Rohan Smith says Super League players should prioritise club over country

On Friday night three of the five Leeds Rhinos England call ups crossed for tries as the Rhinos defeated Hull FC.

Ash Handley bagged a brace, Tom Holroyd scored as did Mikolaj Oledzki. Meanwhile Harry Newman was key to Leeds’ superb second try on the night. Morgan Gannon didn’t play as he featured for the reserves after a long time out following a head knock.

Asked if these players had extra confidence from being picked for England, Leeds coach Rohan Smith praised them for being Leeds first as he suggested all Super League players should prioritise club over country and treat any England call ups as a bonus:

“You would have to speak to them but what I love about our squad, those guys and those who could have been selected, their priority is Leeds.

“All they want to do is play for Leeds and then as a bonus if they can play for England.

“I know there are a lot of players who talk about England selection publicly but I think players should be thinking about what I can do for the club rather than being picked for a one off test match.

“These guys are always Leeds first in their mind and hopefully they then earn the right to play for England and we support that.

“They just love playing for Leeds.”