Leigh Leopards’ Derek Beaumont releases 4,465-word response to Wigan Warriors statement

Leigh Leopards owner Derek Beaumont has released a statement in response to claims made by Wigan Warriors  on Wednesday morning. In their public release, the Warriors said that Beaumont had written to the Warriors informing them that the Leopards do not intend to fulfil Friday’s play-off semi-final.

That stance stemmed from a ticketing dispute, it is claimed, with Leigh said to be unhappy with the 5,400 reserved tickets offered to them. The Warriors claimed that was a figure settled on by Brick Community Stadium’s ground safety officer and the police, with the club legally and professionally bound to comply with their advice.

However, Beaumont has now responded with a 4,465 word statement released at 10:37pm, which is the time Wigan claim he wrote to them at.

The statement goes into depth about the ticketing process which has led to the concern, with the Leigh owner outlining his side of events.

Beaumont accused Wigan of releasing an unnecessary and factually incorrect statement and he goes into great depth about conversations he has with Wigan CEO Kris Radlinski and Rugby League Commercial chief Rhodri Jones.

The Leigh owner also expresses his frustration that some Leopards fans have seen their tickets cancelled by the Warriors.

He claims that in response to that situation, he had heard talk of fans ‘bricking the brick’ with protests and demonstrations being planned, while others were planning on ‘opening the exit gates to allow locked out fans to get inside the game or rush turnstiles’.

After hearing those plans, Beaumont says he informed Jones that the event would not be safe and that he could not partake in the event unless he could be satisfied there was no risk.

However, the upshot is that Leigh are preparing for the game as normal with Beaumont insistent that while he won’t neglect his duty of care, his intention is for the game to go ahead as Leigh look to secure a spot in their first ever Super League Grand Final.

Derek Beaumont releases Leigh Leopard statement

The statement is too long to publish in full, so here’s a few snippets. It starts with a declaration that yesterday’s statement was not accurate: “I refer to the unnecessary and factually incorrect statement alarmingly released earlier today by Wigan Warriors.

“It is misleading in the way it is presented and, in my opinion, constructed in such a way as to attempt to cause damage to my reputation and bait people by referring to the time at which they allege to have been served written notification.”

In reference to communication he has had with Nigel Wood, Beaumont says: “The chair of RLC has written to me around the disappointment on behalf of the board assuring me a full review of this situation will take place.

“Whilst that is welcomed to prevent such unnecessary action in the future it doesn’t change the moral compass now and allow as many people as possible to watch the game, nor does it remove the inflamed feeling of our fans rightly aggrieved at how they are being treated. The issue now is by unreasonably cancelling tickets bought in good faith and preventing sales to legitimate fans with no history of trouble there is a bigger risk to safety outside than inside and that needs dealing with.”

He goes on to write: “That post has antagonised many and brought the game into disrepute and caused undue stress to my media team and my personal phone in a day where I am on serious deadlines for various business activities.

“As I stated in my email earlier this morning on the ongoing thread of this matter with the parties referred to, it has always been and always will be our intention to play the game we have worked hard all season to earn the right of. I would not deprive our fans and players, nor myself, the opportunity to play at Old Trafford in a grand final. However, what I will not do is neglect my duty of care to my players, fans and wider public by taking part in creating an event that I believe will have serious ramifications.

“These can easily be negated by providing a block, some segregation and stewarding. It is unthinkable that this safety measure isn’t now being enforced by someone who is responsible for the safety inside and outside of the stadium. Despite the efforts of RLC and SLE the position has remained unchanged and unjustified.

“To use a private off thread WhatsApp comment of a suggestion in the public domain in such a way bewilders me from a club that normally is one I associate as highly professional. In my opinion there was never anything to be gained other than malice and an inflammation of an already volatile situation.

“I dare say many will now not want to go to the game given the toxicity of what has taken place but in the absence of a change of position those threats still exist and people who are able to gain entry will be attending in the wrong frame of mind. This should have been a celebration of the success of the Borough as it was the previous year and in the fantastic occasion in Round One.

“It’s all quite easy to see through. It’s fine being friendly neighbours when Wigan are the bus station and Leigh are the bus stop but now that the bus stop is getting close to the bus station and competing with them and fans are wanting to turn up in numbers that unity, we have been working on, gets dropped instantly and we see unprecedented actions that are wholly unnecessary.

“I sincerely hope my genuine concerns can be satisfied so the game we are still preparing as normal for can proceed as planned at which point I will make a statement to ask for calm from our fans and to attend and show class by not singing the flute song and demonstrating only vociferous support in a clean and friendly manner. That’s easy to achieve but the positions are currently entrenched. The public can make their own mind up now the full facts are made known to them.”

The full statement can be found here.

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