‘Without sounding like an idiot’ – Leigh Leopards owner Derek Beaumont on career he almost had

Leigh Leopards owner Derek Beaumont admits life could have been very different for him had he remained on his first chosen career path. Beaumont has been owner of Leigh since 2013, pouring his hard earned money into his beloved club and helping the outfit finally establish themselves in the Super League.

The difference he’s made at Leigh Leopards is hard to fully comprehend, with his 2022 rebrand from Centurions helping the club reach a wider audience over the last couple of years. Of course, Beaumont made his money through AB Sundecks, a company that produces and sells domestic, commercial and holiday home decking.

It’s a company he has been the managing director of for over 25 years, but it’s fair to say it’s a world away from the career he initially pursued as a teenager.

“It’s been a long journey, but when I left school I went into an apprenticeship doing hairdressing,” Beaumont said when speaking on the League Express podcast. “Without sounding like an idiot, whatever I was going to do, I was going to be the best version of myself and doing it in the best way I could.

“Anything I wasn’t good at, golf for example, I stopped playing it. Hairdressing I was really good at but it was never me. My parents had their own business doing double glazing and I always had the gift of the gab and went on to the sales side of things with that.”

Leigh enjoyed a remarkable first season back in the Super League last year, winning 16 of their 27 games to secure a play-off spot. Unfortunately, their hopes of reaching a Grand Final were ended by Hull KR, who beat them in the Super League eliminator.

The Leopards have their work cut out if they’re to go one better this time around, though. Adrian Lam’s side do have a game in hand, but with 11 games still to play they sit nine points off the top six pace in eighth.