Connect with us

Super League

The two impressive stats which underlined Zak Hardaker’s Headingley return for Leeds Rhinos

Zak Hardaker made his second Leeds Rhinos home debut on Friday night 11 years on from the first.

Hardaker rejoined the Rhinos a number of weeks ago despite leaving under a cloud in 2016. The move came about following the break down of the relationship between him and Wigan Warriors but his Leeds debut was delayed owing to a seizure the day his signing was announced.

Thus, his debut came against Salford last week at centre as the Rhinos struggled to make an impact against the in form Red Devils. However, Hardaker’s Headingley return would be a much bigger success.

The Rhinos won 24-6 against Wakefield in a must win West Yorkshire derby and Hardaker was superb at fullback switching to the role as Richie Myler moved into the halves.

He was awarded the Man of the Match despite the fact James Bentley scored two tries but the stats do suggest that he deserved the award. Hardaker made the most metres of anyone during the game with 142 as well as the most tackle busts with 6.

It was a big night for the Rhinos’ back three as they all registered over 100 metres causing Wakefield endless problems at the starts of sets. David Fusitu’a registered 140 whilst Ash Handley – who commonly ends Leeds games with the most metres – finished with 122.

This perhaps shows that Hardaker – as he did in his first stint with Leeds – could help give Leeds one of the strongest back threes in the league in terms of their ability to get the Rhinos down field.

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Must See

More in Super League