Leeds Rhinos might have a new coach incoming, and they might have beaten Toulouse, but in my eyes, they are still in a mess.
The night before Gary Hetherington announced Rohan Smith as Richard Agar’s successor, I watched Manchester United get taken apart by Liverpool at Anfield.
Both Gary Neville and Roy Keane had their say and reflected on how far the club they so proudly represented has fallen by the wayside.
I know exactly how they feel.
Speaking as a former Leeds player and captain, a club Hall of Fame member and now a fan, I’m totally fed up and frustrated as I look at a league table in which they are second-bottom with just five points from a possible 20 and with only 149 points scored in ten matches.
And while I obviously hope I’m proved wrong, I’m not at all sure Rohan Smith is the right man for such a demanding role.
Leeds are among the biggest clubs in world Rugby League, they should be getting to finals on a far more regular basis than they have been doing.
They should be nowhere near the situation they are now in.
As Gary Hetherington himself pointed out, there’s a lot more to the job than the coaching of the team.
“It requires a good deal of experience and seniority,” he said.
“There will be no ‘novice’ appointment.”
Rohan might have been around quite a few NRL teams, but his experience in charge of a club is limited to spells at Bradford and Norths Devils.
There’s nothing wrong with either the Championship or the Queensland Cup, but neither are Super League with all the pressure that comes with running a team at that level, and where is that “experience and seniority”?
Rohan doesn’t have the pedigree for a job like this.
Leeds need a very steady hand at the tiller to steer them away from the danger zone and get things back on an even keel.
It’s not the time to appoint a rookie – and why on a contract until 2025? He must think all his Christmases have come at once.
It could prove to be a very costly mistake.
The Smith clan
Will Tony Smith end up working alongside his nephew Rohan at Leeds?
The possibility is being played down, but time will tell.
And what about the possibility of him ending up across the city at Hull?
It would be an audacious move by the Black and Whites, but I reckon the supporters would love the style of play he’d bring.
Tony surprised us all with the announcement that he will step down as Hull KR coach at the end of the season.
The timing seems strange, given that Rovers had just beaten their arch-rivals Hull and Toulouse and have a big Challenge Cup semi-final date with Huddersfield approaching.
Talk about bursting the supporters’ bubble, even if Tony and his team did put the talk to one side by beating Wakefield, who have really hit the buffers over the last few games.
There’s a lot of speculation over what has led Tony to his decision, but one thing’s for sure – he has done a top job.
I reckon Danny McGuire would be a great choice as successor.
In my view, it would have been a bit too soon for him to become coach of his old club Leeds, but having worked alongside Tony at Craven Park and learned from a master, he knows the club, staff, players and fans, and they know him.
Danny would be able to maintain the culture and carry on with the methods that have helped Rovers make the progress they have.
In the meantime, Leeds and Rovers meet at Headingley on Friday, and the latest developments have added an extra dimension to what was already an intriguing contest, which I think Rovers will win by 16.
Woolf is his own man
St Helens coach Kristian Woolf caused a bit of controversy with his team selection for the game at Castleford.
Perhaps he was making a point about the busy recent schedule by leaving out the regulars and going with a distinctly inexperienced side.
I don’t have a problem with it because he’s the coach and the one who sees his players day to day, and he hasn’t made too bad a job of things so far.
Having said that, Castleford coach Lee Radford must have been pleased when he saw the Saints team sheet.
It’s one thing blooding one or two at a time, and Saints have a fine record of bringing through their own, but seven debutants is a few too many to have a genuine chance of winning a game.
Castleford duly won at a canter to make it four on the bounce in the league, but I reckon that run will end when they go to France on Friday to face Catalans, who I think will win by 18.
And I reckon it will be back to normal, both in terms of personnel and results, for Saints, who host Salford the same night. I’m going the home side by a whopping 36.
Friday’s fourth fixture, Warrington versus Wigan, should be decent.
While Warrington produced a solid show to see off Huddersfield, and I was pleased for Daryl Powell, Wigan will likely have a bit too much for them and could win by eight.
Thursday’s Wakefield-Huddersfield clash is one between two sides struggling for form. I’m going for the Giants by seven.
After Headingley, Toulouse have another away day on Saturday, this time at Hull, and it’s hard to see them getting any joy by the Humber. I reckon they’ll be beaten by 26.
Coaching again
I will be back in the dug-out at Batley next month – and I’m looking forward to it.
My old mate Ikram Butt asked me to be director of coaching for the British Asian Rugby Association team when they take on Team Colostomy UK, and I was more than happy to accept.
The game is at the Fox’s Biscuits Stadium, or Mount Pleasant to us traditionalists, as a curtain-raiser to the Batley versus London Broncos Championship match on Sunday, May 22.
It will be played under modified masters rules to enable players of all ages and abilities to take part and kicks-off at 1pm.
Chatting to the organisers, I was interested to learn more about Team Colostomy UK.
They were set up by the charity of that name in 2018 to enable people who have had stoma surgery to enjoy playing our great game and to challenge and change perceptions of what it means to live with a stoma.
After all, if people can still play a collision sport after having such surgery, they can do anything!
Team Colostomy UK have already played York Lokos this year as a curtain-raiser to the Hunslet versus Oldham League One match. They are also taking part in the London Nines in July, with other games also due.
Ikram formed the British Asian Rugby Association 18 years ago in a bid to help break down cultural and religious barriers and promote inclusion of all communities through sport, and it’s a pleasure to be involved.
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