Harrogate Pythons RUFC to entertain Leodiensian RUFC on the opening day of 2025/26 season
Harrogate Pythons RUFC will get their 2025/26 campaign underway with a home fixture against Leodiensian on September 6.
Roy Mackay's team will be looking to consolidate in Yorkshire One this term following an up and down 2024/25 season, one which saw them start superbly before an injury crisis threatened to derail things.
The Starbeck-based club won each of their opening four matches last term, but then went on to taste victory in just four more of the 18 league fixtures which followed.
In the end, they placed eighth, but were never in any real danger of being sucked into a relegation dog-fight, with a comfortable mid-table finish quite the achievement for a side that had struggled so badly the year before.
The Pythons would have been demoted at the end of 2023/24 having finished second-from-bottom of the pile, only for a restructuring of the leagues to mean that they were handed a reprieve.
Mackay and his men certainly took advantage of that bit of good fortune in what was only their second-ever season competing in English rugby’s sixth tier and will be aiming to build on the foundations laid last time out.
That opening fixture against Leodiensian means that ‘Gate will pick up where they left off in April, when their final game of the previous campaign saw them entertain the same opponents at the Jim Saynor Ground.
The Pythons lost that encounter 46-31, but did come out on top when the sides met over in Leeds on the first day of the season, triumphing ?.
After that curtain-raiser, ‘Gate travel to Old Rishworthian a week later on September 13.
They begin October with a home showdown against Wensleydale and sign off for 2025 at home to Hullensians on December 13.
The Pythons begin 2026 away at Keighley in a match scheduled for January 3, and are due to round things off for 20256/26 at Leodiensian on April 25.
Fixtures in full:
September
6 – Leodiensian (h)
13 – Old Rishworthian (a)
October
4 – Wensleydale (h)
11 – West Leeds (a)
18 – Beverley (h)
November
8 – Dinnington (a)
22 – Goole (h)
29 – Wath Upon Dearne (a)
December
6 – Yarnbury (h)
13 – Hullensians (h)
January 2026
3 – Keighley (a)
10 – Old Rishworthian (h)
17 – Wensleydale (a)
25 – West Leeds (h)
February
14 – Beverley (a)
28 – Dinnington (h)
March
7 – Goole (a)
21 – Wath Upon Dearne (h)
28 – Yarnbury (a)
April
11 – Hullensians (a)
18 – Keighley (h)
25 – Leodiensian (a)