Rugby League Weekender: Leeds bring in reinforcements, no-one stopping the Saints, Rugby League shows its best side

James Messenger 30 Jun 2019 5:05 PM

Our new Sunday night feature which looks back at all the action over the weekend and tells you all you need to know in a bitesize fashion.

Leeds bring in reinforcements

There have been plenty of comings and goings in the last week at Leeds as they bid to avoid the drop. Tui Lolehea – one of many high-profile signings for the Rhinos in the off-season – and Matt Parcell have both been shown the exit door as part of swap deals for Robert Lui and Shaun Lunt, while the club have also confirmed that Papua New Guinea international Rhyse Martin will arrive at Headingley next week. The Leeds hierarchy have certainly felt the need to bring more bodies, and with Lui making an immediate impact during Sunday’s victory over Catalans, it appears the Rhinos may have solved their problems in the halves.

No-one stopping the Saints

Undoubtedly the biggest game of the weekend came at the Halliwell Jones Stadium as table-toppers St Helens took on Warrington, their nearest challengers. They may have been kept scoreless in the opening 40, but Justin Holbrook’s side just had too much quality as they ran out 21-10 winners. Saints are now eight points clear with nine games left to play, and you get the feeling they are in pole position to pick up a second successive League Leaders Shield.

Huddersfield dragged into relegation dogfight

It’s fair to say that no one is safe from relegation in what is proving to be one of the most compelling seasons of the modern Super League era. However, a winless June means that Huddersfield are dropping ever-further down the table. Their run-in looks favourable on paper compared to the teams around them, but Simon Woolford will know that results need to come sooner rather than later as the other sides locked on 14 points continue to show their survival credentials.

Rugby League shows its best side

After a week jam-packed full of player movement, it felt nice to let the headlines be taken by the action unfolding out on the pitch. With both televised Super League games serving up a treat, battles for play-0ff spots intensifying across all divisions and a number of competitive high-scoring games, it was one of the most compelling weekends for a long time. With attention firmly fixed on new TV deals in 2021, high-intensity match-ups are definitely needed to attract potential broadcast partners, and I’m sure they will have been impressed by what they’ve seen over the last few days.