Where are they now? Leigh Leopards’ side from 2022 Championship Grand Final win against Batley Bulldogs

Leigh take on Batley this weekend for the first time since the 2022 Championship Grand Final triumph against the Bulldogs which sealed their return to Super League.

Having blitzed the second tier in their first year under Adrian Lam’s tutelage and lifted the Championship League Leaders’ Shield, Leigh were 44-12 winners in that Grand Final having raced into an 18-0 lead by the break.

7,233 spectators watched on as promotion was secured on October 2 in what proved to be the club’s last game under the ‘Centurions’ tagline.

Now unmistakably known as the Leopards, Lam’s side continue their quest for glory in the Challenge Cup against Batley on Sunday afternoon.

And ahead of that clash, we take a look at where the Leigh side from the 2022 Grand Final are today…

* All figures correct at the time of writing

Caleb Aekins

New Zealand-born Aekins – 27 – joined Leigh ahead of 2022, making the move into the British game having previously donned a shirt Down Under for both Penrith Panthers and Canberra Raiders. He scored a try in this game.

Representing Wales in the delayed 2021 Rugby League World Cup through his heritage, the full-back’s stint at Leigh lasted just a sole season, scoring 21 tries in 32 appearances. He remains in the Championship with Featherstone Rovers today having featured 56 times for the Flatcappers to date.

Blake Ferguson

Colourful character Ferguson arrived at Leigh midway through the 2022 campaign and scored a remarkable 21 tries in 17 appearances to help Lam’s side over the line in their Super League pursuit. That stint came on the back of an NRL career hampered by numerous off-field incidents over the years.

Now 34, the Kangaroos and New South Wales representative returned Down Under at the end of 2022, linking up with local side Kurri Kurri Bulldogs. They dismissed him after just one game due to another off-field demeanour though, and nothing has come to light about his whereabouts since then – last speaking out in April 2024 to say he wanted to stay out of the media spotlight.

Ed Chamberlain

29-year-old utility Chamberlain joined Leigh ahead of 2022 and made 30 appearances across all competitions en-route to promotion. The six-time Ireland international struggled to establish himself as a regular in Super League though, and played just 25 games for the Leopards across the two seasons prior to this one.

His search for game time took him on loan twice to Hull FC in 2024, and Chamberlain has made that move a permanent one ahead of the 2025 campaign. Notably, his tally of 55 appearances for Leigh remains the highest number of games he’s played for any of his eight clubs to date.

Nene Macdonald

Port Moresby native Macdonald, 30, made his move into the British game with Leigh in 2022 having featured for Sydney Roosters, Gold Coast Titans, St George Illawarra Dragons, North Queensland Cowboys and Cronulla Sharks in the NRL prior.

The 21-time PNG international scored 27 tries in 27 games to help fire Leigh to promotion, including four-pointer here. He departed for Leeds Rhinos at the end of the season, and having also spent just a sole year at Headingley, the centre moved on to Salford ahead of 2024. He remains with the Red Devils today having played 30 games for the Greater Manchester outfit so far.

Krisnan Inu

New Zealand and Samoa international Inu rounded off his career with Leigh, scoring 418 points in just 23 appearances in 2022, including 20 here via two tries and six successful conversions from seven. The 37-year-old had been in the French Elite Championship with Lezignan for a chunk of time at the start of that year.

Having hung up his boots, Inu – who also had a stint in rugby union with Stade Francais – returned to former club Salford and took up a role on Paul Rowley’s backroom team. He remains with the Red Devils in a coaching capacity today, and regularly fills in for Rowley in pre-match press conferences.

Lachlan Lam

Sydney-born Papua New Guinea star Lachlan – the son of boss Adrian – reunited with his dad at Leigh towards the end of the 2022 campaign, and managed to score four tries in just nine appearances before the year was out, including one in this Grand Final triumph.

The 26-year-old remains with the Leopards today having becoming a key cog in his dad’s side over the last few years, kicking the winning drop goal during Golden Point extra time under the Wembley arch in August 2023 as they beat Hull KR in the Challenge Cup final. Donning their shirt 76 times to date, he looks destined for a return to the NRL come the end of 2025.

Joe Mellor

Partnering Lam in the halves was Warrington-born Mellor, who joined Leigh in 2021. Appointed co-captain for 2022, the utility – who scored a try in this Grand Final victory – stayed with Leigh until the end of the 2023 campaign when he made the move to fellow Super League side Salford.

Now 34, the veteran needs just three more games to reach the milestone of 300 career appearances having made his senior bow back in 2011 for Harlequins!

Adam Sidlow

Sidlow is another who moved onto Salford following his departure from Leigh, though he did so 12 months before Mellor having made the switch at the end of the 2022 campaign, with this being his last game in a Centurions shirt. That move brought an end to a two-year stint at the LSV which saw him make 41 appearances.

Also spending two seasons with the Red Devils, the 37-year-old made his 150th Super League appearance just before the end of the 2024 campaign, and is now with League 1 outfit Swinton Lions. His career appearance tally across all competitions stands at 369.

Aaron Smith

Hooker Smith, 28, arrived at Leigh for a second loan stint in 2022 having previously donned the Centurions’ shirt three years prior. He arrived with pedigree having won the Super League Grand Final with parent club St Helens in 2019, and featured 32 times across all competitions as Lam’s side won promotion.

Earning himself a permanent deal, he never established himself as a regular in a Leopards shirt, playing just two games in 2023 – as well as six on loan for Rochdale Hornets – before departing on a permanent basis ahead of 2024 when he joined Barrow Raiders. Smith remains with the Cumbrian outfit today, and now has 120 senior appearances on his CV in total.

Tom Amone

Amone had played a handful of first-grade games Down Under for South Sydney Rabbitohs and Wests Tigers when he joined Leigh ahead of the 2022 campaign, but he was far from an NRL-standard prop back then.

Three seasons and 88 appearances later, Leopards boss Lam and Leigh as a club have helped to mould him into just that, with the 29-year-old returning to Australia ahead of 2025. The Westmead-born powerhouse still awaits his Canterbury Bulldogs debut at the time of writing.

Joe Wardle

Six-time Scotland international Wardle, who grabbed a try in this game, joined Leigh ahead of 2022 and went on to play 38 games across the two years he spent at the LSV. Scoring a try in this Grand Final, he moved on to Oldham ahead of 2024 on a player/assistant coach deal.

Having helped the Roughyeds to promotion up to the Championship last year, the 33-year-old hung up his boots with more than 250 career appearances on his CV. He is now solely an assistant to Sean Long at Boundary Park.

Sam Stone

Two-time Malta international Stone, 27, was one of the handful of players that stuck with Leigh following their relegation at the end of the 2021 campaign. Under boss Lam, he scored 12 tries in 33 appearances in 2022 and earned himself a move to Salford ahead of 2023.

Having featured for both Newcastle Knights and Gold Coast Titans in the NRL prior to joining Leigh, he remains with the Red Devils in Super League today, making 48 appearances for Paul Rowley’s side to date. Stone’s contract runs until the end of 2026.

John Asiata

Asiata – 31 – won the NRL Grand Final back in 2015, but was a player self-admittedly thrown a lifeline by Leigh ahead of 2022 having been faced with the reality of his career being over Down Under due to issues surrounding COVID-19 vaccine.

As it turned out, he became a fan favourite in the North West and enjoyed three successful seasons under Lam’s tutelage, lifting the Challenge Cup as Leigh’s captain under the Wembley arch in 2023. After 76 appearances for the club, the Tonga and Samoa international departed for Hull FC at the end of 2024 and is now the Airlie Birds’ vice-captain.

Ben Reynolds (Interchange)

Reynolds – who missed the sole conversion he attempted in this game – has donned a shirt for nine different clubs to date, but Leigh are by far and away the club he’s made the most appearances for of those: playing 148 games across three stints.

The 31-year-old’s third and final stint ran from 2021 to 2023, scoring 158 points in the promotion-winning campaign. After a 2024 campaign which saw him play for three different clubs, he’s now tied down by Championship side Featherstone until the end of 2027 having played 24 games in their colours to date.

Edwin Ipape (Interchange)

Port Moresby native Ipape linked up with Leigh ahead of 2022 and was crowned the Championship Player of the Year on the back of a campaign which saw him score 23 tries in just 27 appearances. Establishing himself as a fans’ favourite, his rise has only continued – now undisputedly one of the best hookers in Super League, if not the best.

With ten caps to his name for the Kumuls on the international stage, the 26-year-old has recently penned a bumper new six-year contract extension at the LSV. That deal is a club record one.

Kai O’Donnell (Interchange)

The last of the try-scorers in this 17, in order of their listing on the teamsheet, is 26-year-old O’Donnell. He too arrived at Leigh in 2022 and went on to become one of the best players in Super League in his position, earning a move back to the NRL ahead of 2025.

After 77 games in a Leopards shirt, the back-rower – who had played a handful of first-grade games for Canberra Raiders before his move into the British game – linked up with North Queensland Cowboys. At the time of writing, it appears he could be set for his Cowboys debut this coming weekend.

Ben Nakubuwai (Interchange)

15-time Fiji international Nakubuwai rounds off this 17. He joined the then-Centurions midway through 2022 having plied his trade in the Queensland Cup at the start of the year.

The 29-year-old prop – who spent the second half of 2024 out on loan in the Championship with Featherstone – played 44 games in a Leopards shirt. Having been out of favour for the last 12 months or so, his release was announced by the club earlier this week.

Head coach: Adrian Lam

Lam’s first year at the helm of Leigh saw them lift the 1895 Cup and Championship League Leaders’ Shield before winning this game to seal promotion.

2023 then saw the Leopards lift the Challenge Cup for the first time in over 50 years, with the Papua New Guinean also guiding them to a first-ever game in the Super League play-offs.

They then went one better under the 54-year-old’s stewardship in 2024, finishing 5th for the second year running but reaching the play-off semi-finals and being denied an inaugural Old Trafford trip only by the all-conquering Wigan Warriors.

Lam is under lock and key at the Leopards’ Den until the end of 2027 having been tied down recently.

Batley Bulldogs’ team from 2022 Championship Grand Final

Starting 13: Luke Hooley, Dale Morton, Kieran Buchanan, Josh Hodson, Jonny Campbell, Ben White, Tom Gilmore, Adam Gledhill, Luke Blake, James Brown, Dane Manning, Lucas Walshaw, Martyn Reilly

Bench: Jimmy Meadows, Alistair Leak, Michael Ward, Nyle Flynn

Head coach: Craig Lingard

Tries: Gledhill, Morton

Goals: Gilmore (2)