Leeds Rhinos chief Gary Hetherington hails 'exceptional' NRL signing, says 2024 will be 'pivotal year'

Rhinos finished eighth in the 2023 Betfred Super League table, two places and four points adrift of the play-offs and fell at the first hurdle in the Challenge Cup for the third successive season.

That was a huge disappointment after a Grand Final appearance the previous year, but with six key signings announced so far - including one he reckons will be an “exceptional talent in Super League - Hetherington is expecting a major improvement in 2024.

Rhinos have spent heavily on their playing squad, bringing in three backs from the NRL and paying transfer fees to Salford Red Devils for former Man of Steel Brodie Croft and highly-rated hooker Andy Ackers and that will heap pressure on coach Rohan Smith and his side to perform from the off.

Smith has rebuilt the playing group since taking over midway through 2022 and only 15 of the 32 players in the full-time squad at the start of last year remain at the club. There has also been an overhaul behind the scenes and Hetherington insisted: “We see 2024 as a pivotal year for the club.

"We are looking at putting an outstanding squad together, Rohan Smith has got his backroom staff in place and he is excited about what he has created. We have got an outstanding crop of young players emerging - the best crop for 20 years, we believe - and with the stability we have in the club, throughout the whole organisation, we are all looking forward to an exciting year ahead.”

Crowds at AMT Headingley Rugby Stadium held up in 2023 despite Rhinos’ disappointing form and seven home defeats, with the lowest league attendance being 11,717 for the visit of Wakefield Trinity in March. Last week’s double signing wiped away some of the negativity which surrounded the club towards the end of the campaign, particularly after successive 50-0 and 61-0 defeats to Wigan Warriors and Catalans Dragons and Hetherington expects gates to rise in 2024.

“Our game day experience is outstanding,” he added. “Our attendances have been solid this year and we are looking to build them next year and get back to the sort of attendances we used to enjoy in the halcyon days.”

Performances on the field will be the key to that and the Rhinos chief stressed: “Next year’s squad will look very different to the one that’s played throughout 2023 and it will be very much Rohan’s squad. It will be the players he wished to retain from the ones he inherited, the ones we’ve extended and the new players coming in.

“It is quite a significant turnaround for the Rhinos, we usually don’t have as much change as this, but last season we set out with 11 players in the last year of their contract which, again, is very unusual for us.

“Rohan wanted to leave it as long as possible before making decisions; some of those players have been extended, others have been released and that release has given us the flexibility within the salary cap, the quota and other spots to be able to recruit quite a number of new players.”

Leeds’ signings over recent seasons have been questioned by fans and pundits, but Hetherington feels the club have come up with answers this time. He vowed: “We think in Andy Ackers and Brodie Croft - on top of Lachie Miller, who I think will be an exceptional talent in Super League, Mickael Goudemand, Paul Momirovski and Matt Frawley - we’ve added some outstanding players and role models.

“The key to all these signings is not only are they all very good players, but they all really wanted to come and join the Rhinos and they all bring some real qualities - organisational skills, leadership and experience. I think those are areas our squad has been lacking, so they are key components to provide the Rhinos fans with a squad that hopefully can be challenging for major honours next year.”

Croft and Ackers both signed a three-year contract, giving Rhinos’ 2024 squad “some stability and longevity to it”, according to Hetherington. He stated: “Not only do we have some outstanding young players ready to step in, we will also have more senior players, quality players, who are at the right age. The average age of our squad next year will be reduced and we have got players who still have their best years ahead of them.”