Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, is set to take on a legendary Manchester DJ as well as multiple former footballers in a charity football match, including multiple ex-England internationals.
Now eight years into representing the ten boroughs, Burnham’s latest charitable effort comes on behalf of iconic Manc venue and community cornerstone, Salford Lads and Girls Club (SLGC), which has sprouted some of the region’s most important musical and sporting talents.
Set to face the one and only Mike Sweeney – a veteran BBC broadcaster and legendary Salfordian radio DJ – as well as a number of retired pros, in hopes of raising money for SLGC, the charity game is taking place very soon.
And by soon, we mean this month. You can hear all about it from the man himself:
As explained by Sweeney, now 77, the meeting between his all-stars and Burnham’s boys is scheduled to take place on 11 May, with a 2pm kick-off.
The Premier League’s already wrapped up, this is the real ‘Super Sunday’.
Enlisting the help of Manchester United legend, not to mention Treble and Champions League winner, Paul Scholes, there is some serious talent on show.
Mayor Burnham, on the other hand, has managed to sign Bolton Wanderers legend, as well as former Manchester City player-manager and England international, Peter Reid, who is still raring and ready to lace up his boots at the age of 68.
Sweeney is actually an England player himself, in case you didn’t know, currently representing the over-75s national team. A man of many talents.
As for who else, the complete squads are yet to be fully confirmed, but the starting XIs will be made up of other members from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and more hand-picked by the local legend.
The match is set to take place at AFC Monton’s New Alder Park (just off Worsley Road, M30 8JN) and, best of all, entry to the ground will be completely FREE, with those attending encouraged to donate as much as they like to Salford Lads and Girls Club on the door.
Speaking ahead of the game, Sweeney said: “Salford Lads and Girls Club is incredibly close to my heart and I can’t think of a better cause to put this game to.
“It will be a welcome change switching the battle of the studio to the football pitch where I can flex my international credentials, while raising as much money as we can for this amazing club.”
As for the Mayor, he wrote in a statement following the announcement: “SLGC is an iconic institution which has provided a lifeline to many of the most vulnerable in our communities. When we were told the club was in real jeopardy last year, we knew we had to do all we could to help.
“It was fantastic to see all the money raised in such a short space of time to save the club, but we want to go further to make sure the club is safe and invested in for the future. This is why the legacy fund is so important.”
“We’re incredibly grateful to Andy Burnham, Mike Sweeney, and every player stepping up to take part in this special match.
Laura Slingsby, CEO of Salford Lads and Girls Club, signed off by adding: “We’re incredibly grateful to Andy Burnham, Mike Sweeney, and every player stepping up to take part in this special match.
“Events like this help us raise funds and shine a light on the life-changing support Salford Lads and Girls Club continues to offer young people across Salford.
“This is more than just a game. It’s a celebration of community, heritage, and hope for the future. We can’t wait to see everyone pitchside cheering them on!”
Who are you cheering on, ‘Sporting Sweeney’ or ‘Burnham FC’? Doesn’t matter either way – a beloved community cornerstone is the real winner either way.
Rugby Football League to merge second and third divisions from next year
Danny Jones
The Rugby Football League (RFL) has officially announced that it will be combining the Championship and League One divisions next year as part of a larger restructuring.
Besides the push for phasing out automatic promotion and relegation with the top flight, these will be among the biggest changes in the RFL since the creation of the Super League.
Revealing their plans earlier this week, the rugby authority confirmed that the second and third-tier divisions will be merging, with the changes set to be implemented from 2026 onwards.
You can see the statement in full down below, which has been met with a mix of
Confirmed in a lengthier statement online this past Wednesday, 27 August, the update reads: “The RFL Board have confirmed that the Betfred Championship and League One competitions will be combined in a single division outside the Betfred Super League (BSL) in 2026.
“This follows the decision to expand Super League from 12 clubs to 14, subject to conditions – which was taken by the existing Super League clubs last month.
“A number of fixture formats are being developed following consultation with the Championship and League One clubs, but there will be no final announcement until after the number and identity of clubs in each of the two expanded competitions is confirmed, on Thursday, October 16.
“However, the reversion to a single division outside Super League means the Middle Eights that had been scheduled for the end of the 2025 season, as a means of determining promotion and relegation between Championship and League One, will no longer take place.”
It’s also worth noting that these changes will also see the proposed Super 8s end-of-season fixtures scrapped, as the 12 teams set to compete in the playoff-style tournament are obviously now being combined into one league moving forward.
The Super 8s competition that would involve the top four League One clubs and the bottom four Championship clubs has been abandoned by the Rugby Football League.
It is highly expected that the Championship and League One will merge into one big division of 21 teams next season… pic.twitter.com/WDkshjYTS2
As detailed in the latest communication from the RFL, the League One champions’ prize of £25,000, as well as the usual trophy and medals promised at the start of the season, are still up for grabs; the Championship Play-Offs will still also take place as scheduled.
The winners of the Betfred Championship Grand Final are to receive £100k and 0.25 club grading points.
Commenting on the impending overhaul, Rugby League Commercial Chair Nigel Wood OBE – who headed up the latest strategic review – said: “Following the decision of the Betfred Super League clubs that the elite competition should expand to 14 clubs in 2026, subject to conditions, this is a logical and equally exciting next step.
“The Championship and L1 clubs have been extensively consulted and were virtually unanimous that the two divisional structure for the part-time game wasn’t working as well as it ought, particularly League One – and it is a great credit to the Championship clubs that they recognised that position.”
Reiterating the belief that this is the best way to support and promote “historic and ambitious clubs” outside of the BSL, helping boost attendances, finances and hopefully future investment. It remains a touchy subject for some, though.
The RFL merging divisions may not yet even matter for some.
Speaking of clubs looking for further backing, questions remain over the vetting process for investors and the ‘fit and proper persons tests’ in both rugby and football, especially with the ongoing crisis at Salford Red Devils.
With all that being said, while everyone will have the chance to win the new Championship and perhaps Super League promotion, the likes of Salford are just trying to stay afloat.
Regardless, what do you make of the RFL merging the Championship and League, and do you think it’s the right step for the future of rugby league?
Ruben Amorim has explained why he refused to watch Man United’s penalty shootout against Grimsby
Danny Jones
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim has explained the reason why he didn’t watch his team’s penalty shootout against Grimsby Town as they crashed out of the EFL Carabao Cup.
It was yet another night to forget for Man United as the Premier League outfit conceded the first two goals against the League Two side in a fixture that hadn’t been played since 1947.
Even a late comeback through new signing Bryan Mbuemo and Harry Maguire’s late header – an increasingly frequent scenario, it would seem – wasn’t enough to spare their blushes, as the Carabao‘s straight-to-penalties format meant that they couldn’t even rely on extra time.
You already know the rest, and if you were watching on telly, you will have seen head coach Ruben Amorim rocking back and forth as he refused to watch his squad’s spot-kicks. Like the rest of the game, it’s not gone down as a particularly great look.
Unbelievable that a Man Utd manager can’t bring himself to watch the penalties against Grimsby in the Carabao Cup. Where’s the leadership? Cunha got a high five from Onana before his pen… Just get on with it
While there were plenty at home who felt similar reluctance to watch the pens, many supporters have been left understandably frustrated by the Portuguese head coach’s behaviour, accusing him of a lack of leadership.
Admittedly, it doesn’t project great optics, especially given all the talk of ‘storms clearing’ and ‘good days coming’ spouted via club media in recent weeks and months.
However, the 40-year-old has at least given some reasoning for not watching his players take a total of 12 penalties, though we’ll leave it up to the fans.
Speaking to ITV in one of the few post-match interviews he conducted on Wednesday evening, Amorim said: “The penalty shootout was not important, if I’m there trying to see if we win the game, it doesn’t matter. The beginning of the game, during the game, that’s what mattered.
“If we win this game, it’s so unfair on these guys – the opponents. So today, the football was fair; congratulations to them. We move on to the next game, and then we have time to decide things.”
You see Amorim’s post-match interview with ITV in full right here:
"I think the players spoke really loudly about what they want today."
"I just want to apologise to our fans."
"Something has to change and you're not going to change 22 players again."
As you can see, he went on to explain that he was “not thinking about the penalties, to go to the next stage”, choosing instead to add that his side “spoke really loud about what they want today. It’s really clear, I think it’s really clear to everybody what happened today.”
Being probed further on the precise meaning of this turn of phrase, he told multiple reporters that “a good team can win anything”, suggesting instead that those he fielded were, in the end, merely a collection of players who failed to chime with each other.
Many would argue this has been a common theme not only since he joined the club, but for the last few managers who have taken charge at Old Trafford.
Besides that, he signed off by insisting that there was little he could say to soften the blow of the result, besides apologising to them directly and adding, “something has to change, and you’re not going to change 22 players again.”
Be it as a begrudging Red, an amused rival, or just a neutral, you can either hate-watch or simply study the shocking defeat on what was a historic night for some very happy Grimsby fans down below.
Amorim may not have wanted to sit through the penalty shootout, but MUFC weren’t great to watch in regulation time either.
Danny Jones -
1st May 2025 
