COLWYN Bay will host an historic day for rugby league on Saturday, April 2, when North Wales Crusaders face Cornwall in their first competitive match as a club.

Cornwall have joined League 1 for the 2022 campaign and, after bringing together a squad of players, they’ll take to the field for the first time at Stadiwm Eirias.

North Wales will have already kicked off their League 1 season at Rochdale Hornets the weekend before and have had four outings in the Challenge Cup as they made it through to the fifth round stage.

Coach Neil Kelly, who led Wales in the early 2000s, is the man tasked with managing the club and establishing roots for a professional rugby league side in fairly new territory.

Crusaders chief executive Andy Moulsdale said: “As a club outside rugby league’s heartlands, we’re delighted to be the ones hosting Cornwall in their first-ever match.

“We’ve made a lot of progress on and off the field and we’re hoping to carry our momentum into the 2022 campaign.

“With no other professional rugby league matches in the UK on April 2, this is a great spectacle for people to attend as it’s a piece of history for the sport.

“Our crowds have grown significantly in Colwyn Bay and it’s helped create a fantastic atmosphere that the players have thrived off.

“It’d be great to see Stadiwm Eirias rocking under the lights as we take on Cornwall.”

Tickets for Crusaders’ clash with Cornwall, getting underway at 5.30pm, are priced at £12 for adults and £10 for concessions, with U16s going free.

Hospitality, including a match ticket and buffet meal, is £25.

To book tickets, go to: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/north-wales-crusaders-v-cornwall-rlfc-tickets-297383129947.