Leigh Leopards ace Ben Reynolds sees Championship move confirmed ahead of 2024 as he joins boyhood club
Ben Reynolds in action for Leigh Leopards - Alamy
Ben Reynolds’ move to Featherstone Rovers ahead of 2024 has now been confirmed, with the playmaker bringing an end to his third stint with Leigh Leopards and penning a two-year deal with his boyhood club.
Reynolds – third in Leigh’s all-time goal-kicking list with 397 – has been with the Leopards since 2021, having re-joined following a very brief spell on the books of Toulouse Olympique.
One of the few players in Leigh’s squad to have donned the club’s shirt when they were known as Centurions, he departs with his appearance tally sat at 148, and his name etched into the top 10 of their all-time top points scorers.
Off-contract, the half-back has been linked with a move to Featherstone throughout the year, and now sees that switch confirmed on a deal running until the end of 2025 despite Rovers failing to win promotion to Super League.
Leigh Leopards ace Ben Reynolds sees Championship move confirmed
Speaking to Featherstone’s website having signed on the dotted line ahead of 2024, the 29-year-old admitted that the club being so close to his heart played a big role in getting him to return permanently having previously been a loanee at Post Office Road.
He said: “ I’m very happy to be joining my boyhood club, my family are very proud that I’ll be playing for the team they support.
“I’m looking forward to working with James (Ford), Ian (Hartman) and the playing group to help us push on and achieve more great things for this team and this town.”
Meanwhile, head coach James Ford added: “I’m really looking forward to working with Ben. He’s an outstanding kicker of the ball and is excellent when executing plays with his strong running game, and is ultimately a real competitor.
“He is a leader and a winner and will be instrumental in helping us win games in 2024.”
Ben Reynolds: The half-back’s story so far
Starting out with Castleford Tigers and debuting at the back end of the 2013 campaign, loans at both York Knights and Doncaster followed with Reynolds scooping the League 1 Player of the Season award for his efforts during his time with York.
First linking up with the then-Centurions for the 2015 season, briefly featuring as a loanee for Dewsbury Rams, the 29-year-old spent four years at the Leigh Sports Village before a move back over the Pennines to Wakefield Trinity.
He only made six appearances for Trinity, and six on loan for Featherstone, before linking back up with Leigh in 2019, departing again after the 2020 season was cut short by COVID-19.
Reynolds initially linked up with Toulouse for 2021, but departed without making a single appearance, opting for a move back to Leigh who had been handed promotion up to Super League following Toronto Wolfpack’s demise.
With 187 senior career appearances in total to date, Post Office Road now becomes his fifth official permanent home.