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Exclusive: Leigh Centurions owner Derek Beaumont rejects Adrian Lam speculation

If there is ever a team that is the talk of rugby league at present then it is the Leigh Centurions.

Bankrolled by owner Derek Beaumont, the Lancashire side are in a great position to make it into the top flight having got the better of main rivals Featherstone Rovers in recent months.

A big part of their success has been the team at the top with head of rugby Chris Chester and head coach Adrian Lam working together like a well-oiled machine as well as making some big-name signings such as Tom Amone, Edwin Ipape and Nene MacDonald.

The future looks bright for Beaumont, Chester and Lam at the Leigh Sports Village, but one fan raised concerns about the future of the latter on social media giant Twitter.

Beaumont was asked about speculation linking Lam with a move away with the Leigh owner shutting the noise down immediately and that is the end of that.

One person asked Beaumont: “Hope it’s just complete bollocks of a rumour that lam is leaving @LeighCenturions @derek_beaumont.”

The outspoken millionaire could not have responded any better, saying: “Utter nonsense and not worthy of a reply but will nip it in bud save everyone’s pathetic entertainment from rumour mongering at someone’s expense. Won’t comment further.”

Leigh currently sit on top of the Championship table, losing just one game which was away at Featherstone earlier in the season.

Since that moment, the Centurions have been in scintillating form and are now favourites for Super League after winning the AB Sundecks 1895 Cup.

However, for Beaumont, it might not have been that way had a freak accident on holiday in South Africa destroyed everything.

“When I was younger I always said I would be a millionaire when I’m 40 and dead when I’m 50,” Beaumont told the Dockhouse Rugby Show.

“I had so many near misses on my push bike on the road and I achieved that first statement (about being a millionaire at 40) and I thought I’d wrote my own destiny then.”

Beaumont recalls an incredibly scary moment in South Africa where he almost died in a game reserve after stumbling across a wasps’ nest.

“I had gone for a walk within a safe area inside electric fences whilst we were there with our friends and family.

“I thought I would have a walk, grabbed four bottles of beer and some water – I hadn’t had any booze before that, but I ended up stumbling into a wasps’ nest which I normally wouldn’t associate with being on the floor.

“They started whacking me and I managed to run out but my eyes started to swell and itch.

“We did a lot of conservation with rhinos whilst we were out there and the vet explained some people can have an allergic reaction to medicine and this is what happens – your eye goes, your mouth and then throat and it’s basically like someone standing on your chest and it’s about 25 minutes to death.

“I thought I’ve got to get back, so I’m walking fast and as I’m going my breathing is going.

“I was blinded by light and I collapsed and couldn’t get up – I was trying to crawl and had a moment where I said to myself I was never going to crawl so I pulled myself to a tree.

“I couldn’t function because I had stopped and I was trying to calm down and shallow my breathing, but I was trying to send a message to my wife and kids.”

Beaumont wanted one last request – to pass away surrounded by his family.

“I knew I was done because I was in a game reserve and I’d got 25 minutes and ten had already gone, but I wanted to get back to them and be with them when it happened.

“I started shouting help and my wife felt something strange and she had heard heavy breathing from my phone and my shouting.

“The tracker jumped out into the vehicle and he drove out and I heard the sound of a car, but I couldn’t get up or anything.”

Somehow, a stroke of luck helped Beaumont fight off the worse.

“The guy managed to get me in the jeep and as he was driving back my daughter had an epipen and a strong antihistamine, so she had two of those down my throat and then if it didn’t improve I would use the epipen.

“That was some help and fortunately the paramedic had been round and he was not too far away in the reserve – he got there rapid and I passed out.

“I was in a golden dream where I could see people but they had no faces, they chucked ice over me to bring me round and then I saw real faces.

“I started to get better and then I relapsed and the paramedic thought I had died but I came around and lived to fight another day.”

4 Comments

4 Comments

  1. Neil Matthewman

    June 23, 2022 at 12:23 pm

    What an absolute waste of English coming out of this man’s face.
    It’s the same for both teams .
    Deal with it.

  2. Bobflintston

    June 23, 2022 at 12:54 pm

    The issue with Rugby League is that invariably the attacking team get the ball on the 20 Metre line. An average gain per carry is only about 10 metres with a kick on the fifth. Tries rarely occur from breaks, and more often it is only possible from sustained pressure. Mike “Stevo” Stephenson used to say 3 repeat sets = Try. Attacking teams need penalty kicks from hand to gain the yardage to put on enough pressure to score.

    Rugby Union uses unlimited ball recycling to get anywhere near scoring.

    Rugby League is a simple game of mathematics needs penalties and mistakes to make scoring possible. Nobody wants to go back to the era of Duelling Fullbacks and sores in single figures.

  3. Erik

    June 23, 2022 at 5:40 pm

    He highlights in this the influence officials have on field position, or yardage as he calls it. The referees do not have enough integrity in my view, often bourne out by the lack if impartiality in officiating. Until we have more consistency in decision making and keep it the same for both sides this type of discussion will always take place. A penalty on a whim equals field position equals points………simples

  4. jack

    June 23, 2022 at 7:47 pm

    I agree a little bit with the offside. I would give an extra 3 tackles in that instance.

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