A young player to watch out for and other Leeds Rhinos talking points

Their chance seemed to have gone when they lost at Salford Red Devils at the start of this month, however a couple of wins - and poor results for their rivals - mean Leeds are still in top-six contention with four games left. The next few weeks will make or break Rhinos’ season, but - with coach Brad Arthur now in place for 2025 - planning for next year has begun. Here’s five talking points.

1: A good piece of business.

Arthur’s new 12-month contract might not be quite the ideal outcome the club hoped for, but is good news for all concerned. Having arrived last month on a 10-game deal, Arthur has agreed to stay on for the 2025 season.

Leeds had hoped to work out a longer-term arrangement, but that remains a possibility and they can now start preparing for next term. It is not often a coach of Arthur’s quality and NRL experience becomes available in Betfred Super League, so Leeds have done well to get him and next year suddenly looks a more enticing prospect.

Arthur hasn’t exactly transformed Rhinos’ fortunes overnight, but that rarely happens. What he has done, in less than two months at the helm, is get the team generally moving in the right direction and it will be fascinating to see what he does with a full pre-season.

Rhinos are still a long way from where they should be, as the first half of last week’s win over Catalans Dragons proved, but the second 40 minutes was impressive and hinted at what they are capable of. The Australian is a no-nonsense character who gives his players a job and expects them to do it, which is probably what a good, but under-performing, group needed.

2: New faces limited.

Anyone expecting an influx of signings before next season is likely to be disappointed. Sporting director Ian Blease has made it clear there isn’t a lot of room on the salary cap and Arthur says he’s looking at “a couple” of additions.

The coach reckons Rhinos already have a talented squad, but has identified a need to strengthen the front-row. That will be the priority and probably where most of the spare salary cap goest.

If - as expected - David Fusitu’a leaves, that’ll give Rhinos some money to spend and an overseas quota spot. Ditto Rhyse Martin, whose departure has been confirmed, but Bradford Bulls-bound James Donaldson, plus Corey Johnson and Luis Roberts - who are also set to move on - could be replaced by young players from Leeds’ own system.

All being well, second-rower Morgan Gannon and centre Max Simpson - who haven’t played at all this season - and prop Tom Holroyd, with just six appearances in 2024, will be back in the mix next year, which is like adding three new players to the squad, so that has to be factored in as well.

3: Tough act to follow.

Martin’s impending exit leaves Rhinos with a couple of problems to solve. With Gannon set to return next year and James Bentley and James McDonnell already in place, Leeds have some strength in the second-row, but they do need to find a goal kicker.

Lachie Miller could be the one to step into the role, though Paul Momirovski is also handy in that department, apparently and Jack Sinfield is an excellent marksman. Rhinos probably won’t sign a player just for his goal kicking, but if they can find someone who plays in a position they need to strengthen and is also handy with the boot, that will certainly increase his value.

Whatever they decide, Martin is a tough act to follow. He rarely misses a match, regularly turns four points into six and his all-round game is very under-rated. His break to set up Leeds’ try against Catalans was high-quality and he will be remembered as one of the club’s best overseas signings of the Super League era.

4: One to watch.

There’s probably nobody in the academy ranks who will become a first team regular next year, but some of them will be making their mark in two or three seasons’ time. Outside-back Marcus Qareqare, prop Jayemm Oladipupo and loose-forward Presley Cassell have all earned an England call-up at under-18s level and another one to watch out for is stand-off George Brown.

Brown signed a long-term contract, until the end of 2027, earlier this year and has gone well for the academy and reserves, after switching from rugby union. With Sinfield and Fergus McCormack also in Leeds’ system, the future in the halves is looking brighter than it has since the McGuire/Burrow days a quarter of a century ago.

5: Test of character.

Rhinos haven’t picked up back-to-back victories under Brad Arthur and it’s 13 months since they last won three in a row, but they won’t get many better chances. Having beaten Catalans, they face Super League’s bottom pair of London Broncos and Hull FC in their next two games.

Leeds have already won against both those teams this year, but also lost at Hull and were taken to golden-point by London in the most recent meetings, so can’t be complacent. Rhinos are where they are on the table because of their inability to back up a good performance and the next fortnight will be a good indicator of how they are progressing. It’s a test of character and only two wins will be good enough.