'A bit of a nightmare': life with Leeds Rhinos' Aidan Sezer - by Huddersfield Giants star Chris McQueen

The two will be on opposite sides when Huddersfield visit Headingley on Sunday, having been team - and house - mates at Giants.

“It was a bit of a nightmare, to be honest,” McQueen, the Huddersfield forward, said of living alongside Sezer, who signed for Leeds ahead of last season.

“He used to eat my food, he’d wear my clothes - I remember one time I went out for dinner with another friend, I came home and he was asleep in my bed!”

The pair have since gone their separate ways, but McQueen admitted he - and Giants - have Sezer to thank for him still being in Betfred Super League.

He said: “We actually had a lot of fun living together. Seze called me just before I moved over here. We’d played against each other, but never actually met properly and he just called me out of the blue and said ‘if you come over you can stay with me’.

“That helped me a lot when I came over. It was a tough period for me personally. Seze helped me out a lot.

“We ended up living together for probably a year and a half and it helped me settle in -I don’t think I’d still be here, I don’t think I’d have made it here as long, if I didn’t have Seze to live with.”

Of Sezer as a player, he added: “He’s always competitive, one of the most competitive I've ever played with. It doesn’t matter what’s going on, he’ll always rip in.”

The admiration is mutual. Sezer said: “I’ve always respected him because he has played at the highest level of the game.

“The last couple of years, he has been one of the best forwards in the comp. It’s good to see him going well.

“When I watch Huddersifeld, I watch Crispy [McQueen] closely because of the relationship we have; it’s always good to see him play well and he always gets across the line, but hopefully we stop him this week.”

Friendship will be put to one side for 80 minutes on Sunday when Rhinos and Giants complete the Easter rivals round.

Leeds and Huddersfield may not be traditional enemies, but the two teams have fought out a series of close battles in recent seasons.

With Rhinos looking to bounce back from last Friday’s defeat at Hull KR and Giants keen to consolidate their place in the top-six, Sezer reckons the Easter showdown is “massive”.

He said: “The clubs are very close geographically and the games have always been really hard-fought over the last few years.

“Even when I was at Huddersfield there was often only a point in it so I’d probably expect the same this week.

“Huddersfield play high percentage rugby and we’ll have to work for everything we get.

“We’re prepared to do that - and I’ll try to get across to the other side of the field and get Crispy one.”

Assessing the threat posed by his old club, Sezer added: “It’s hard to gauge as there haven’t been many fixtures played and everyone is still figuring out their team selections.

“They have some unpredictable players, they’ve made a few good additions in the off-season and have quality across the park.

“They have a very experienced forward pack: Crispy, Chris Hill, players like that who are uncompromising and we know we will have to work for everything and improve on last week.

“It’s an important game. We just want to perform well, play well as a team and get the two points.

“Hopefully we can go on and get some back-to-back wins. We haven’t been too far away, but we definitely need an 80 minute performance.”

Home advantage could be crucial for Rhinos, who have lost just once at Headingley - against Hull FC in February - since a 20-20 draw with Giants there last Easter.

“Being a Leeds player and running out in front of the South Stand and playing at Headingley, it's awesome,” Sezer said.

“You always want to put in a good stint. It’s one of the best atmospheres in the world. I played for a while in the NRL and being a Leeds player now it’s always special.”

Rhinos have been a model of inconsistency this season, but McQueen insisted Giants are prepared to face them at their best.

“ They are playing some good footy at times, but just not getting the results they deserve,” he noted.

“But as Seze said, it’s still pretty early in the year and they are still finding their feet. The biggest thing for us is to expect them to show up and play.

“We had a good win [away to Salford] last weekend, but it’s about building momentum and some confidence now. It’s really important to string some wins together.”