In the aftermath of Leeds Rhinos' loss to Huddersfield Giants in June, I published an article highlighting Leeds' apparent lack of depth at hooker should Brad Dwyer, as has now been confirmed, was to depart the club.
Kruise Leeming had missed the game at the John Smith's Stadium and his absence on that evening had been glaringly apparent, with Leeds 22 points down after 20 minutes. Leeming had dazzled in the previous weeks and his absence had appeared to highlight a pretty sizable problem for the club moving into 2023, with salary cap issues set to prevent them from signing a replacement.
When considering Leeds' options, it was suggested that Leeds' only option was to promote or mould someone from within the current squad. One name, mentioned in passing, was Jarrod O'Connor. The youngster had started at nine in the absence of Leeming that evening but, despite a solid defensive performance, had been unable to bring the attacking qualities Leeming was delivering.
