Leeds Rhinos coach Rohan Smith talks young gun Leon Ruan, recalled Luke Hooley and prospects v St Helens

Teenage forward Leon Ruan is “not far away” from his Leeds Rhinos debut, coach Rohan Smith says.
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Rhinos will be without two second-rowers - James Bentley and Zane Tetevano - plus prop Sam Lisone for Friday’s home clash with St Helens.

Ruan has been drafted into the initial 21-man squad, though he is unlikely to feature after playing for Leeds’ reserves in a 22-22 draw with Saints on Thursday.

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He was born in Leeds and part of Wakefield Trinity’s academy system before joining Doncaster for the 2022 season, making 21 appearances and being nominated for the Betfred League One young player of the year award.

Teenage forward Leon Ruan impressed in Rhinos' pre-season games. Picture by Tony Johnson.Teenage forward Leon Ruan impressed in Rhinos' pre-season games. Picture by Tony Johnson.
Teenage forward Leon Ruan impressed in Rhinos' pre-season games. Picture by Tony Johnson.

He spent last summer training with Rhinos as a trialist and joined them on a three-year contract in pre-season.

The 19-year-old went on to impress in Rhinos’ warm-up games and has also featured for their reserves this term, as well as on dual-registration with Bradford Bulls.

“It has been a good process,” Smith said of Ruan’s move into full-time rugby. “He had a terrific pre-season and got a lot of gametime in the friendlies.

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“He has had a few Championship games and some in the reserves and he’s training hard. He is not too far away from being selected, given we are down a few forwards at the moment, which is an opportunity for others.”

Luke Hooley made his debut for Rhinos at Hull KR two months ago. Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com.Luke Hooley made his debut for Rhinos at Hull KR two months ago. Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com.
Luke Hooley made his debut for Rhinos at Hull KR two months ago. Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com.

Full-back Luke Hooley is also in Rhinos’ initial squad after being recalled from loan at Batley Bulldogs and played alongside Ruan in Thursday’s second team game.

Smith insisted: “I am happy with how Richie [Myler] and Ash [Handley] have been playing at full-back, so he has got to wait for his turn.”

Hooley had a tough night on his Betfred Super League debut at Hull KR two months ago, but Smith reported: “We’ve done plenty of specific full-back practice, both from the skill point of view and specific conditioning.

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“He has had a couple of good, hard games at Batley, running up and down the hill there and a couple of real battles against good Championship teams. He has had a good block of work.

Coach Rohan Smith after Rhinos' win at St Helens in March. Picture by Paul Currie/SWpix.com.Coach Rohan Smith after Rhinos' win at St Helens in March. Picture by Paul Currie/SWpix.com.
Coach Rohan Smith after Rhinos' win at St Helens in March. Picture by Paul Currie/SWpix.com.

“He had an unfortunate incident at pre-season training that required ankle surgery and put him out of training for three months.

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“If anyone in our group needed a full pre-season, coming out of the Championship, Luke was one.

“He has got a bit of a pre-season going in the last few months, so he’ll look forward to the next opportunity, when that’s right.”

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Smith reckons Hooley’s confidence hasn’t been damaged by his experience in miserable conditions at Hull KR, when he struggled under Jordan Abdull’s kicking game.

“It took a few days or a week or two and maybe some of that will never fully go away,” Smith said.

“You always tend to remember the bad experiences in life, but those experiences are usually the turning point. You choose to make yourself better and that’s what he has done.”

Rhinos are bidding to avoid a third successive home defeat, but beat St Helens 25-24 at TW Stadium in March.

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“They are a great team, very competitive, very skilful, very experienced,” Smith said of the reigning champions.

“We are going to have to be very good to stretch them and create some opportunities. It’s going to be a hard-fought game.”