Leeds Rhinos coach addresses Harry Newman future and longer Hull FC stay prospect

Leeds Rhinos coach Brad Arthur insists Harry Newman’s career at the club is not coming to a premature end: and there is a way back for him into the club’s first team after the centre left on loan.

The England international has joined Hull FC on an initial one-week loan deal, with Newman set to feature for the Black and Whites against St Helens on Thursday evening.

That has sparked speculation and questions about whether or not Newman may leave Leeds early ahead of his switch to Perth Bears in the NRL next season, with the centre now seemingly behind Jack Bird in the pecking order at AMT Headingley.

But Arthur insists that is not the case – and that Newman still has the opportunity to become a regular at Leeds again in 2026.

When asked if there was a way back for Newman, Arthur said: “Definitely. Harry is a great player. If he’s playing his best footy he’s part of our best team. That’s what we’ve got to get back to and this is the way we’ll do it.

“Harry missed out on selection this week and when I spoke to him last week about that he needed to get some game-time, I gave him the weekend and he wants to play.

“It’s been a couple of weeks for him and he wants to play at Super League level which I’m supportive of.”

Arthur did seemingly keep the door ajar for a longer stay with Hull though should it work for all parties.

He said: “We’re clear on that he’s here for the season and he wants to fight his way back into the team. He’ll get some game-time this week with Hull and it’ll be a week to week proposition because he wants to fight his way back into the team here. They were in need of a bloke of his quality and it fits for us as a club and it fits for Hull.

“We can’t complain or whinge about it; we wanted competition for spots, we’ve got that and we’ve got to make the most of it. We could be sitting here with ten injuries so this is a healthy situation, everyone has been open and honest with it and Harry has taken it the right way.”

Arthur admitted Leeds were also fielding interest from other Super League clubs about players not in the Rhinos first-team at the minute. Ben Littlewood will play for York Knights this weekend against Leigh Leopards, with Leeds also turning down other requests.

He said: “They go through Bleasey and we’ve got a lot of anxious players who want to play. That’s a good thing. We’ve got to make the most of it. The guys in the 17 don’t take it for granted because they know they’ve got blokes who want their spot.”

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