Four new inductees join Leeds RL Hall of Fame

Four new inductees to the Leeds Rugby League Hall of Fame were unveiled at the club's annual Hall of Fame lunch on Monday night at AMT Headingley. 

Over 450 guests were in the Howard Suite at AMT Headingley to witness the induction of the 2025 Leeds Rugby League Hall of Fame members. 

The event is always one of the highlights of the year at AMT Headingley as we gather together to induct the next four members of the Leeds Rugby League Hall of Fame. It is a must-be-at event for any Rhinos fan, young and old, as legends of the club's history come together on an afternoon of celebration.

The event also celebrated the 50th anniversary of the 1976 Yorkshire Cup win with members of the squad there on the night and 30 years of Super League. 

The first inductee on the night was a legendary centre Fred Harris. Harris joined Leeds from Leigh and was a try scorer in the 1936 Challenge Cup win at Wembley. Hall of Fame member Alan Smith presented the family with the specially created silver salver and certificate to mark the occasion. Harris' grand-daughter Julie Parr and grandson Andrew Fearnley, the latter flying in from Australia to be there on the night, shared their memories of Harris, who had a number of roles at the club after his playing days as well as living on St Michaels Lane with his wife.

The next inductee was former Great Britain forward Roy Powell. Powell was a mainstay of the Leeds team of the mid-1980s and sadly passed away in 1998 when he was just 33. Originally from Dewsbury, he was a crowd favourite at Headingley and he was inducted into the Hall of Fame by his former coach David Ward and club and country team mate Garry Schofield. Roy's wife, son and daughter were all there to collect the award and hear the warm tributes to Roy. 

The 40th inductee to the Leeds RL Hall of Fame was another person from Dewsbury who made Leeds their home. Francis Cummins is still the youngest ever player to play in the Challenge Cup Final at Wembley, also scoring in 1994 before returning five years later to help Leeds end a 21 year wait to lift the famous trophy. A part of the 2004 squad who eventually ended an even longer drought for a Championship win, Cummins then enjoyed a highly successful coaching career at the club alongside Tony Smith and then Brian "Bluey" McClennan to win three Grand Finals in a row in 2007, 2008 and 2009. He is ninth in the all time try scorers list for the club. Cummins was inducted into the Hall of Fame by Barrie McDermott. 

Finally, Jamie Jones-Buchanan was the latest member of the Golden Generation to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. The Rhinos Chief Executive was inducted by his former team mates Danny McGuire and Jamie Peacock, who spoke glowly about the former Great Britain international. There was a special moment when a tribute recorded by Rob Burrow back when Jones-Buchanan retired in 2019 was played on screen along with a message from his great friend Kevin Sinfield.