Leeds Rhinos news: Keenan Palasia praised for leadership during pack crisis as rookie continues to impress
Powerhouse Keenan Palasia has been praised for his leadership during Leeds Rhinos prop shortage.
Palasia is currently one of only two fit front-rowers in Rhinos’ full-time squad and was official man of the match during Thursday’s 28-6 home win over Betfred Super League leaders Hull KR. Rhinos dominated the contest after racing into an early 18-0 lead and boss Brad Arthur reckoned much of that was down to Palasia’s storming performance.
The Samoa international joined Leeds from NRL club Gold Coast Titans in pre-season on a two-year contract, having previously played for Brisbane Broncos. Arthur said: “I thought his start to the season was really good and he wasn’t bad after that, he was sort of blending into the game and still doing his job.
“I talked to him about how people are only going to remember what you do at the back end of the season, not what you do at the start. I challenged him around a couple of things. I only played him for 27 minutes last week [against Castleford], but I started him and he did his job for us at the start and it allowed me to give game time to other guys. I was grateful for that, but in the back of my head I knew what I needed from him [against the Robins] and he delivered it for us.”
England squad member Mikolaj Oledzki could be available for next weekend’s visit to Hull FC after surgery on a facial injury. Cooper Jenkins, Tom Holroyd and Tom Nicholson-Watton are also expected back on the field before the end of the regular season, along with co-captain Cameron Smith.
That will give Arthur a selection dilemma over 18-year-old Presley Cassell who has played in the past five games and started at prop against Castleford and Hull KR, scoring in both. “He is doing a great job,” Arthur said of the rookie.
“We always knew he had the potential and now he has got to back it up and live it from week to week. But I feel like the guys around him have done a really good job in getting him through this stage. If they don’t do their job, it makes it harder for him to do his. That was the challenge for Keenan, to show him the way and make his job easier. He is only at the start of his career and he is going to get better and better. He’s going to get some things right and some things wrong, but there’s a fair bit of potential there.”
Palasia played much of his youth rugby as a loose-forward and Arthur doesn’t want to tie him to one role. He said: “The good thing is, he can play prop or back-row, but at the moment he is liking what he is doing in the middle. It is probably an easier transition, in terms of the football aspect - just keep it pretty simple. Learning the back-row role is a touch more difficult, especially defensively.”