Leeds Rhinos talking points: boos for Jake Connor unnecessary as new signings show positive signs

Victory over Wakefield Trinity in the Wetherby Whaler Festive Challenge doesn’t mean a lot, but most of coach Brad Arthur’s full-time squad got some game time into their legs and there were indications what he has worked on in pre-season are being put into practice. Here’s five talking points.

1: Jake Connor. It’s fair to say the signing of Jake Connor from Huddersfield Giants wasn’t universally welcomed by Rhinos fans. He received some noisy barracking from the South Stand during visits to AMT Headingley as an away player and wasn’t afraid to turn the tables if he got the opportunity.

It was hard to tell if the booing from Rhinos supporters on Boxing Day was humorous or genuine hostility, but Connor should be judged on what he does for Leeds, not what has happened against them. While his temperament has been questioned, his ability isn’t in doubt.

On his day, he can be almost impossible to defend against, he covers several different positions, has a kicking game and will give Rhinos a new dimension on attack. Connor’s first task is to get his own team’s fans onside. If he can silence the boos, chances are Leeds will have a decent year.

2: New faces. Connor grabbed the headlines, but all Rhinos’ off-season signings created a good initial impression. Connor Jenkins showed encouraging touches despite being hampered by a dead leg and wingers Ryan Hall and Maika Sivo carrying strongly out of backfield will make the forwards’ job considerably easier next year. Alongside a refreshed Mikolaj Oledzki, starting prop Keenan Palasia ran hard, put on one gigantic hit and has the makings of becoming a real crowd-pleaser.

Obviously they need to do it in competitive games against better, more experienced opposition, but all five look capable of making a positive contribution, which hasn’t always been the case with Rhinos’ recruits in recent years.

3: Tom Holroyd. The return of the big front-rower - who was an England player in 2023 - went under the radar, but Holroyd looked sharp off the bench in a 15-minute cameo. That could be significant for Leeds next term.

He made only six appearances this year - the last of those in June - because of a couple of serious concussions, so Rhinos were a prop down for most of the campaign. Holroyd is out of contract at the end of 2025, making it a big season for him.

He proved a couple of years ago he can be a real force if he gets an injury-free run. His return, if successful, effectively adds another new player to the squad and will ease the burden on the likes of Oledzki and Palasia.

4: Fitting in. Rhinos have put a lot of emphasis on fitness in pre-season, after not coping well under fatigue was identified as an Achilles heel in 2024. The players have been doing defensive drills immediately after some sapping conditioning work at training, as well as when errors are made in skills sessions.

Though regular changes made it hard to judge, they did look fit and physical on Boxing Day and there weren’t a high number of errors, in the first half especially. Leeds made more mistakes than any other team last season and putting that right is vital to their hopes of getting into the play-offs.

5: George Brown. Having just completed his first year in the academy, the teenage half-back was an unlikely Boxing Day hero, particularly as he wasn’t on the teamsheet. The former Dewsbury Celtic youngster showed impressive determination to grab the bouncing ball from a Leeds’ kick-off after force his way over the line for the try which set up Jack Sinfield’s winning conversion.

He had a spell in Rhinos’ scholarship before switching to rugby union, but returned to the club last season and was highly-rated by then-academy coach Tony Smith. He’s still some way off the first team, but a player worth keeping an eye on.