Cast your mind back to Easter Monday. Leeds Rhinos had just lost to Castleford Tigers. It was a fifth game without a win. Leeds were eleventh in the table.
They were without a coach, without direction. Their lack of discipline was woeful, the team lacked cohesion and panache. They were a mess. At the time, they couldn't buy a win, they didn't know how to win. They fell apart. When the going got tough, they caved in.
Now, they keep finding a way to win. When the chips are down, they deliver. Leeds haven't won pretty for weeks now but yet they have still won, even when they haven't deserved to.
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Since Rohan Smith arrived at the club there have been some very notable improvements. But in the last month or so we have seen something much different to the side that scorched their way to several wins. More recently they have shown that they have character and a never-say-die attitude. Smith has spoken several times about wanting his team to win in different ways. This is exactly what he was on about.
Let's be right, they were absolutely dreadful against Castleford for 72 minutes. Woefully painful to watch. They had no right whatsoever to win. But they did. For a third time in seven games, Leeds won the game in the last two minutes. You can say what you want about this crop but they've got some guts about them. You have to admire that, and with that sort of character about them, they've always got a chance.
Leeds have bagged their play-off spot now. Even despite their excellent turnaround, all that has done is ensure their season doesn't go down as a total failure. Let's be right, there is no way this group shouldn't have finished anywhere but the top six.
The question now is how much further can they go. That remains to be seen. Truthfully, you'd have to suggest that at this stage, there are legitimate reasons to think next week might be one too far. Despite winning games recently, they haven't played well. Their attack has been clunky at best. Without Ash Handley and David Fusitu'a they have lost the two players who are crucial at the start of their sets. The Dragons rested all their key men this week. Travelling to France always makes it more difficult.
The odds are firmly stacked against Leeds. But that's the beauty of what this Leeds team are doing at the minute. Even though everything suggests they'll fall short, you know they'll find a way to give themselves a chance. Maybe, just maybe, something special could be around the corner.
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