Radford wary of Leeds’ back line threat

Hull FC coach Lee Radford is well aware of the main threat posed by the Leeds Rhinos, heading into this evening’s game between the two teams.

Radford knows that his men must be on their mettle when it comes to defending against the Rhinos’ three-quarter line, which features the likes of Joel Moon, Tom Briscoe and Ryan Hall.

“Leeds are obviously a massive challenge for us, they are three games from three, they are averaging 35 points a game and it’s Leeds which says it all,” Radford told his club’s official website.

“It is fair to say we’ll be underdogs going into Thursday’s game, it’s a Sky fixture and we are going to have to bat above our weight to get a result.

“Tom Briscoe, the shackles seem to be off at the moment and he looks outstanding and the combinations between Hall, Hardaker and Watkins are a real danger.

“They arguably have the best back line going, which means our kick and chase needs to be good and our early energy that comes through Marc [Sneyd] has to be on the money as well because they can cause serious problems.”

Radford is also aware that past form against Leeds counts for nothing this time around.

“We have had a good run against them in recent years but this time round is a different group, a different squad so we have got to perform and everybody has to put in a decent performance in to get a result against these,” he added.

“To continue that good form we have over them at home would be a great achievement, which would breathe life into our season again.

“We went into the fixture against them at the end of last year with a few players out, and on that night young Jack Logan was put into the side and stepped up to score two tries and win the match, so we know we have more than enough to do the job.”