Rhinos deliver perfect response to get over Wembley heartache

Just six days after losing a third successive final at Wembley, Brian McDermott’s side responded in the perfect manner with a display full of confidence, conviction and no little flair.

The Super League champions, hoping to repeat last year’s march to Old Trafford, have now moved up to fourth due to a superior points difference to Catalan Dragons, who play at Castleford tomorrow.

They will be hoping their neighbours can do them a favour there and cause an upset to leave them in pole position for retaining that place heading into next weekend’s final regular fixture at Huddersfield Giants.

Last night electric centre Kallum Watkins followed up his Wembley brace against Warrington Wolves with another try-double, the irrepressible Rob Burrow grabbed his 150th try for the West Yorkshire club and Jamie Peacock gave yet another outstanding performance which left Salford battered and bewildered.

Before this match, McDermott had labelled the 34 year-old prop a “machine” for the lung-bursting effort he had produced at Wembley declaring the former England captain is only going to get better.

On this evidence, he is not wrong. Peacock’s off-loads were Leeds’ most potent weapon last week – he also made 40 tackles – and here they set up two of the game’s opening three tries as Salford struggled to contain his sheer force.

Watkins had created the first for Ben Jones-Bishop with a low pass in the 12th minute before Peacock’s off-load put Burrow into space for Ryan Hall to slide over.

The veteran prop was at it again soon after when his splendid squeezed ball out of the tackle saw Carl Ablett racing into space for Shaun Lunt to support and Kevin Sinfield finish off.

Captain Sinfield added the second of his seven conversions to make it 16-0 after just 23 minutes and, though Salford stifled any further score before the break, it only delayed the inevitable.

McDermott said: “I’m pleased with the performance.

“It was certainly a good response to last week.

“The forwards lay the platform and our mentality was what we needed after that (Wembley).

“But we know we have to be a lot better than we have been in the last six weeks if we’re going to go on and get anything out of this season.”

McDermott fielded all but two of his Wembley finalists, Darrell Griffin left out and loose forward Ryan Bailey dropped to the Under-20s.

There were rumours that was down to an alleged breach of club discipline following the Challenge Cup final but, after the match, his coach insisted that was incorrect.

Salford, meanwhile, rarely threatened the Leeds defence and did not breach their line until the 65th minute when Luke Patten, the veteran Australian full-back, finally crossed off Stephen Wild’s pass.

He added another in the late stages, but it was scant reward for such a talented player whose fine career will draw to a close next week. Patten deserves more than to be doing so amid this mire.

It was Salford’s sixth successive defeat and they had no answer – or desire – for their opponents’ strike power.

Burrow, who had returned to his traditional scrum-half role from hooker, darted over soon after the restart following a clever assist from Stevie Ward and Leeds swiftly took control.

It was Ward who supplied Watkins for his first off a short ball before, straight from the restart, Ablett surged through some more feeble defence for Burrow to put Weller Hauraki over.

Zak Hardaker was the next to cut open Salford with a long-range break that created Watkins’ second before Jamie Jones-Buchanan got over after more good work from Ward on the hour.

Salford finished better but outraged coach Phil Veivers said: “We were atrocious and lucky to be only 16-0 down at half-time.

“I’ve just been in the dressing room and expressed to the players how embarrassed and disgusted I was.

“We lost because we were embarrassing in defence.”

Leeds’s sorry opponents, who had nothing but pride to play for given they are in no man’s land between the play-offs and wooden spoon, had offered little and he was right in his appraisal.

Meanwhile, Leeds fans waved off Brent Webb after last night’s victory.

The Kiwi full-back, currently injured, has won three Grand Finals with the Headingley club.

He has yet to confirm his move to Catalan but Sinfield did that for him by wishing ‘Superman’ all the best on his new career in France in front of the 15,081 crowd as the Rhinos performed their traditional thank-you in their final home game.

Leeds Rhinos: Hardaker; Jones-Bishop, Watkins, Keinhorst, Hall; Sinfield, Burrow; Leuluai, Lunt, Peacock, Jones-Buchanan, Delaney, Ablett. Substitutes: Kirke, Clarkson, Hauraki, Ward.

Salford City Reds: Patten; Broughton, Gleeson, Gibson, Williams; Holdsworth, Howarth; Boyle, Anderson, Sidlow, Ashurst, Nero, Wild. Substitutes: Owen, Neal, James, Walne.

Referee: Robert Hicks (Oldham).