Leeds Rhinos boss Brad Arthur talks top spot, vital home form and what to expect from Catalans Dragons
It is nice to be top of the table with almost a third of the season played, but Leeds Rhinos coach Brad Arthur has warned it only really counts after round 27.
Catalans Dragons stand between Rhinos and a fourth successive win when they visit AMT Headingley on Friday, during a weekend which sees Betfred Super League’s top-six face off against each other. Rhinos led the competition for a day at Easter, returned to the summit thanks to last Friday’s 56-22 win at Huddersfield Giants and stayed there, on points difference, after Warrington Wolves and Wigan Warriors both lost.
With second-placed Wakefield Trinity visiting St Helens - who are third - on Saturday and Wigan and Warrington, in fourth and fifth, meeting on Friday, it is an opportunity for Rhinos to put clear daylight between themselves and some of their nearest rivals, including sixth-placed Catalans. However, Arthur says they can’t risk looking too far ahead.
“It is great for the club,” he said of Leeds’ current position. “But I want to be there in round 27, not round eight. It is a starting point, it helps, but there’s a lot of hard work to be done between now and round 27.
“It is a bit of a reward for the hard work the players have done up to this stage, but we certainly can’t take it for granted. As soon as you take your eye off your week to week processes and start looking down the track, things will change.”
Top spot means there is a target on Rhinos’ backs, but Arthur insisted: “I don’t think it puts any more pressure on us. I feel like we have earned the right and a bit of respect from the competition over the last 18 months that teams come with their best game.
“We have seen that and the boys have learned it - maybe we didn’t give Hull FC enough credit and they came with their best game and beat us. I think we’ve earned the right and reputation and privilege that teams are coming every week to aim up against us and that can only make us better. That’s what we are focusing on, preparing for the best version of the opposition every week.”
Leeds’ three defeats in league and cup this year have all been away from home. Four of their next five games are at AMT Headingley and Arthur said: “It is a privilege for away teams to play here and for us to play here and call it our home. We have a great supporter base and they can make a real difference for us.
“There’s only one way we can keep those guys wanting to come back to watch us, which is with how we perform. It is an unbelievable stadium and we need to keep that strength of teams knowing what they are going to get when they come to play here.
“I love the stadium and we have talked about the importance of playing well at home. Away as well, but at home we need to really make sure we are playing well for our fans.”
Catalans are on the back of an impressive 38-22 home win against Warrington in Perpignan last Saturday. Arthur noted: “They are very unorthodox, in terms of a lot of offload and off the cuff-type footy so you have got to make sure you are keeping your line up and your reactions are nice and positive. They have a big team so you’ve got to be physical in the contest as well.”
Former Leeds player Ryan Sheridan is in caretaker charge of the French outfit after Joel Tomkins stepped down earlier this month. Arthur added: “You can see a bit of confidence building in them with back-to-back wins. They had plenty of fight in them in the second half last week, they looked to kick early and chance their hand a bit. You have got to be right on your game defensively. It will be a good test for us, we have to make sure we don’t have any lapses or knock off.”