ROHAN SMITH admitted that it will “take time” to get Leeds Rhinos back to the top after their hopes of making the play-offs were ended by a humbling defeat to Wigan Warriors.
Leeds lost 50-0 at Headingley on Saturday, a brutal reality check for a team currently short on experience.
Smith managed to engineer a short-term turnaround after joining as head coach midway through last year, leading the Rhinos on a charge to the Super League Grand Final, but they have spent just one week in the top six this season.
Only once this year have they strung a three-match winning run together, and their inconsistency has been a huge frustration to supporters.
But they have been worryingly consistent in the longer term, with 2023 a sixth campaign in a row that they have finished outside of the top four.
For a club so used to battling for and winning major honours in the prior decade, that new reality has been a bitter pill to swallow.
Leeds’ recruitment of players has come under scrutiny but Smith says the solution can only be found by developing more top-class players through their Academy again.
“Any fans who are frustrated or disappointed, we all share it. We live and breathe it every day,” said Smith.
“It’s a process. People don’t want to hear about rebuilding and transitions around this club, but that is the reality.
“There have been lots of players off contract in the last few years, and players who are coming and going.
“Cohesion and chemistry and building takes time. You can’t just buy them from anywhere.
“Where are they? It’s difficult to get players from Australia. The salary cap is phenomenal over there.
“There will be some who come here for sure, but the English market is very difficult as well, because clubs keep all their best players.
“The difference makers have to come from the Academy and the process of developing a player. That’s the reality of it.”
“There’s been a lot of good things happening in the development of players, and those blokes (who played against Wigan) have done well. But collectively we’ve got to do better.
“Another pre-season and some key additions will assist that, but there’s a lot of growth within that group still.
“The core of our group are (around) 24, 25 (years old) – Mikolaj (Oledzki), Cam Smith, Harry Newman, Jarrod O’Connor. There’s plenty of those guys.
“There have been great experiences for plenty of those guys this year, and more kids to come. We need to add some support to those fellas to give them time.
“Building teams takes time. In every competition, that takes time.”
