Phoebe Maslen debut a boost for Lauren Palmer's injury-plagued Leeds Rhinos
Lauren Palmer has praised new signing Phoebe Maslen for how quickly she has adapted to the challenges facing injury-hit Leeds Rhinos as their Super League struggles continue.
Rhinos have experienced numerous injuries, many of which have caused players to miss a round or two, but Cassie Howard now joins Jaz Brown in being ruled out for the rest of the season. That news came before their latest defeat, an eighth in a row against Nottingham Forest in Sheffield on Friday, that leaves them second-bottom in the standings.
Wing-defence Maslen was brought in the day before the Forest game from London Pulse and head coach Palmer was impressed with her debut.
Head coach Lauren Palmer said: “We've thrown her in at the deep end, she's trained with us twice this week and turned up today, we’ve not even got kit ready.
“It was very last minute, but to come in and perform like she did, she slotted in, she’s fitting in with our style, with the girls, she was absolutely brilliant.
“I can say about Cassie, about Jaz, or Yomi, who has been out this week, about all the girls who have been out injured, they've been so professional, they've turned up to all the sessions and they've embraced assisting in training. It's great that they still want to be around the group and that speaks wonders for the culture that we have built this year.”
Former England Under-21s captain Maslen said: “I think I bring a bit of speed, vision, and some relentlessness in defence. I want to make an impact by playing week in, week out.”
Rhinos took an early 7-2 lead against Forest, but their opponents took advantage of the super-shot period and levelled the score at 15-15 by the end of the first quarter.
Forest had a 14-point lead going into the final quarter, and it seemed their win was guaranteed, but the Rhinos continued to fight, scoring four super shots which saw them pull to within five at the end, losing 68-63.
Rhinos were joint last with Birmingham Panthers, but finishing within five points of Forest earned them a bonus point, moving them off the bottom.
“To go from 14 down, to pull it back and get a bonus point we feel like we've won,” said Palmer, whose team welcome London Mavericks to the Canon Medical Arena on Saturday. “With the hardships we’ve had off the court this year, to then pull a performance out like that, we couldn’t be prouder.”