Rugby League club who changed name show off ‘angry’ new mascot and glam cheerleaders

Rugby league club Leigh Leopards have unveiled a new intense-looking mascot to help motivate the team.

‘Leeto’ is a mascot who is dressed as a leopard with blood red eyes looking scary enough to kill. They posed for photos on the pitch alongside the team’s glamourous cheerleaders – who wore leopard print costumes.

The picture was uploaded to Leopolds’ twitter account and the caption read: “Have you met Leeto yet? Share your pics.” Two of the club’s supporters obliged and posted their photos with the rather intimidating-looking mascot. A new era dawned for the Manchester-based side last October as they officially changed their name from Leigh Centurions to Leigh Leopards.

Owner Derek Beaumont announced their rebrand following their promotion back to the Betfred Super League following the Million Pound Game against Batley Bulldogs. “We’ve got to change” Beaumont said during a press conference at the Leigh Sports Village.

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“We’ve changed our ethos, recruitment and investment. There’ll be more about what that side will be next year.” He added: “But you can clearly see, we’re not messing about. We’re not going in to make up the numbers. It creates a lot more opportunity. For commercial aspects, retail and branding. It’s not, that’s the end of Leigh Centurions and the start of Leigh Leopards. It’s just a rebranding of our club.”

It was met with a mixed response with some supporters claiming they had not been consulted before the owners decided on a rebrand. But this was met with a confident response by Beaumont, who said much thought went into the decision and it will provide the club more opportunities available to grow its brand.

“It’s not a whim,” Beaumont said. “It was the result of quite a lot of research over a period of time. It’s a re-branding of our club that creates a lot more opportunities from a commercial and retail aspect.” The Leopards lost their first game with their new name, succumbing to a 10-20 defeat at home to the Salford Red Devils in the opening match of the new Super League season.

“I’m a bit frustrated,” the disappointed Leigh Leopards head coach Adrian Lam told BBC Radio Manchester post-match. “There was plenty of effort and energy put into the game but the two tries in four minutes before half-time sat us on our backsides a little bit.

“In the second half, we didn’t have the composure we needed to execute some of the plays we needed to get points. It’s frustrating, but when you have eight players making their debuts, it doesn’t quite click for you. It’s something we have to develop and work hard on as a team.”

They will travel to the Stade Gilbert Brutus in France to take on the Catalans Dragons next Saturday.

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