Three hundred guests, including a party of 180 visiting Australian fans, enjoyed the gala event at the Leeds Marriott Hotel which raised a fantastic £12,000 for the Rugby League Benevolent Fund.
The dinner was also attended by some of the sport’s greatest international players who shared their memories of playing against, and for Australia during their distinguished careers.
Rugby League Hall of Fame inductees Ellery Hanley OBE and Adrian Morley, Wales legend Jim Mills, former St Helens and England captain James Graham and 1972 World Cup Kangaroo John Grant regaled the audience with some entertaining stories while the evening featured contributions from Great Britain Lions Joe Lydon, Keith Senior and Graham Steadman.
Rugby League Cares would like to thank MCs Jenna Brooks and Pete Emmett for their fantastic hosting of the event, as well as the many people and companies who helped the charity raise such a magnificent amount.
They include Craig Brown from Rugby League Experience (Experience Sport) for his donation of a trip for two people to see the RL extravaganza in Las Vegas in 2026 as the main raffle prize, and to Kevin Ellis from Ellis Rugby who designed and produced an exclusive Rugby League Ashes heritage jersey which sold like hot cakes on the night.
Ashes series sponsor ABK Beer were also generous supporters of the dinner, gifting a free bottle of beer for every guest.