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2 months ago
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This was a night where you could almost sense the mood of all those associated with Leeds Rhinos shift from cautious optimism to genuine belief about what could lie ahead this summer.
After several years of malaise, disappointment is rare in this part of West Yorkshire these days but after an underwhelming defeat to St Helens last weekend, Brad Arthur had demanded his side show a response. How they did that here, and in some style on another impressive evening for Leeds.
The ultra-demanding Arthur will likely be frustrated with the amount of points his side conceded but credit must go to Leigh, who are in the top four alongside Leeds on merit. But when the Rhinos attacked, they were utterly sensational and were worthy winners to climb above the Leopards and move up to third.
There were occasions when Leigh caused Leeds problems, both in-play and on the scoreboard. But the Rhinos rode those moments out, scoring some impressive tries and underlining why, for the first time in a long time, they are being discussed as title contenders.
“It was an enjoyable game,” Arthur said. “We showed up to have a response from last week. That’s all I’m worried about and we’ve jumped a spot in the league.” And with Shaun Wane set to name his latest England performance squad on Monday, this was an opportune night for several Rhinos to shine.
Few did so more than Jake Connor. The half-back is divisive to say the least but his form since joining Leeds this year has been sensational. Wane is understood to have left Connor out of his latest squad, but this performance, with a plethora of assists and a flawless display from the tee, should have piqued the England coach’s attention.
“He’s done enough to get a mention,” Arthur said of Connor. It was his kick that led to Kallum Watkins’ opening try and after further scores from Lachlan Miller, Cameron Smith and Harry Newman, Leeds led 24-10 at half-time and entirely on merit. Leigh’s tries in that first half came through Isaac Liu and Keanan Brand, but they were below-par here.
That was perhaps due to playing in Perpignan last weekend against Catalans in searing heat, and the Leopards never looked fully themselves. “It was a weird game,” their coach, Adrian Lam, said. “We looked lethargic from last week in that heat.”
Their cause wasn’t helped by the loss of star full-back David Armstrong but in truth, this night belonged to Connor. He was involved in Newman’s second before claiming a try of his own to put Leeds 36-14 ahead, and while Leigh would continue to score points of their own late on, with Brand continuing his hat-trick, they were never in the game.
That is because the Rhinos continued to post points at will. Tom Holroyd and Mikolaj Oledzki both crossed in the final quarter, with Connor influential in both, to put the seal on another win that suggests come October, we may be discussing Leeds’ fortunes in the big games once again.
