How a win and a golf day helped put a spring in Kruise Leeming’s step

WHEN YOU’RE winning, rugby league is the best job in the world and you can talk about it for hours.
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On the other hand, after you’ve lost all you want to do is get back on the field and right some wrongs.

I had a couple of things to do away from training this week - it was Rhinos’ golf day and I also did the Super League show - so it was good to go into those on the back of our big win at Warrington.

I love my golf and that was a good day.

Captain Kruise Leeming has described Leeds Rhinos fans as the best in the world. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe.Captain Kruise Leeming has described Leeds Rhinos fans as the best in the world. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe.
Captain Kruise Leeming has described Leeds Rhinos fans as the best in the world. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe.
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It felt like a bit more normality after Covid got in the way for the past two years.

I really enjoy things like that, getting chance to spend a bit of time with fans and sponsors away from the usual routine.

On Monday, I was partnered with the chairman Paul Caddick who is somebody I don’t get chance to see very often, because of how busy he is.

He is an integral part of our club and it was good to have a few hours with him when it wasn’t all serious and business like and we could have a bit of fun.

Leeds Rhinos chairman, Paul Caddick. Picture: James Hardisty.Leeds Rhinos chairman, Paul Caddick. Picture: James Hardisty.
Leeds Rhinos chairman, Paul Caddick. Picture: James Hardisty.
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Events like that are always more enjoyable after a win. It is tough going to functions when you’ve lost, but everybody was in good spirits and rightly so.

Doing the Super League Show this week was the same. The media stuff and attending events is tough when you’ve suffered a heavy defeat and I felt a bit for Warrington last Friday; we’ve been there this year. There’s been some games we lost which we should have won and a lot going on behind the scenes with different coaches and new philosophies and all that sort of thing, but it has never been a case of the lads not trying.

I don’t 100 per cent know what’s going on at Warrington, but I am sure it won’t be because there’s a lack of effort.

Nobody, whoever they are or whatever club they play for, goes out and doesn’t try, but things don’t always come off.

BBC Super League Show host Tanya Arnold with Warrington Wolves coach Daryl Powell. Picture: Will Palmer/SWpix.com.BBC Super League Show host Tanya Arnold with Warrington Wolves coach Daryl Powell. Picture: Will Palmer/SWpix.com.
BBC Super League Show host Tanya Arnold with Warrington Wolves coach Daryl Powell. Picture: Will Palmer/SWpix.com.

When you get a new coach in, it takes time to adapt.

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I can understand fans’ frustrations, because they care about their club and spend a lot of time and money on it, but I think it’s better for them to stick with their team than be booing when things go wrong. That’s why Leeds fans are so good. Even when we went through that tough period at the start of this year, they never booed us and they remained behind the team.

I’ll never forget how long they stayed behind after games to see us and say ‘don’t worry, you’ll get there’. That’s why we have got the best fans in the world.

I know what the Warrington lads will be going through this week. I accept that’s sport and I said last week we owed them one, which we did. It was great for us to get a result like that and for us to be on the other side of it after some tough evenings this season, but I did feel for them a bit.

I’ve mentioned coaches taking time to settle in and make an impact on a club and I think Ian Watson at Huddersfield is a good example of that.

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They didn’t have a great season in 2021 when he was new there, but they are flying at the moment and it was a great result for them over in Catalans last Friday. To win there the week after losing in a Challenge Cup final shows what they are all about so we will have our hands full this week.

It proves patience is the best thing in sport, along with buy-in. We have had to do that three times this year, with Rich Agar, Jonesy [Jamie Jones-Buchanan] and Rohan Smith and I think it’s credit to our boys how they’ve done that.

All coaches are different, Rohan has changed a few things from what Jonesy was doing, but we’ve just picked it up and got on with it and I think it is paying off.

Huddersfield have had to do that as well and they’ve had some players leave and others come in who fit their coach’s way of playing.

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It doesn’t happen overnight; it’s a bit like changing a workplace’s computer system. If you’re used to one way of doing things, it can take a while to adapt to a new one, but you get there eventually and it becomes second nature.

Rugby is like that and I think we are on the up now.

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