Luke Gale: Leeds Rhinos stand down England half-back from captaincy
- Published
Luke Gale was captain as hometown club Leeds won the Challenge Cup at Wembley in 2020
Leeds Rhinos have taken the captaincy away from half-back Luke Gale after he was deemed to have acted in a way "not aligned to team trademarks".
The 33-year-old England international was dropped for the Rhinos win over Salford last Friday, despite being named in the initial squad.
Gale is available for Thursday's game at Hull FC, with the Rhinos now describing the matter as "closed".
"I would like to apologise to everyone connected to the club," Gale said.
"I will be making sure I give my absolute best every day to help the team achieve our goal this season."
Former Castleford and Bradford half Gale captained Leeds to the 2020 Challenge Cup against Salford at Wembley last season.
Papua New Guinea international back-rower Rhyse Martin and Australian prop Matt Prior have both captained Leeds in Gale's absence.