FROM Hell, Hull and Halifax, Good Lord deliver us!
It’s a saying that has been around for almost 400 years and is part of poet John Taylor’s Beggar’s Litany.
But tomorrow, 1,000 Huddersfield Giants fans will be hoping the city on the Humber, once notorious for dealing harshly with beggars and vagrants, will deliver a little bit of Heaven for them.
Jon Sharp’s Giants do battle with Hull in the impressive KC Stadium tomorrow night in the crucial first stage of the Super League play-offs.
A huge following will be determined to outshout the notoriously vocal Hull fans and cheer the side to victory.
And among them will be the hardworking Giants backroom staff who have spent the week trying to ensure as many supporters as possible will be at the game.
Their reward from boss Richard Thewlis is a trip to Hull and a match ticket. The Giants’ managing director is paying for the 10 staff in the ticket office, the commercial section and the marketing department to go to the big game.
Administrator Tracey Houghton said: “It’s a nice gesture. It’s been a busy week since we knew we had reached the play-offs.
“But I think the Giants will win tomorrow and we can do all the work again next week for the next match”.
But what else can the Giants fans expect when they dock in Yorkshire’s biggest seaport, with a maritime history dating back more than 800 years?
Tourist staff in the town believe they’ve a lot to offer, despite Hull’s grim reputation.
Famous names from Hull’s past include the pilot Amy Johnson, the anti-slavery campaigner William Wilberforce, the pop group The Beautiful South and former Emmerdale Farm actor Ronald Magill, who died last week.
But what of today’s Hull?
A city spokesman said: “There is a great deal to make sure the Huddersfield fans can have a great day out, no matter what the result.
“This is a lively, bustling city with a lot of attractions”.
