Autism Plus Agrees Partnership with Both South Yorkshire Rugby League Teams

14th December 2011

In a first for Rugby League, South Yorkshire neighbours Sheffield Eagles Rugby League Club and Doncaster Rugby League club (the Dons), have both announced they are supporting South Yorkshire charity Autism Plus for the forthcoming season.

This is the first charity partnership for both clubs.  As part of the arrangement the Eagles will carry the distinctive Autism Plus logo on their home and away shirts, and the Dons training gear will feature the Autism Plus branding. Sheffield Eagles reached the 2011 Cooperative Championship final, and Doncaster are hopeful of promotion from Championship 1 this season. Autism Plus is a leading charity supporting people with autism and other complex conditions.  The charity is South Yorkshire based and works across the north of England.  Autism Plus is currently celebrating its 25th anniversary and has recently launched the Future Plus Appeal to raise £10million pounds to support a range of inspirational new projects it wants to deliver. Mark Burton, Corporate and Trust Fundraiser at Autism Plus said: At Autism Plus we have some amazing plans to help people who face major challenges become more confident and independent.  This partnership is a great example of the innovative approaches we use in our work. Sheffield Eagles director John Whaling said: Sheffield Eagles are very pleased to support Autism Plus during the 2012 season.  The board all agreed that having a chosen charity would be a great idea, and with my connections to Autism Plus, they were the natural choice to be the first charity. Doncaster RLFC's chief executive, Carl Hall said: I know I speak on behalf of everyone associated with the Dons to say we're delighted to have Autism Plus as our chosen charity for the 2012 season. -This is a first for the club and we're both very proud and honoured to have been given the opportunity to work closely with the charity's Future Plus Appeal initiative in their 25th year anniversary. On 22 January the two sides will play against each other in the Autism Plus South Yorkshire cup.  The game will take place at the Keepmoat Stadium ,Doncaster. Both teams will carry the partnership for one season.  Any charities interested in being Sheffield Eagles partner for the 2013 season should write to the club explaining why they should be chosen.