A FORMER Workington Town player who broke his back whilst playing for the side a day after his 21st birthday has thanked the RL Benevolent Fund which has supported him since his injury.

In 1977, aged 20, John Burke joined ambitious Workington Town for a then-record fee of £12,000, and was on the verge of his full Great Britain debut when tragedy struck.

Playing against Leeds in September 1978, the day after his 21st birthday, John's career was ended when his spine was crushed in a routine tackle.

Speaking about his career at Workington Town, John said: "I really enjoyed it up there. A beautiful part of the country and the people are really nice. I had some really good games up there and I thought we were good enough to win something.

"But then, the following season, unfortunately I got injured just after my 21st birthday and that's when my career ended, but even from a school and colts level I had quite a successful career in rugby and I really enjoyed it.

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"To come to terms with an injury like that - a lifechanging injury like that - it takes you quite a few years and I was in a lot of pain then."

John has been confined to a wheelchair ever since and in recent years has been supported by the RL Benevolent Fund.

He has said the RL Benevolent Fund has offered lots of support for former players who have suffered injuries in the sport - saying that the fund is 'a credit to the rugby league'.

He said: "Since its introduction they have really, really helped me a lot. They have provided things for me, they maintain my garden for me, they gave me a wet room, some new windows for my house... they look after people when there is a final at Wembley.

"I remember when we went to Wembley, we all went there and I said at the time: 'It's good this, we have been invited to a weekend at Wembley, we were catered for amazingly and it just feel like we have not been forgotten'.

"And that's how I feel about this... 'we haven't been forgotten'."

 The RL Benevolent Fund is a registered charity, you can make a donation via the charity's dedicated JustGiving page here.

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