'Awesome' Leeds Rhinos face 'payback' threat as Salford Red Devils aim for home revenge
Leeds Rhinos face “payback” when they return to Salford Red Devils on Thursday.
It will be Leeds’ second visit to Salford in seven Betfred Super League rounds and comes less than two months after a 32-6 win there. Salford scored inside the opening few minutes, but Rhinos dominated the rest of the game and assistant-coach Krisnan Inu insisted that gives the hosts plenty of motivation for the latest encounter.
“I think both teams are different now,” Inu said. “Obviously, ours is a lot different. They have got some good individuals and they've been playing well in the last few weeks. They've maybe not got a few results that could have gone their way, but they've been awesome.
“For us to come up against them again at home, we've got a bit of payback up our sleeve pretty much. It's not so much a personal attack at just them - it’s pretty much any game we lose at home, because we pride ourselves on not losing home games, especially with the fans that turn up every weekend.
“For us to play at home, we make it a big deal for ourselves. That's just at any given moment, no matter who we play. If we lose one at home, we always want to win the next one.”
Rhinos are fresh after an almost two-week break since their 16-14 loss at Warrington Wolves, but Salford were in action last Friday when they went out of the Challenge Cup 20-12 at Catalans Dragons. Since then, they have lost captain Kallum Watkins - who has signed for Leeds - and Inu stressed: “It's about getting our bodies right.
“Obviously, it's a short turnaround for our boys, especially after travel. We've got a good bunch and when it comes to looking after their bodies, they're the best at it. The main thing is to get their bodies right, recovery and rest. They've done that, but [Tuesday was] our first and only session for the week.”