Leeds Rhinos 17 London Broncos 16: Hosts survive almighty scare on day of distractions
Between the whispers about Brad Arthur and the spectre of England's Euro 2024 quarter-final, Leeds Rhinos' clash with London Broncos was almost a sideshow.
The Rhinos appeared to be as distracted as everybody else in a performance that laid bare the problems awaiting the incoming head coach.
Leeds played as if they felt they only had to turn up against Super League's whipping boys and almost paid a heavy price.
It took a late try from Rhyse Martin to force extra time before marquee man Brodie Croft landed a drop goal in the fourth minute of golden point to spare the Rhinos' blushes and secure two precious points in their play-off bid.
Much of the talk at Headingley before kick-off was about the identity of the club's next head coach and the man who will be tasked with delivering overdue consistency.
Leeds are understood to be on the brink of appointing former Parramatta Eels boss Arthur on an interim basis, leaving the tantalising prospect of Paul Rowley taking over after seeing out the season with Salford Red Devils.
If everything comes together, it could prove to be a masterstroke by the Rhinos.
The eight-time champions are getting an experienced coach capable of providing much-needed impetus at a critical time in Super League.
Should they manage to convince Rowley to leave Salford, where he has worked wonders on a modest budget, it would give Leeds what they have craved since parting company with Rohan Smith: a talented, established coach who is in it for the long haul.
Arthur, whose 10-year reign at the Eels was brought to an end in May, is unwilling to commit to a long stint as he closes in on a deal with prospective new NRL franchise Perth Bears.
The Australian will inherit a team that have kept their season alive thanks to back-to-back wins under interim coaches Chev Walker and Scott Grix, although they made hard work of Saturday's victory against Super League's basement side.
The Rhinos were unrecognisable from the team that channelled the energy from an emotional crowd to beat Leigh Leopards in their previous game as they demonstrated the inconsistencies that cost Smith his job.
Leeds found themselves 16-10 behind at half-time and were very nearly punished for a lacklustre performance.
If Arthur was watching on in Australia, he would not have struggled to find areas for improvement.
Leeds showed what they were capable of against Leigh but it was evident early on that they did not have the same mentality.
Headingley fell silent when debutant Josh Rourke opened the scoring for the Broncos just five minutes in.
After putting Leeds on the back foot with an initial break, the full-back sauntered over out wide later in the set.
The Rhinos responded positively to the early setback and appeared to be on course for a routine win after scoring two tries before the 20-minute mark.
Harry Newman gave England team-mate Ash Handley an easy finish in the corner before James McDonnell recovered from an ankle tap to put Paul Momirovski over.
But Leeds were largely outenthused in the first half and deservedly went into the interval behind.
Boos broke out when former Hull KR prop Rhys Kennedy wriggled free close to the line to get the ball down in heavy traffic and the mood of the home fans did not improve.
A high tackle from McDonnell invited London into Leeds territory where Oli Leyland offloaded for Iliess Macani to dive over in the corner.
The Broncos showed no signs of letting up in the early stages of the second half and would have had one foot in the winners' circle had Lee Kershaw held onto Lachie Miller's pass with open field in front of him.
Leeds continued to probe without success and survived another scare when Lewis Bienek was held up over the line on the last tackle.
It took the Rhinos until the 69th minute to finally draw level, Martin arcing back inside to race over under the sticks before adding the extras.
London's jaded defence was creaking yet they had the chance to pull off a famous victory after Kershaw stole the ball from Miller's grasp and raced clear.
Leeds scrambled desperately to eventually shut down the play but the momentum had shifted and they were the team hanging on in the closing stages.
James Meadows cannoned a drop-goal attempt into one of his team-mates in the dying seconds of normal time before Croft showed why he is paid marquee money to win it for the Rhinos with a cool one-pointer.
Leeds Rhinos: Miller, Fusitu'a, Momirovski, Newman, Handley, Croft, Frawley, Goudemand, O'Connor, Oledzki, Martin, McDonnell, Smith. Substitutes: Sangare, Ackers, Eseh, Lisone.
Tries: Handley (9), Momirovski (20), Martin (69)
Goals: Martin 2/3
Drop goal: Croft (84)
London Broncos: Rourke, Kershaw, Bassett, Storey, Macani, Leyland, Meadows, Bienek, Davis, Kennedy, Lovell, Adebiyi, Jones. Substitutes: Stock, Natoli, Williams, Tison.
Tries: Rourke (5), Kennedy (29), Macani (33)
Goals: Leyland 2/3
Referee: Marcus Griffiths.