Council and also our partners, Sport England, DCMS and the RFL”.

Applications for CreatedBy grants have been open since October 2018, with a total of £20 million committed to various community Rugby League projects across the country.

Mark Dyer, co-chair of Leigh Miners Rangers, said:

“We are so proud to receive this funding from the CreatedBy programme, which will transform our club, enabling us to deliver an outstanding new training facility which will ensure all our players can train at the same venue throughout the year and allow us to offer more opportunities for people to get involved at the club, whether they want to play the sport for the first time or get involved in volunteering.

“We can’t wait for the Rugby League World Cup to come to Leigh. Seeing some of the best players in the world game in action on our doorstep will be inspirational. This funding will ensure that we can offer as many opportunities as possible for every young person that wants to give our wonderful sport a go.”

Councillor David Molyneux, leader of the council, added:

 â€œThis is fantastic news for the club and we’re delighted they will be able to deliver their ambitious plans to provide more opportunities for residents and children. Local people will be able to enjoy this brand-new facility, now and in years to come. It’s brilliant to see the real impact and legacy the tournament will have on the borough. We incredibly excited to welcome it to Leigh later this year.”

The award comes as RLWC2021 kicked off its series of Host Impact Days in Leigh as they visit every single one of the host towns and cities that will be hosting one of the tournaments 61 fixtures.

The day started with a business breakfast attended by cross code legend Jason Robinson and Leigh Centurions Head Coach Adrian Lam before moving on to St Stephen’s primary school and St Mary’s secondary school who got to view the trophies and hear more about the tournament, before concluding the day at Leigh Miners Rangers.

Dutton added:

“Today was a great start to our series of Host Impact Days and it was wonderful to see and hear the enthusiasm and excitement from the people of Leigh about the tournament coming to their town. “Leigh will play host to three incredibly exciting fixtures as well as hosting Lebanon and I’m fully confident that thousands of people will turn out for the matches and create an atmosphere befitting of a Rugby League World Cup.”