By Guy Harvey

Mark Butterill’s scholarship side returned to action following a short break in the youth season, as players focused on their GCSE exams. The pause came on the back of their first defeat of the season — a narrow loss to local rivals Huddersfield Giants at AMT Headingley. Despite Butterill making a number of changes to his lineup for the match, expectations for an impressive performance remained high.

Leeds started brightly, forcing an early error from the Wakefield winger under a towering kick to the corner. From the resulting scrum on the ten-metre line, Leeds showed sharp execution. Quick hands from the base saw the ball spread wide to Liam Watson, who had acres of space to dive over for the opening try. Seth Marchant added the extras to give the Rhinos a 6–0 lead.

From the restart, Leeds completed a strong set, finishing deep in Wakefield’s territory and putting the home side under pressure. However, Wakefield responded well. A forward pass inside their own ten-metre line handed Trinity a scrum close to the Rhinos’ try line. They made it count, as halfback Newton found his fullback with a slick pass out the back. Despite a heavy tackle, Mycoe managed to ground the ball. Charlie Tinker added the conversion to level the scores at 6–6.

As the game wore on in the sweltering Wakefield heat, both sides struggled to complete their sets, with handling errors and forward passes disrupting play. But it was Leeds who broke the deadlock next. Jack Mears sparked a move with a break down the middle, followed by a clever offload that set Leeds up deep in opposition territory. Moving the ball swiftly to the left, they found Bailey Hardy on the edge, who squeezed over for the try. Marchant nailed a difficult touchline conversion to restore Leeds’ lead at 12–6 midway through the first half.

Wakefield nearly hit back immediately, as a forward pass from Leeds on the kick return gave them another scrum just ten metres out. They crossed the line again, only for the referee to call it back for a knock-on — a moment of relief for the Rhinos coaching staff.

Leeds capitalised soon after. Liam Watson broke free down the right edge and raced almost the length of the field before being brought down just short. The Rhinos shifted play quickly to the left, exploiting an overlap as Hardy found space to grab his second try of the match. This time, Marchant couldn’t convert from the touchline, but Leeds had extended their lead to 16–6.

Despite both teams continuing to struggle with errors, Leeds managed to settle into some rhythm just before the break. Seth Marchant delivered a pinpoint pass to Sonny Hetherington, who fooled the defence with a well-timed run. Facing only the fullback, he slipped an inside ball to Sam Oldroyd, who scored easily under the posts. Marchant added the extras to give Leeds a commanding 22–6 lead at half time.

Leeds almost picked up right where they left off at the start of the second half, with Liam Watson diving over in the corner. However, celebrations were cut short as the referee pulled play back for a forward pass in the build-up.

Wakefield nearly turned the momentum their way moments later, as a loose Leeds pass was nearly intercepted on halfway. Had the Trinity defender taken it cleanly, a try seemed inevitable — but the ball slipped through his grasp.

The first points of the second half eventually came from a familiar source. Winger Bailey Hardy completed his hat-trick in classic fashion, squeezing over in the corner after a slick passing move. Marchant, once again, showed his accuracy from the touchline with a fine conversion to extend Leeds’ lead to 28–6.

The game, much like the first half, remained littered with errors from both sides in the punishing heat. But Leeds continued to find the decisive moments. Jack Mears, a constant threat through the middle, broke through the defence once more. Just as he looked to be wrapped up, he offloaded to prop Connor Lawrie, who powered forward and was brought down just short of the line. Quick thinking from loose forward Brennan Townend saw him pounce on the opportunity, crashing over from close range. Marchant added the extras to make it 34–6.

Despite fatigue setting in, both teams continued to give their all. Leeds, however, weren’t finished yet. This time it was hooker Noah Lunn who capitalised, darting from dummy half and exploiting tired markers to dive over from close range. Marchant slotted the simple conversion from in front, taking the Rhinos past the 40-point mark.

To Wakefield’s credit, they battled to the final whistle and were rewarded with a late consolation. Freddie Buckborough broke through a tired Leeds defensive line to score their second try of the game. However, Kian Newton was unable to add the extras, and the match ended in a convincing 40–10 win for the Rhinos.

TEAMS

Wakefield Trinity Scholarship

1. Alex Mycoe


2. James Sharp


3. Dylan Lomax


4. Harry Mervill


5. Otis Stephens


6. Kian Newton


7. Charlie Tinker


8. Jacob Greaves


9. William Rolls


10. Miles English


11. Harry Harlow-Stephenson


12. Marco Morgan


13. Barney Adamski


14. Charlie Delap Mason


15. Danny Williams


16. Freddie Buckborough


17. Edward Ashman


18. Bamidele Olasode


19. Lucas Da Silva Pereira

Leeds Rhinos Scholarship

1. Sam Oldroyd


2. Liam Watson


3. Noah Sherrife


4. Sonny Hetherington


5. Bailey Hardy


6. Jack Mears


7. Seth Marchant


8. Robin Smith


9. Noah Lunn


10. Connor Lawrie


11. Ryan Hosier


12. Ben Smith


13. Brennan Townend


14. Will Mathers


15. Harry Thompson


16. Connor Mullins


17. Oli Vincent


18.