Mayfield makes move for championship

Saqib Murtza

Rochdale Mayfield ARLFC has entered their club into the race for inclusion in the RFL Championship by applying to be considered for a licence to run a team in the 2012 competition.

The club currently in the second automatic promotion spot in the race to be in National Conference League Premier Division feels the time is right to put the club where it rightfully belongs as the Premier Rugby League Club in the town.

Club President, and first ever BARLA International Captain, Barry Edwards said: “This is a historic day in the life of the club who started just over 50 years ago as a team based in a local pub and over the years the committees have driven it forward  to where we are now standing on the edge of the RFL Championship with a facility that is second to none outside of the pro game.”

The club has indeed moved forward rapidly from its humble beginnings in the Mayfield Public House to the new home at the Mayfield Sports Arena which has all the facilities required to support a Championship team in being able to generate its own income from the modern function room as well as to provide a fully functional base for any team wishing to aspire to greater things in the world of Rugby League.

Chairman Simon Howe said: “We as a committee discussed the possibility of applying for the RFL Championship and felt that we had to throw our name in the pot. We have a really good squad made up of experienced players as well as some really good young talent coming through. We have a facility that can support the development of the players through such things as a state of the art gym as well as a facility that offers a stadium that a lot of current Championship clubs would love to have as their home.”

The club hopes that their initial Expression of Interest will open up the possibility of a visit from the RFL to allow the club to show what they have done both on the field and of it by themselves to move the club so far forward in such a short period.

Mr Edwards concluded: “Mayfield has shown that there are quality Rugby League players out there in the town, in the form of Andy Taylor and Mark Biggins both currently playing in the Championship and Paul Brearley and  Callum Marriott both currently in Super League, and given the opportunity through quality coaching and the chance to play for the town will develop and be a credit to the town team, Rochdale Mayfield.”