Rugby League World Cup 2021

AHEAD OF THE GAME

Working with Movember UK & Rugby League Cares

Rugby League World Cup 2021 is working with Movember and Rugby League Cares to deliver Ahead of the Game, a ground-breaking programme that will teach all young Rugby League players across our host towns and cities the importance of looking after their mental fitness.

How it works:

TRAINING FOR COACHES to increase enjoyment, motivation and prevent dropout among their athletes.

RESOURCES AND TRAINING FOR PARENTS to help recognise and communicate about mental fitness with their adolescents.

THE 'HELP OUT A MATE' WORKSHOP teaches adolescents how to take action for their own mental fitness, and how to spot the signs with someone else.

SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY RESEARCH evidence-based resilience training for athletes to learn the skills that benefit performance and wellbeing.

The Benefits:

Reduced risk of mental health problems
Reduced stigma around mental health and opening up
Improved quality of coaching and performance
Improved wellbeing
Increased motivation
Reduce dropout

For more information the full research paper can be downloaded here.

Please get in touch to book in your team sessions via community@rlcares.org.uk or by using the following link https://bit.ly/3KaINiA.

Facilitators

Robbie Hunter-Paul

Robbie is a former New Zealand international half-back who famously became the first player to score a hat-trick in a Challenge Cup final at Wembley with his three tries for Bradford against St Helens in 1996. Robbie retired from playing at the end of the 2011 season following a 19-season career with Bradford, Huddersfield Giants, Salford City Reds and Leigh Centurions, as well as a short stint in rugby union with Harlequins. He then spent just under 2 two as business development manager at Huddersfield and three years as CEO at Bradford. He is a mental fitness ambassador for RLWC2021.

Paul Wood

Paul is a former Super League player who made over 350 appearances during a distinguished career with Warrington Wolves, Featherstone Rovers and England. Since retiring in 2018, Paul has taken up a career in the media with Rugby AM as a regular presenter and pundit.

Keith Senior

Keith won every honour in the British game during a glittering career with Sheffield Eagles, Leeds Rhinos, England and Great Britain. He made over 500 career appearances, scoring 249 tries, and is widely considered as one of the greatest players of the Super League era. Keith now combines his position as a member of the player welfare team at Rugby League Cares with a part-time role as assistant coach at Sheffield. Keith is the manager of the presenter team.

Shaun Lunt

Shaun is an England international hooker who currently plays for Championship club Batley Bulldogs, who he joined from Leeds Rhinos after recovering from the life-threatening condition, sepsis. He began his career at Castleford before moving to Workington Town, where his talent caught the eye of Super League club Huddersfield Giants. He enjoyed successful spells with both Hull KR and Leeds before joining Batley in a part-time role that has allowed him the time to re-train for a life outside sport at the end of his rugby career.

Paul Broadbent

Paul Broadbent played in the 1990s and 2000s, and has coached in the 2000s, 2010s and 2020s. He played at representative level for Great Britain and England, and at club level for Sheffield Eagles, Halifax, Hull FC, Wakefield Trinity and York City Knights. He coached at club level for Wakefield Trinity and was Italy’s national coach As well as a number of other roles, Paul now works for the Dame Kelly Holmes charity inspiring young people through education and sport.

Johnny Lawless

Johnny is a former Halifax and Sheffield Eagles hooker who also represented both England and Ireland at international level during an 11-year playing career. Since retiring in 2004, Johnny has founded the charity Minds Matter, which promotes good mental wellbeing in the workplace and aims to change perceptions about mental health.

Jimmy Gittins

Jimmy suffered a serious spinal injury playing for Sharlston Rovers in 2002, breaking his neck in two places and ending a promising amateur career. Since then, he has tackled every challenge he has faced head on and become an inspiration to everyone he meets.

Kevin Larroyer

Kevin is a France international second row who has forged a successful career in England with five different clubs since crossing the Channel in 2014. He played for both Toulouse Olympique and Catalans Dragons in France prior to joining Hull KR. His current club is Halifax, where he is combining his playing commitments with studying for a Sports Business Management degree at Leeds Beckett University.

Damian Gibson

Australia-born Damian Gibson became a ‘honorary Pom’ when he left North Queensland Cowboys to join Leeds Rhinos in 1997. After one season at Headingley, the speedy full-back made the short move to Halifax where he spent four successful years. Damian also played for Salford, Castleford Tigers, Sheffield Eagles and Wales prior to his retirement in 2009. Since hanging up his boots, Damian has worked on the coaching staff at Leeds and Dewsbury and currently runs his own personal fitness training business.

Lee Jewitt

In a 15-year career as a professional Rugby League player, Lee gained a reputation as a back-row forward who never gave less than 100 per cent. His career began at Wigan Warriors before a successful six-year spell at Salford. Lee retired in 2019 after suffering serious concussion playing for Hull Kingston Rovers and now runs his own sports psychology, counselling and cognitive behavioural therapy consultancy.

Lee Crooks

Lee is perhaps the last of the great ball-playing front row forwards that were a feature of British Rugby League for over a century. Both Leeds (1987) and Castleford (1990) paid world-record transfer fees to sign a player who would gain 19 Great Britain caps and make almost 550 career appearances. Since retiring in 1997, Lee has coached Keighley, York and Serbia and worked in a number of development roles with the RFL, Hull KR and Hull, where he is currently an officer of the club’s charitable foundation.

Colin Maskill

Colin’s professional Rugby League career began at his home-town club Wakefield Trinity in 1981 before he joined Leeds in 1984, where he would spend the next decade as a key member of the Headingley club’s pack. In April 2020, Colin was appointed England team manager by his former Leeds team-mate Shaun Wane, the England coach.

Andrea Dobson

Andrea Dobson has been a towering figure in women’s Rugby League for over a decade and is one of the most respected players of her generation. She gained 24 caps with England, who she captained at the 2017 Rugby League World Cup, and made her international debut at just 16. Andrea is currently captain of Featherstone Rovers in the Women’s Super League and has found a new lease of life as a creative half-back, having spent much of her illustrious career in the pack, most often at loose forward. Originally from Rochdale, Andrea lives in Sheffield where she works as Rugby League Development Officer for the Sheffield Eagles Foundation.

Tara Moxon

Tara is a rising star of Women’s Rugby League, having taken up the sport in 2019 after playing rugby union with Barnsley as a teenager. Born in Papua New Guinea – the only country to have Rugby League as its national sport – Tara moved to England aged 12 and made her Rugby League debut with Wakefield Trinity at 19. She joined Leeds Rhinos in late 2020 and her talents on the wing have won her representative recognition with a call-up by England Knights. A talented artist, Tara works in health education and is a reservist with the British Army, who she hopes to represent on the Rugby League field.