KEIGHLEY Cougars have announced this evening that they have agreed to release Jordan Aitchison from the final year of his contract.

The decision to release Aitchison was reached following discussions between the player and head coach Rhys Lovegrove over the past few weeks.

A product of the club’s former scholarship and reserve programmes, ‘Aitch’ was in his third spell with the club, after returning ahead of the 2019 season following a brief period with the Hemel Stags.

During his current spell, he made his first team debut in a man of the match performance against Oldham before scoring his first senior try for the club the following week in a home victory against the London Skolars.

However, a hamstring injury sustained in the Skolars game ruled him out for the rest of 2019, before his 2020 season was ended before it even began, after a routine heart screening revealed he had a previously undiagnosed condition that required an operation.

Aitchison would undergo surgery and make a full recovery, but the season was ended anyway due to the initial lockdown caused by the Covid-19 epidemic.

The clubs said they would like to thank Aitchison for his services and wish him the best in his future endeavours.