Leeds Rhinos duo Blake Austin and Aidan Sezer could return for Saturday's trip to Perpignan to face Catalans Dragons. Rohan Smith's frontline half-back pairing have been absent for a number of weeks, but the likes of Cameron Smith and Richie Myler have stepped up in their absence, epitomised by last week's convincing win over Wigan Warriors.
The return of both Austin and Sezer however would give Leeds' threadbare squad a major lift however. They face a daunting trip across the Channel to take on Steve McNamara's side, with victory further boosting Leeds' top six hopes after a run of three wins in four games. But the half-back partnership have both taken part in training so far this week, potentially putting them in the mix to return on Saturday.
And Smith admitted of the pair: "They're close. They've both participated in training this week so we'll see how they respond to that." When asked how big a boost it would be to get the pairing back, Smith replied: "We'll have to see if they're back first. At the end of it, it'll be about who's playing not who isn't, we'll pick the team best-equipped to go there and win."
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Leeds are also likely to have winger David Fusitu'a available. He left the field with an injury in the latter stages of the win over Wigan last Thursday, and was seen with ice around his ankle. However he, like Austin and Sezer, has taken part in training. "He's trained pretty well through most of today," Smith said of the winger.
Victory would catapult Leeds further into play-off contention after an impressive run of form. But Smith was keen to talk down the importance of Saturday's game having potentially major ramifications on the outcome of their season.
"It'd be a good result and it'll get us two points but they're a seasoned, battle-hardened team who know how to win," he said of Catalans. "They've got class. I want to win every week we go into and every player is like that: the next game is the important one and next week isn't important until this week is out of the way. It doesn't serve me to look at the ladder or anything like that."
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