Leeds Rhinos Jury: Defensive effort proves crucial in tension-packed victory at Vikings

Our fans' panel have their say on Leeds Rhinos' narrow victory at Widnes Vikings.
Richie Myler and Joel Moon tackle Widnes' Patrick Ah Van.Richie Myler and Joel Moon tackle Widnes' Patrick Ah Van.
Richie Myler and Joel Moon tackle Widnes' Patrick Ah Van.

GRAHAM POULTER

That game at Widnes was a hard watch, low on skill and inventive play apart from Liam Sutcliffe’s fabulous 40/20 towards the end of the game, from which we scored the try that gave us the lead.

It was like watching an amateur game, low on quality and ‘one out’ carries up the field. I don’t mean any disrespect to the amateur game by the way when I say that as some of the games I’ve seen in the National Conference League are quality games to watch.

Leeds Rhinos' Nathaniel Peteru is tackled by Widnes' Sam Wilde.Leeds Rhinos' Nathaniel Peteru is tackled by Widnes' Sam Wilde.
Leeds Rhinos' Nathaniel Peteru is tackled by Widnes' Sam Wilde.
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The performance from Leeds was based on sheer grit and the defence was an improvement on last week’s horror show in the loss to Hull KR.

Last week’s training sessions must have been purely based on working on defence as the attacking side of our game was hopeless, again.

Tomorrow’s game against Salford is likely to be another nervy affair and I feel that Salford will beat us as they have a lot more to hurt us with than Widnes offered.

The only bonus will be the absence of the suspended Jackson Hastings. Be prepared for another nail-biting game.

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Congratulations to Dave Furner on being named the new head coach!

DIANNE HALL

Well, that’s 80 minutes of my life that I’ll never get back!

The tension could be felt on the terraces and on the pitch at Widnes for both sides and thankfully it was us who came home with a confidence-boosting victory.

I just hope we are not involved in the Million Pound Game because that would be unbearable.

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It wasn’t the prettiest of wins, but it was all about the points.

For once our defence was the key, with a try-saving tackle from Jimmy Keinhorst bringing our fans to their feet in relief. To nil any side for 40 minutes is pleasing, even if it is a side at the bottom of the table, however, if Patrick Ah Van had held onto Krisnan Inu’s pass it could have been a different story.

The signing of David Furner is a good move and his first season as coach will be a challenging one.

I am not expecting miracles straightaway, although some ‘fans’ will!

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Let’s give Kevin Sinfield a belated birthday present for yesterday with a win against Salford and two points nearer Super League survival.

MATT FOWLER

The rollercoaster ride continues. It wasn’t pretty but the goalline defence won us the game at Widnes.

Not often in the second half of the season has the defence stood up but on Sunday the desire to keep the line intact got us home.

Everything else about the performance was probably how we are all feeling – desperate.

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Two more wins should be enough but really three will take us into a much-needed off season in better spirits.

The announcement of Dave Furner as head coach is very welcome. Ever since Brian McDermott left I have been puzzled by the timing and also the need for a quality head coach. Let’s hope the appointment of Dave Furner is the start of a new era. Now all we need is some new star players. The forward pack is in need of some size.

Tomorrow we take on the form side of the Qualifiers in Salford. I hope the Widnes win has calmed some nerves and we can play with a little bit more freedom.

I am sure we can take the spoils if we just play with some confidence. Strap in for another ride on the rollercoaster.

CHRISTINE KIDD

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Super League survival is looking a little closer after a win at Widnes last Sunday.

The big plus from this game was that the Rhinos only conceded six points, this was a big improvement on the previous week.

The game was not good to watch, there was too much at stake for both sides. Widnes needed the win just as much as Leeds Rhinos. Widnes will now be lucky to even qualify for the Million Pound Game.

The big news from Emerald Headingley this week was the appointment of David Furner as head coach from the 2019 season.

This will be a popular choice with most Leeds Rhinos fans.

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However things are not going to change overnight and the new management structure needs to be given time to put plans in place for the future.

Salford are the only team to have a 100 per cent record in the Qualifiers. They are the next visitors to Emerald Headingley. Let’s hope that the return of Friday night rugby will result in a win for Leeds Rhinos.

Two more wins and Rhinos Super League future should be secure.

IAN SHARP

When new coach David Furner gets the tape of last Sunday’s match, he might think 24 hours on a plane to come to try sort us out is a long way.

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Four hours on the M62 to see that game I am afraid was long enough.

We all knew it was going to be tense, but yet again we were outplayed I thought.

If Widnes Vikings had taken all their chances we would have been beaten and that’s a major worry.

Defence was much better though and the players’ efforts showed they are trying for each other, but the loan signings we brought in are just not Leeds Rhinos standard.

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We need at least one proper prop and two big fast second rowers and a world class winger as a minimum for me.

The last time a 40/20 meant so much Kevin Sinfield kicked it himself in the semi-final against Saints, let’s hope Liam Sutcliffe kicks on from last week.

Salford Red Devils are the team in form, and it’s going to take a much better attacking performance to win I feel, but two points is two points, and we are that bit closer to survival now.

ADAM ANDERSON

If there is anything you can call an ugly win, Leeds Rhinos’ victory on Sunday against Widnes was that.

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The Vikings were the better team throughout the game but just couldn’t take their chances.

We managed to take the very few chances that we had. Tomorrow against Salford Red Devils will be a very tough game, Salford are on form in the Qualifiers and haven’t lost a game yet, though they’ll be missing key men in Jackson Hastings and Luke Burgess which hopefully will boost our chances.

The appointment of Dave Furner made a lot of us happy, he is having a cracking season with South Sydney and will change the game we play. At this moment in time it was good to hear that he’s over here whatever happens with the Qualifiers, making it a statement of intent by the club.

Hopefully he will be able to look at a different level of player from the NRL and Super League.

It’s a good appointment in my eyes and I’m looking forward to seeing him over here and making a difference.