Leeds Rhinos boss sounds 80-minute warning with 'execution' message ahead of Hull KR showdown
Boss Brad Arthur reckons Leeds Rhinos have got the defensive side of their game sorted, now he wants to see more shine in attack.
Rhinos have won three of their past four fixtures going into today’s (Friday) visit of Hull KR and Arthur has been “really happy with our last month of football”, but he admits focussing on defence has taken its toll on their attack. Rhinos have scored 51 fewer points than Hull KR in eight Betfred Super League rounds this term - 164 to the Robins’ 215 - but the sides’ defensive records are almost identical, Leeds conceding 87 to their opponents’ 86.
The coach predicted Leeds will need to maintain their standards without the ball and also find a way of turning pressure into points to come away from their first Friday night home fixture with a positive result. “We are playing a good style, where they know fundamentally what we are trying to do and what we are trying to achieve,” Arthur reflected.
“Our missed tackle count is low, our field position is good, our possession and error count is good - a lot of the basic fundamentals and simple things of our game we are doing really well. The next part of it is to tidy up some execution at times and ice some moments when they need to be iced. But overall, I think fundamentally we are at a good place and we’ll get a good challenge this week, which we are excited and looking forward to.”
After keeping a clean sheet at Salford Red Devils a fortnight ago, Leeds let in just one try against Huddersfield Giants on Good Friday and Arthur admitted: “In pre-season our focus was on defence and that is maybe why, at times, our attack has looked a bit clunky or suffered. We’ve got to build our performances around our defence and through that we’ve built good field position. We are happy with that and we’ve got to do it every single week.”
Hull KR travel to AMT Headingley protecting a five-game winning run against Leeds and it will be only Rhinos’ second meeting with a top-five side in the league this year, after last month’s 12-10 win against Wigan Warriors. Hull KR’s 21-man squad includes former Leeds players Elliot Minchella, Jack Broadbent and Leon Ruan, but Rhyse Martin - who scored more than 1,000 points for Rhinos before joining the Robins at the end of last season - is missing because of injury.
Assessing the visitors, who are top of Super League and have lost just once in 2025, Arthur warned: “They are pretty reliable around everyone in their team knowing their job and doing that for the full 80 minutes.
“They play the same way from the start to the finish, so you have to be in the game for 80 minutes. They start fast and hard and they maintain that. We are really looking forward to the level of intensity they are going to play with and seeing where we are at.”