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Rugby League

Davies backs Crusaders to be "a great success"

22/07/2008

Welsh club Celtic Crusaders will be "a great success in Super League", according to the club's president and former dual-code international Jonathan Davies.

The Crusaders were awarded one of the 14 new licences by the Rugby Football League, which guarantees them top-flight status for three years from the beginning of the 2009 season.

And Davies, who played for Wales and Great Britain in rugby league before switching codes to play union in 1995, believes it is an important step for the club to be admitted into Super League just three years after they were first formed.

"I'm really pleased that the RFL have made the decision to admit Celtic Crusaders into Super League," he said.

"This gives the Welsh public the opportunity to see top-class rugby league in Wales on a week-by-week basis, which is something that's never happened before."

Davies believes Wales "missed the boat" when the opportunity arose in the past to make applications to join Super League during the expansions of the 1990s.

But he added: "This decision more than makes up for it.

"Now, more of an infrastructure is in place with teams at all levels in Wales from schoolboys upwards, which wasn't the case ten years ago.

"When teams like Wigan, St Helens and the like have visited Wales in the past for one-off Super League games, they've always been well attended.

"The Welsh public love top-level sport and I'm sure that Celtic Crusaders will be a great success in Super League.

"I'd like to thank the RFL for giving us the opportunity and roll on 2009."

The Crusaders' achievement in gaining Super League status has received support and commendation from all quarters.

A brief statement from the governing body of Welsh rugby union, the WRU, reads: "The Welsh Rugby Union is supportive of all sporting activity and we congratulate Celtic Crusaders on their achievement."

And Wales' first minister Rhodri Morgan believes the award of a licence to a Welsh club was the next step after seeing the success of the Millennium Magic weekends, where Super League teams contested a round of matches over two days at the national stadium in Cardiff.

"Rugby league is a great game with a big following in Wales based on our long standing 'export' of our rugby union stars to go north to play rugby league," he commented.

"Just think of the contribution that Jim 'Buller' Sullivan, Gus Risman, Billy Boston, Clive Sullivan, David Watkins, Jim Mills, John Devereux, Jonathan Davies and countless others have made playing for clubs or the Great Britain rugby league team over the years.

"More recently top-quality rugby league has come to Wales - while Wembley was unavailable from 2000 to 2007 the Challenge Cup was played in the Millennium Stadium.

"Weekends of Super League club Millennium Magic have followed on after Wembley's rebuilding was finished.

"Now rugby league in Wales is moving into another phase with the Celtic Crusaders winning a Super League franchise.

"With rugby league mainly a summer sport and rugby union being a winter sport, the Welsh public will now be able to watch top-flight rugby all the year round.

"Hats off and best wishes to the Celtic Crusaders."