Though I’d like to poke fun at the club in question, I do have to be fair about this. When quality sponsors like Motorhead and Citibank are already taken, they can’t be too choosy. From The Independent’s Ian Herbert.
Chris Moyles (above) is the first to admit that his rugby league credentials are none too strong. He once got a few laughs for a routine involving a mythical rugby team called Lemon Aid, and the Leeds Rhinos, from the city of his birth, have received occasional mentions on his Radio 1 show.
So imagine the bewilderment felt by fans of Featherstone Rovers rugby league club when they were told this week of the new name for their modest ground in West Yorkshire: the Chris Moyles Stadium.
For many, the announcement seemed like a practical joke, perhaps circulated by fans of old rivals Castleford – or even the ailing Leeds United football club, to whose cause Moyles is devoted. Then confirmation arrived on a Moyles website where an old image of the team was accompanied by an explanation that Rovers are “a small West Yorkshire rugby club”
The 104-year-old club – known as the Colliers since the days when they rounded up players on Saturdays from the local pit – approached Moyles, who jumped at the idea. Rovers are not receiving a penny of the £630,000 Moyles is paid each year by the BBC for his Radio 1 show, but the team’s name has been heard on the airwaves this week.
Some diehard supporters are appalled. “Why not name it after someone who has done something for the club? Not a fat baffon who doesn’t give a shit about us,” said one fan in the Rovers chatroom this week. “We’re a club with a proud tradition. I am sure that a much better name from our area could have endorsed the ground,” added another.