Leeds Rhinos coach Brad Arthur hails 'best win': 2 points v Bradford Bulls 'vital' as physicality pays off
Delighted boss Brad Arthur described Leeds Rhinos’ 24-12 derby success at Bradford Bulls as “our best win”.
Rhinos’ second victory in six days lifted them top of Betfred Super League on points difference, though Warrington Wolves could overhaul them if they beat Leigh Leopards on Saturday. As in last Sunday’s win against Warrington, Leeds trailed at half-time, but were the better side after the break.
In front of a crowd of more than 14,000, Bulls were fired up to defend their 100 per cent home record and Arthur reflected: “I think it’s our best win, I thought last week we were tough, gritty and composed and I think we backed it up again tonight.
“That’s what we were chasing. We knew it was going to be tough to come here and play; we knew it would be a Grand Final mentality for those guys. They came after us early, we had to weather the storm and I thought we were very good physically and it showed in the second half. Overall, I am just happy with the response from last week.”
Arthur felt Rhinos’ physicality in the first half paved the way for them to take a grip of the game in the second. “There were some really good games from different individuals,” he said.
“I thought our middles worked really hard and the two back-rowers did a really good job. Ash [Handley] and Birdy [Jack Bird] did a really good job, the spine controlled things - everyone did played their role really well.
“We showed a lot of patience in the first half down at their tryline. We had a run of 15-16 tackles in a row and were happy to keep turning the ball over on our terms, get their tackle count up and we knew at some stage they’d have to pay the price for it.
“In the past maybe we’ve been a bit guilty of thinking we have to score there or we have to chase the scoreboard. It is a bit of a development in our team. The two points is really vital because it is a tough place to come and win.”
Rhinos have no game next weekend when Super League takes a break for the Challenge Cup quarter-finals. “The players are going to get a three-day break over the weekend,” Arthur said. “They have earned it.
“We’d much rather be playing next week, but we’re not so we need to turn that into what positives we can moving forward. I think a few people have used the word ‘inconsistent’ with our team, I don’t think that’s the case. I just think we’ve had two bad halves of footy and we’ve learned from it, but we’ve got to do it again the next time we play.”