Spotlight on Leeds Rhinos' rising star Harry Newman

The Huddersfield-born youngster made his debut in 2017 and took the Championship by storm the following year on dual-registration with Featherstone Rovers.

He established himself as one of Leeds’ first-choice centres last year and was invited into the full England squad earlier this season.

Today we examine why Newman is so highly-rated and what he will bring to Rhinos’ squad when they return to action on August 2.

Attributes:

Newman is an athlete and backs that with natural rugby ability.

He has pace, good footwork and eye for the line.

Lack of confidence hasn’t been an issue and he has proved he can cope physically with top-flight rugby.

Coaches at Leeds and Featherstone have spoken of his willingness to learn and at 20, he is only going to get better.

Defining moment:

Newman’s dual-registration move to Featherstone in 2018 was ideal for a young player just stepping up to senior level.

He was a regular starter at a good standard and proved what he can do by scoring 16 tries in 12 appearances.

It was a priceless learning experience and left Rhinos in no doubt they had a special talent on their books.

Best season:

Having scored five tries in six games for Rovers last year, injuries handed him a chance at Leeds and he was ever-present in Super League from April onwards, finishing with nine touchdowns in 22 appearances and the Yorkshire Evening Post Shooting Star award.

Concerns:

He’s still relatively inexperienced, with only 31 Rhinos appearances under his belt and has to keep his feet on the ground despite all the hype.

Newman has plenty to learn, particularly defensively and looked a little lost at times when played out of position on a winger, but those are minor worries. Value:

Newman is a future Test player and if Rhinos can keep hold of him, he will be a key member of their back division for the foreseeable future.

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