Sam Tomkins names the Super League team who are in a false league position

Leigh Leopards lost pace with the Super League play-off places last night, as they succumbed to a defeat away against Hull KR. In a tight game, the Leopards were left to rue their missed chances as they failed to get on the scoresheet. Tries for Tom Opacic and Niall Evalds sealed the win for KR.

In the build-up to the game, Lam discussed what makes Craven Park such a difficult place to visit, highlighting the distance to travel, the size of the changing rooms and the ferocity of the crowd as key factors influencing the game. That prophecy turned out to be true, as the Leopards fell to their first Super League defeat in five.

Coming into the game, the Leopards had put together a good run of form, after a bumpy start to the season. Their early season form had been impacted by a string of injuries to key players. However, as their squad returned to nearer full strength, their results picked up, with three wins and a draw from the four games prior to their trip across the Pennines.

This has led Sam Tomkins to suggest that they are in a false league position this season.

Quiz: Can you name all these former Leigh players?

Lam bemoans lack of quality

Speaking after Leigh’s defeat against KR, Leigh coach, Adrian Lam, bemoaned a lack of quality in the final third. He believes his side wasted as many as six scoring chances, but a combination of Leigh’s profligacy and KR’s quality in defence meant the Leopards drew a blank. Speaking in his press conference after the game, Lam did, however, state his pride at his side’s efforts.

“The rugby wasn’t pretty and the way we got there wasn’t great. In the last 15 minutes we lacked some quality to manage the game.

“I thought there were six chances for us to score tries but Hull KR scrambled well.

“The effort was there, I was really proud of that. We had three or four players who played injured… We had a lot of positional changes and I was proud of the way we coped with that.

“I thought KR had two or three chances and they took two of them. I’m sticking by the boys, I think there are good times ahead if we keep up that effort.”

Tomkins believes Leigh Leopards are in a false Super League position

The result leaves Leigh facing an uphill battle to make the playoffs, despite their recent uptick in form. Following yesterday’s defeat, Leigh are now five points behind the Leeds Rhinos in sixth place. However, that gap could grow to seven points after the Salford Red Devils play London Broncos later on Sunday.

However, the Leopards have a fan in Sam Tomkins. Speaking ahead of the KR game, Sky Sports pundit, Tomkins, stated his belief that the Leigh Leopards were currently occupying a false league position

“I think nobody would put Leigh where they are in the table. They compete in every game.

“They were unfortunate and were just about missing out on results. They’ve now started to turn that and they’re actually getting the results when they are competing in games.

“The last four I think they’ve been outstanding and it is a surge now.”