Boss Brad Arthur has explained why he had an outside-back in the pack when Leeds Rhinos won 24-12 at Bradford Bulls last night (Friday).
Chris Hankinson, whose previous game for Leeds was on the right-wing, started in the second-row as Arthur shuffled an unchanged 17 following the victory over Warrington Wolves five days earlier.
Hankinson has also played at full-back and centre since joining Rhinos from Salford Red Devils late last season and Arthur is a big admirer of the 32-year-old.
“He can play any position for you,” Arthur said. “It has been tough having a utility on the bench – we had Jack Bird there against Hull and how do I get him on the field?
“Chank [Hankinson] was there last weekend and I didn’t put him on. If you can have your utility in the 13 it makes it easier that way, then you can have the full rotation of four guys on the bench you can actually plan for to use in the game.”
Arthur said Hankinson was happy to make the switch. “From the start of the year Chank has told me he thought that was an avenue where he could get himself in the run-on team,” he stated.
“He did a good job. He wanted to stay there for the last four minutes; playing 80 minutes as a back-rower [is something] he wanted to pride himself on, but he just started to cramp up.”
Leeds Rhinos ‘nice and healthy at the moment’
Jarrod O’Connor and Cooper Jenkins were also in the 13 after being among the substitutes against Warrington, with fellow forwards Danny Levi, Keenan Palasia and Cameron Smith moving to the bench.
Arthur said: “We are very fortunate that the pack we started with, most teams would be happy with that starting pack.
“The guys on the bench took it the right way. I don’t want to have a rotation or resting policy so at times it will be about giving other blokes game time and sharing the work load a little bit. The blokes who started did a really good job for us.”
Rhinos had only three players – Max Simpson, Alfie Edgell and George Brown – on their casualty list before yesterday’s game and came through with no obvious new concerns. Arthur added: “We are nice and healthy at the moment. That’s a good reflection of the work we’ve done and the role our staff play in looking after them, but that can change at the drop of a hat, unfortunately.”
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