YORK KNIGHTS 16 LEEDS RHINOS 66
EMMA KENNEDY, LNER Community Stadium, Sunday

LEEDS ensured they’re still the team to beat as they ran riot at York to regain their place at the top of the table.

The Rhinos, whose 71-day streak at the summit was broken by Wigan on Friday night, had all but wrapped up victory inside the opening 20 minutes – and led 36-0 at the break – but as they have all season, York rallied in the second half to ensure they were not scoreless.

Both sides handed out debuts, with Thomas Doyle and Matt Lodge coming off the bench to good effect, whilst Tom Inman and Harry Newman brought up their respective 100th career and 150th Leeds appearances.

In truth, it was little more than a training run for Leeds in the first half, with their opponents having hardly laid a hand on the ball.

The visitors looked hungry from the off and scored the opening try on seven minutes. Ryan Hall picked off a Cody Hunter cut-out pass before racing clear, and though the supporting Brodie Croft was tackled, Chris Hankinson sent Riley Lumb diving over out wide.

Lumb had his second four minutes later after rising highest to Connor’s kick, before turning provider for Hankinson to crash over on the right.

Connor converted all of those and did so again when Kallum Watkins beat Wood to Lachlan Miller’s chip as the visitors raced into a 24-0 lead.

A Connor 40/20 then set the position for Mikolaj Oledzki to burrow under the posts, before Cameron Smith burst through a gap and found Miller on his shoulder. Hankinson took over from the tee, converting both.

York thought they had hit back just after the half-hour as Doyle – a midweek acquisition from Wakefield – kicked his own 40/20, from which Sam Wood burrowed over, but the effort was ruled out by the video referee.

Newman was next to see a try chalked off for a forward pass on his milestone appearance, but Leeds still held a commanding 36-0 lead at the break.

Despite losing Smith to a quad injury, any signs that the visitors would take their foot off the gas in the second half were quickly negated, with Lodge crashing over for a debut try after a mistake from Justin Sangaré less than a minute after the restart.

York ensured they did not remain scoreless, Wood collecting McShane’s chip and diving over next to the posts. Jon Bennison added the resultant conversion.

That however proved a mere blip for the Rhinos, who soon had their foot back on the gas.

Hall dived in at the corner from a neat scrum play and Connor’s cut-out pass handed Lumb a walk-in at the corner for his first senior hat-trick – bringing up the half-century – before Croft dummied his way across just after the hour.

But the Knights kept battling, scoring their second try with twelve minutes remaining when Mata’afa’s cut-out pass sent Bennison in at the right corner.

And they could have had a third soon after, but Jack Martin could not get fingertips to Ata Hingano’s grubber.

That honour was instead left to Nofoaluma, who pounced on Hunter’s deft kick with five minutes left to play to bring the score back to 16-56.

But Leeds responded strongly with two late tries to add gloss to the scoreline, despite Connor having been taken off as a precaution with a leg strain.

First, Ash Handley crashed over next to the posts from a neat chip and chase, before Hankinson, who had smacked a conversion off the post just minutes earlier, having successfully kicked four in all, then stretched out to score from close range, Miller adding the final conversion.

GAMESTAR: Lachlan Miller was a thorn in York’s side as Leeds’ spine linked up superbly.

GAMEBREAKER: Four tries inside the opening 18 minutes killed the game off as a contest.

HIGHLIGHT REEL: Ash Handley’s lovely chip and chase that took Toa Mata’afa out of the game.

ALBERT GOLDTHORPE POINTS
3 pts Lachlan Miller (Leeds)
2 pts Jake Connor (Leeds)
1 pt Jesse Dee (York)

MATCHFACTS

KNIGHTS
1 Toa Mata’afa
23 Jon Bennison
5 Scott Galeano
4 Sam Wood
46 David Nofoaluma
9 Paul McShane
37 Cody Hunter
8 Jack Martin
48 Tom Inman
15 Xavier Va’a
12 Jesse Dee
20 Oli Field
6 Ata Hingano
Subs (all used)
13 Jordan Thompson
14 Denive Balmforth
16 Justin Sangaré
50 Thomas Doyle (D)
18th man (not used)
27 Matty Foster
Also in 21-man squad
2 Ben Jones-Bishop
7 Liam Harris
21 Kieran Buchanan

Tries: Wood (46), Bennison (68), Nofoaluma (75)
Goals: Bennison 2/3

RHINOS
1 Lachlan Miller
5 Ryan Hall
3 Harry Newman
4 Ash Handley
22 Riley Lumb
6 Brodie Croft
7 Jake Connor
8 Mikolaj Oledzki
9 Jarrod O’Connor
15 Cooper Jenkins
11 Kallum Watkins
14 Chris Hankinson
20 Presley Cassell
Subs (all used)
10 Tom Holroyd
17 Cameron Smith
30 Zak Lloyd
31 Matt Lodge (D)
18th man (not used)
28 Fergus McCormack
Also in 21-man squad
19 Jeremiah Mata’utia
26 Tom Nicholson-Watton
– Oscar Brown

Tries: Lumb (7,12, 59), Hankinson (15, 80), Watkins (18), Oledzki (25), Miller (27), Lodge (41), Hall (55), Croft (63), Handley (77)
Goals: Connor 4/4, Hankinson 4/7, Miller 1/1

SCORING SEQUENCE: 0-6, 0-12, 0-18, 0-24, 0-30, 0-36; 0-40, 6-40, 6-46, 6-50, 6-56, 10-56, 16-56, 16-60, 16-66

Rugby Leaguer & League Express Men of the Match
Knights: Jesse Dee; Rhinos: Lachlan Miller

Penalty count: 2-3
Half-time: 0-36
Referee: Liam Moore