Leeds Rhinos have handed out professional contracts to two of the most promising stars in their under-18s academy. Bailey Aldridge and Jake Higgins have performed well for both the academy and the reserves so far in 2022 and now, the Rhinos have acted swiftly to tie them down to professional deals.
Aldridge is the latest hooker to sign professionally at Leeds, having played his junior rugby with both Batley Boys and Kippax. Higgins hails from Castleford Panthers and the prop has made one appearance for Leeds' reserves side so far this season.
“It’s quite surreal to be honest," Aldridge said. "It’s been a dream of mine since I was five or six years old so I’m really proud to have got to this point now but there’s plenty more to go yet.
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“My community club Kippax are proud too. It just shows how much of a great club they are because there’s loads of us from Kippax that are here. Max, Alfie and a couple of other boys so it’s commending to the them for how they’ve helped me.”
Commenting on his new contract Higgins said: “It’s one step closer to the first team so I’m just aiming to keep building on it. I’ve been working hard since I joined in pre season but it only took about a week and I was fully in.
"Everyone was speaking and I was getting tips off the lads and the coaches. I got a few messages from my Castleford Panthers team mates and coaches saying they were over the moon and my parents got to know before I did so it was great when they told me.”
The pair will continue to play for the under-18s and reserves. “I’d like to congratulate both Bailey and Jake," Leeds' head of academy recruitment, Simon Bell, said. "They’ve both had different pathways to get to this point. Bailey has been with us since he was 14 and has shown some real resilience to earn his contract, while Jake only started with us in December after we’d seen him playing for Castleford Panthers under-18s.
"Signing Jake shows that the door is always open and there is always a pathway no matter what level you’re playing at. They’ve both really earned their professional contracts and it’s just a starting point for them to kick on.
“We’ve got a really young talented group that’s going really well in the academy and reserves. They’re playing a lot of rugby but the future is bright. Hopefully there will be more to follow these two down the line because the kids at under-18s are really performing well and improving.”
