I was very sorry to hear of the death of Chris Percival. The former Widnes centre, 31, lost his battle with Cancer after a brave fight.
Chris was a player with a big heart and a knack for scoring important tries. He came through the ranks at Halton Farnworth Hornets before taking the professional ticket with hometown Widnes. He debuted in 1996 although it wasn't until 1998 that he started appearing regularly in the first team.
That season he made 19 appearances including twelve starts and he then appeared 31 times the following season when he also crossed for eleven tries..
He starred for Widnes in 2001 when they accounted for much fancied Leigh in a big elimination Semi-Final at Hilton Park and even scored a try as the visitors overcame a 12-4 half-time deficit to win 26-18. It was one of sixteen tries that Percival scored that season - his best return for Widnes.
He played for the Vikings until 2003, including 23 appearances in Widnes first Super League season (25 in total).
Between 1996 and his final game, Percival had amassed 123 starts, a further 14 as substitute and roared over for 51 tries.
Percival then joined Leigh Centurions ahead of their 2004 season. It was to be a good campaign for him and Leigh. He played 20 games over the course of the season and scored 20 tries. He looked set to play an important part in the Centurions play-off tilt but a bad leg injury brought a premature end to his season.
In typical fashion he battled back and on two occasions returned to Reserve Team rugby only to get injured again. His Leigh career was unfortunately over and he moved to Oldham in 2005, only to be dogged by similar problems that restricted appearances.
He later returned to amatuer rugby where he played alongside brothers Neil and David for Halton Simms Cross. The team enjoyed a wonderful 2007 when they lifted the BARLA National Cup after winning against Ince Rose Bridge in the final.
The father of one began his Cancer battle 18 months ago.
May I wish all of Chris's friends and family my very best wishes at this sad time.
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