Leeds Rhinos coach 'totally understands' Brodie Croft's reason for leaving as replacement option identified

Arthur has identified youngster George Brown as an option to replace the stand-off who will leave Rhinos when his contract expires at the end of this season. Today’s (Tuesday) weekly preview press conference, ahead of Friday’s visit of Huddersfield Giants, gave Arthur a first opportunity to talk about Croft’s imposing departure.

Croft is set to join Warrington Wolves for 2027 and has told Leeds he wants to play for a club closer to his home in the north west “It’s disappointing,” Arthur admitted. “As a coach you become close to these guys when you see how they get themselves up for you every week and they train hard and put their bodies on the line for you.

“You get a lot of admiration and appreciation for them and it’s hard to see them go - you become like a father of 30-40 people. It is tough, but I get it, too; I don’t take it personally.

“Travelling along the M62, when he spoke to the boys the other day he said he can't do it for another year. People might say he should move over to Leeds, well he has got a young family and they are set up in Manchester. Their circle of friends is there and their kids are at school there. I totally understand it, the players understand it and what I do know from Brodie and his character is he is committed to finishing off the season and having a big year for us.”

Rhinos are looking to bring in a new stand-off for 2027, but Arthur insisted entrusting the role to 19-year-old rookie George Brown has not been ruled out. Brown, who is on the casualty list with a long-term knee injury, played four first team games at the start of this season after making his debut in a Challenge Cup tie at Widnes Vikings.

The coach stressed: “It’s not about finding another Brodie Croft, it’s about what’s best for this club and the team. We have got George Brown here, we’ve got a good system and good pathways.

“I am more than happy to back the system and back the club and maybe we can strengthen a few other areas around George. That’s one option. Maybe that’s 12 months ahead of where we thought for George, but you back your coaches, your system and the players you’ve got. We haven’t made any concrete decisions yet, but I’d like to think we are pretty strong on our pathways.”

Brown is Rhinos’ reigning academy player of the year and scored the winning try for the reserves in their 2025 Grand Final against Warrington Wolves. Arthur said: “He is on a quicker progression rate than I predicted when I first got here.

“He is a similar style of player to Brodie for what we need in our team: he is tough, he defends really well and he runs the ball really well. He has also got a liking for maybe, eventually, wanting to control the team, whereas Brodie was happy to play that support role.”