Crusaders to play two World Champions in a week

Crusader Cymru · Crusaders to play two World Champions in a week

CELTIC Crusaders will kick-off Wales Rugby League's Centenary Year in 2007 with glamour ties against two former world champions in the space of a week.

The Bridgend-based club will open their competitive season with a home Northern Rail Cup tie against Widnes Vikings on Friday 9th February 2007 (kick-off 7.30pm). Widnes were led by Welsh international Jonathan Davies to World Championship victory in 1989 over Canberra Raiders.

The Widnes match takes place six days before the Crusaders take on Australian Rugby League champions and two-time world champions, Brisbane Broncos in a World Club Challenge warm-up match for the Aussies. That game is at the Brewery Field, Bridgend, on Thursday 15th February (7.30pm).

Forty-eight hours later, the Crusaders will face London Skolars in the Northern Rail Cup at the Brewery Field, while their first away match will be against the Northern Rail Cup holders and former Super League side Leigh Centurions on Sunday 25th February.

The Crusaders’ National League Two campaign opens on Good Friday, 6th April with an away fixture against the Skolars, while their first home league match of the season is against Blackpool Panthers on Easter Monday.

Most of the Crusaders home matches will now be on Saturdays, with 6pm kick-offs. The only exceptions to this will be the Widnes, Brisbane, Blackpool and Oldham Roughyeds matches. The home match against the Roughyeds will take place on Friday 4th May at 7.30pm, the day before “Millennium Magic” weekend which sees a full round of Super League played over two days at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff.

Crusaders Operations Manager Gerald McCarthy can’t wait for 2007 to begin.

“I’m really looking forward to the new season,” he said. “With Brisbane, Widnes and Leigh all visiting the Brewery Field, we’ve an exciting start ahead of us.

“The Saturday evening kick-off is a change for the better and has already been welcomed by all of our fans. Many of our potential supporters who live some distance away from Bridgend were unable to make it last season due to poor Sunday public transport. We have taken their views into consideration and this change will result in larger crowds.

“It also means that more away supporters will visit Wales, many of whom will stay for the weekend and help to boost the Welsh economy.”

Season tickets, priced at £70, and Brisbane Broncos match tickets, at £10, are available now on the Celtic Crusaders website at www.crusadersrfl.com along with the full season's fixtures.