Organisers of the Rugby League World Cup have promised the tournament will deliver a lasting legacy for Newcastle and the north east. The 2021 tournament got underway on Saturday afternoon with the eyes of the world on St James’ Park to witness England demolish Samoa with an unexpected 60-6 victory.
A northern hemisphere opening game record crowd of 43,119 were in attendance at Newcastle United’s home to witness the tournament get off on a winning albeit strange note, with an opening ceremony featuring the Kaiser Cheifs and a special presentation by Wor Flags disrupted by a sound failure within the stadium ahead of kick-off.
While events inside the stadium were being still being hailed as a success with a large crowd present to watch England send an ominous warning, it was the work done in the community in the build-up to the tournament and across the last few days which delighted the organising committee.
Speaking exclusively to the Chronicle, Rugby League World Cup CEO Jon Dutton hailed the response of the people in Newcastle in welcoming the rugby league world to the city and spoke of the lasting impact that will be felt beyond the four games to be held in the city.
“There are many positive stories to come out of this weekend in Newcastle away from the obvious,” explained Mr Dutton. “We had a local school live on BBC Breakfast, we’re funding further afield into Cramlington with bricks and mortar. We can talk about social impact but we will leave a long lasting legacy and hopefully, at the same time we encourage more people in Newcastle to watch this fantastic game.
“We are really pleased with the wheelchairs that we saw given as part of the tournament welcome. They were provided by Created by Funding and went to the Newcastle Foundation to set up a wheelchair rugby league team. The impact goes beyond the opening game.”
The opening match saw supporters inside St James’ Park treated to a spectacle before and after kick-off, with England’s tournament starting with a real bang and a 10-try rout. The crowd numbers were swelled in recent weeks by locals taking the opportunity to watch a major sporting event in the city, with one in every two tickets sold this month being taken up by local residents.
That news especially pleased Dutton, who feels vindicated by a decision which was derided by some when four years ago it was announced the tournament would begin in Newcastle.
“It was a bold and brave decision we made four years ago to hold the opening game in Newcastle, but Newcastle has put its best foot forward,” added Mr Dutton.
“The fan zone looked amazing, the street theatre looked amazing and we had a stadium full of passionate people. Many of those people were local people. One in every two tickets we sold in the last two weeks building up to the first game were from an NE postcode.
“Newcastle is a sport city and that is why we came here. Culture, heritage, party. Celebration, we had it all.”
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