LEIGH are preparing for the Brave New World of Summer Rugby League.
The second Summer Season is still a full three months into the distance.
It gets underway in March - but Leigh, like every club in the 13-a-side code, is aware that this time they will be starting from cold.
And, with Rugby Union now getting a firm grip on the TV showcase in a revolutionary new and adventurous attitude to sport, the chips are down for the League's Big Guns and for the smaller fry of Division Two.
Leigh, with brave hearts to match their Centurion tag, have been handed a Brave start to their next Division Two campaign.
The second Summer Season gets underway on March 2 when Barrow Braves visit Hilton Park.
But watch out for some totally new names for 1997 - the Carlisle Border Raiders and Central Lancashire, which is the old Chorley squad now operating out of Preston.
An away game at Rochdale Hornets on March 28 will provide new coach Keith Latham with his first stern test.
The league season runs through until July 20 when a Premiership competition, involving clubs in Division One and Two, will be played.
MARCH
02 BARROW BRAVESM-IH
16 Hunslet HawksM-IA
23 BRAMLEYM-IH
28 Rochdale HornetsM-IA
31 CARLISLE BORDER RAIDERSM-IH
APRIL
06 Prescot PanthersM-IA
13 BATLEY BULLDOGSM-IH
20 Doncaster DragonsM-IA
27 YORK WASPSM-IH
MAY
09 Central Lancashire... A
18 Barrow BravesM-IA
26 HUNSLET HAWKS... H
JUNE
01 BramleyM-IA
08 ROCHDALE HORNETSM-IH
15 Carlisle Border RaidersM-IA
22 PRESCOT PANTHERSM-IH
29 Batley BulldogsM-IA
JULY
06 DONCASTER DRAGONS... H
13 YorkM-IA
20 CENTRAL LANCASHIREM-IH
Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
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