Centurions bring in Saints duo

Leigh Centurions have brought in young St Helens duo Ricky Bailey and Jonah Cunningham on season-long loans.

The promising pair will join up with the Centurions in November when the team meets back up for pre-season training.

Full-back Bailey (pictured right), 20, is a product of the Midlands Regional Player Development team. He has represented England Academy and made his Super League debut in 2015 and has been a stand-out in their Reserves side, scoring 16 tries in 14 games.

Hooker Cunningham (pictured left), 19, is the son of Centurions head of rugby Keiron Cunningham. He has been at the club since the age of 14 and scored five tries in 14 appearances for the Saints Reserves this season.

Cunningham also played twice for Sheffield Eagles on dual-registration in September but has yet to make his professional debut for Saints.

And Leigh head coach Neil Jukes believes there is a lot of potential in the pair.

He said: “Ricky and Jonah are two young and talented individuals with real ambition to go on and achieve big things in the game.

“Both have shown real promise in their development through the Saints system and are at the stage in their careers where they are both ready to push to play first-team football on a regular basis.

“We have been busy in the market and though we always as a club want to develop our own players, it is also important to have the assistance of neighbouring clubs.

“When we enquired about these two talented individuals, Justin (Holbrook) and Mike (Rush) kindly engaged in an agreement that will ultimately prove to the advantage of all parties. As a club, Leigh Centurions has an excellent relationship with Saints and I’d like to thank Justin and Mike for their continued assistance.”