Wakefield Trinity Under-18s 6 Leeds Rhinos Under-18s 28

Leeds Rhinos Under-18s managed to keep their winning run of form going with a 28-6 win over Wakefield Trinity on what was a frustrating night for the young Rhinos.

Three changes for Rhinos Under-18s head coach Tony Smith saw forwards Joe Phillips and Bobby Hartley come back into the side after missing the win over Hull KR last time out. Dylan Hutchinson was also given his chance off the bench to make his fourth appearance of the season in place of Mason Corbett, who missed out. Oliver Smart and Oscar Brown also dropped out of the squad from a fortnight ago.

The early moments of the game was shaky from both sides as errors were given away, but Leeds had the first opportunity for points. Harry Smith took the ball to the line well before passing short for Jacob Stead to break through, but the back rower’s offload away came off a Wakefield hand and the home side reclaimed. Shortly after, a ball steal by George Brown on Harry Ratcliffe gave Leeds the ball back, but another offload by Stead went wayward back into the arms of Trinity.

Finally the Wakefield defence showed cracks as Callum Webster got the Rhinos’ opening try of the evening. Brown and Fergus McCormack went searching downfield with good runs at the Wakefield defence, before a shift to the edge saw Harley Thomas time his pass well to put Webster over for the try. 

Webster helped set up the nest try as the winger broke downfield to help set up Kai Taylor-Smith for a walk in at the opposite corner to make the score 12-0 after 17 minutes. Soon after, the Rhinos should have had a third score, but Smith’s pass for Brown was judged to be forward as the half back glided over. 

Wakefield had their chances during the half, but struggled to convert them into points. Cobie McGillvary found a hole to race through to put Trinity on the front foot, but two repeat sets on the Leeds try line saw them come away scoreless both times.

Meanwhile, Leeds continued to make inroads with half time looming. Taylor-Smith was denied a second try as McCormack couldn’t keep hold of the ball trying to put the winger over, but the winger made up for the mistake in the final play of the half. Good work from Harry Taylor saw the centre keep the ball alive as the clock hit 40 minutes, and somehow the centre offloaded away for Taylor-Smith to provide a simple put down. Thomas’ conversion was unlucky to hit the uprights, but the young Rhinos had a comfortable 16-0 lead at the break.

 
A similar start to the second half saw both teams battle to get into their rhythm again. A knock on by Noah Crawshaw gifted possession over to Leeds, but Taylor-Smith couldn’t hold Smith’s flick pass over the top that would have seen the winger score his third.

Tempers began to boil over and dangerous tip tackle on Smith gave Leeds a chance to add to their tally, only for the visitors to knock on after good drives for the line from Jacob Stead and Joe Phillips.

Wakefield managed to put their first points up on the hour mark as James Godfrey found his way to the line, but the Rhinos responded with back to back scores in the final ten minutes to take the win. Joe Diskin steered Leeds back on track as the hooker ducked out of a handful of tackles to get himself over the try line, before the closing stages of the game saw McCormack find Thomas, who showed good footwork and speed to beat his opposite number and get the ball over the line. Thomas was good with both conversion attempts to take a 28-6 win home from the DIY Kitchens Stadium.

Trinity Under-18s
1. Harry Ratcliffe, 2. Cobie McGillvary, 3. Will Brough, 4. Noah Crawshaw, 5. Amir Sghaier, 6. Noah Kershaw, 7. Rowan Stephenson, 8. Ellis Lingard, 9. Jack Easton, 10. Alfie Briggs, 11. Ashton Winks, 12. Ethan Barnes, 13. Harvey Roberts

Subs: 14. Will Hardie, 15. Ewan Molyneux, 16. Finnley Thompson, 17. James Godfrey (18th Man – Tom Bell)

Tries: Godfrey (61)
Goals: Brough 1/1

Rhinos Under-18s
1. Fergus McCormack, 2. Callum Webster, 3. Harley Thomas, 4. Harry Taylor, 5. Kai Taylor-Smith, 6. George Brown, 7. Harry Smith, 8. Joe Phillips, 9. Joe Diskin, 16. Lore Jones-Buchanan, 11. Jacob Stead, 12. Bobby Hartley, 13. Presley Cassell

Subs: 14. Dylan Hutchinson, 15. Matty Rolls, 8. Declan White, 17. Jayemm Oladipupo (18th Man – Oliver Smart)

Tries: Webster (13), Taylor-Smith (16, 40), Diskin (72), Thomas (80)
Goals: Thomas 4/5