A WESTHOUGHTON Lions coach has just scooped a prestigious award.

Doug Owen rubbed shoulders with some of the big names in rugby league and was named as the RFL's 'Children's coach of the Year' at an award ceremony at Old Trafford.

But he has dedicated the honour to all of the hard work put in by his colleagues at the Den.

He said: "It was very humbling to get such an honour and being in good company with half a dozen other clubs getting community awards.

"However, I feel that I am undeserving considering what other people at the club have done in developing young players.

"I think it is nice for the club to be recognised at such a prestigious event like this where we were mentioned alongside all of the established rugby league teams in this area.

"We need to take advantage of the award and use it to show our achievement but we need to build to take the club to the next level in terms of junior coaching and providing links to the open age."