Leigh Leopards showcased their firepower as they recorded a 24-10 win over Huddersfield Giants to maintain their unbeaten start to the season. The Leopards scored four tries on blustery afternoon at Leigh Sports Village with new signings David Armstrong and Tesi Niu getting over alongside Keanan Brand and Matt Davis.
However, it was his side’s defensive efforts that pleased Lam most, with the Leopards limiting the Giants to just one try on the day, scored by Oliver Wilson after a teasing Zac Woolford kick through the line. In truth, that was the only real time Huddersfield came close to getting over the line on their travels, with Leigh keeping them penned in their own half for large periods of the game, particularly in the second half.
The Leopards could be seen driving their Yorkshire visitors back towards their own tryline on several occasions, while they forced mistakes and won field position with regularity.
Ultimately, then, while the try scoring efforts of the players above will steal the headlines, Lam puts a chunk of the win down to his side’s efforts without the ball against the Giants.
“I’m very happy,” Lam told Sky Sports. “Obviously it’s a different start to last year, it was a bit of a grind today and not perfect but two points is what’s important.
“We spoke about that (the conditions) before the game and we wanted to get into half-time in decent shape, in front or behind it didn’t matter. We just knew that with the wind behind you there and field position in the second half it would have been a different story. We managed that better and built pressure and I thought our defence was quite good as well.
“Their only try came from a kick in behind and a couple of double bounces and a ricochet, sometimes you can’t help that. Our defence is what we’re building the season off as a cornerstone and today in that second half we certainly dominated in that area.”
Asked about the positive energy building around Leigh at present, Lam added: “It’s only early days. We’re excited about the decisions we’ve made.
“We’ve made some changes, there’s 12 new players in the squad this year and five made their home debut in front of the fans here and a couple of tries for Davy Armstrong and Tesi Niu as well. We’re buzzing at the moment but we know it will take some time and building, it always does so we just have to be consistent.”
FULL TIME at The Leopards Den…🐆#BeTheRoar pic.twitter.com/tvIbR4Qw9s
— Leigh Leopards (@LeighLeopardsRL) February 23, 2025
