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PADDY TO LEAVE LIONS ON A HIGH

Swinton Lions can confirm that our popular forward Paddy Jones will be leaving the club now that the 2022 season has finished.

Paddy joined the club in 2018, but it was season 2019 when he had an outstanding campaign and walked away with the Lions’ Man of Steel award. In the current season Paddy made 10 appearances, giving him a Swinton career total of 71. He also scored four tries in total, two of which came at London Skolars earlier this season.

Swinton Lions head coach Allan Coleman said, “Paddy Jones has been brilliant both for me personally and for the team. He is a fantastic person on and off the field, and he will be a brilliant acquisition for any club.”

News

MATTY WILKINSON TO LEAVE LIONS ON A HIGH

Swinton Lions can confirm that Matt Wilkinson will not be remaining at the club beyond the current year.

Matt, who joined us from Oldham last autumn, played an increasingly important role at hooker for the Lions, particularly in view of the long-term injuries sustained by Luke Waterworth and George Roby. Matt really came to prominence as the season came to its dramatic promotion conclusion, producing some great moments and performances, including a never-to-be forgotten 70 yards try at North Wales Crusaders.

After making 22 appearances for the Lions in 2022, it’s understood that Matt will shortly be moving to another north-west club. 

Head coach Allan Coleman said, “Wilky is a real character and a player we are going to miss. He has been superb for us when it mattered most, and we wish him all the very best for next season.”

News

MAX ROBERTS TO MOVE ON IN 2023

After a tremendously successful promotion campaign with the Lions, Swinton Lions can confirm that our centre Max Roberts has elected to move to another Championship club for season 2023.

22 years old Max joined us from Oldham this time last year, having played his formative years with Leigh Miners Rangers and Blackbrook. He played in all but one of our games in 2022, scoring 16 tries.

Swinton head coach Allan Coleman said, “Max Roberts has been amazing for us. Every team needs a Max – someone who is tough, robust and never takes a backward step. He has been superb for us and a pleasure to coach. We are gutted that Max has decided to move on, but we can’t thank him enough for last season and we wish him nothing but the best for next year.”

News

FAREWELL AND GOOD LUCK, LEWIS HATTON 

Swinton Lions can confirm that Lewis will be moving to another club elsewhere in the Championship for 2023.

Prop-forward Lewis joined the Lions from Rochdale Hornets ahead of the 2019 campaign and made a tremendous impact. Sadly 2020 was then all but wiped out by by covid, and 2021 was disrupted by injury, but “Hatto” came to the fore once again this season to help drive Swinton to promotion.

Head coach Allan Coleman said, “Lewis has been our number one middle for the last few seasons and has been a brilliant player for us. We knew the interest he would receive ahead of next year, but that’s something every good player gets. We can’t thank him enough and everyone at Swinton will wish him all the best for next year.”

News

JACK HANSEN LEAVES WITH LIONS’ BEST WISHES 

Swinton Lions can officially confirm that our talented half-back Jack Hansen, will be moving on to pastures new elsewhere in the Championship ahead of the 2023 season.

The former Leigh East player joined the Lions from hometown club Leigh Centurions in 2017, and his promise was immediately obvious. Over the past five years Jack has established himself as one of the standout number 7s outside of Super League, and has given Swinton fantastic service. 

Jack’s final act as a Swinton player was his never-to-be-forgotten last minute try in the promotion play-off final against Doncaster, an occasion which will remain forever in Lions’ folklore. That effort was Jack’s 35th try for Swinton, in his 113th appearance.

Lions’ head coach Allan Coleman said, “Coaching Jack has been an absolute pleasure. He was a player that we never wanted to lose, but at the same time we accept and understand why he wishes to move on. The coaching staff here call him ‘the spongy’, as he absorbs everything he learns, and we will certainly miss him. I have no doubt he will kick on even further and become a player that the Championship stand up to and respect. From everyone at Swinton Lions, we thank you Jack, and no doubt we will see you soon!”

News

Farewell from Jack Spencer, a Lion and a Swintonian

Amidst all the excitement of our recent play-off final victory over Doncaster, we also saw the retirement of our much respected forward Jack Spencer. In many ways it could not have been better scripted, especially with Jack being a Swinton lad, with him able to bow out by winning promotion and a trophy with his home town club!

Jack’s early development of course very much centred around our community partner club, Folly Lane, where he made a considerable impact. From Folly Jack progressed to Salford Red Devils, where he made seven first team appearances. In 2012 Jack enjoyed a tremendous experience with Wests Tigers in Sidney, and indeed later he would also try his luck in France with Villeneuve, before settling back into the English game.

In 2013 Jack had a spell with Barrow Raiders, for whom he made 16 appearances, before crossing the border to join Halifax for seasons 2014 and 2015 (32 appearances). However, it will probably be his spell at Oldham for which he’ll be best remembered, as between seasons 2016 and 2021 he played some 106 times for the Roughyeds. After a couple of previous unsuccessful efforts to tempt him to the Lions, Jack finally signed for Swinton ahead of the 2022 season. He scored his only try in a Lions shirt away to Midlands Hurricanes, before completing the season on 19 appearances

Reflecting on his final season as a professional player, Jack said, “I knew quite early on this year that this would be my last season. It’s been really hard juggling work and rugby and being a new dad. Professional rugby takes up such a lot of your spare time and not being there for my son and my partner as much as I’d like was the main factor in me calling it a day.

“I’ve loved my short time at Swinton, and everyone at the club made me feel really welcome from the very start. To finish my career with a trophy for my hometown club is the perfect ending for me. I’ve played rugby since I was six years old, and it’s all I’ve ever known. I’ve loved every minute and have been lucky to travel around the world doing what I love, but now it’s time to put my family first.”

Swinton Lions Head Coach, Allan Coleman, added, “It’s been great having Jack at the club this year. He is a born leader and winner, and he has helped us achieve our promotion goal in so many ways. He leads by example and sets the highest standards, and away from rugby he’s certainly a character and one of the good guys.

I want to thank Jack personally for helping me so much and he probably doesn’t even know just exactly what he has contributed. It’s fantastic that a Swinton lad was able to enjoy success with Swinton Lions on which to end his playing days. We want him to stay involved in some role if that’s possible, but whatever he decides he will be missed so much by both us and the whole of rugby league.”

News

SWINTON LIONS 16 DONCASTER 10

SWINTON LIONS 16

DONCASTER 10

IAN RIGG Heywood Road, Sunday

The Lions sealed their return to the championship with a winning try from Jack Hansen scoring as the hooter sounded in a pulsating game watched by a noisy following band of fans from both sides.

Jason Tali put Doncaster ahead in the third minute when he finished off a try in the corner, but the conversion attempt hit the posts and bounced out. It was all Doncaster in the early stages and Sam Smeaton had a good chance to increase the lead, but some good tackling held him short of the line on the last tackle. Rising star Leon Ruan then also had a chance but he knocked on at the paly the ball thirty metres out. The Lions first attack came on seventeen minutes when Hansen launched a kick towards the try line but Tali was there to stop the danger picking up the kick and clearing his line, but Jordan Case did put then Lions on the board when he took a cut out pass from Nick Gregson to race in under the posts and Dan Abram added the simple conversion. They could have gone further ahead on twenty-seven minutes, but Lewis Hatton could not control a long pass with the line open. Will Hope then made a break down the middle on the half hour with only the fullback to beat but he was pulled back by the referee for a forward pass. Robinson launched a kick to the corner for Tali to chase but he could not control the ball with the line open. The scores were level six minutes from the break when the Lions were penalised for a high tackle and Robinson added the conversion.

The game really got going after the break with both sides trading chances and Abram was high tackled in the forty-first minute and from the resulting penalty pressure Matty Wilkinson went close only to be tackled short on the last tackle. Next it was Doncasters chance and Misi Taulapap made a nice break down field and with Abram approaching for the tackle he offloaded to Tali who couldn’t hold the pass. Lewis Hatton and Keelan Foster then both had chances in their opposition tens abut neither could keep hold of the ball. Jayden Hatten then had a good chance taking a high ball near the line and it took good defence to hold him out. Doncaster took the lead again on fifty-two minutes when a move to the right saw Tom Holliday go over tight in the right corner but Robinson could not convert from the touch line. The Lions had more pressure on the Doncaster line just after theis try but some excellent defence was needed to hold them out and they too had another good chance minutes later, but ball handling again let them down. Gregson thought he had scored for the Lions when he cut past two defenders to score by the posts but the was brought back by the referee for an obstruction in the build-up. Watson Boas replaced Greg Burns and he almost had an instant impact when he stabbed a short kick through to the line but forced a goal line drop out.

Taulapapa lost control of a pass near the Lions line on sixty-six minutes and Ruan caught the ball in an offside position, and they moved up field from the penalty and this ended with Gregson sending another nice short pass for Mitch Cox to finish off scoring by the posts and Abram converted to put his side ahead. The Lions were coming strong in the final stages seeing more chances coming their way and Jayden Hatton was unlucky not to score from another Hansen high kick. Doncaster were not finished and were working the ball nicely down the right and Halliday broke clear and looked all on a scorer, but he was knocked into touch by a super try saving tackle by Abram which would have put them back ahead. Cox had another chance with two minutes left but he too lost control of the ball with the line at his mercy but on the very last play the Lions finalised their promotion when Hansen broke a tackle and then ran away from two more to score in the right corner as the hooter sounded and the crowd went wild but Abram could not add the conversion from the touchline. A jubilant Lions Coach Allan Coleman commented at the end of the game “I am really proud of this bunch of guys who have working so hard to achieve this goal and get us back in the Championship where we belong”

MATCHFACTS

LIONS

  1 Dan Abram

  2 Mike Butt

  4 Max Roberts

28 Jayden Hatton

  5 Richard Lepori

13 Nick Gregson

  7 Jack Hansen

16 Louis Brogan

14 Matty Wilkinson

23 Jordan Case

11 Rhodri Lloyd

12 Mitch Cox

25 Lewis Charnock

Subs (all used)

31 Brad Holrod

  8 Will Hope

17 Jack Spencer

10 Lewis Hatton

Tries: Case (20), Cox (27), Hansen (40)

Goal: Abram 2/3

DONCASTER

  1 Mis Taulapapa

  2 Tom Halliday

  3 Robbie Storey

  4 Jason Tali

  5 Travis Corion

  6 Ben Johnston

  7 Connor Robinson

14 Alex Holdstock

  9 Greg Burns

10 Brandan Wilkinson

11 Sam Smeaton

12 Leon Ruan

13 Loui McConnell

Subs (all used)

17 Watson Boas

18 Josef Fella

19 Keelan Foster

20 Dave Peterson

Tries: Tali (3), Halliday (12)

Goals: Robinson 1/2

Penalty Count: 7-9 Half-time: 6-6

Referee: James Vella Attendance:  1086

SCORING SEQUENCE: 0-4, 6-4, 6-6, 6-10, 12-10. 16-10.

News

DAVE ROBINSON – The loss of a true Lion

Just a couple of days ago everyone associated with Swinton Lions RLFC was shocked to hear of the death at the age of 78 of one of the club’s true all-time greats, Dave Robinson. Dave was an absolute gentleman, with an approachable and modest demeanour, despite all the great things he had achieved in our sport, not just with Swinton, but also with Wigan, his county, and his country.

Dave was born in Swinton on 1st August 1944, and growing up he attended Moorside Secondary School. Excelling in rugby league at school, he joined the premier local amateur side, Folly Lane Juniors, where still in his teens he was spotted and recruited by the Lions.

Dave made his Swinton first-team debut at the age of 19 on 21st March 1964 in a 16-7 Western Division victory over Leigh at Station Road, a game in which his future Great Britain team-mate Johnny Stopford scored a hat-trick. However, Dave would have to wait until the following season to earn a regular place, and in the meantime the Lions swept to their second consecutive Rugby League Championship, their sixth overall.

Dave’s arrival coincided with the great Albert Blan’s retirement, and such was his talent that he was trusted to fill the huge gap at loose-forward left by his predecessor. In Dave’s first full season he was just 80 minutes from Wembley when the Lions lost to Wigan in the 1965 Challenge Cup semi-final. A few months later, in August 1965, he scored the first two of his eventual 32 tries for the Lions in home victory over Widnes.

Dave’s impact at Swinton was immediate. He was terrifically fast in the loose, and his clever prompting of the Swinton attack from his pivot position soon brought him to the attention of the representative selectors. In October 1965, he was chosen for Lancashire to play the touring New Zealanders, then found himself in the full Great Britain team for the Third Test which was drawn 9-9 against the Kiwis a month later. 

From thereon he became a regular in the Great Britain line-up and won 12 consecutive caps as a Swinton player. This sequence included all five Tests on the Ashes Tour of 1966, when he was one of four Swinton men to make the trip (the others being Ken Gowers, Alan Buckley and Johnny Stopford). Dave also played in 17 games against Australian and New Zealand club and regional teams on the 1966 Tour, scoring four tries.

Dave had an outstanding match for the Lions in their 1969 Lancashire Cup Final victory over Leigh, and he also played for his club against the 1965 Kiwis and 1967 Kangaroos. However, in January 1970, Dave was controversially sold to Wigan for a club record £10,000, where he earned a place on the 1970 Ashes Tour and played in a Challenge Cup Final. In all Dave played 143 times for Wigan, scoring 17 tries.

He returned to the Lions in February 1976 in an unsuccessful effort to stem the Lions’ slide towards the second division, and retired towards the end of the 1976/77 season. Dave’s last appearance in a Swinton shirt had come on 6th March 1977, a game the Lions won 24-14 against Batley at Station Road.

Heartfelt condolences are extended to Dave’s family, especially wife Kath, and all of his many friends. The name of Dave Robinson will never be forgotten at Swinton Lions RLFC.

Please note that there will be a one minute silence ahead of kick-off tomorrow in honour of Dave’s memory. There will also be a special insert in the match day programme.

News

Swinton Lionesses  0          Illingworth 20

Alan Dixon at Blue Ribbon Playing Fields

A large crowd turned out to watch the Lionesses bid for promotion in the play-off semi-final. They were treated to an end to end game but, it was third placed Illingworth that came out on top. 

Defences dominated the game with scoring chances being few and far between. The first chance came in the 17th minute. With the Lionesses on the attack, Rebecca Roden was tackled just short of the line. Georgia Cunliffe went over from acting half but was deemed to have knocked on while trying to score. Illingworth moved downfield on their next attack but were forced to kick the ball at the end of the set. The Lionesses lost the ball bringing it away from their own line and Illingworth recovered it. They moved it out wide for Charlotte McCauliffe to score near the corner. Reagan Walker missed the conversion. Illingworth led 4-0 after 19 minutes.

The next chance came in the 31st minute. With the Lionesses pressurising the Illingworth line, Maddie Corrigan broke through the defence. The ball was ripped out of her grasp but, she managed to recover the ball to score. The try was disallowed as the referee deemed it to be a knock on. Illingworth went back on the attack. A Lionesses mistake led to a scrum 10 metres from their own line. The ball was moved out to the wing for Niamh Cresswell to dive over in the corner. Again it was disallowed for a knock on.

The Lionesses lost the ball from the kick off at the start of the second half. Illingworth moved the ball infield and Elizabeth Stubley barged her way over under the posts to score with less than a minute played. Reagan Walker converted as Illingworth stretched their lead to 10-0. The Lionesses couldn’t make anything of their chances. Illingworth forced a drop out in the 65th minute. They eventually scored again 6 minutes later when Elizabeth Stubley scored her second try near the posts. Reagan Walker converted for a 16-0 Illingworth lead. The final score of the game came in the 78th minute. Reagan Walker barged her way over in the corner from a Lionesses drop out. She was unable to add the extras to her try.

It was not to be for the Lionesses, but they can be proud of what they have achieved in their first season.

Teams :

Swinton Lionesses : Maddie Higson, Izzy Birds, Mia Atherton, Maddie Corrigan, Daisy Pearson, Ashley Deas, Ellie Thirkell, Leah Christian, Eve Ashcroft, Abbie Parkes-Holden, Emily Haley, Rebecca Roden, Georgia Cunliffe. SUBS : Patrycja Baranek, Chloe Birkett, Libby Curran, Holly Grimes, Jo Mullins, Mollie Scotson, Chloe Latham

Illingworth : Holly Waddington, Niamh Cresswell, Lilliebelle Hunter, Charlotte McCauliffe, Hollie Kirby, Julia Lowery, Angel Bentley, Sienna McPherson, Jess Oldroyd, Elizabeth Stubley, Gabbie Kaney, Emily Mawdsley, Reagan Walker. SUBS : Shelby Easton, Maia Tatikos, Debbie Smith, Codie Waller, Alice Stubley, Macy McDermott, Tira Murray

Tries : McCauliffe (19), E. Stubley (41,71), Walker (78)

Goals : Walker 2

Referee : Danny Tindall

Pens : 5-4                  Half Time : 0-4 

1 18 19 20 21 22 89

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