Leeds Bring Confidence Back

Correspondent

The game was effectively over as a contest after a first ten minutes in which the Rhinos crossed for three tries; three more tries coming before the half-time interval.

To the Catalans’ credit they did hit back after that disastrous opening to the game, Thomas Bosc and Justin Murphy crossing to add some respectability to the scoreline.

Murphy played out an interesting side-show with Leeds stand-off Danny McGuire with both players vying to be engage Super League top try scorer – Murphy’s score will allow him to take the accolade unless St HelensAde Gardner crosses for a hat-trick against Warrington on Sunday.

Leeds added four more tries in the second period – McGuire grabbing one before being substituted – to give themselves more confidence before their first play-off encounter.

The Rhinos’ other try scorers were Scott Donald, Gareth Ellis, Keith Senior and James Jones-Buchanan – while Danny Williams grabbed a brace and 20-year-old Jordan Tansey chipped in with an impressive hat-trick..
 
Leeds boss Tony Smith said that McGuire was a proven try scorer and wanted bigger things later in the season.

Smith said: "He missed out on his top try-scoring feat, but I did not want him to run out of petrol. There are bigger things that Danny would like to pick up this year. He is a proven try-scorer – he's done it year after year and he'll do it for years to come.

"He came through well, but tomorrow is going to be the real big test. He felt fine and looked sharp. We've missed him."

Smith also praised Tansey’s hat-trick achievement, saying that the youngster is still gaining experience and has a great deal of potential.

"To score a hat-trick in Super League is quite an achievement for anybody but for someone so young and still gaining experience, I'm delighted for him" he said.

Les Catalans coach Mick Potter said that the Rhinos’ performance caught out his side, adding that the inclusion of a number of young French players put them at a disadvantage. 

"I thought Leeds played very well. They executed some really good plays and caught us wide out” said Potter.

"We had a lot of young French players out there, and I thought they applied themselves. There were some encouraging signs, but we handed the ball over far too often.

Potter also congratulated Murphy on his achievement on both a personal and a club level.

He said: "I'm very pleased for Justin. It's great for where we are sat in the league for him to lead the try-scoring list. It's phenomenal for him personally and shows that we are a team who can score tries."