Triple boost for Featherstone Rovers ahead of play-offs

Ahead of the 2022 Betfred Championship play-offs centre Joey Leilua, full-back Mark Kheirallah and half-back Johnathon Ford have all shown their commitment to the Post Office Road club by agreeing deals no matter what division Featherstone will be playing in next year.

All three have spoken of how they are enjoying life at the club and have put pen to paper on contracts for 2023, ending any speculation about where they would be playing should Rovers come up short in the Betfred Championship play-offs.

Leilua is one of the highest profile players to have pulled on the Featherstone shirt in recent years after arriving from NRL side Wests Tigers and the club are delighted to have secured the services of a twice Dally M Centre of the Year.

The player has eagerly made himself at home at Featherstone and said: “Me and my family have really settled in here, we love it so far, we love the school and the lifestyle here so it was a really easy decision to make.”

Ford was equally enthusiastic about the opportunity to extend his time at Rovers.

He explained: “We’re super happy here, my wife is happy, my kids are happy, it was a really easy decision and to have the opportunity to play alongside Killer (Mark Kheirallah) again is great.”

Kheiralhah, along with Ford, joined part way into this season after leaving Toulouse Olympique, but after making a promising start he has been sidelined with a ruptured ACL that will keep him out of action until 2023.

He is keen to make up for lost time when he is able to join his Rovers teammates on the pitch again.

After signing his new deal he said: “I felt that having been injured, I’d not had the opportunity to give what I really wanted to give.

"I’m grateful for the second chance and I’m really enjoying it here, the support, the club, the coaching staff, I’m really happy here.”

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Rovers chairman Mark Campbell believes the quality of players wanting to play for Featherstone shows what is being built at the club.

He added: “Attracting players of this calibre is one thing, but being able to retain them shows the environment we’ve built and how we’ve helped these players settle into life at Featherstone.”

Rovers are launching an early bird season ticket price until the end of September to ensure fans are able to increase their saving on 2022 prices. They are also keeping their junior season tickets free to grow the next generation of Featherstone fans.

Prices are: Adults £175; concessions £150; young adult (16-24) £75 and Blue Wall memberships are available from the club website.