Leeds Rhinos news: ex-Castleford Tigers and Hull KR winger joins on loan from Super League rivals
Leeds Rhinos have signed a player on loan from one of their top-flight rivals.
Huddersfield Giants’ former Hull KR and Castleford Tigers winger Elliot Wallis will spend at least the next month at Rhinos as they face a spate of injuries in the outside-backs. The 24-year-old has trained with Leeds this week, but the club say he is unlikely to feature in Saturday’s Magic Weekend game against St Helens in Newcastle.
The Yorkshire Evening Post this week revealed Leeds scrum-half Matt Frawley could be in line for a move to Giants after being left out of the side for last week’s home loss to Hull KR. Veteran winger Ryan Hall sustained ankle damage during that game and his fellow off-season recruit Maika Sivo won’t play a competitive game in 2025 because of an anterior cruciate ligament injury suffered in January. Australian Ethan Clarke-Wood, signed following Sivo’s injury, is also on the casualty list, alongside home-grown duo Max Simpson and Ned McCormack, leaving Rhinos short of cover for the centre and wing positions.
Rhinos sporting director Ian Blease said: “We are pleased to bring Elliot in on loan to give us cover in the outside-backs. He has trained with the squad this week and will likely play for our reserves next week as he looks to impress the coaching staff.”
Wallis scored seven tries in 17 games for Giants last season after joining them from Castleford on a four-year contract. He played in Huddersfield’s opening two Betfred Super League matches this year, but is out of favour and has not featured for them since February.
A product of City of Hull Academy, he scored two tries in four Super League games for home city club Hull KR in 2018 – when he was 17 – and had spells on loan with York Knights and Bradford Bulls as well as a stint at Coventry Bears. After a spell out of rugby league - when he switched sports to boxing - he joined Tigers’ reserves in 2022 and was promoted to their first team squad the following year, crossing four times in 13 games, including a touchdown in their Magic Weekend win against Leeds at St James’ Park.
Speaking at his weekly preview press conference today (Thursday), Giants coach Luke Robinson explained the thinking behind Wallis’ move. He said: “Elliot was struggling for a bit of game time. He was getting very frustrated playing for the reserves and wanted to play first team.
"He started looking around for opportunities to get some first team rugby and that’s where we are at. He is still a Huddersfield Giants player, but he is seeking more first team opportunity. At the moment, with Adam Swift and Sam Halsall and Connor Carr, he probably feels he’s not getting enough game time for his liking.”