RUGBY star Sam Cross put his best boot forward yesterday when he came to Ledbury to open the town's newest supermarket.

Sam, who claimed his first Olympic silver medal as part of Team GB’s Rugby 7s squad after losing out to Fiji in a thrilling final at the 2016 Rio Olympics, cut the ribbon to officially open the new Aldi store on Leadon Way at 8am.

A large queue of shoppers formed before the store opened to see the sports star do the honours.

Mr Cross said: "It’s always nice to get out in the community and support Aldi, which has been such a great partner to Team GB. I really enjoyed opening the store today and there was a great atmosphere. Everyone in the crowd was eager to explore their new supermarket and it was encouraging to see the staff so enthusiastic to welcome the community into the new store.

“Aldi’s support for Team GB athletes has been fantastic - their fresh fruit, veg and meat products are great and really help us all keep on track with our training regimes.”

Olivia Knight, manager of the new store, said: “It was great to open our doors to the Ledbury community this morning. It’s been a huge effort from all involved and you can really feel the passion from our local team to provide the best service possible to their fellow community members.

“Sam was great with our customers and many made sure they got a selfie with him before they headed down the aisles. We look forward to welcoming lots more customers over the coming days, ensuring they enjoy their new store and the quality products we provide at amazing prices.”

The store has 113 car parking spaces and 1,254 square metres of retail space, and, in a welcome boost for the local economy, 15 new jobs have been created.

Aldi is still recruiting for a variety of jobs ranging from store apprentices to deputy store managers. Information and application forms can be found at aldirecruitment.co.uk/stores.