Leeds falter again at home, surrendering a double-figure lead as Huddersfield secures a dramatic 30-24 win.
Leeds Rhinos’ struggles continued at Headingley as they threw away a double-figure lead, allowing Huddersfield Giants to claim a sensational 30-24 victory in the Betfred Super League. This defeat marks Leeds’ fourth consecutive home loss, increasing the pressure on head coach Rohan Smith.
The Rhinos appeared to be in control at halftime, leading 12-2 after a rather uneventful first half. Tries from Paul Momirovski and the returning David Fusitu’a provided Leeds with a comfortable advantage, while Huddersfield’s only points came from Jake Connor’s kick. However, the second half saw a complete shift in momentum.
Huddersfield came out firing after the break, with Esan Marsters powering through weak Leeds defence to score the first try of the second half. Three minutes later, Adam Swift exploited more defensive lapses to set up Elliot Wallis, who dived over in the corner to level the score. Despite a poor kicking display from Connor, who converted just one of his six attempts, Huddersfield remained within touching distance.
Leeds regained their composure temporarily, with Momirovski securing his second try and Jarrod O’Connor charging through for another to extend their lead to 12 points. However, the Rhinos’ defensive frailties resurfaced, and Swift powered over from dummy-half to bring Huddersfield back into contention.
Huddersfield’s persistence paid off. Within three minutes, they had reduced the deficit further, with Swift again breaking through to assist Harvey Livett’s try. In the 70th minute, a brilliant pass from Adam Clune found Kevin Naiqama to score, though Connor’s continued struggles with the boot left the game tied at 24-24.
With the score level, Leeds’ defence capitulated once more, and a failed drop-out from the Rhinos’ Danny Miller gave Huddersfield the opportunity to edge ahead with a simple penalty goal in front of the posts. The final blow came when Naiqama intercepted a pass from Cameron Smith, and after a brief juggling act, passed to Adam Clune, who sealed the win in dramatic fashion.
