LIZZIE Jones is looking forward to performing at the World Club Series this weekend.
She will be singing at Langtree Park on Friday before our match with Sydney Roosters.
“I am really honoured to be singing at all three World Club Series games,” she said. “Each one will be a fantastic occasion.
“I’ve never been to any of the games before, I have watched them on television but this will be my first time attending so I’m not only looking forward to singing but also watching.
“I’ll be singing ‘I vow to thee my country’ on Friday before the St Helens v Sydney Roosters game, ‘Hallelujah’ on Saturday before the Wigan Warriors v Brisbane Broncos and then ‘Jerusalem’ at the World Club Challenge on Sunday.
“It’s lovely to perform at all the different stadiums and I am sure the crowd at each of the games will be in good spirits and excited to watch a great Series.”
Lizzie is spearheading a new campaign to raise funds for equipment that could prove the difference between life and death at Rugby League clubs across the UK.
She has launched the Danny Jones Defibrillator Fund named in honour of her late husband who died from an undiagnosed heart condition while playing against London Skolars last May.
Following his tragic death, Lizzie successfully campaigned for cardiac screening to become mandatory at every Kingstone Press Championship and League 1 club, as it already is in the First Utility Super League.
Now, Lizzie has joined forces with the RFL Benevolent Fund to raise money to create a fund that will provide assistance to hundreds of community clubs and junior teams across the country to purchase a defibrillator.
Defibrillators cost around £1,000 each and provide potentially life-saving treatment to anyone suffering a heart attack.
Lizzie Jones said: “This is my way of saying a big ‘Thank You’ to the wider Rugby League family for all they have done for me and my children since we lost Danny.
“The professional and semi-professional players are now getting screened, which is fantastic, and it’s important that we do all we can to protect the welfare of the men, women and children who gain so much pleasure from playing the game at community level.
“£1,000 doesn’t seem like a lot of money but as anyone who’s been involved with grassroots sport will know, every penny matters and I am proud to be associated with another project which means Danny’s death will not have been in vain.”
The campaign has set a fund-raising target of £50,000: to make a donation please visit our Just Giving page.
