Hull KR 16 Leeds Rhinos 41 - Second big win in seven days marred by injury

LEEDS RHINOS paid a heavy price for their second win over Hull KR inside seven days.
Leeds Rhinos forward James Donaldson scores the game's third try against his former club. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe/JPIMedia.Leeds Rhinos forward James Donaldson scores the game's third try against his former club. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe/JPIMedia.
Leeds Rhinos forward James Donaldson scores the game's third try against his former club. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe/JPIMedia.

A routine 41-16 Betfred Super League victory, at Warrington’s HJ Stadium, was overshadowed by a horrible injury to 20-year-old centre Harry Newman.

The England squad member suffered suspected breaks to the tibia and fibula in his right leg and was taken from the ground by ambulance to a local hospital.

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Rhinos were 18-0 up nine minutes before the interval when Newman was hurt.

Leeds Rhinos forward Rhyse Martin touches down against Hull KR. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe/JPIMedia.Leeds Rhinos forward Rhyse Martin touches down against Hull KR. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe/JPIMedia.
Leeds Rhinos forward Rhyse Martin touches down against Hull KR. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe/JPIMedia.

From the reaction of the players closest to him it was obviously a bad one and Newman’s anguish was audible from the press box on the other side of the stadium.

He was treated at length on the pitch before being carried off on a stretcher after a delay of more than 10 minutes.

If confirmed, the injury will end Newman’s season and almost certainly keep him out of action until midway through next year.

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Coach Richard Agar named a winger, Luke Briscoe, on the bench for both games against Hull KR - in preference to young forwards Jarrod O’Connor and Sam Walters - and the selection was justified each time.

Richie Myler lunges for the line for Rhinos' fourth try of the afternoon. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe/JPIMedia.Richie Myler lunges for the line for Rhinos' fourth try of the afternoon. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe/JPIMedia.
Richie Myler lunges for the line for Rhinos' fourth try of the afternoon. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe/JPIMedia.

Briscoe’s inclusion allowed Ash Handley to rest a sore hamstring in last Friday’s Coral Challenge Cup tie and this time he came on to the left-wing, with Handley crossing to take over from Newman in the opposite centre.

Having scored nine tries in last week’s 48-18 win, Rhinos ran in seven this time against a Rovers side showing 11 changes from the Cup game.

Rhyse Martin converted the first six of them - to go with his 100 per cent record from the previous match.

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Rovers tried hard, but there was a difference in class; Leeds were in command from start to finish and deserve credit for maintaining their concentration after Newman went off. Luke Gale ran the show again, with good support from fellow playmakers Rob Lui - whose second-half tackle on Shaun Kenny-Dowall was a highlight - and Richie Myler.

Ash Handley scores his second try. He was switched to the centre following Harry Newman's suspected leg-break injury. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe/JPIMedia.Ash Handley scores his second try. He was switched to the centre following Harry Newman's suspected leg-break injury. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe/JPIMedia.
Ash Handley scores his second try. He was switched to the centre following Harry Newman's suspected leg-break injury. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe/JPIMedia.

Kruise Leeming had another good game, playing the full-80, and young prop Tom Holroyd gained some more valuable game time, but Leeds were superior in all departments.

Rovers scored three tries, two of them coming from kicks, but Leeds defended well when they were put under pressure and their finishing was impressive.

Leeds’ three big wins over Rovers this year have all been built on a good start and they were 12-0 up after 11 minutes.

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Nick Rawsthorne, who had a spell in Rhinos’ academy at the start of his career, made a sensational tackle to hold Leeming up over the line after a combination between Gale and Mikolaj Oledzki had split Rovers’ defence.

But then the winger knocked on trying to intercept to give Leeds another set and Martin swooped over from Lui’s pass.

That was after just five minutes and Leeds scored again six later, through Handley. He finished strongly at the corner, but it was Myler’s long pass to the left-wing which did the damage.

Gale had a touchdown ruled out soon afterwards before James Donaldson added Rhinos’ third try.

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He is a player with a point to prove when Rhinos play Rovers, having been let go by them at the end of the 2018 season.

He scored in the big home win over his former club in February and doubled his tally for the season, on 23 minutes - just seconds after coming off the bench.

Leeds were fortunate to get a penalty for a ball steal, which could easily have been ruled a knock-on, but they made it count when the back-rower blasted over from a pass by Lui.

Leeds added one more try before the break, through Myler. He was in support to cross after Liam Sutcliffe had been sent into space by Gale.

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The Robins gave themselves some hope on the final play of the half when Jez Litten’s cross-field kick was batted back by Rawsthorne to Jimmy Keinhorst - one of six ex-Leeds players in their 17 - who touched down.

That hope was extinguished six minutes into the second period when Handley went over for his second try off some lovely short passing close to the line by Tom Briscoe and Myler.

Elliot Minchella, another of Rovers’ former Rhinos contingent, showed some good touches off the bench and set up their second try on 53 minutes, sliding a kick over the line which Ryan Brierley dabbed down before adding his second conversion.

That again got Rovers, slightly, back into the game, but Leeds responded with a simple try, scored by Alex Mellor after Leeming and Gale combined, then Luke Briscoe went over after Gale and Myler had again linked.

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An airborne finish by Kenny-Dowall produced Rovers’ third try, but Gale landed a drop goal two minutes from time to complete the scoring. It was Leeds’ fourth successive win and they look like a good team, even with several key players missing for various reasons.

Agar is likely to rest many of his first-choice players against Catalans Dragons on Wednesday, but whatever happens then they can go into next weekend’s Cup semi-final against Wigan in good heart - though the loss of Newman will lead to some reorganising.

The penalty count finished five-five, but Leeds received four set restarts to Hull KR’s one.

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