Leeds Rhinos fans upset at 'unacceptable' season, concerned over recruitment, encouraged by Brad Arthur

Our panel reckon eighth place - and no appearance in the play-offs - for a second successive year is not good enough for a club of Rhinos’ size and resources. Lack of recruitment so far is a concern and, looking ahead, there’s hope, but not much expectation, for better campaign in 2025. In their final contribution of this year, the jury reflect on the past seven months, outline their worries and try to find some highlights.

TOM GOLDSWORTHY

Once again, Leeds Rhinos’ season has ended earlier than expected as we failed to make the play-offs for the second year in a row. For the size of the club and the money spent in the off-season, this just isn't acceptable, no matter how long the list of excuses some fans can come up with.

As much as I had faith in the Rohan Smith project before the season, I think this was the main reason our 2024 campaign was a failure. His lack of a proper training regime, mixed with questionable tactics, meant we were on the back foot when it came to match days. We constantly looked flat and had no motivation to compete.

Teams would bully us across the field and even when we did win, we never looked convincing. My concerns from the 2023 season were not addressed and it has taken a change in head-coach to finally see any sign of improvement, although after my positivity heading into this season, I won't hold my breath.

The players also need to take accountability for their performances. I could be here until the start of 2025 talking about the players who have underperformed. I believe with some of them the quality is there, but for one reason or another we just aren't seeing it on the pitch. Players like Harry Newman, Lachie Miller and Cameron Smith have shown how good they can be during the season, but not on a regular enough basis in my opinion; especially Newman who has had a solid run of games this season and looks to be over previous injuries. Brad Arthur has a monumental task on his hands if we are to challenge with this current group of players next year.

Speaking of monumental tasks, Ian Blease will have his work cut out for him with recruitment this year. There are players who we need to get rid off and Blease will need to work some sort of magic to convince other clubs to take them off our hands.

Hopefully with David Fusitu'a and Rhyse Martin leaving we have some serious cap space to spend and can bring some top quality players in to help us challenge for trophies and make dismal eighth-placed finishes a thing of the past.

IAIN SHARP

So another Leeds Rhinos season of ‘what might have beens’ and broken dreams comes to an end, with another remodelling task in hand. It is turning into a rebuilding job that ranks alongside that cathedral in Barcelona, that no one can pronounce.

At least the season ended with some green shoots of hope. The arrival of Brad Arthur had the team playing better and perhaps the first positive is that Leeds have actually gone out and appointed a genuine, proven coach.

It is nothing less than the club deserves. For one of the biggest roles in certainly the northern hemisphere, if not the world, we should be able to attract a high quality of coaching talent, not those who consider the role to be a project or a test bed for their experimental ideas.

The main issue for Arthur, along with sporting director Ian Blease, is trying to make the proverbial silk purse out of what they have to work with. With our season already ended prior to the play-offs, there have not been any announcement so far of new faces coming in for next year.

Given we are supposedly spending somewhere near to the game’s salary cap, on-field performances have fallen well short of those other teams that are spending a similar level and are currently contesting the play-offs, begging the question, where is all the cash going?

Many fans are unhappy at the loss of Rhyse Martin to Hull KR. One of the issues with the end of the golden generation was the continued awarding of contracts to players in their 30s. Martin will be nearly 32 when he starts at Craven Park and almost 34 by the time he completes his contract. We already have James Bentley, James McDonnell and the returning Morgan Gannon contesting for places in the second-row, all of whom are younger than Martin. Obviously, the other point is the goal kicking. Since recruitment has not yet finished, or hardly started, we don’t know if a kicker of similar quality will be signed in Martin’s place.

Our pack has been proven over the last season to be woefully light and fitness has been an issue too. Hopefully recruitment will concentrate on finding a couple of big, nasty props to bolster our forwards. I subscribe to the adage packs win matches, backs decide by how many. You can have the best backs in the league, but they are useless if the pack is not good enough to create a suitable platform.

A second positive this season has been the emergence of younger talent. By far the best way to create a great team within the constraints of the salary cap is the generous discount afforded to players developed by the club from youngsters. It was the basis of the golden generation.

Still, by the time the Boxing Day friendly has been played and days start to get lighter again, the 2024 season will be consigned to the history books and there will be the usual optimism that we’ve got it right this time and there will be plenty to look forward to in the season ahead.

BECKY OXLEY

Where have the last seven months gone? The 2024 season has whizzed by in the blink of an eye and there have been ups and downs and everything else in between.

Supporters were up in arms calling for Rohan Smith’s head and, following Brad Arthur coming in and rescuing some of the season, we have had glimmers of how we can play. I’ve been the optimist this season and have, for the most part, found some positives in the games we have played. I’ve had criticism at times, but having supported Leeds for over 30 years I’ve seen it all and nothing shocks me any more.

Rob Burrow’s passing on June 2 rocked the whole rugby league world and the motor neurone disease community. I can’t describe the way I felt when I found out; I was numb and even now it still doesn’t feel real.

The game against Leigh was a highlight of the year for me as it showcased what the rugby league family can do. The emotion in the game from all involved was clear to see and we played for Rob. Brodie Croft’s emotion in his post-match interview highlighted what everyone was thinking and felt.

The 2025 season will be here before we know it and it will be interesting to see what a good pre-season under Brad will do. There will be great expectations, I’m sure, by many, but as long as we do the best we can, that’s all that matters.

DAVID MUHL

That was a season to forget as soon as possible. It never really got going and the signs of that were there from the beginning. We left it too long before replacing Rohan Smith, a nice man, but out of his depth at Headingley. Some of his tactics left me scratching my head, especially his passive defence which let teams attack us with ease.

It was obvious before the season started we were light in the pack and so it proved. We were regularly rolled over by teams and I think it was obvious we weren’t fit enough. We couldn’t hold on to a lead and faded in the second half too regularly. We lost eight games we led in and should have won. The lowlight, though, was losing to Hull.

It wasn’t all doom and gloom, there were some good kids coming through which bodes well for the future. Alfie Edgell, Ned McCormack and Riley Lumb all look good prospects. Brad Arthur, coming in with just 10 games to go, had an almost impossible task of getting us into the play-offs, but he did seem to toughen up the defence and get Brodie Croft and Matt Frawley playing a lot better together. Frawley was the most improved player under him.

We often seemed to be missing leadership on the field and I’m not sure Cam Smith is the right person for the captaincy; it seemed to weigh heavily on him, but no one can doubt his work rate as he finished top of the Super League tackle count.

Not finishing in the play-offs is not good enough for a club of Leeds’ stature. Our recruitment over the last few years has simply not been good enough and this is an area we must improve. I love my club and hope next season we will start to get back to where I think we should be. Success is not a right, it must be achieved by hard work. Here’s to next year.

GAVIN MILLER

The season hasn’t finished yet for four Super League teams, but Leeds’ second consecutive eighth place finish means it’s well and truly over for them. This season promised much more than it delivered. A brand new spine, a new one, six, seven and nine, suggested a different style, approach and focus, but what we got was so similar to the season before, if not much more disappointing because of the promise.

The issue, to be fair, is not full-back, the halves or hooker, although criticism could be levelled at a couple of them; the problem for Leeds this season has been in the forwards. It’s not unfair to say that a handful of our forwards aren’t fit for Super League, let alone a team with ambitions higher up the table.

That’s demonstrated in our eighth-place finish as overall we have an eighth-place squad. There’s a very small handful of players that can compete and a large number that simply aren’t good enough.

Looking forward, without wholesale changes - and I mean wholesale changes - Leeds will ‘enjoy’ a similar season next year. We have already paid off one prop in Mickael Goudemand and said farewell to six other players, but to have any chance of improvement next season we have to ship out at least another four or five and replace them with better. I know that’s an impossible task, so I am settling myself in for another season of less than mediocrity.