Leeds Rhinos 24 Wakefield Trinity 6: James Bentley steals show on Rohan Smith's Headingley bow

After a series of false starts since he arrived at Leeds Rhinos, Bentley produced the type of performance that earned him rave reviews during his time with St Helens.

Whether he will get the chance to use it as a catalyst remains to be seen after he was sin-binned for an apparent swinging arm, leaving the threat of yet another ban.

But it was the kind of wholehearted display Leeds needed on a night when only the result mattered.

Bentley scored his first two tries for the Rhinos and played like a man possessed in an attempt to make up for his 10-minute absence at the end of the first half.

Hardaker added a sense of urgency at full-back, while Blake Austin arguably had his best game in a Leeds shirt.

In testing conditions on the back of a disappointing outing at Salford Red Devils, new boss Smith could not have asked for much more on his Headingley debut after seeing his team dig deep for one another.

The 24-6 win gives the Rhinos breathing space in the bottom half of the Super League table but Wakefield's wretched run of form continues.

A seventh straight defeat leaves Trinity anxiously looking over their shoulder with Toulouse Olympique starting to look more at home at the top level.

But for a late comeback by Huddersfield Giants, Toulouse would have ended the evening level on points with Wakefield.

In the end, the night belonged to the Rhinos as they gave a glimpse of the potential at Headingley.

Smith tinkered with his line-up, giving Hardaker the nod at full-back meaning a move into the halves for Richie Myler.

Hardaker had to be alert in the opening stages to knock a Lee Gaskell grubber kick dead but the danger did not end there.

Wakefield thought they were over from the resultant drop-out only for Tom Lineham - making his first appearance since February - to be pulled back for a forward pass.

Relentless rain was replaced by glorious sunshine as the teams traded early blows, offering Hardaker mitigation as he put down a high kick close to his own line.

Wakefield failed to punish the error and quickly found themselves holding an inquest behind their own posts after being marched backwards by the Rhinos.

A series of strong carries off the ruck took Leeds into Trinity territory and there was only one outcome with the visitors backpedalling, Cameron Smith putting Bentley over with soft hands.

Wakefield had their moments in the opening half an hour - forcing a second drop-out thanks to another neat kick by Gaskell - but they were struggling to contain the Rhinos through the middle.

Trinity looked jittery defending their own tryline, too, as evidenced in the manner Bentley cut through for a second time after taking a pass from Austin.

Rhyse Martin added his second goal to make it 12-0, which already had the look of a commanding lead in greasy conditions.

But Wakefield had a lifeline when Bentley was sin-binned for a high tackle on Thomas Minns on a kick chase.

Trinity went through the full catalogue of errors in the first half but the one time it stuck they were celebrating their first try through Jai Whitbread.

After a penalty for a late hit by Myler on Mason Lino near halfway gave Wakefield perfect field position, Jacob Miller put Whitbread over with a nice flat pass.

Lino converted to make it 12-6, a scoreline Willie Poching would have taken as he prepared his half-time team talk, which would have centred around respecting the ball.

While Trinity played with more control after the interval, there was a noticeable lift in intensity by the Rhinos.

Perhaps with Smith's words ringing in their ears, Leeds went hunting in packs and celebrated every small win with unbridled enthusiasm.

The home side were winning the arm wrestle but their lead was a precarious one as the minutes ticked away.

With that in mind, Martin did not hesitate to point to the posts when Wakefield were caught offside close to their own tryline.

Martin's third goal gave the Rhinos a two-score lead and there was no way back for Trinity.

Austin made the game safe after taking Mikolaj Oledzki's pass to crash over before David Fusitu'a put the seal on a big win on the back of good work by Martin.

Leeds Rhinos: Hardaker, Fusitu'a, Martin, Sutcliffe, Handley, Austin, Myler, Oledzki, Leeming, Tetevano, Bentley, Donaldson, Smith.

Substitutes: Dwyer, Thompson, Gannon, O'Connor.

Wakefield Trinity: Gaskell, Minns, Lyne, Hall, Lineham, Miller, Lino, Tanginoa, Hood, Whitbread, Ashurst, Pitts, Batchelor.

Substitutes: Kay, Fifita, Butler, Crowther.

Referee: Chris Kendall.