Leigh Leopards owner Derek Beaumont threatens to quit rugby League & create a separate competition

[josie andrews]

RFL to look into footage of Derek Beaumont rant

Leigh Leopards lost to Wigan Warriors in controversial circumstances on Friday night meaning they will now have to go away to Hull KR this week in the Super League play offs.

This is because the defeat cost Leigh fourth spot in the league and a home play off game.

Thus they will have to go away to Hull KR in a do or die clash in the fight to secure a spot at Old Trafford in 2024.

The game was controversial because of the disallowed Oliver Gildart try for obstruction.

Making matters worse there was a controversy around an interview with Adrian Lam that never happened.

This led to a rant from Derek Beaumont footage of which has emerged this afternoon.

The RFL has now confirmed they will be looking into this having already begun looking into the Sky interview controversy.

The video was captured at an event after the game and shared on fan page Rugby League Humour as well as other places.

In the video, Beaumont can be seen saying: “All we can talk about is the performance of a referee, yet again.

I’ve got a guy, a guy down there who is in charge of a group of players and to me, like I see the work that goes in week in week out from them, from all the coaching staff, the medical staff.

“I see the work they put in, I see the weights they lift, I see the metres they run, I see the wrestle they do, I see the contact they put into each other.

“I see how much it means to them and I see how much they care about everybody in this room, then I see one person go (mimics no try signal) with a signal like that, that’s incorrect, and rob them and you lot of being able to watch us play at home next week and that isn’t right

We’ve all got kids and there’s kids in here and I definitely wouldn’t call them kids because they’re big grown tough men and athletes, but they’re my kids. I treat them like my family and they fight hard for me.

“I feel hurt when they get abused and I’ve seen it too many times now, and I don’t care if anyone’s filming it because I’ve told the RFL clean and square.”

He went on to speak about the trophy presentation party:

They’re all in my box, all with the presentation party, the trophies are already in the stadium, all the boards are already sat in here and waiting, and it’s impossible to move it from here to St Helens.

“Then the decision gets dealt with by a decision by the referee who were appointed by the people who were running the game and decided what goes on. Okay! No helicopter needed, because we can’t afford one.

“I’ll put it out there because unfortunately this is not an investable sport anymore to me, which is obviously very concerning.

So unless it changes, I won’t be investing in it any further and I’m sorry to say that in here but when my wife comes up to me and says ‘I’ve had enough’.

“She sees the pain and the emailing all night till midnight and me kids saying ‘I just want to tell you I’m going to bed’ whilst I text Robert back about being fined 15 grand for a pitch invasion at St Helens.

“I haven’t the energy for it. I’ve had enough, we’ve got this (points to Challenge Cup trophy), it’s been brilliant, but for me, unless the game changes and unless the outcome is decided by athletes and coaches, I can’t be involved in it anymore.

That’s where it’s at and that’s how serious it is, hopefully the game can change but I’ll leave you on a positive. You’ve met my American friends and my South African friends. They’ve got more money than the whole of what Sky give for the game in three years than they could drop out their arse end in a week.

“So maybe what you will see is me step out of this charade and set up a proper, super league, called ‘Ultimate Rugby’ with proper rugby players, where it’s not decided by the referees, it’s decided by the athletes because that’s the only alternative.

“We won’t need a broadcaster that stands my coach down and says, ‘oh we’re not going to interview you now because we’re just going to do the presentation so we’ll speak to you after that’. Is that not disrespectful in the highest order?

So that’s why I said no, we won’t be speaking to him after they’ve lifted the trophy and if you haven’t got time to speak to him before we do it and delay that, and that’s why I pulled what is all in.

“Saints or Catalans, whoever it is who’s finished second I’m not sure, but they’ve been robbed.

“I said to Matt Peet congratulations because I actually think that Wigan deserve to win the League Leaders Shield, as much as some of you won’t like hearing me say that, I think all of this season they genuinely do deserve to win that.

“I think since they played us here in that first game, they’ve been the best team in the comp but I think you saw it tonight, that actually the best team in the comp was us.

“But winning this beautiful thing here (Challenge Cup Trophy) took a lot out of us and we probably conceded it.”

You can watch the video here.(the video that was on FB has been removed! Probably because he was having an apoplectic fit!!)

https://www.seriousaboutrl.com/rfl-to-l ... ant-82661/

[up the junction]

How many times does he contradict himself ?? As His names sake says ,,
What a Plonker

[the pieman]

what an absolute tool, spouting off again when he's been ont vino

What is funny is that it seems only Leigh train hard all week - has Lam rubbed off on him that much. Its almost as though Wigan just turned up with no training, no game plan and the ref gave us the game

and good luck setting up a new league, with "no refs". We all accept refs are human and make mistakes, and as fans we probably call them more than most as we are blinkered towards our side. so for him to get a new league with refs that wont make mistakes, should be interesting, and only honest players too. We all know players try to push things to the limit, so he's going to stop that too, and no doubt Asiata will stop diving at peoples legs to injure them (i know its not illegal yet) with no intention of wrapping his arms round

overall, he's done some good stuff this year, but he really needs to drop the everyones against us and keep off the plonk

[josie andrews]

Derek Beaumont critical of RFL disciplinary process


Tuesday night Leigh Leopards appealed the ban for Tom Amone after the defeat to Wigan Warriors.

In trouble for a crusher tackle on Toby King, Amone was set to miss the play off clash away at Hull KR.

However, the Leopards were able to have the ban overturned last night but speaking on BBC Radio Lancashire, Derek Beaumont voiced his frustration at the system

Yeah, so today was a big day. It’s always challenging when you get those because one of my main roles in the business is dealing with that.

“I didn’t quite finish a law degree back in the day but I’m quite good at putting forward an argument in persuasive ways, so I always deal with writing the submissions for that and then presenting them to the tribunal.

“You get very little notice, you literally find out on a Monday afternoon if you’ve got any charges. Obviously I’m running a business as well as involvement at the club so I can’t just drop things, but unfortunately sometimes you have to because it was that important to us to have Tom Amone available.

Now I don’t pick teams but he’s played every game this year so I’d be pretty confident he’ll play with how Adrian was hellbent on me getting that one there.

“So we had two charges and once we got the success on the first one, I decided not to hedge our bets on the second one because if you appeal a decision and it’s found to be frivolous, I don’t think it would have been, but it could have been and nothing’s guaranteed, even in law, so in a tribunal situation, definitely not.

“There would have been a slight risk of having got a £250 fine and a ban, getting rid of the £250 fine meant the ban became the 250 fine. If I’d have chanced it and lost, apart from the penalty £500, it could have changed to a ban.

So we settled at 1-1, not normally a rugby score, but a real positive piece of news for the club.”

He added:

“He’s fit and well, like I say, he’s played in every game, he’s in the dream team. We want the best players playing the game, but we all accept that there’s got to be rules and consequences for foul play.

defeat
“I think the decision was right on what we got and I think it would have been so hard for him because he’s such a nice, humble guy.

“He’s the top metre maker in Super League, I don’t know of any time, Mike’s our statistician and historian, so he may tell me differently but that is, in my opinion, the first time a middle or prop forward has ever been the highest metre maker in Super League.

“It’s normally a fullback, a winger, a centre, who can go the length of a field. He’s done that in the middle and he’s played every game in the two years he’s been here, in all competitions, remarkable.”

https://www.seriousaboutrl.com/derek-be ... ess-82653/

[Ipinwigan]

For all of his bleatings about the Gildart no try, he seems to think that they would have won the game if it was given, he forgets that with loads of time remaining, Wigan would have upped a few gears to get the lead back, as we had too much to lose if we didn't win.
If the no try had been in the last minute, he might have had a point.

[fozzieskem]

Leigh have been great this season a breath of fresh air but the trouble is it should be about the coach,the players hell's teeth even the mascot not the bloody owner.

I blame the Muppets in the media for this you simply don't need to go to him everytime they score Jesus wept they've fed the who to the point we find it now

[josie andrews]

Derek Beaumont delivers Leigh Leopards brand plans and recruitment update

The Leigh Leopards owner spoke to Rugby League Live ahead of the club's first ever Super League play-off game.

You've been on a long journey to get here, with plenty of success and mistakes along the way. How do you think you've developed as an owner?

The whole IMG pressure of what I thought was going to happen to the game made me look at myself and the club as a whole, what I can do and buying more into this Marmite character and elevating it. The people who know me, know me. They all buy in and we have a great time. I was nervous actually that they'd come in, say these were the twelve teams and that we wouldn't be one of them in the current format.

I've changed things but a lot is the same. I'm less involved in some things but more involved in others, but I can trust that rugby side of it completely.

How important is that for you and the club, being allowed to focus on other things?

Well I couldn't have done the rugby side and all the dealings with players that happen in a rugby club and try to build all the other things, such as the women's side. I've invested a lot more time on the rebrand, marketing, pushing that element, and putting more resources into staffing that area to produce better content and overall look better, pushing towards these pillars to get to a Grade A. That's my focus now, whereas it was just chucking the kitchen sink at the first team.

I looked back on my predicted Super League table and got things terribly wrong
The suggestion has always been that Leigh have a great team but perhaps not a great club, what's the next stage of growing the club?

We want to get what we got against Wigan more regularly. I've said to everyone we need to start next season how we finished this. We started really well with Salford and their big following. I know as a club we're at about 6,000 and if we get more it's because the away team has brought that. We've found out what we are as a club and we could have sold more than the 7,000 we did last week. But we have to build on that this off-season. We're working on kits, some of the sponsors, growing our event planning, the artists we can nail down early. We want to keep that theme but be better at it. You won't be getting the Fuel Girls again because that was unbelievably tough but we'll come up with something.

What is your relationship like with that council?

The one thing that's massively important is the relationship with the council. At the end of the day, LSV is a council facility and one we're blessed with. It's a key part of the pillar and structure. They're massively supportive, you've seen the signage and it's a more transparent relationship because they can see what I've put into it and I can respect and appreciate what they do because I understand what they do and how valuable they are in the community. Having that direct relationship with them is important and it's been really good on how we can help them and us help them.

I thought what they did after the Challenge Cup, the way they put that on. This was a learning curve for me. I said to get an open-top bus, a simple statement, hire one, we'll get on at the Marriott, this is the route, this is how long it will take based on Google Maps. This idiot here thinks that's fine. But obviously the council has obligations with roads, chaos, fencing, policing and building a stage. It was easy for me to cause carnage and not realise it cost £25,000. They gave me a tankard which replicates one given in 1971 from the council to the then chairman. It was a nice touch and it's important that people know.

Is academy and youth development a key focus for you now?

It's weird isn't it because if you're building a building you get the foundations right and that's vital because if you don't, everything else crumbles. But in sport, you've got to do it the other way around. You've got to get the Super League status cemented and build everything underneath. Bringing Keiron Purtill was important to that and showing the RFL we're serious about that. We've got a college in players, we've had 15s and 16s development days, the whole club kitted out top to bottom, all of that side was important. In 2024 we can apply for an academy licence and that will be granted in 2025. I'm not speaking out of school here but rumour has it that's not something Newcastle will be pushing forward with so it's expected there will be at least one available but Salford are also keen to get one. My opinion is that we should both get one as if you're in Super League it should be a given you have one. We're struggling now with the rulings that say 25 players up to £30,000 under 23, there aren't a lot of players unless we go to the Championship. We're trying to build players that can come into our reserves and progress and build.

Speaking of recruitment, how is it looking?

Things have got easier. We've one big spot to come, it's an overseas spot and there are two options, two expensive options. One of them will come to the fore this week. We won't announce it until after the season though I'm sure you'll figure it out. All the other components are in place except for that and I think one more. But we'll keep improving with the players we've got.


https://www.examinerlive.co.uk/sport/ru ... dium=email