LEEDS has much more to offer than just great university sport. The city is also home to some of the finest elite and professional sport in the country. All worth taking in during your time in this vibrant sporting community.
Leeds United are one of the most well-supported football clubs in the nation and following a somewhat difficult run last season, finishing 15th in The Championship, the team are ready to put things right. Their recent win against Derby and draw to Brentford suggest that things are on the right track. The team play at Elland Road Stadium and tickets start at around £16.
Leeds Ladies were formed in 2014, and recently played their first full season in the WPL Northern Division 1, finishing third. The club were revived by a group of loyal supporters after the Leeds United Foundation withdrew all funding and sponsorship from the team, originally known as Leeds United Ladies Football Club. They play at Cedar Ridge, home to Garforth AFC men’s team.
Leeds is also home to the massively successful Leeds Rhinos, who are considered to be one of the best sides ever to grace the sport of rugby league. The Rhinos are in the form of their life, having just won the Challenge Cup in a final that saw them thrash Hull Kingston Rovers by a score of 50-0. The side are now chasing the elusive ‘double’ as they hope to be crowned champions of the Super League Championship. They play at the lively Headingley Carnegie Stadium and there has never been a better time to get behind them.
Also amongst Leeds’s elite sporting family is the most successful team in English cricket history, Yorkshire County Cricket Club. The club was established in 1863 and has since become a household name in both the landscape of English cricket and in Yorkshire’s culture. The side have just retained the LV= County Championship and with top internationals such as Tim Bresnan on display, Yorkshire gives you the chance to see some truly world-class cricket at your front door.
Their female counterparts also tasted success this season, with the Yorkshire women’s team scooping the County Championship Division One title, the sixth in their history. Some notable players have passed through the doors of the club, including Melissa Reynard, Katherine Brunt and Lauren Winfield, who have all featured for the England senior team.
James Candler
Featured image: Leeds United