Leeds Rhinos' options assessed after wing star Maika Sivo ruled out of 2025 season

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Leeds Rhinos’ backs are to the wall following star winger Maika Sivo’s shattering injury diagnosis.

Already with several members of their backline on the casualty list, Rhinos have now lost Sivo for the entire 2025 season after he sustained serious knee damage in the first half of yesterday’s (Sunday) Ash Handley testimonial game against Wigan Warriors. A scan revealed an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture which will require surgery and has a recovery time of up to a year.

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Leeds Rhinos news: huge blow as ace Maika Sivo ruled out for season

The Fiji Test ace scored 104 tries in 115 NRL games for his previous club Parramatta Eels before joining Leeds in pre-season on a three-year contract. He was expected to spearhead Rhinos’ push for silverware this term, following successive eighth-placed finishes in Betfred Super League and his loss gives coach Brad Arthur a headache with round one less than three weeks away.

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Maika Sivo, second from right, congratulates Ash Handley on his try in the pre-season win against Wigan Warriors. Picture by John Clifton/SWpix.com.Maika Sivo, second from right, congratulates Ash Handley on his try in the pre-season win against Wigan Warriors. Picture by John Clifton/SWpix.com.
Maika Sivo, second from right, congratulates Ash Handley on his try in the pre-season win against Wigan Warriors. Picture by John Clifton/SWpix.com.

It was the last thing Rhinos needed with full-backs Lachie Miller (calf muscle) and Alfie Edgell (broken jaw) already on the casualty list, alongside rookie centres Ned McCormack (calf) and Max Simpson, who hasn’t played since suffering an ACL injury 24 months ago.

In the wake of Sivo’s scan results, sporting director Ian Blease confirmed Rhinos will “review the full situation and look at all our options”. It is obviously not an ideal time to recruit and though there may be salary cap dispensation for a long-term injury, if they decide to bring in a replacement winger - possibly on long-term loan - that will take time. So what are coach Brad Arthur’s options from the existing squad?

Handley, previously a winger, was set to play centre this year. Though Arthur last week revealed the position swap was planned before Leeds signed Sivo, he will certainly come into consideration. That would open the door for off-season signing Jake Connor, who will start the campaign at full-back while Miller and Edgell are unavailable.

Connor was set to be at centre against Wakefield Trinity on Boxing Day, until Edgell’s injury in training. McCormack, Simpson - who is now back in full training - and another youngster Jack Smith can all play centre or wing, but have just seven first team appearances for Rhinos between them, so Arthur won’t want to overload them at this early stage of their career, especially with two of them coming off long injuries. There are some highly-rated outside-backs in Leeds’ academy, including Marcus Qareqare and Harley Thomas, who played in pre-season, but they aren’t yet ready for Super League action.

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Riley Lumb replaced Maika Sivo on the left-wing during Leeds Rhinos' win against Wigan Warriors yesterday. Picture by John Clifton/SWpix.comRiley Lumb replaced Maika Sivo on the left-wing during Leeds Rhinos' win against Wigan Warriors yesterday. Picture by John Clifton/SWpix.com
Riley Lumb replaced Maika Sivo on the left-wing during Leeds Rhinos' win against Wigan Warriors yesterday. Picture by John Clifton/SWpix.com

Edgell played some games as a winger last year as injury cover and will be an option to fill in for Sivo once he is back to fitness, but Riley Lumb may be who Arthur turns to first. The 20-year-old replaced Sivo on the left-wing during Sunday’s game and, though he wasn’t perfect, did some impressive work, in particular catching several testing kicks in difficult conditions.

He scored two tries on his debut in a win at Hull FC last April and also impressed in a heavy defeat away to Wigan late in the campaign. He looked at home in the team, despite picking up a long-term injury a minute into his second game and, assuming he has done all right in training, it’s unlikely Leeds’ coaching staff would have any fears about giving him another shot.

Handley came of age, scoring 13 tries in 20 games a decade ago after getting a chance because of an injury to Tom Briscoe. It might be time for Lumb to do the same.

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