Rhinos back youngsters to fill Diskin void

Leeds chief executive Gary Hetherington is confident that the Rhinos can fill the void left by Matt Diskin‘s departure to Bradford with young stars from their academy system.

Diskin, 28, has been at Headingley for ten years but was released from the final year of his contract to take up a three-year deal with the Bulls.

The Dewsbury-born former Great Britain international has played second fiddle to Australian number nine Danny Buderus in recent seasons, and the Rhinos are now looking to give more chances to youngsters coming through their academy system, which produced the bulk of their triple Super League winning side of recent seasons.

Hetherington said: “Matt has given such outstanding service that we were always going to support whatever suits him best and we fully understand that a three year contract offer from the Bulls is an attractive option.

“He has been one of our core players, who has been at the heart of the Rhinos success over the past decade. Matt leaves with our best wishes and I have no doubt he will play a key role in the Bulls revival.

“We are fortunate to have two outstanding young hookers in Paul McShane and Liam Hood who aspire to follow in Matt’s footsteps,” added Hetherington.

McShane, 20, made his debut in 2009 and spent a spell on loan at Hull last season to enable him to gain valuable Super League experience.