Leigh Leopards back line options assessed as double injury blow confirmed

Friday night at Headingley saw a thrilling contest between Leeds Rhinos and Leigh Leopards. 

In that fourth versus third contest, 14 tries were scored in total in a game that oozed attacking flair, off-the-cuff play and some outrageous tries. 

The Rhinos emerged victorious, with mid-season recruit Kallum Watkins running back the years as his two-try performance helped Leeds to a 48-30 victory. 

For Leigh, however, the amount of points they shipped will be the least of their worries. The Leopards suffered a double injury blow, with star overseas full-back David Armstrong picking up a leg injury that saw him leave the field at the half time break. That was amplified by winger Darnell McIntosh also needing to come off in the second half due to a similar injury. 

Adrian Lam’s side have a huge month coming up, with games against Hull KR, St Helens and Wigan Warriors on the agenda. 

Here are all the current options the head coach has to choose from going into this crucial period of fixtures.

How could Leigh Leopards shape up in the next few weeks? 

Lam said in his post-match press conference he expects both players to be out for at least the next two weeks, meaning a reshuffle will be needed. 

McIntosh’s wing position seems to be the easier of the two to figure out. It will be expected that Josh Charnley will return to the side, after being out of favour and last featured from the bench in Leigh’s defeat to Hull FC in May. 

Charnley is Super League’s second highest ever try scorer, and with young Keanan Brand on the opposite flank, he will add experience and quality to the Leopards back line. 

When full-back Armstrong initially picked up the knock early on in the game, he went to the wing with McIntosh playing at the back. However, that obviously won’t be possible going forward. 

With both players off the field, Gareth O’Brien shifted from stand off to full-back, and Ben McNamara came on from the bench to slot in at six. This combination is expected to start against the Robins next week. 

O’Brien is more experienced in the role, having played there over 130 times in his career and selecting him would allow McNamara to step in and play his favoured position in the halves.

Leopards youngster Bailey Hodgson is perhaps the most likely fit though. The former Newcastle Knights player moved back to the Northern Hemisphere for 2025 and has been utilised all over the back five However, he has often been the man to play the number one role in Armstrong’s absence this season.