After almost a month’s hiatus due to Covid problems the Leeds Rhinos returned to action with a trip to the AJ Bell Stadium to take on a Salford Red Devils side who were looking to join Wakefield on three wins from eleven games, after the West Yorkshire side shocked the Wigan Warriors on Thursday evening.

The game had been re-arranged from Friday night to allow Leeds to release players for the England game, and coach Agar named Gale, Leeming, Prior and Oledzki in his starting line-up all four backing up from their representative duty.

The Red Devils had a six-point start on the coupon, the Rhinos favourites for the win, but neither side would improve their league table position by taking the win.

The Leeds Rhinos welcomed fans back to Headingley for the first time in 444 days as they hosted the old enemy in the form of the Black and Whites of Hull FC.

The Rhinos escaped with the points last time out thanks to a golden point win over Wakefield Trinity but for the evening kick-off they welcome back Richie Myler and Zane Tetevano, the later after a four game suspension.

Hull declared Adam Swift fit to play after getting injured last week and Bureta Faraimo made his return.

A big win for FC would lift them into the top four but they knew that the Rhinos were also looking to gain a couple of places if they could get a convincing victory in front of their much smaller than usual home crowd.

After suffering a 44-0 defeat in their opening fixture of the 2021 Women’s Super League, Wakefield Trinity were looking for better against a Leeds Rhinos side which has scored an average of seventy points per game in their opening two fixtures while conceding an average of just eight.

Wakefield were without seven regular first-teamers and Leeds rang a couple of changes to their, so far, successful squad.

The odds were stacked against Trinity and they knew that it would take a superhuman effort with a fair sprinkling of luck for them to keep in touch with the Champions.

In the last Super League game scheduled to be played behind closed doors due to the COVID pandemic, the Leeds Rhinos were hosts to Wakefield Trinity with both clubs desperate for a win to signal a change of fortune after torrid starts to their 2021 campaigns.

The last time that Wakefield won a Super League game was way back on the 29^th October 2020, six and a half months ago, but the opposition on that occasion was the Leeds Rhinos as Trinity inflicted a massive 30-6 defeat in a game played at the Totally Wicked Stadium in St Helens, although Leeds win narrowly a few days later.

Leeds won the previous meeting in 2021 by 28-22 although this was the only win of the opening five rounds for the Rhinos.

Wakefield were the underdogs with the bookies and were receiving an eight-point start on the handicap coupon.

The Huddersfield Giants entered round five still seeking their first league points of the season as they encountered a Leeds Rhinos side who are struggling themselves and currently at the wrong end of the table.

The Rhinos had lost Richie Myler (suspended) and Kyle Eastmond (hamstring) after last week’s defeat but did welcome back Liam Sutcliffe who would pair up with Kruise Leeming in the halves.

The Giants were fancied by the bookies but without the services of Ashton Golding, and both Joe and Jake Wardle.

The Rhinos had a six-point start on the coupon; it was Ian Watson’s ideal opportunity for his first points as coach.

Featherstone Rovers and the Leeds Rhinos met in the second round of the Women’s Super League with the reigning Champions looking to record their second win at the start of the 2021 season while Rovers hoped for a better showing after suffering a heavy defeat to Castleford Tigers in their opening fixture.

Belle Vue in Wakefield was the venue for a double header with the Rhinos being big favourites to take the two points and move to the top of the table, at least until Saints played their game later on in the afternoon.

Hull College Craven Park was the venue for an eight against seventh encounter between Hull KR and the Leeds Rhinos as Richard Agar went up against former Leeds coach Tony Smith with both sides looking to kick-start a season which has seen both sides with a just a single win in their opening three fixtures of 2021.

The home side gave a debut to their new signing from the Paramatta Eels, star centre Brad Takairangi, while the Rhinos welcomed back Richie Myler, Konrad Hurrell, Ash Handley, Bodene Thompson and King Vuniyayawa as they return to a much stronger looking line-up after suffering a multitude of early season injuries.

The Rhinos were penalised by six points on the handicap coupon and were clear favourites for the victory.

Wigan Warriors against the Leeds Rhinos is always one of the most eagerly anticipated games of the season but recent meetings in Super League have gone the way of the Warriors with the Rhinos last recording a victory in August 2017.

The Rhinos did, however, win the last meeting between the two sides when they met in the Challenge Cup semi-final last season.

The Rhinos unavailability crisis deepened at Tuesday night’s disciplinary meeting when Zane Tetevano was handed a four-game suspension for a dangerous tackle on Theo Fages, on top of the mounting injury crisis which kept the without twelve first teamers for the losing trip to St Helens for last week’s Challenge Cup tie.

Wigan had Liam Farrell and Tommy Leuluai back in their starting line-up but were without superstar Bevan French, while one bit of good news for the Rhinos was the announcement that new signing Kyle Eastmond would start the game in the halves.

The BBC must have been ‘chomping at the bit’ to announce their first-choice game for terrestrial television broadcast as soon as St Helens v.

Leeds Rhinos was pulled out of the draw machine as the defending Cup winners were pitted against the Super League Champions.

What they didn’t account for was the injury devastation which would hit the Rhinos in the early weeks of the season and make Saints massive favourites to pick up the win and make progress through to the fourth round with very little difficulty.

The Rhinos travelled to the Totally Wicked Stadium with very little expectation of getting a result, while complacency could have been Saints main concern prior to the 14:30 kick off with the game being broadcast live to the nation on the BBC.

There were debuts for King Vuniyayawa and Morgan Gannon for the Rhinos against an almost full-strength Saints side.

The only round two game between two round one victors, was the second instalment of the Totally Wicked double-header with the Leeds Rhinos taking on the Castleford Tigers, both sides looking to join Saints and Wigan on four points at the top of the table.

Leeds were without Richie Myler who was ruled out with a hamstring injury as they brought in Corey Hall and switched Broadbent into the full-back slot.

There was no Kyle Eastmond, Robert Lui or Konrad Hurrell, as the Rhinos suffered a mini injury crisis.

Castleford were without several of their first teamers too, Gareth O’Brien failing a head-assessment.

The bookies made the Tigers slight favourites for the win, but the Rhinos only had a two-point start on the coupon.

Wakefield Trinity were the designated home side at Emerald Headingley as they took on the Leeds Rhinos in the third game of the opening round of Super League 2021.

It was the first game of a double header which would later see the Catalans Dragons face Hull KR.

The Rhinos were favourites to start the season with a win, something that they have done more often than not over the last twenty-five years.

Wakefield had a six-point start on the coupon indicating that there was the expectation of a close game after four months for both sides without kicking a competitive ball.

There was no place in the Rhinos seventeen for acquisition Kyle Eastmond, but they did give a debut to new boy Zane Tetevano.

Friday 13^th would turn out to be a unlucky one for either the Catalans Dragons or the Leeds Rhinos as the two went head to head in the play-offs to compete for the dubious honour of a trip to the Totally Wicked Stadium next Friday night to take on St Helens.

Despite ending the ‘irregular’ regular season in fourth place, the Dragons had already been disadvantaged by having to make the trip to Warrington’s Halliwell-Jones Stadium for the match due to Covid concerns, the Rhinos making the simple trip across the Pennines, albeit on a Friday night.

Both coaches, Rhino’s Richard Agar in absentia due to enforced coronavirus self-isolation, named strong sides with the bookies having difficulty separating the two and giving slight favourites odds to the Rhinos who were giving away a two-point start on the handicap coupon.

After a fantastic 30-4 victory for Wakefield Trinity over the Leeds Rhinos on Thursday evening, the two sides met again in a re-arranged round eleven game at the Mobile Rocket Stadium in Wakefield.

Both coaches made a raft of changes to their starting line-ups and benches, most notably the Rhinos were without captain Luke Gale who was rested.

Wakefield were slight favourites with the bookies, the Rhinos given a two-point start on the coupon, possibly as a response to last week’s loss, and possibly a reflection of the number of changes that coach Agar had made.

Leeds needed the win to maintain their push for the top four, should tomorrow’s meetings require such a finish to make the play-offs.

Wakefield came into this game against Challenge Cup winner Leeds looking for a third win on the trot, having successfully climbed off the bottom of the table.

 

The Rhinos, on the other hand, were seeking to secure a play-off place off the back of Monday’s hard-fought win against Castleford, as the disjointed season entered its business end.

 

They put down a marker in their opening set, forcing a drop-out from Trinity, but the pressure came to nothing and the game settled into an undecided tussle for the opening period, with teams trading errors.

 

Despite the talk of another fundamental change to the 2020 season being on the immediate agenda, both Richard Agar and Daryl Powell were focussed on the first Leeds v Castleford derby in fifteen months as the Rhinos looked to make ground on the Catalans Dragons while the Tigers were intent on making life as difficult as they could for their neighbours.

Both sides were at near full strength and it was certain to be a heated affair, despite the chilly conditions, at Emerald Headingley.

Leeds were favourites with the bookies, the Tigers getting a ten-point start on the handicap coupon.

But this was the ‘derby’ and anything was possible.

A nineteen-point win would lift the Tigers above the Giants and into seventh, but Leeds knew that a win wouldn’t be enough to see them into the top four but would ease the pressure coming from Hull FC behind them.

Leeds Rhinos picked up the first trophy of the season last weekend as they win the Challenge Cup as they now turned their attention to the Super League and securing a play-off position.

But they were up against the toughest of opponents as the reigning champions and league leaders St Helens welcomed Richard Agar’s side to the Totally Wicked Stadium.

Leeds are entering an intense period of matches as they try and catch up on fixtures and their coach elected to field a mix of youth and experience, the emphasis being on youth, as he appeared to have chosen to prioritise more winnable fixtures later over the coming days.

St Helens, however, were at full strength and determined for the win.

Neither side would change position as a result of the game, but St Helens would consolidate their claim for the minor premiership with a win and the Rhinos really needed the points to keep in touch with a top four place.

It was fantastic to see the name of Salford Red Devils alongside Challenge Cup Final for the first time since 1969, a long, long wait for their faithful fans.

The last time they won the trophy was back in 1938 when the beat Barrow by 7-4, and this was only the seventh occasion that the side from Salford had made it to the showpiece.

By contrast their opponents, the Leeds Rhinos, are experienced old hands at these events.

This was their twenty-sixth Challenge Cup Final appearance, having lifted the trophy on thirteen occasions, the most recent being in 2015.

Leeds have been to the cup final on fifteen occasions since Salford were last there, having lifted the trophy five times.

But this was a one-off game, and despite the odds being stacked in the Rhinos favour, everyone tuning in to watch the game in an empty stadium, knew that Salford could beat any side on their day.

It was just a matter of whether this would be that day.

The Leeds Rhinos sent out a youthful team ahead of their Challenge Cup Final appointment on Saturday as they took on a Warrington Wolves side who took the opportunity to rest a few players, most notably their marquee player Blake Austin.

Leeds coach Richard Agar suggested that there were still Challenge Cup final places up for grabs and there were seventeen players named who would give everything to try and secure a spot, but in all likelihood the seventeen for the game against the Red Devils on Saturday would include very few players from tonight.

A win for Warrington, the firm favourites with the bookies, would see the two sides change league places in the top four, the Wolves moving into the all-important play-off places.

Leeds Rhinos were scheduled too play the Castleford Tigers in a Thursday night clash but coronavirus issues forced a late change with Hull FC stepping into the breach on what was supposedly their bye round to travel to Headingley for what was scheduled to be their home game in round eighteen.

All credit to the Airlie Birds for stepping in at short notice and to the Rhinos for facing a different opposition to the one that they had been planning for.

A win for the Rhinos would lift them back into the top four, jumping back in front of the Catalans Dragons but Hull FC knew that a win would not help them in their league position.

The Rhinos were massive favourites for the win, Hull FC robbed of players due to their own coronavirus problems and their late notice of the game.

The bookies and pundits couldn’t see below a Leeds win, FC being given a twenty-point start on the coupon.

Challenge Cup semi-final weekend holds a special place in most rugby supporters hearts.

But in this strangest of years those fans were settling down in their armchairs for a brace of matches from a rain drenched Totally Wicked Stadium in St Helens with Wigan Warriors versus Leeds Rhinos the first to take the stage.

Both sides suffered heavy defeats in midweek as they fielded weakened sides in Super League while resting their key players for this crucial game.

The sides sit in third and fourth in the league table and despite the Warriors being clear favourites, thanks to beating the Rhinos in their last five encounters, most neutrals hoped that it would be a closely matched encounter.

A place at Wembley on the afternoon of the 17th October was the big prize on offer.