Leeds Rhinos boss insists 'we got what we deserved' as 'hard work' secures big win v St Helens
It wasn’t plain-sailing, but Brad Arthur reckons Leeds Rhinos “got what we deserved” from their 17-4 win against St Helens at Magic Weekend.
Having led 10-0 at half-time, Rhinos found themselves under huge pressure for a 20-minute spell in the second period, but their defence held up and they sealed a precious two points in the final quarter. After seeing his side fail to hold on to two-score leads against Warrington Wolves and Hull KR, Arthur felt their second win in 20 meetings with Saints was a step forward.
“It has been a long six weeks, with some big games and every game we’ve had to fight really hard,” he said in his post-match press conference. “We got what we deserved tonight.
“Over the last six weeks we’ve put ourselves in a position to win these games. We made it hard for ourselves tonight, but we found a way - we hung on and I think that's the result of working extremely hard.
“I thought we were very brave and very tough and that's what it takes to beat really good sides. They threw plenty at us in the second half and we had to scramble hard.”
A crucial moment in the game came just after the hour when Saints winger Lewis Murphy was sin-binned following a collision in the air with Leeds counterpart Alfie Edgell, who had to go off for a head injury assessment. “It’s accidental, but at the end of the day, it’s the player’s responsibility not to make contact with someone’s head,” Arthur said. “That's just what has been officiated for the last 10 weeks and you can’t change it now. I feel sorry for the young fella, but those are the rules.”