RUGBY hero Kevin Sinfield CBE will hit the streets of Wirral this December as he leads his fundraising team for their fifth annual challenge in support of the motor neurone disease (MND) community with the theme of ‘running home for Christmas’. 

The week long challenge will start on December 1 with Sinfield and the team covering over 50km per day, visiting seven regions across Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Each day will be broken down into 7km blocks, the number 7 as always central to Sinfield’s challenge in recognition of his friend and former team mate Rob Burrow, who wore the number during his glittering career alongside Sinfield at Leeds Rhinos.

The team will aim to complete each 7km within one hour before the next block must start on the hour meaning the only rest the team will get between each leg is the time spare after they have completed the block.

The challenge will once again see the return of the Extra Mile events from last year’s 7 in 7 in 7 Challenge when members of the MND community joined Sinfield and the team to complete their own mile.

The 2024 Challenge will start on Sunday, December 1 with a run from Liverpool to Wrexham, taking the fundraising effort back to Wales after last year’s run in Cardiff.

This stage will see Sinfield depart a ferry at Seacombe Ferry Terminal at around 10.05am before running to Lady Lever Art Gallery and on to The Chimneys in Hooton.

The second day is the longest of the challenge, covering over 60km as the team travel from Gloucester to Bristol, inspired by friends of the team in former rugby player Ed Slater, who played for Gloucester, and footballer Marcus Stewart, who started his career at Bristol Rovers.

On December 3, the team head across the Irish Sea once again, this time to Belfast after last year’s memorable run in Dublin. Day 4 will see the team arrive back in Scotland. Having already achieved special memories in Edinburgh and the Borders inspired by the late, great Doddie Weir, this time the challenge will start in Stirling before finishing in Glasgow.

The challenge returns to England on December 5 with Sinfield and the team assured of a warm reception in the Rugby League mad city of Hull.

The penultimate day will start at the Head Office of the MND Association in Northampton with Sinfield leading the team to Leicester, where the 2021 Extra Mile Challenge started. 

Finally, the team will return home on December 7. Starting outside Old Trafford, where Sinfield and Burrow shared so many memories on the field with the Rhinos, the team will head to Saddleworth to conclude the challenge, back to where the first ever challenge finished back in 2020. 

Commenting on the new challenge, Sinfield said, “It is a special time of year for our challenges. We always say that people like to see us battling through the elements but for us it is wonderful to arrive in cities with the Christmas lights up and everyone feeling good.

"The MND community are always in our thoughts but especially at that time of year when families are going through tough times. We want to meet as many of the MND community as we can along the way, whether that is at our stops after each 7km block, or at the Extra Mile events, which was so special last year. We are announcing a bit earlier this year so as many people as possible can get involved either as supporters or sponsors.”