The aims for both Hull KR and the Leeds Rhinos were clear as they went into their round twenty-seven encounter at opposite ends of the play-off zone.

Hull KR knew that a win would be enough to guarantee them second spot and a weekend off before a home game in the play-off eliminator while nothing less than a victory would suffice for the Leeds Rhinos who needed the two points to lift them above the Leigh Leopards and into sixth spot should the Leopards not be able to secure a victory over St Helens in a game kicking off at the same time.

Hull KR were the massive favourites with the bookies, the Rhinos not given a hope of taking the points and extending their season.

The Wigan Warriors knew that a win would strengthen their claim to the 2024 minor premiership and win in their final game of the season would then guarantee that they would finish in top spot but they were up against a Leeds Rhinos side who beat them comprehensively just a few weeks ago and who themselves needed the win to keep their outside hopes of a play-off place alive.

Wigan were strong favourites with the bookies for the win, despite the Leeds 30-4 victory just five games ago, the smart money on the Rhinos challenge for the six going by the wayside at The Brick.

But these two old adversaries often throw up an intriguing fixture, but it would be a bad Friday the thirteenth for someone.

The Brad Arthur revolution at Leeds Rhinos is in full swing with the announcement of a number of end of season departures during the week and in round twenty-five they looked to keep alive their slender hopes of a top six finish with a home game against 2024 strugglers, Hull FC who themselves were looking for the win to avoid the ignominy of wooden spoon.

The bookies could only see one winner with the Rhinos named as massive favourites and a decent Headingley crowd were in attendance with the belief that this would be a chance to improve the all-important points difference column and jump inside the top six for the first time in 2024 with two games of the regular season remaining.

The Rhinos travelled to a much-improved London Broncos in the hope of registering a cricket score to improve their chances of making the play-offs should the final reckoning come down to points difference with a win by twelve enough to take them above the Catalans Dragons and into seventh spot.

But London were likely to prove stern opposition as they came into the game knowing that a win would lift them off the bottom for the first time in 2024 and above Hull FC who lost their round twenty-four game to Castleford yesterday.

London were given a twenty-eight point start on the coupon, the bookies in no doubt that this would be a big win for the visitors as they maintained the feintest of hopes of a play-off place.

Leeds Rhinos have been on the verge of dropping out of the top six play-off race for the last few weeks but an encounter at Headingley in round twenty-three really was the Rhinos last opportunity to make the six as they came up against one of the sides in danger of dropping out of the play off places, an out of form Catalans Dragons.

A win would lift the Rhinos back within two points of the Dragons with four regular rounds remaining, a win for the Dragons would come close to guaranteeing them a spot in the end of season knock-out competition.

The Dragons were without the recently un-retired Sam Tomkins who had picked up an injury and with the securing of Brad Arthur as coach until the end of the 2025 season the bookies had made the home side favourites with an eight-point handicap on the coupon.

The side which no coach wanted to face in round twenty-two, a buoyant Leeds Rhinos under the coaching of Brad Arthur who took the scalp of the Champions last weekend, became the task of Sam Burgess and his high-flying Warrington Wolves as they continue their quest for a top two finish and a home tie in the playoffs.

The two points could lift the Wolves into second, should the winning margin be large enough, but if the Leeds Rhinos were to make it back-to-back victories, then they would get themselves within two points of a play-off place and a shot at Old Trafford in five rounds time.

Warrington were slight favourites with the bookies, the Rhinos given a six-point start by the handicappers, but Burgess was sending his troops into battle with no illusions that this would be a simple victory.

After their comprehensive win over the Leigh Leopards on Tuesday night in the delayed round two fixture, a buoyant and table topping Wigan Warriors travelled to Leeds for their first encounter of 2024 with a Rhinos side who all but saw their chances of making the play-offs disappear last night when the Catalans Dragons scraped a narrow win against the Giants.

The Rhinos are now six points adrift of the play-off places with just seven games of the regular season remaining while Wigan trail Hull KR on points difference after the Robins big win over the Castleford Tigers last night.

The bookies predicted one-way traffic with the Rhinos given a very stingy six points start on the handicap coupon as they looked to salvage some pride from a dreadful season, and to make things even worse for the Rhinos, Jai Field was back in the Warriors starting thirteen.

A critical round twenty game for both sides saw sixth placed Salford Red Devils hosted a Leeds Rhinos side who sit in seventh place and who know that their task of achieving a top six position, and a play-off place would look almost impossible should they lose this encounter, a result which would see Salford into fourth.

Salford were the slight favourites for the win with the bookies but with the Rhinos only being given a two-point start on the handicap coupon there was clearly very little to choose between the two sides with the ‘Brad Arthur factor’ still to be determined.

It was ‘make or break’ time for both sides, the scene was set for a corker of a game.

Two sides having disappointing seasons got round nineteen underway on Thursday night as the Leeds Rhinos travelled the short distance don the M62 to take on the Huddersfield Giants as ninth hosted seventh with play-off places now close to disappearing out of sight for both outfits.

The Giants had won the last two meetings between the two sides, including their 30-24 win earlier this season at Headingley and the Rhinos had not taken the points away from the John Smith’s stadium for almost five years, their last win there in August 2019.

The Rhinos had been made favourites with the bookies before the first ball was kicked, the home side with a four-point start on the coupon but it was an essential game for both sides.

It was Leeds Rhinos ‘Brad Arthur’ test day as the new coach took charge of the side for the first time as they came up against a trailblazing Hull KR side who are having a sensational season inside the top six and who wanted the two points to move level with the Warrington Wolves in second place.

The bookies made the visitors slight favourites but with only a two point advantage to the Rhinos on the handicap coupon they were far from convinced that this was an ironed on win for the Robins as Leeds looked to get two points closer to the Salford Red Devils and the cherished sixth spot in the table.

The Leeds masses gathered at Headingley to ask whether this would be a new dawn for their beloved club, or more of the same underperforming that their side has displayed for the last few years.

Under the recently announced new coaching stewardship of former Paramatta Eels coach Brad Arthur, at least until the end of the season, the Leeds Rhinos were looking for a turnaround in form and performance as they made the ominous trip to Warrington to take on a Wolves side who were looking to go second and to get within two points of the Wigan Warriors at the top of the table.

A win for the Rhinos would lift them level on points with six placed Catalans Dragons but they needed a massive points win to lift them above the side from the south of France.

Leeds had a ten-point start on the coupon, many Rhinos supporters feeling that the advantage was a little stingy on behalf of the bookmakers as they feared a larger defeat despite the new man in charge.

It was the Leeds Rhinos weekend for the two free points as they took on a beleaguered and bedraggled London Broncos side who are still on a single win for the season and looking increasingly unlikely to improve on that tally in what remains of 2024 before their despatch into the Championship.

A win would do nothing for London in terms of league position but would move them level on points with Hull FC but with Leeds getting handicapped by thirty-two points on the coupon it was already a foregone conclusion that they would be getting the points which could lift them into the top half of the table, at least until the outcome of the Hull KR and Catalans game later in the evening.

Leeds won the game in May by 46-8, London were hoping for some kind of improvement.

It was always going to be an emotional night at Headingley as the Leeds Rhinos hosted their first game since the death of idol, superstar, and MND campaigner Rob Burrow welcoming the Leig Leopards to a sold-out stadium.

But the departure, by mutual consent, of coach Rohan Smith during the week added an extra edge with Scott Grix and Chev Walker taking temporary charge while the global search for a new coach takes place at the highest level.

Leigh had been made favourites with the bookies with the home side given a four point start on the handicap coupon and a win for Leigh would lift them above Huddersfield and just a point behind the Rhinos.

An emotionally charged Leeds Rhinos travelled across the M62 for a Saturday afternoon encounter with a Hull FC side who had already been written off for this game, and the season, by their supporters and pundits.

The Rhinos needed a win to keep in touch with the top six as they looked to sneak a play-off place while a big points win would bolster their puny looking points difference as it might be crucial later in the season, whereas Hull FC simply needed a win, and they would take it any way that they could.

The Airlie Birds had an eight-point start on the coupon, the bookies expecting a closer encounter than most Black & Whites fans who were fearful of another big loss.

In a repeat of the last two Women’s Challenge Cup Finals, holders St Helens took on the Leeds Rhinos at Wembley Stadium with the Blue & Amber hoping to stop four consecutive wins for the Red Vee and win the trophy for the first time since 2019.

Between them, these two sides have won the last five finals, and St Helens were the strong favourites to get another win for the Totally Wicked Stadium trophy cabinet, but Leeds had the hurt of the last two seasons to draw upon for motivation.

Saints won the league encounter in round four by a narrow margin of 12-6, all indications were that this would be equally as close.

The West Yorkshire derby had it all to play for as Castleford Tigers travelled the short distance to Headingley to take on the arch enemy the Leeds Rhinos as both sides desperately needed the two points on offer.

The visitors couldn’t improve their league position with a win but could increase the gap between themselves and the bottom two club while the Rhinos knew that a win by more than twelve points would lift them into the top six, at least for the next twenty hours.

The Rhinos were handicapped by ten on the coupon, the bookies thinking that it would be a Rhinos win but not necessarily a convincing one.

A round twelve encounter between joint league leaders, St Helens, and seventh placed Leeds Rhinos was likely to be a one-sided affair with the bookies giving the Rhinos a fourteen-point start on the coupon despite the Rhinos having Brodie Croft and Harry Newman back in their starting line-up along with on-loan Matty Russell.

Saints would end the night two points clear of the chasing pack of they were to pick up the win, the Rhinos could lift themselves into the top half of the table if they were to grab an unlikely win over the old enemy, something that they haven’t managed since a one-point win in March 2023.

Pre-game there was pessimism amongst the Rhinos fans, expectation amongst those supporting Saints.

When it comes to Women’s Super League it doesn’t get any bigger than a clash between St Helens and the Leeds Rhinos, the top two sides in the game with league leaderships, championships and challenge cup wins between them and a dress rehearsal for next months Challenge Cup Final at Wembley.

Old rivalries were renewed in a match which the bookies struggled to find a favourite, edging towards the home side based on their home advantage.

The game was a curtain raiser for the men’s Super League game to be played this evening but there was every chance that this would be a more thrilling, exciting, and closer match than the one kicking off at eight o’clock.

A place at Wembley on the 8th June, to take on cup holders St Helens, awaited the winners of a mouthwatering encounter between the Leeds Rhinos and Wigan Warriors as the second Challenge Cup semi-final took place at the Totally Wicked Stadium in St Helens.

It couldn’t be closer in the league with both sides currently unbeaten after three rounds of the Women’s 2024 Super League and sat in equal top place and just a small separation in achieved points difference.

Leeds have been the defeated finalists in the last two seasons after back-to-back wins in 2018 and 2019, while the Cherry & Whites have never made it to a Challenge Cup Final, eighty minutes would lead to elation and heartbreak, but few would be brave enough to call the outcome before the kick-off.

The Rhinos filled their boots last week against the London Broncos but round eleven saw them with a daunting trip to the south of France to take on a Catalans Dragons side who were looking for the win to rejoin a cluster of clubs at the top of the table on sixteen league points.

A win for Leeds would lift them into the top six, but a big win could see them go ahead of the Dragons and as high as fourth in the table, but the bookies were favouring a home win, giving the visitors a fourteen-point start on the coupon.

Could the Rhinos make it three wins on the trot to find some sort of consistency or would it be the Dragons who would take their second win in their last five outings after a disappointing couple of rounds.