We gave it a ‘red hot crack’ against Catalans Dragons says Leeds Rhinos boss Richard Agar

Leeds’ makeshift side, including seven debutants and another three with only one first-team appearance, were beaten 34-6, but Agar felt they did the club, themselves and him proud. Catalans, who were close to full-strength, scored three tries in each half, two of those coming on the final play and Agar reckoned the final score was harsh on his team.

“I think a lot of our younger guys, making their debuts, could come out of that with a fair amount of confidence,” Agar – who rested most of his senior players ahead of Saturday’s Coral Challenge Cup semi-final – said.

“The coach has as well – I have come away thinking how well did Liam Tindall play, how well did Sam Walters play?

“Jarrod O’Connor has gone 80 minutes in his first game, as a hooker and a loose-forward, Jack Broadbent was playing out of position and Callum McLelland had to run the team on his own.”

Agar was also delighted with the handful of senior players in Rhinos’ side.

He said: “Adam Cuthbertson, captaining the team, Bodene Thompson and Brett Ferres did massive stints and really got stuck into the physical stuff too.

“It is difficult for me to single individuals out because I thought we had a red hot crack.”

Catalans led 22-6 until the 74th minute, but two late tries inflated the scoreline. “I am quite disappointed there’s not more parity on the scoreboard,”Agar added.

“I felt the last couple of tries were a bit harsh on us.

“But from a physical perspective you would expect us to fall away a bit at the end, given the preparation our guys have had for this game.

“Rugby’s a tough game and you’re looking for guys who want to front up and I think we did – it’s unbelievable really when you look at the respective teams from a salary cap perspective.

“They have a fair amount of class and international experience in the team and we’ve got a bunch of guys who haven’t played since February or March.

“I thought for the full 80 minutes we had 17 players who absolutely gave everything.

“There was a difference in class, but certainly no difference in the desire, determination, resilience – every adjective you’d want to describe in a rugby league player, we saw tonight.”

Rhinos’ try was a length of the field interception by Rhys Evans, but their highlight was a sensational run from 18-year-old winger Liam Tindall.

“He does that in training,” Agar said of the ex-East Leeds youngster who recently signed a three-year full-time contract.

“Sometimes I am not sure his brain understands which way his legs are going and his legs work in a different way to each other, but that’s what makes him a dangerous player.

“He did it more than once, he is very difficult to handle on those runs and a tremendous physical specimen.

“He is a very good athlete and a player we have tremendous hopes for. It was a really encouraging debut from him and, to be honest, from the majority of our players.”

First-team full-back Jack Walker played 40 minutes on his return from a fractured foot suffered in February.

He did not feature in the second half, but Agar said: “There’s no concern.

“We got him back in because we wanted to start his return to play.

“His foot started to feel a little bit sore at the end, but that was nothing major.

“We planned it [replacing him at half-time] before the game.

“It was a great opportunity to get him out there and get him some game time.”