Keighley Cougars proud of four Bradford Sports Awards nominations – Keighley News
KEIGHLEY Cougars have been nominated in four categories for the upcoming Bradford Sports Awards in March, which co-owner Kaue Garcia believes is a reflection of how hard the club works on and off the field.
Cougars are the only ones up for Professional Club/Team of the Year, while they are also in contention to win the Sporting Highlight of the Year, Coach of the Year (with head coach Rhys Lovegrove) and the Sustainability Award.
A proud Garcia told the T&A: “It’s a sign of how well we’re doing on and off the field.
“We’re always looking to promote awareness of societal issues, like our LGBTQ+ video ahead of our game against West Wales last year where we promoted trans awareness.
“We’ve hosted and celebrated transgender artists and drag queens, while we’ve also supported Ukraine with fundraising and incorporating their flag on to our kit for 2023.
“All of that gives us a chance to educate people, especially those who might be coming to a game at Cougar Park for the first time.”
Anyone who attended a match at Cougar Park last year saw a Keighley victory, as they won all 20 of their Betfred League 1 games to complete an invincible season.
Discussing that Sporting Highlight, Garcia said: “Only two other clubs in the summer era had achieved an invincible season previously and it was a real statement from the players we had and the signings we’d made.
“There’s been a lot of questioning about how we’ve got players of the calibre we do here, but they want to be a part of this project.
“That group achieving an invincible season means they will all go down in the club’s, and town’s, history.”
Cougars could not have achieved immortality without Lovegrove’s presence, and Garcia said: “We’re proud to have him here.
“When Ryan and I took over the club in 2019, we chatted about how our style of running things wouldn’t be to everyone’s taste, being a gay couple and promoting certain causes.
“But whenever we’ve approached Rhys about any ideas for the players, like the LGBTQ+ video, he’s been on board, and he’s always backed our ideas.
“As owners, we couldn’t find anyone who’s a better match, as head coach, to run our club.
“He’s very engaging, gives his own ideas, and always stands with us.
“He’s put in a lot of effort, with this being his first head coaching role, but he’s already one of the best around.”
Lovegrove’s players ran out in kits for the 2022 season that had a unique selling point, in that the Cougars planted a tree for every replica shirt sold.
That initiative was the basis for them being nominated for the Sustainability Award, and Garcia said: “Ryan and I don’t just have to focus on raising awareness for matters close to our hearts as a gay couple.
“Everything we can do to feed positive change is a bonus and global warming is a topic that really needs to be talked about.
“We planted a tree for every shirt sold and we’re carrying that sustainability drive into this year.
“As part of the new stand we’re building over the next year, we’re getting the engineers and architects to put mini wind turbines on the roof to generate our electricity.
“Some people don’t like them, but we just want to keep making a positive commitment to the environment.”
The celebrations don’t stop at Cougar Park either, with the ground hosting rugby league legend Jake Webster’s testimonial today.
The game doubles up as Cougars’ second and final pre-season friendly, and sees Webster’s current side Keighley take on his old one in the Castleford Tigers.