One of Leeds' favourite players will be immortalised near the Leeds Rhinos Stadiumthis week.
It's difficult to talk about sports personalities in Leeds without bringing up Kevin Sinfield.
The 41-year-old is one of the most successful rugby players in the UK: no matter which way you look at it. We don't even care that Sinfield is in Leicester instead of Leeds, he will always remain a huge part of Leeds, past and present.
Now, the sports star is being immortalised by the Leeds Street Gallery, a group of keen Leeds Rhinos supporters that have crowdfunded for a mural of Sinfield to make an appearance close to his old kicking ground in Headingley.
Sinfield whilst playing for Leeds Rhinos. / Image: Wikicommons
The painting of the mural is due to begin tomorrow (Friday 11 February) outside Headingley Taps pub in Headingley.
Led by avid Leeds Rhinos fan Dan Whitley, the group of fans have raised all the costs for the mural and have enlisted the skills of Leeds Street Gallery and James Archer (JA Murals) to bring their concept to life.
Work is due to commence outside Headingley Taps. / Image: Headingley Taps, TripAdvisor
Leeds Street Gallery set up street art sites for artists to use around Leeds and also provide artists for homegrown artists to promote their names within the public eye.
Having been inspired by the murals of sports stars that line our streets, including the one of Josh Warrington on Kirkstall Road which was also curated by Leeds Street Gallery, the group banded together to impress Sinfield with a mural of his own.
The rugby player is more than deserving of the mural too. After a whirlwind year of splitting his time between sports and raising money to support friend Rob Burrow with the Motor Neurone Disease Association, the sports star was granted an OBE by the Queen.
Sinfield ran 101 miles to raise money for MNDA last year. / Image: Leicester Tigers
Last November, Kevin Sinfield raised over £2 million completed a 101 mile run in 24 hours to raise money for Leeds Hospitals Charity and Motor Neurone Disease Association and that wasn’t the first time that Sinfield has pushed himself to raise money for charity either.
Last December, the rugby coach raised over £2.7 million for the charity after running seven marathons in seven days.
Rhinos legend Rob Burrow was given a mural in 2020. / Image: Rob Burrow, Twitter
Behind Leeds Street Gallery is a group of local volunteers, who give their time and waive any fees for consultation so that the community has a space to bring projects like this to life. The team work on the project in addition to their full-time jobs, but it is thought that the mural will appear in a completed state fairly soon.
Work begins tomorrow on the mural, you'll be able to witness the progress yourself outside Headingley Taps pub in Headingley.
Feature Image- Sebastian Graser, Unsplash
News
Horsforth Brewery to takeover and save beloved Ilkley tap house
A renowned brewery have announced that they will be taking over the reigns of a popular craft beer bottle shop in Ilkley.
Fuggle & Golding opened in 2015 on Leeds road in Ilkley and quickly grew a loyal following with locals and visitors alike.
Sadly they announced last month that their last day of trading would be Saturday 28 February, news which was met with huge disappointment.
However this is no longer the case, as Horsforth Brewery is set to reopen the venue on Wednesday. Hooray!
Announcing the welcomed news to Instagram, Horsforth Brewery wrote: "When we saw they were going to close we were determined to not lose another great venue from the local beer scene.
"We owe a massive thank you to George and the landlord for getting a deal across the line in quick order.
"We’re going to take a few days to put our stamp on the place and then we will be open on Wednesday!"
"Obviously we will be stocking our beers here but as anyone who knows will know, we love the beer scene so we will continue to have a good amount of guest beer on as well. We’ll even been joining in with the biggest beer launches from around the country.
"Want to know the best news? We’re doing this solo. No outside interests, no investors, no debt. In the current climate being able to organically grow like this is so so hard and it’s thanks to all our team that we’ve been able to do this.
"We’ve always been determined to grow our business in a healthy and sustainable way; it may have (absolutely has) been tough over the years but we’ve got ourselves in a position to take us to the next level in a sustainable way."
Beloved late night Leeds cocktail bar The Maven announces permanent closure
Clementine Hall
"After years of late nights, strong cocktails, and incredible stories; The Maven will close its doors"
It's a sad day for the Leeds night life scene, as a beloved speakeasy bar has today announced that it will be closing its doors for good.
The Maven has been a firm favourite for many years with those looking to enjoy some experimental and expertly made cocktails.
Hidden behind an unassuming door at the top of Call Lane, it was a great spot to visit if you were looking for something that little bit special.
Announcing the news to their social media, The Maven said: "From the bottom of our hearts we thank you for being our guests over the years and promise that until then, we'll do our best to give you the best nights out on Call Lane."
Sophie Smith -
10th February 2022 
