Leeds Rhinos fans all say same thing after ace Jake Connor puts boot into Bradford Bulls
For once, the YEP fans jury were in total agreement after Leeds Rhinos’s 42-12 win against Bradford Bulls.
For once, the YEP fans jury were in total agreement after Leeds Rhinos’s 42-12 win against Bradford Bulls.
The victory got Leeds back on track after their defeat at Castleford Tigers, but they didn’t have things all their own way and it took an astonishing 40/20 kick from Man of Steel Jake Connor to turn the tide in Rhinos’ favour. Connor’s star turn had our panel “struggling for superlatives”, but they were less than impressed with the overall team performance.
KATIE MARCZYNSKI
Well, that was a frustrating win. It's good to have another two points, but once again we didn’t play particularly well and a suspected broken forearm for Maika Sivo puts a real damper on things. Credit to Bradford who started strong, but tired towards the end of the first half and never really got back into the game.
There were plenty of dropped balls by both sides and with low completion rates, it was by no means a classic. The highlight of the game came from possibly the biggest 40/20 I've witnessed, courtesy of Jake Connor and I was very impressed by our new makeshift centre, James McDonnell.
We’ve been incredibly fortunate on the injury front until now, but all of a sudden players are dropping like flies. Ben Littlewood was another addition to the casualty list - a real shame as he looked good until he was forced off.
The return of Chris Hankinson this week will give us cover on the wing and then we’ll hopefully have Ryan Hall, Ash Handley and one or two others available the following week for our trip to Wakefield. We’re fortunate we play Toulouse on Friday, so a fairly comfortable win should be in store
TOM GOLDSWORTHY
In our third and final showdown of the season against the old enemy, Leeds returned to winning ways as they put 42 points past the Bulls. It was not the best performance from the Rhinos who are finally starting to pick up some injuries, but good teams always find a way to win which is what we did.
Despite a slow start, it was the usual suspects who continued their fine form to secure the win for us. There is not a better number seven in the league at the moment than Jake Connor. He played with a point to prove and was instrumental in everything good we did. His performance was topped off with a phenomenal 40/20 which he kicked from within our own 20 and swung the momentum in our favour.
Another player who excelled was James McDonnell who scored two more tries to take his tally to 10 for the season. He has really stepped up his game this season and I believe he will be the player we will miss the most out of those leaving us.
There was a slight dampener on the win as Maika Sivo went off with a potential season-ending injury. Any team would miss a player with his try-scoring ability and it is a shame he looks likely to miss out on breaking the record for tries scored in a season. However, it does give a chance for a youngster to step up and stake their claim for a starting wing spot next year.
Looking ahead to Toulouse, every game is a must win game now if we are serious about our ambitions to finish top of the league. Toulouse have been better than expected after promotion to the Super League, but even with the injuries we have at the moment we should have enough firepower to win the game comfortably.
DAVID MUHL
Normal service resumed as we were back to winning ways with a professional performance against our local rivals Bradford. It was good to have THE Rugby League derby back. Don’t give me any of that Wigan/Saints business, this is the real one.
A good crowd turned up and it was worth the admittance to watch a top-class performance by Jake Conner. I’m running out of superlatives for this man, he was involved in everything. All four tries Leeds scored in the second half came off plays involving Jake and when Leeds were under a bit of pressure, he pulled off one of the best 40/20s you will see. In fact it was more of a 15/10. He was really having a party on pitch all to himself.
The win didn’t come without cost. Maika Sivo looks to have broken an arm and will be out anywhere up to eight weeks and Ben Littlewood left the field with a hamstring problem. Up to that point he was playing well and didn’t look out of place.
The loss of Sivo meant a reorganisation of the back line with James McDonnell moving into the centres and he played exceptionally well, scoring a brace of tries again. Brodie Croft had another fine game and seems to be on a mission to make sure he gets some silverware before he moves to Warrington, where he’ll have to wait a long time until it’s their year.
We played some lovely rugby at times, but this resulted in a lot of handling errors and mistakes. We really don’t need to score on every play and if we do this against the likes of Wakefield and Wigan, they will punish us.
It’s Toulouse up next and a short turnaround. I’ve been impressed with them this year and it will be interesting to see how they do.
BECKY OXLEY
The second derby in as many weeks was the first against Bradford at Headingley in 12 years. Following the defeat against Castleford I was eager for a rare Sunday afternoon match against the Bulls. The weather was pleasant, albeit a bit windy.
The game was somewhat disjointed and the final score did not accurately reflect the match's dynamics. A 68 per cent completion rate highlights the determination and effort our team displayed in reaching the tryline with such a low number of completed sets
Currently we are dealing with several injuries and Maika Sivo's departure due to what seems to be a broken arm will be a significant challenge for us. It will be intriguing to see how we adapt as a squad and how Brad Arthur will arrange the players. Our squad has good depth, so I hope we can navigate this period and provide some playing time for the younger players.
Jake Connor once again demonstrated his talent on the field, earning him the man of the match title. His 40/20 kick was pivotal in the match and he shows no signs of slowing down this season. James McDonnell also had an impressive performance in his 100th game for the Rhinos, scoring two tries.
Next, we face Toulouse. They have been improving in recent weeks and I anticipate a challenging match. I’m hoping for another two points to keep us comfortably at the top of the league.
IAIN SHARP
When it comes to rivals, Leeds had a perfectly good derby back in the day with some team south of the river Aire (Hunslet) and not one from Odsal Top. Playing Bulls twice in the same month has tested the gullibility of fans and been used to shift tickets for Magic Weekend.
Bradford were always going to put up some resistance in a fixture like this, but wilted like an
agricultural field in the current heatwave towards the end of the first half. Perhaps the seminal moment of the game was Jake Connor’s kick.
To call it a 40/20 doesn’t do it justice, more like 15 yards from your own line and landing 10 yards from Bradford’s, turning defence into attack in the best possible way. The subsequent try did those efforts justice.
Finally, for those two or three of you who are wondering after closely watching ITV last week, I can’t deny it was me on a certain gameshow - I did plug the club - thus proving not all repeats are a bad thing.