All Golds v North Wales Crusaders LCC3 FINAL

FREE MATCHDAY MAGAZINE 

FEB 26 th 2017 | KO 2pm 

PRINCE OF WALES STADIUM 

ALL GOLDS vs. NORTH WALES CRUSADERS 

CHALLENGE 

CUP ACTION... 

INSIDE THIS ISSUE: 

• CRUSADERS PREVIEW 

• HEMEL REPORT 

• CHALLENGE CUP GLORY 

www.allgoldsrugby.com

ALL GOLD 

CONTENTS AND INFO 

04 WELCOME 

06 CHALLENGE CUP GLORY 

08 CLUB DIRECTORY 

10 SEVERN STARS NETBALL 

12 ALL GOLDS vs. CRUSADERS PREVIEW 

14 ALL GOLDS vs HEMEL STAGS REPORT 

16 NEW SIGNINGS TO WATCH 

18 WEST OF ENGLAND UPDATE 

20 FIXTURES & RESULTS 

22 SQUAD LINE-UPs 

CLUB INFORMATION 

UNIVERSITY OF GLOUCESTERSHIRE ALL GOLDS 

Home Ground: The Prince of Wales Stadium, Cheltenham 

Offices: 

Oxstalls Campus, Longlevens, Gloucester. GL2 9HW 

Telephone: 01242 714468 

Email: 

allgolds@glos.ac.uk 

Official website: allgoldsrugby.com 

PRESIDENT 

Lionel Hurst LL.B 

ADVISORY BOARD 

Krista Woodman, Ken Stone, 

Kevan Blackadder. 

GENERAL MANAGER 

Patrick Evans 

HEAD COACH 

Lee Greenwood 

ASSISTANT COACHES 

Anthony Murray 

& Dan Poulton 

S&C COACHES 

Nick Lane & Joe Festa 

TEAM MANAGER 

Martin Lovegrove 

KIT AND LOGISTICS 

David Friend 

CLUB DOCTOR 

Phil Cox 

HEAD PHYSIOTHERAPIST 

James Clap 

SPORTS THERAPIST 

Katy Stephens 

NUTRITION PARTNER 

Nutrition X 

SKY TRY AND 

COMMUNITY MANAGER 

Kane Krlic 

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exclusive All Golds news first. 

BUSINESS AND SPONSORSHIP 

Sophia Wood-Jenkins 

MATCHDAY CO-ORDINATOR 

Trevor Moss 

MEDIA MANAGER 

Chris Wilson 

SOCIAL MEDIA & JOURNALIST 

Patrick Baines 

PHOTOGRAPHERS 

Lewis Mitchell & Glenn Watts 

ALL GOLDS TV 

Jeremy Power 

ALL GOLD DESIGNER 

Craig Paul Design Ltd 

06 

CHALLENGE 

CUP GLORY 

10 

SEVERN STARS 

NETBALL 

18 

WEST OF 

ENGLAND 

UPDATE 

The views expressed in this programme are not 

necessarily those of the University of Gloucestershire 

All Golds, the Editor, or Craig Paul Design Ltd.

WELCOME TO THE ALL GOLD 

WRITTEN BY CHRIS WILSON 

4 

Welcome to the All Golds’ fifth 

season. The club has been 

making progress on and off the 

field and we are looking forward 

to an exciting summer of rugby 

league. 

It has been a long off season 

but the last two weeks have 

positively flown by as the squad 

completed their pre-season 

preparation before stepping 

onto the field last week against 

Hemel Stags. 

Today’s game provides a repeat 

of last year’s third round tie when 

we came back from 36-16 down 

to snatch victory at the death. 

Hopefully the entertainment this 

afternoon will be as good and 

the result to match. 

During that off-season there has 

been plenty of work to adjust the 

playing squad and the off field 

team and we welcome Sofia 

Wood-Jenkins to the marketing 

team and Jack Conlon to the 

media team. We hope they enjoy 

their time with the All Golds. 

The sharp-eyed among you may 

have spotted a new logo as well 

and to go with that our new kit 

should be with us very soon. 

One major departure has been 

Director of Sport, Andy Pitchford. 

I think it is fair to say that it is 

down to his hard work and good 

sense that we are where we are 

today. All at the All Golds thank 

him for his efforts and wish him 

luck in the future. Hopefully he is 

reading this and will be able to 

make time to come and see us 

in the future. 

Late last week you may have 

heard our president, Lionel Hurst, 

on BBC Radio Gloucestershire 

talking about plans for the All 

Golds to ground share with 

Gloucester City FC at their soon 

to be rebuilt Meadow Park home. 

Of course the discussions are at 

a very early stage but the idea 

certainly fires the imagination. 

The game was given a huge 

boost last week with Warrington 

beating Brisbane and Wigan 

becoming world club champions 

for a fourth time by beating 

Cronulla in a tough encounter at 

the DW. The Cherry and Whites 

were worthy winners but they 

had a bit of luck going their 

way with the Capewell no-try 

and a repeat set following a Joe 

Burgess knock on but them’s 

the breaks as they say and on 

another day you might not get 

them. 

The venture to Canada continues 

the spread of the game following 

the introduction of Toulouse last 

season. The Toronto club has 

financial muscle behind it and 

they have recruited a strong 

squad and a capable coach in 

Paul Rowley, which should see 

them in to the Championship 

for next season and the smart 

money is on Barrow to join them. 

The All Golds will be set for 

some travelling with trips 

to Workington, Barrow and 

Whitehaven on the agenda as 

well as of course the visit to 

Toronto to play the Wolfpack. 

Those looking to follow the Fern 

this season will be able to watch 

the game in Canada on Premier 

Sports (shameless plug). 

A shout out to for the Severn 

Stars netballers who after a 

whirlwind of organisation and 

recruiting took to the court last 

weekend for the first time. They 

faced champions Surrey Storm 

and though defeated were by 

no means disgraced and will 

definitely get stronger as the 

season goes on. 

Thank you for your support and 

we hope you enjoy what we 

have for you in this issue. 

www.allgoldsrugby.com 

@AllGolds facebook.com/AllGoldsRugby

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6 

CHALLENGE 

CUP GLORY 

GEORGE COWBURN TAKES A LOOK 

THROUGH THE CHALLENGE CUP’S 

120-YEAR HISTORY AND PICKS OUT 

SOME GREAT MOMENTS. 

The Northern Union was only in its second 

season after the breakaway from the RFU 

when the first Challenge Cup Final was 

played in 1897 at Headingley, Leeds between 

Batley and St Helens. The “Gallant Youths” of 

Batley won that game 10-3 and succeeded 

again the year after, defeating Bradford 

7-0. Oldham were the only other side to 

win the Cup in the nineteenth century - 

beating Hunslet 19-9 at Fallowfield Stadium, 

Manchester. 

Cup competitions were well established in 

the North of England before the breakaway 

so the Northern Union commissioned 

Fattorini and Sons of Bradford to make a 

suitably ornate trophy to be presented to the 

winning team. At a cost of just £60, a three 

foot high, solid silver cup was produced. 

This original cup now lives at Rugby League 

Headquarters. 

It was last presented at the 2001 final and 

was showing considerable signs of wear and 

tear so a replica was made by Jack Spencer 

Goldsmiths of Sheffield. This is the cup 

which was on display when the All Golds 

played Skirlaugh at Cheltenham in the 2015 

Challenge Cup. 

The competition has long been synonymous 

with Wembley Stadium but it wasn’t until 

1929 that the re-christened Rugby Football 

League took the plunge and staged the final 

there; Wigan becoming the first Wembley 

winners, beating Dewsbury 13-2. Prior to that, 

Oldham were the “Cup Kings” of the 1920s 

appearing in four successive Challenge Cup 

Finals, a record that was shattered by the allconquering 

Wigan teams who played in and 

won eight successive finals between 1988 

and 1995. 

Whilst the new Wembley Stadium was being 

built, the finals took place at the Millennium 

Oldham - Challenge Cup Winners 1925 



Hull FC - 2001 

Stadium Cardiff (2003, 2004, 2005), 

Murrayfield (2000, 2002) and Twickenham 

(2001, 2006) but returned to Wembley as 

soon as the new stadium was available in 

2007. 

From 1946 the Lance Todd Trophy was 

presented to the player of the match in the 

final. Todd had played for the New Zealand 

“All Golds” in the third test at Cheltenham 

against the Northern Union in 1908 and 

stayed in this country after the tour, signing 

for Wigan almost as soon as the match had 

concluded. 

He later managed Salford until the Second 

World War broke out. Sadly he died in a car 

accident when on Home Guard duty and the 

Salford Past Players Association presented the 

trophy in his honour. 

The first team from “South of the Watford 

Gap” to contest the final was London Broncos. 

They were beaten 52-16 by Leeds Rhinos 

in the last final to be played under the Twin 

Towers of the old Wembley Stadium in 1999. 

Coming from much further south, the Catalans 

Dragons contested the 2007 final – the first at 

the new stadium – losing to St Helens 30-8, in 

the process becoming the first foreign finalists. 

Some say the “Magic of the Cup” has lessened 

now that the final takes place during the season 

rather than at the end but try telling that to the 

Hull FC supporters who last season saw their 

side come from behind to beat Warrington 

and win at Wembley for the first time after so 

many heartbreaking defeats there. 

Local sides Gloucestershire Warriors and 

Bristol Sonics have both appeared in the 

Cup, with the Warriors earning their share of 

glory thanks to a heart-stopping 25-24 win at 

Illingworth in 2006. 

For the All Golds the magic started in February 

2012 when the University team pulled of one 

of the biggest shocks for many years in the 

early rounds of the cup by defeating top 

Community Club Rochdale Mayfield by 33-14 

in Rochdale. 

In the squad that day were Phil Cowburn, 

James Walter and Callum Mulkeen, all of 

whom could appear today, Cowburn and 

Walter for the All Golds and Mulkeen for the 

Crusaders. 

In our first professional season in 2013 we were 

drawn against Super League club Salford City 

Reds at Cheltenham and were rewarded with 

a record crowd and unfortunately but not 

surprisingly a record defeat on a memorable 

day for the club. 

And who could forget last season at the 

Racecourse Ground in Wrexham. Trailing 

by 20 points with sixteen minutes to go the 

All Golds scored 24 unanswered points to 

snatch a shock victory against North Wales 

Crusaders with Harry Kidd’s match winning 

try scored with less than 10 seconds on the 

clock! 

Magic indeed. 

Gloucestershire Warriors - 2006 

7 



CLUB DIRECTORY 

HERE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF GLOUCESTERSHIRE ALL GOLDS WE HAVE A NUMBER OF 

OFFICIAL PARTNERS AND SPONSORS THAT HEAVILY SUPPORT THE CLUB AND, AS AN 

ALL GOLDS FAN, WE ARE SURE YOU WILL FIND THIS CLUB DIRECTORY VERY USEFUL. 

If you are interested in contacting any of our partners or sponsors but you feel that you need 

more information then please don’t hesitate to call our Commercial Department on 

01242 715297 or email allgoldsbusiness@glos.ac.uk 

8 




10 

STARS COME OUT TO SHINE 


After seven months of putting piece after piece 

in place, the picture became clear on Saturday 

night as the Severn Stars made their debut in the 

Vitality Netball Super League. 

The club was formed as a collaboration between 

the University of Worcester and University of 

Gloucestershire and, up against the defending 

champions, Surrey Storm, the Stars won the first 

quarter and drew the third but the Storm scored 

enough in the other two to record an opening day 

58-40 win. 

One of the main players behind the scenes is 

Pamela Cookey. 

A former Storm player and England captain, 

Cookey retired as a player after winning the 

Grand Final, only to unexpectedly return to the 

sport within months as director of netball at the 

Stars. 

“It’s exciting and I do love a challenge,” Cookey, 32, 

told BBC Sport. 

“I want to put my mark on something. And this is 

something new, something I could bring my ideas 

to.” 

The puzzle? To help build an elite squad of 12 

players, establish three development sides, build 

community support, a fan base and club identity 

from scratch in six months. 

Even before seven-time Superleague winner 

Cookey arrived with her 114 England caps, Severn 

Stars were already being moulded by a former 

international playing great and new head coach, 

Mo’onia Gerrard - a two-time World Cup winner 

with the Australian Diamonds. 

The pair, once fierce rivals on court, are now the 

closest of colleagues. 

“Oh, I had plenty of battles with her on court. She 

was a pain,” said Cookey. “It was weird, the first 

conversation we had, because it was like we had 

known each other for years.” 



The Australian’s arrival was a 

“major coup” for the fledgling 

franchise, says founding director 

Anita Navin. 

“She was a massive brand 

straight away that said we mean 

business,” said Navin. 

“I’d got an idea early on in terms 

of what we needed to do to be 

seen, as I was worried that we 

would be a new franchise and 

wouldn’t be seen as a critical 

part of it and we wouldn’t 

recruit players. That became 

a big issue early on, plenty of 

sleepless nights about how you 

build a brand in two weeks. 

“You can’t recruit players 

without a coach because they 

want to know the style of the 

coach. 

“A lot of our athletes in this 

country have their own 

preference of style, they don’t 

like the real authoritarian type 

of coaching, they want to be 

empowered, have ownership, 

so I knew the coach was a real 

critical appointment for us. 

“And it couldn’t just be someone 

that has a tiny element of 

experience at international level, 

we needed to get someone that 

had been there and lived it.” 

Cookey’s full title at the 

University of Gloucester 

is director of netball and 

senior lecturer in professional 

development in sport 

When Cookey walked off 

the Copper Box court after 

helping Surrey Storm defend 

their title in May 2016, did she 

expect to start retirement as a 

senior lecturer at the University 

of Gloucester and director of 

netball at the then, yet-to-be 

identified new franchise? No. 

“It came at the right time,” said 

Cookey, a figure that Navin had 

long tried to get involved with 

the game in Gloucestershire. 

“I wasn’t thinking about any 

netball jobs at all when I retired. 

It wasn’t on the radar. 

“This is a nice opportunity to 

stay in the sport and I could 

create something with netball 

and could develop my career 

on the other side.” 

The Severn Stars have the 

pooled resources of two 

universities at their disposal as 

they seek to build a brand. 

They will play at the 

2,000-seater Worcester Arena, 

calling on the netball nous of 

Navin - one of the country’s 

foremost coaching advisors - 

while utilising communication, 

marketing, strength and 

conditioning, performance 

analysis and sports therapy 

expertise at the schools. 

As an athlete, Cookey was used 

to being busy as she effectively 

lived a double life, juggling an 

international playing career and 

club ambitions with business 

management jobs, which at a 

time also included commutes 

from Bristol to France. 

Cookey is less focused on 

what happens on court as 

she only contributes as a 

specialist coach, with former 

Hertfordshire Mavericks head 

coach Sam Bird coming in as 

assistant coach. 

Her job is one that ranges 

from ensuring the complex 

partnership between the two 

universities works to helping 

sign players, establishing links 

with grassroots netball clubs, 

generating corporate support, 

working on events and helping 

to make sure that everything 

adheres to Superleague 

regulations. 

She has even had an influence 

on the creation of Twitter 

accounts and merchandise. 

Asked if she could have chosen 

a tougher job in netball after 

retiring from the game, she 

laughed: “Probably not. I tend to 

do that to myself, I’m never one 

to do things by half. 

“This job brings together my 

talents. It’s the right fit for me. I 

can still be in netball but not be 

playing or coaching.” 

With franchise bids won and 

bosses in place, the Stars 

mounted a bold recruitment 

drive. 

From the sleepless nights 

thinking about how to approach 

and convince players to suit up 

for the Stars, the club has gone 

from zero to 100 players - across 

four teams and development 

squads and training partners - 

wearing the Severn colours in 

six months. 

Jodie Gibson was the first 

player to sign and she was one 

of three England internationals 

to leave last season’s losing 

finalists Manchester Thunder to 

join the new franchise. 

“We needed quick wins before 

we could market who we were,” 

said Navin. “We wanted the right 

people to share the identity, and 

that is the conversation we had 

with those three.” 

From there, the squad was 

built, taking in emerging 

England talent and those with 

Superleague experience, before 

looking at players in local trials. 

“It feels like the jigsaw has come 

into place,” she said. 

11 


12 

ALL GOLDS HOPING FOR REPEAT 

OF LAST YEAR’S HEROICS 

WRITTEN BY PATRICK BAINES 

The All Golds host North Wales Crusaders in 

the Challenge Cup this Sunday in a repeat of 

last year’s third round. 

Last season’s epic at the Racecourse saw the 

All Golds come from 36-16 down to win 40- 

36 with a last-gasp Harry Kidd try putting the 

gloss on the greatest comeback in the club’s 

history. Both teams started their season with a 

win last weekend, so confidence will be high in 

both camps ahead of the game. 

One man looking forward to the game with 

perhaps more relish than most is All Golds 

assistant coach Anthony Murray who left the 

Crusaders at the end of last season after three 

years in charge. 

He admitted to League Express that he is 

looking forward to welcoming his former club 

to the Prince of Wales Stadium in the Challenge 

Cup this Sunday. 

“I left the club on good terms and had a good 

rapport with the players and the fans. I am 

looking forward to it and to seeing some old 

friends and having a catch-up,” said Murray. 

He added: “But I will be firmly behind the All 

Golds and hoping we can do very well on the 

day. The games between Gloucester and North 

Wales last season were closely contested affairs 

and I don’t think this one will be any different.” 

The Golden Fern began their 2017 campaign 

last weekend with a 48-12 win away at Hemel in 

the League 1 Cup and, despite the comfortable 

margin of victory, head coach Lee Greenwood 

is looking for improvement ahead of Sunday’s 

game in Cheltenham. 



He said: “Early on we made too many mistakes 

with ball in hand. Our defence was solid which 

kept us in the game. We came through that 

dodgy spell and dominated after that. We 

had a number of lads making their debut for 

us last week and they all went well, which will 

make selection for Sunday’s game hard but as 

a head coach they’re the kind of problems you 

want. There’s a couple of players that missed 

last week that could well be involved this 

Sunday,” 

Like the All Golds, the North Wales Crusaders 

began their 2017 season with a win, albeit in 

tougher circumstances away to York. The 

Wrexham based side looked like exiting the 

League 1 Cup only for a last gasp Danny Price 

try to take the game to golden point extra time. 

Jack Hansen’s field goal saw the Crusaders 

home for a famous victory. 

Lee Greenwood says he’s preparing his players 

for a much sterner test than Hemel offered. 

“Crusaders have managed to pick up some 

really good players, they’ve got a strong squad 

and they’ll want to be up there challenging 

come the end of the season. We beat them 

in the Challenge Cup last year but they won 

both league games - all three were close 

games. It will be a tough challenge but we’ll be 

confident”, said Greenwood. 

13 

Re-live the drama from last year when these two squared off in the 3rd round. 


MATCH 

REPORT 

HEMEL STAGS 12-48 ALL GOLDS 

14 

SUNDAY 19 TH FEBRUARY 

PENNINE WAY SPORTS GROUND 


There were a lot of positives to come from the 

All Golds’ comprehensive 48-12 demolition of 

Hemel Stags in the League 1 Cup last week. 

There was clear evidence that the work done 

in pre-season camps at Imjin Barracks and in 

Malta was worthwhile as the players put in a 

team effort both in attack and defence. 

The Stags had remained in their Yorkshire 

base and played three pre-season games with 

coach Troy Perkins being pleased with the way 

his side were progressing. The All Golds on the 

other hand, had declined to go down that 

route and after the initial cobwebs had been 

blown away, the side showed real promise for 

the season to come. 

There was the organisation and physical 

dominance of their defence that withstood 

a battering in the opening quarter and 

conceded just one try. There was also the way 

the players pulled together, were positive in 

recovering from mistakes and did not crumble 

as they have done so often in the past when 

under pressure. 

This gave them a platform to enjoy their game 

as they cut loose in the second period to score 

seven tries and the way they were celebrated 

was proof of their togetherness on the field. 

Perhaps the turning point of the game came 

after 20 minutes when, after the Stags had 

spent virtually the entire first quarter camped 

inside the All Golds 40-metre line with only 

one converted try and a penalty goal to show 

for their efforts, Lee Greenwood unleashed 

Harry Kidd and Malikhi Lloyd-Jones from the 

bench and the impact was immediate. 

Kidd powered up the field and the team took 

his lead. They were soon on the board through 

Harrison Elliott following a repeat set earned 

by a good chase to Kiran Hyde’s kick to the 

ingoal. 

Then Kidd lost the ball trying to score before 

strong defence forced a Stags error and Brad 

Kislingbury went in at the corner to give the All 

Golds a lead they never looked like losing. 

The second half was almost a procession 

as the Stags fell apart in the face of some 



excellent play. After a quiet start to the match, 

Steve Parry was soon back to his ebullient 

best, escaping tacklers and driving forward 

with some amazing rushes. 

Alex Gaskell grew in confidence at the back 

and deserved his debut try early in the second 

half to set the avalanche that buried the Stags 

going. 

Parry then took over, scoring the fourth try and 

setting up the fifth for Kadeem Williams with a 

sublime pass to Phil Cowburn who made the 

key line break. 

Cowburn then provided Mo Agoro with a 

try with an instant tip on again after Parry 

had bounced off most of the Stags’ left side 

defence before the Welsh international hooker 

grabbed his second score shrugging off a 

tackler to run 20 metres unopposed to the line. 

Kislingbury completed the All Golds’ scoring 

picking off a short kick through and motoring 

70 metres to touch down all the time with a 

huge grin on his face. 

Once, the Stags were the All Golds’ nemesis 

but now, the boot is firmly on the other foot 

after five straight wins and four scores of 40 

points plus over the men from Hertfordshire. 

The All Golds will certainly face tougher 

challenges this season not least against the 

Crusaders this weekend but performances like 

this will see them turn over a few of the more 

fancied northern sides this season. 

ALL GOLDS: Alex Gaskell; Mo Agoro, Phil 

Cowburn, Brad Kislingbury, Chris Barlow; 

Ben Stead, Kieran Hyde; Ollie Purslow, Steve 

Parry (Capt.), James Walter; Chris Worrall, Joe 

McClean; Harrison Elliott. INTERCHANGE: 

Josh Houghton, Kadeem Williams, Malikhi 

Lloyd-Jones, Harry Kidd. 

Scorers: Tries; Harrison Elliott (23), Brad 

Kislingbury (30, 78), Alex Gaskell (45), Steve 

Parry (50, 66), Kadeem Williams (53), Mo 

Agoro (63), Joe McClean (74) 

Goals; Kieran Hyde 5 from 7, 

Ben Stead 1 from 2 

15 

The All Golds head coach reflects on a 48-12 win at Hemel in the League 1 Cup. 


16 

FIVE NEW 

SIGNINGS 

TO WATCH 

JACK CONLON CASTS HIS EYE 

OVER A HANDFUL OF PLAYERS 

LIKELY TO CATCH THE LEAGUE 1 

HEADLINES THIS YEAR. 

Quentin Laulu-Togagae – Toronto Wolfpack 

The Wolfpack undoubtedly have a strong 

squad that includes a host of stars with 

Super League experience. It’s one of their 

Championship-poached players, however, 

that I feel will catch the eye this year. QLT has 

been ripping up the second-tier competition 

for Sheffield for the past six years, racking 

up 183 tries in 218 games and making 

himself one of the most feared attackers in 

the British game. 

Despite being 32-years-old, the livewire 

fullback has plenty of pace and a killer 

sidestep, that constantly causes problems 

for defences. He will be a real asset for the 

Canadian-based club, especially with the 

likes of Fuifui Moimoi, Adam Sidlow and 

Steve Crossley setting the foundations for 

their attack, while Blake Wallace and Rhys 

Jacks organise play. It wouldn’t surprise me 

if the former Samoan international tops the 

try-scoring charts this year. 

Joe Sanderson – Hunslet 

Sanderson has been sought after by Hunslet 

for a number of years and is a major coup 

for the South Leeds club. After spending 

five years in the Leeds Rhinos Academy 

system, the 19-year-old halfback established 

himself as one of the leading lights of the 

U19s competition. Known as a prolific goal 

kicker, Sanderson’s points record speaks 

for itself, with 13 tries and 102 goals in 19 

appearances last year. He also levelled Liam 

Finn’s record of 41 consecutive successful 

goal kicks during last season, which in itself 

is no mean feat. 

As a ball player, he has great vision and is 

no stranger to taking charge of the game, 

having taken over from Jordan Lilley as 

Leeds U19s main halfback when Lilley was 

promoted to the first team. While Hunslet 

started their season on a sour note last week 

with a big loss against Newcastle, Sanderson 

could be a key figure as they look to change 

their fortunes. 

Phil Joseph – Workington Town 

After being involved in the liquidation circus 

at Bradford, Workington offered Joseph a 



lifeline and a chance to be one of the leaders 

within their squad. The Cumbrian outfit are 

Joseph’s 11th club in a career which has 

spanned 13 years across three divisions, 

meaning he joins with bags of experience. 

The 32-year-old can play anywhere across 

the front row and while he isn’t the tallest 

player, he makes up for it in his stocky figure 

and physical nature and will be sure to lead 

Town’s pack this year. Having played in 

Super League for the past five years, Joseph 

is a major signing for the Cumbrian outfit, 

as they look to win promotion back into the 

Championship. 

17 

Ash Robson – York City Knights 

Robson is one of League 1’s most impressive 

newcomers and while he isn’t particularly 

known now, I’m sure he will be this time 

next year. The young fullback was touted 

as Castleford’s new number one when Luke 

Dorn retired at the end of last year, but a 

ruptured kneecap in pre-season blighted his 

chance to show what he could do. 

The 21-year-old has bags of pace and is 

smart with the ball, regularly setting up 

chances for his teammates as well as 

himself. And with proven try-scorers David 

Foggin-Johnston and Tommy Saxton on 

the flanks, York’s attack is looking much 

stronger ahead of this season. Robson could 

arguably compete at Super League level, 

and so is a real handy pickup for the Knights. 

Lewis Charnock – Barrow Raiders 

The Raiders are many people’s picks for 

promotion this year and are certainly 

stronger with Charnock on their books. The 

stocky halfback/hooker has been part of 

the St Helens side since making his Super 

League debut as a 19-year-old in 2013 but 

has found playing opportunities hard to 

come by, with the likes of Luke Walsh, Theo 

Fages and James Roby in front of him. 

He had an impressive loan spell at Bradford 

last year, scoring 64 points in 12 games and 

being very influential in their victorious 

Championship Shield run. A move to 

Cumbria, therefore, allows him to settle and 

play his game without worrying about his 

future, for the meantime anyway. His halves 

partner is former North Wales Crusader 

Jamie Dallimore, who has arguably been 

one of League 1’s best players for a number 

of years and with former Workington stars 

Brett Carter, Dec Hulme and Jarrad Stack 

also coming in, the Raiders are bound to be 

a threat in this year’s competition. 


FLAME OF 

THE WEST 

the west awakes 

18 

The West of England clubs gathered at Tormarton 

just off the M4 this week to discuss the structure 

and composition of the League for the 2017 

season. 

Applications from two new teams were accepted 

with Bath Rugby League and Swindon St George 

A being added to the competition. Reading 

Raiders were accepted as associate members as 

they look to build towards a full entry in 2018. 

However, it was disappointment for the Devon 

Sharks who were not accepted after a long 

discussion, partly owing to their geographical 

isolation from the rest of the teams and partly 

due to the imbalance in the league structure their 

inclusion might bring. 

Hopefully, the Sharks can work with the other 

clubs in the South West league to rebuild and 

strengthen the competition to the benefit of all in 

that region. 

Having almost doubled in size last season with the 

addition of Southampton, Portsmouth and the 

Forest of Dean and the return of Gloucestershire 

Warriors and Oxford Cavaliers from the 

Conference League South, the new teams bring 

the league up to a healthy dozen. 

A West-East split was discussed and agreed for 

the two pools, though it needed magnanimous 

gesture by Bristol Sonics who agreed to play in 

the Eastern pool for the 2017 campaign. 

They joined Swindon St George, Oxford, 

Portsmouth, Southampton and Bath RL while 

the West will contain Bath Romans, Cheltenham 

Phoenix, Forest Bulldogs, Gloucestershire 

Warriors, Somerset Vikings and Swindon St 

George A. 

The season will begin on 6 May with the third West 

of England 9s tournament held again at Swindon 

and the Grand Final will be held along with a Plate 

Final – a format that proved successful last season 

– in August 

Now the preparations can really begin. 

LIONHEARTS 

TO IRELAND 

Representative rugby league has always been the 

pinnacle of the game and the issue over the past 

few years has been that it has been realistically 

open to only a very few players. 

All that has now changed with the Lionhearts 

concept being rolled out across the regions so 

that each league can select its own representative 

team and a pathway become available for the 

very best talent in the Community Game. 

During the Autumn, the West of England 

Lionhearts representative side made its bow 

with games against a South Wales Scorpions 

Development side and a Wales Presidents XIII 

which gave nearly 30 players the opportunity 

to play representative rugby league. From those 

games and a West of England, West vs East trial 

game, a squad was picked for a trip to Dublin to 

face Ireland Wolfhounds this Spring. 

The Gloucestershire Warriors have two players 

in the 21-man squad, which has representatives 

from all ten of the clubs that played in 2016. 

Captain Ash Lewis and wing Kai Phillips both 

make the trip while former Warriors captain now 

with Swindon St George, Ben Brinkworth, also 

gained selection. 

Also packing their bags are Paul Bartlett of 

Cheltenham Phoenix and the Forest Bulldogs’ 

Colin Maragon and Ross Webb in what should be 

a memorable trip. 



On Facebook, Lewis said: “It’s safe to say this is 

one of my biggest achievements yet in rugby 

league, ... in now representing the Lionhearts 

against the Irish wolfhounds in Dublin, one of the 

many places on my bucket list to go to; and to go 

and play rugby there too, is a dream in itself.” 

ROYALS APPOINTMENT 

Reading Royals have appointed Alex Fox as their 

new head coach for the 2017 season. 24-yearold 

Fox is currently acting head of rugby and pe 

teacher at Leighton Park school in Reading and 

will take charge of the Raiders fr the next two 

years having oplayed for them last year in their 

defeat against Hemel Stags Merit team. 

The club also held their first AGM recently as 

theyu plan for a successful season this year with 

the committee agreeing to have a second season 

of friendlies as the club evolves ahead of hopefully 

joining the West of England League in 2018. 

The raiders are aiming to play eight friendlies 

between may and july, including the return of the 

two-legged Kennett Cup versus Swindon and 

keep up an unbeaten home record in the four 

prospective games at Berkshire County Sports 

Club. 

Key to this will be the retention and recruitment 

of players ahead of what should be a challenging 

season for the largely inexperienced side, who 

begin pre-season in march. 

If you’re interested in playing for the club or 

supporting them, email 

readingroyalsrlfc@gmail.com 

CONFERENCE 

LEAGUE SOUTH 

The sides that contested the RFL’s CLS in 2016 

are seeking to resolve their immediate futures 

following the decision of Red Hall bosses to axe 

the competition. 

Coventry bears A aim to arrange matches 

on an ad hoc basis. Managing director Alan 

robinson told league express: “the local Midlands 

competition is not suitable for us to be playing in. 

we hope to set up reserves fixtyures to assist in 

the development of players within our ranks and 

also guest new players from the region.” 

Three sides – Torfaen Tigers, Valley Cougars and 

west Wales Raiders – hail from Wales, and Welsh 

RL PRO Ian Golden said: “All are now to come 

back to Wales. We are, however, not yet sure of 

the structure or numbers in the league.” 

Nottingham outlaws have sought inclusion in the 

Yorkshire Men’s League and have been accepted 

into the Premier Division, while Gloucestershire 

All Golds have yet to respond to League Express 

regarding their plans. 

Wests Warriors’ Shun Tamura said: “We will be 

attending a meetingsoon with all the London 

and South East clubs to determine the direction 

of the 2017 structure. Hopefully we will come to 

a conclusion whereby we can really contribute to 

building an exciting competition in the south. 

“as it stands, it is looking likely that we remain in 

the London League although obviously the big 

dream is the National Conference League and 

beyond.” 

19 


ALL GOLDS FIXTURES & RESU 

DATE K.O. OPPONENTS RES FULLBACK WING CENTRE CENTRE WING STAND OFF 

Sun Feb 19 15:00 A Hemel Stags (iPCR1) 12-48 GASKELL 1T AGORO 1T COWBURN KISLINGBURY 2T BARLOW STEAD 1G 

Sun Feb 26 15:00 H North Wales Crusaders (LCCR3) 

Sun Mar 5 15:00 A Hunslet Hawks (KPL1) 

Sun Mar 12 15:00 H Keighley Cougars (KPL1) 

Sun Mar 26 15:00 A Workington Town (KPL1) 

Sun Apr 9 15:00 H London Skolars (KPL1) 

Fri April 14 15:00 A South Wales Ironmen (KPL1) 

Sun May 7 15:00 H York City Knights (KPL1) 

Sun May 14 15:00 H North Wales Crusaders (KPL1) 

Sun May 21 15:00 A Coventry Bears (KPL1) 

Sun Jun 4 15:00 H Newcastle Thunder (KPL1) 

Sun Jun 11 14:00 A Whitehaven RLFC (KPL1) 

Sun Jun 18 14:00 A Hemel Stags (KPL1) 

Sun Jun 25 15:00 H Oxford (KPL1) 

Sat Jul 1 18:30 A Barrow Raiders (KPL1) 

Sat Jul 8 12:00 A Toronto Wolfpack (KPL1) 

Sat Sep 10 15:00 H Doncaster (KPL1) 

THE KEY | Home games appear in bold | KPL1 = Kingstone Press League 1 | KPL1S = Kingstone Press League 1 Shield 

LCC = Ladbrokes Challenge Cup | IC = iPro Cup | Sin-binned Red Card (Sent Off) | T = Try | G = Goal | DG = Drop Goal 



LTS 2017 

SCRUM HALF PROP HOOKER PROP 2ND ROW 2ND ROW LOOSE FWD SUB 1 SUB 2 SUB 3 SUB 4 

HYDE 5G PURSLOW PARRY (C) 2T WALTER WORRALL McCLEAN 1T ELLIOTT 1T HOUGHTON WILLIAMS 1T LLOYD-JONES KIDD 


ALL GOLDS 

HEAD COACH: 

LEE GREENWOOD 

CRUSADERS 

HEAD COACH: 

MIKE GRADY 

22 

MOBOLAJI AGORO 

JORDAN ANDRADE 

CHRIS BARLOW 

WILLIAM BRICKHILL 

PHILIP COWBURN 

HARRISON ELLIOTT 

ALEX GASKELL 

JOSHUA HOUGHTON 

KIERAN HYDE 

HARRY KIDD 

BRADLEY KISLINGBURY 

MALIKHI LLOYD-JONES 

JOSEPH McCLEAN 

JACK MITCHELL 

STEVEN PARRY (C) 

OLIVER PURSLOW 

JAMES WALTER 

KADEEM WILLIAMS 

CHRIS WORRALL 

KENNETH BAKER 

DALE BLOOMFIELD 

JOHN COOKSON 

JAMES DANDY 

JACK HANSEN 

JACK HOUGHTON 

LEE HUDSON 

EARL HURST 

THOMAS JOHNSON 

ANDREW JOY 

RICHARD JOY 

COREY LEE 

RYAN MILLINGTON 

AARON MOORE 

CALLUM MULKEEN 

DANIEL PRICE 

RYAN SMITH 

JON WALKER 

LUKE WARBURTON 

REFEREE: G. DOLAN RESERVE: J. COLLINS TOUCH JUDGES: R SNELSON, J. BUTTERFIELD 

MATCH COMMISSIONER: J. HOLDSWORTH 


Oxstalls Campus, Gloucester, GL2 9HW 


Tel: 01242 715332 | Official Website: www.allgoldsrugby.com

All Golds v North Wales Crusaders LCC3 FINAL

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