YEP Jury: Luke Gale and Rhyse Martin pull the strings in near-perfect Leeds Rhinos display

IAN SHARP

Morecambe and Wise, Laurel and Hardy, Gale and Martin – what a double act we have in our ranks at the minute.

Maybe Gale watched the video of how Danny McGuire moved Leeds round the pitch when we beat Cas Tigers in the 2017 Grand Final, because Luke’s performance last Saturday was as good, if not better.

Apart from dropping off in the last five minutes, which will probably annoy the players as much as it did the fans as we were all hoping to nil Wigan.

What a signing Rhyse Martin has been for us, his tackle busting runs and great defence, is topped off with the cherry on the cake of his goal kicking.

Mikolaj Oledzki and Ava Seumanufagai are not only a great triple word score, but are setting the platform for the halfs to work from, Leeming had his best game too and looked like the player we signed from the Giants.

A full squad performance and it’s just a shame the final is going to be played in a very empty Wembley.

Massive local derby this week, Cas will be out to get one over the big city side, but let’s keep the run going boys.

CHRISTINE KIDD

What a team, what a performance. Leeds Rhinos are going to Wembley!

A near-perfect display in the first half of the Challenge Cup semi-final against Wigan Warriors last Saturday gained the Rhinos another trip to Wembley, the first since 2015.

A kicking masterclass from Luke Gale and superb efforts from the rest of the team, in tricky weather conditions, made this a dominant display against a Wigan side who were favourites to win the game.

The 12 points Wigan scored in the last 10 minutes made it look as though the game was closer than it was.

Tomorrow Rhinos come up against Castleford Tigers who can’t seem to buy a win since Super League restarted.

They seem to have a number of players out with injury including their two half-backs, Jake Trueman and Danny Richardson. This will count for nothing however when they play their arch rivals Leeds Rhinos.

With games coming thick and fast, Leeds need another win to keep up with the top teams and have a chance of reaching the play-offs.

MATT FOWLER

Leeds’ golden generation were wet weather kings and it would appear the trait has been passed on to this crop of players.

As semi-final performances go that was up there with any produced in the Super League era.

The forwards were superb and Luke Gale produced a kicking masterclass to stifle anything Wigan had to offer.

A Wembley appearance is bittersweet given no fans will be allowed to enjoy what is a one of the best days out in the rugby calendar.

Leeds now have two games to navigate before the final and with top-four ambitions still very much alive, this will be a challenging 10 days.

Castleford and Warrington will not be defeated by just playing the kids so Richard Agar will need to be creative and manage the squad.

I don’t think he, or the players will want to give up their top-four place so this next week will be interesting.

I only pray we stay injury free and can go into the Wembley final as fresh as possible. Exciting times appear to be returning, let’s keep the momentum going.

GRAHAM POULTER

First of all, well done to the Leeds youngsters who played in the defeat by Catalans last Wednesday evening.

Quite a few of them showed up really well. The team lost the game, however the youngsters who played will have gained invaluable experience.

It’s good to see the club continuing to produce quality players for the future.

Congratulations to all the players involved in the outstanding performance and convincing victory against Wigan, in tough conditions, in the semi-final of the Challenge Cup.

Well done to the coach Richard Agar for devising the game plan and to the players for carrying it out on the field.

A game plan is only good if the players can carry it out and boy they did everything asked of them.

Leeds played the conditions perfectly. Luke Gale kicked intelligently, on the back of excellent work by the forwards, he drove the team around the pitch so effectively.

If the weather conditions are to be like they were on Saturday, then the final will be won by the team who kicks the best along with everything else.

Leeds now have to continue their good form in the game against Castleford tomorrow.

DIANNE HALL

A short mention about the Catalans Dragons game which I managed to watch briefly, before the app crashed and I had to listen to the rest of the game on Radio Leeds.

The youngsters made a decent fist of the game and didn’t let anyone down.

The future is looking bright! Great effort!

What can I say about the semi-final against Wigan? Brilliant game plan, executed to perfection, clinical finishing and an excellent top-drawer kicking game.

The final score flattered Wigan and the defensive effort didn’t deserve the 12 points in the against column. From one to 17 they all played their part in a near-faultless display, in atrocious conditions, just like many of the memorable, successful nights at Old Trafford in the past.

Well done to Salford on reaching their first Challenge Cup Final in 51 years. See you at Wembley. Typical that it is behind closed doors when we have reached the final again after five years away.

Next up, our local rivals Castleford and Luke Gale’s first against them since signing for us. I can’t wait!

ADAM ANDERSON

After the last couple of seasons fighting for our lives in Super League, the last thing I imagined was the team reaching the Challenge Cup final at Wembley in 2020.

What a huge turnaround it has been, from last year – getting beaten by Bradford in Richard Agar’s first game, to now.

The performance on Saturday against Wigan Warriors was possibly the best I’ve seen us put in since the 2017 Grand Final against Castleford.

Luke Gale was on point, Rhyse Martin was everywhere, Kruise Leeming and Brad Dwyer were unreal and Richie Myler looks like he’s always been a full-back.

Special raps go to the youngsters who fought hard against Catalans on the Wednesday night before, hopefully we get to see more of them in the coming weeks.

Onwards to our clash against an out-of-form Castleford Tigers tomorrow.

They always seem to have our number when playing them, but hopefully it isn’t the case tomorrow. We need to keep going in the league and hopefully get this top-four spot.

***

A message from the Editor:

Leeds has a fantastic story to tell - and the Yorkshire Evening Post has been rooted firmly at the heart of telling the stories of our city since 1890.

We believe in ourselves and hope you believe in us too. We need your support to help ensure we can continue to be at the heart of life in Leeds.

Subscribe to our website and enjoy unlimited access to local news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Click here to subscribe. For more details on our newspaper subscription offers click here.

Thank you

Laura Collins

Editor