Leigh Leopards are delighted to confirm that Keanan Brand has signed a three-year extension to his contract, tying him to the club until the end of 2028.

Brand, 26, is the club’s longest serving player having initially joined on a season-long loan from Warrington Wolves in 2021 before making the deal permanent. The Ormskirk born fullback or three-quarter began his professional career with Widnes Vikings and made his international debut for Ireland last autumn in a 36-6 win against Scotland.

Keanan Brand said: “I’m absolutely delighted to sign this deal. I never wanted to play anywhere else and now I want to go on and win things playing alongside my best mates.

“I’ve been at Leigh five years now and I love what we have built. I’m excited to see what we can achieve here with this special group of people.

“I think the next few years are very exciting for the team. We are a very fit team, as we proved against Wigan and we’re now a top four team that everyone wants to play for.”

After limited opportunities in his last two seasons Brand admits this last pre-season was ‘make or break’ for him.

“Last year I was offered a two-year deal but opted just for one,” he said. “I’d had a bad run with injuries, and I gave myself one more year to prove to myself I could do it. Whatever happened I knew I’d left no stone unturned, so I turned up every day with a smile on my face and ready to accept what happened.

“I had a good game at Magic weekend against Salford and that was a catalyst for me and making my Ireland debut was one of the highlights of my career and something I’d always wanted to achieve when I was growing up. All my family are Irish, and they were very proud.”

Brand carried on training after last season ended with former Leopards’ teammate Jacob Jones, now at Doncaster and benefited from the first preseason under Head of Performance Kane Daniels.

“Jacob is one of the best people I’ve ever met,” he said. “Every day we’d hit the running track or the gym and have a set routine that we followed. We geed each other up and never missed.

“Kane was a massive factor, too. It’s been massive for me having him here preseason. He’s very accurate and detailed in his preparation and has specific training for backs and forwards. He’s concentrated on power, dynamism and fitness and you can see the results.

“Having Adrian Lam as head coach is massive too. I love him as a person and his people skills are fantastic. He’s the best coach I’ve ever had.

“The club is chalk and cheese from when I first arrived. It’s still a family club and everyone is friendly, but the professionalism has gone through the roof.

Leopards Head of Rugby Chris Chester said: “Keanan’s followed in the footsteps of Umyla Hanley and Darnell McIntosh and been waiting patiently for his opportunity and in the early stages of this season he’s really taken that opportunity not just with impressive performances but putting important points on the board too. 

“Adrian would tell anyone who’d listen in pre-season that Keanan had returned in the best shape of his career and was training at an incredible level, leading most of our pre-season drill competitions and that hard work on the training field has translated into the playing field. 

“He’s the longest serving player at the club which is a testament of his love for the club. This deal continues our plan to tie down players, so you don’t see the same level of turn around as in previous seasons.