13-man game prepares to make a pitch in the heartland of rugby union

Be it supermarkets, sport or the obvious superiority of its weather, the north was in bullish mood yesterday.

The game of rugby league, confined to its northern heartlands for much of the 108 years since it split from the southern establishment, came to the big city, not exactly storming the ramparts but setting up shop in Portcullis House in Westminster to announce the most ambitious expansion in the code's history.

From next season, there will not only be three professional divisions largely based north of Watford Gap, but also a new National League III, incorporating clubs from Coventry, Crawley, Teesside, St Albans and Hemel Hempstead alongside those from more mainstream areas such as Bradford, Huddersfield and Warrington.

Below them will be an expanded 52-team Rugby League Conference, ranging from Gosport on the south coast to Carlisle on the Scottish border and from Swansea to Ipswich.

"This is a day I never thought would arrive," said David Hinchliffe, the MP for Wakefield and secretary of the All-Party Rugby League Group in parliament. "What we've seen announced today is an enormous breakthrough in making rugby league a truly national sport."

Mr Hinchliffe said the group had been in a series of struggles against hostile forces throughout the 15 years of its existence. "Much of our time has been spent in fighting blatant discrimination," he said. "We've seen now how much the sport can grow once people in a free society are able to play the game of their choice."

The executive chairman of the Rugby League, Richard Lewis, from deepest Surrey, was a little more cautious about the event's significance. "It's part of an evolution and a very important step forward," he said. "I certainly believe rugby league is now a national sport."