Features

Rhinos lose winning feeling

Author: John Harris
Date: 26/03/2010
Rugby League betting

The start of the Super League season has certainly been full of thrills and spills with Leeds Rhinos' demise probably the biggest surprise of the opening seven rounds.

The Grand Final winners of the last three years may still be the online favourites to retain their title once again in October but they struggled to beat Crusaders at Wrexham's snow-bound Racecourse Ground on the opening day of the season when rustiness was used as an excuse for their below-par display.

However, that performance has proved to be far from an aberration as Brian McClennan's side are now level on points with the Welsh side after losing four of their next six games as well as slumping to defeat in the World Club Challenge to Melbourne Storm.

Injuries have played their part in the Rhinos' awful start to the campaign with Jamie Peacock picking up an ankle problem in the recent home loss to Hull KR which will keep the Leeds captain sidelined for several weeks.

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He joins Danny Buderus (foot), Tom Bush (knee), Ryan Hall (knee), Scott Donald (shoulder), Greg Eastwood (wrist), Kevin Sinfield (dead leg), Carl Ablett (ankle) and Ryan Bailey (illness) in the Headingley Carnegie treatment room but there is nonetheless the feeling that Leeds' dominance of the last three years could be coming to an end.

Wigan Warriors seem to be best placed to cash in on Leeds' problems and, despite their second-half capitulation to Bradford Bulls, Michael Maguire's side have won their other six matches.

Pat Richards, Darrell Goulding, Martin Gleeson and Amos Roberts have all been outstanding for a club that has been in the doldrums for the last decade when it was a pale shadow of the side that dominated rugby league in the first half of the 1990s.

If one team was meant to struggle this year it was St Helens as the departure of Sean Long appeared to mark the end of an era at Knowsley Road.

However, Saints have done much better than expected winning five of their seven games to date, including the important recent victory against a Warrington Wolves team that had started the year extremely well.

Elsewhere, Huddersfield Giants are showing that last year's third-placed finish and Challenge Cup Final appearance was no fluke as they are currently third while Hull, who finished 12th last term, have also won five of their first seven matches.

Despite being thrashed by Huddersfield at Belle Vue, Wakefield Trinity Wildcats have started very well but it looks set to be a long season for Catalans Dragons, Harlequins and Salford City Reds.

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