The game of Round eleven saw first travel to second as the Rhinos made the trip to Langtree Park, not their happiest of hunting grounds, to take on Kieron Cunningham's Saints.

The rest of the league was rooting for the Saints, to try and bring the Rhinos back to the pack, as a win tonight for the Blue and Amber would see them six points clear and with one hand on the league leaders shield.

Both sides were carrying large numbers of injured absentees but there was still plenty of potential for them to serve up a feast.

The opening two minutes were all Saints and as they looked to go in for their opening try on the overlap, Ash Handley came out of the line, intercepted the ball, juggled and went ninety-five metres to score. Sutcliffe, with Sinfield starting the game on the bench for the first time in twelve years, kicked the extras.

On fifteen it was the Rhinos again after a beautiful Moon reverse pass put Handley over in the corner for his second. Sutcliffe goaled again, as he did three minutes later when he turned provider after a great break to put Hardaker over under the sticks. The Rhinos were averaging a point a minute and Saints had no answer.

Just before the half-hour Ablett broke the line after a fast play the ball, and then found McGuire in support to go sixty metres and outpace the Saints tacklers to dive over. Sinfield, now on off the bench, kicked the conversion for 24-0. Saints and their supporters looked shell-shocked.

Four minutes from the interval and the Saints finally got on the scoreboard when Makinson dropped a pass onto his boot and won the foot race the dive on the ball for a four pointer. Burns kicked the conversion but it was the Rhinos who'd have the last word of the half.

With seconds left Watkins intercepted and went downfield before being tackled on the Saints ten metre line. A lightening play the ball saw Sutcliffe kick to the corner find no Saints defenders within ten metres of Handley who caught the ball and grounded for his first half hat-trick.

With the exception of a bit of luck for Makinson it had been all one-way traffic, as the Rhinos ripped the home side apart.

Saints took the interval to reorganise and came out in the second half looking more like a Champion side. On forty-four Walsh broke through two tackles before putting in a looping pass to Jordan Turner who picked up the ball after its first bounce and went in. Burns missed the conversion attempt for 10-28.

On the hour mark it looked like it was game on as a high Burns kick was palmed back by Wilkin into the hands of Turner for his second. This time Burns was on target and the Saints were back within two converted tries of the Rhinos.

But that was the end of the fightback as the Rhinos re-asserted their dominance.

On sixty-six a Cuthbertson offload was dribbled and picked up by Sinfield and then passed out to Sutcliffe to run the angle and cross. Sinfields kick made it 34-16 and four minutes later the Rhinos skipper put the result beyond doubt when he slotted over a drop-goal from twenty metres out.

With seconds left on the clock a crazy Walmsley offload went straight into the hands of Joel Moon who went over the line without a Saints hand being laid upon him, and Sinfield kicked the conversion to seal a 41-16 win.

The Rhinos were running red hot tonight and Saints had no answer. A flourish for the opening twenty minutes of the second half showed what the Champions can do, but no side can let Leeds play their own game for sixty and expect to get close on the scoreboard.

The Rhinos are now six points clear at the top of the pile and look as though they will take some catching.


Saints: Makinson, Fleming, Turner, Jones, Swift, Burns, Wilkin, Amor, Roby, Walmsley, McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Flanagan, Thompson. Subs: Walsh, Masoe, Richards, Savelio.

Rhinos: Hardaker, Handley, Ablett, Moon, Watkins, Sutcliffe, McGuire, Cuthbertson, Aiton, Peacock, Ward, Delaney, Singleton. Subs: Burrow, Yates, Sinfield, Achurch.

Referee: Ben Thaler
Attendance: 12,640