17-05-2025
Could Red Bull transform North East into a rugby powerhouse?
On a bright afternoon this week, I saw something that I thought no longer existed. Something that, for years now, has been talked about with concerned looks and furrowed brows. Something that many were worried was gone for good — the future of professional club rugby in the North the train half an hour south from Newcastle, or drive the 37 miles down the A1(M) and there it is, slightly weary and unloved, but impressive nevertheless. It has 26,000 seats which, by a close call, makes it the biggest club rugby stadium in the country, and part of the point, here, is that 25,000 of them never get filled. This is the Darlington Arena and it may be the saviour that rugby up
