'No excuses, no positives': Leeds Rhinos boss blasts 'poor choices' in Challenge Cup loss to Wakefield Trinity

Rhinos suffered their sixth successive loss to Betfred Super League opposition in the competition when they were well beaten 24-14 at Wakefield Trinity on Friday. In a game disrupted by an early floodlight failure, Leeds led 14-6 at one stage, but conceded a converted try after the half-time hooter and were second-best in the final 40.

Leeds’ second loss of the season came a month to the day after their first - making Friday the 13th an unlucky date - and on a five-day turnaround, less than two weeks after returning from Las Vegas. Arthur, though, voiced neither excuses nor positives after the match.

“I’m very disappointed,” he said in his post-game press conference. “It’s not what we said or who we wanted to be. I thought we made some poor choices tonight around our intensity.

“We don’t want to be looking for reasons or excuses about Las Vegas and travel - it’s just what it is. I think we were beaten out of the blocks from the start of the game. I don’t know how we found our way into the lead, then we were too casual 30 seconds before half-time and allowed a soft try. I think that just shows we didn’t have the intent the game deserved. I was hoping we’d come and have a bit more fight about us, but we just didn’t have it.”

The Leeds coach also refused to blame a 25-minute stoppage in the first half after the floodlights went out. Trinity scored straight after play resumed and Arthur stressed: “One team it didn’t affect.

“We can sit here and try and find and make excuses if we want, but at the end of the day it doesn’t matter how we are feeling coming into the game or what has happened prior - we made the choice to not put enough into it tonight.”

Rhinos have a long turn around until their next game, at Hull FC on Sunday, March 22. “We know [the Cup defeat] certainly isn’t what this team’s about,” Arthur added. “It’s a poor reflection of us so there’s only one way we can lift and that’s with our response next week.

“We have got to get in, be honest and have a look at it. We can’t dwell on it, but it is going to hurt because we are out of the competition. We need to use that hurt as drive and get it right next week.”

Asked if there were any positives he could take from Friday’s tie, Arthur - who didn’t feel Harry Newman’s late sin-bin affected the result - conceded: “No, not really. It’s just not good enough. We are disappointed, but we have got next week to see what response we can come up with.”

Rhinos lost teenage stand-off George Brown, who was filling in for the injured Brodie Croft, midway through the second half. Arthur reported: “It’s his knee, they are just checking the ligament on the outside. I think it's pretty stable, but he’ll need to have a scan.”