There has surely never been a single 80-minute performance that has summed up the fortunes of one team, their season to date and even their coach quite like this one. Leeds’ remarkable run to last season’s Grand Final has felt like a distant memory so far in 2023, with five wins from their opening 11 games and a string of performances which have left you wondering whether they were capable of anything like a repeat of last season.
We are halfway through the regular season now and the truth is, nobody still has any idea what this Leeds side’s ceiling really is. However, this performance and result suggests that like last year, perhaps they can’t be written off after all. After half an hour here the Rhinos seemed well-beaten. They trailed 14-0 and despite narrowing the deficit with an interception try from Harry Newman, two minutes later, they were reduced to 12 men when Zane Tetevano was sent off for a high tackle on Harry Smith. It felt like game over; few sides win at Wigan with circumstances like that against them.
