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2022 Leeds Rhinos season

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2022 Leeds Rhinos season
Super League Rank5
Challenge CupSixth Round
2022 recordWins: 14; draws: 1; losses: 13
Points scoredFor: 577; against: 528
Team information
ChairmanEngland Paul Caddick
Head CoachRichard Agar (until March 2022)
Jamie Jones-Buchanan (interim)
Rohan Smith (from April 2022)
Captain
StadiumHeadingley
Leeds, United Kingdom
Avg. attendance12,382
High attendance15,418 (v Castleford Tigers)
Top scorers
TriesEngland Ash Handley (17)
GoalsPapua New Guinea Rhyse Martin (84)
PointsPapua New Guinea Rhyse Martin (212)
← 2021 List of seasons 2023 →

This article details the Leeds Rhinos's rugby league football club's 2022 season. They were coached by Richard Agar until May 2022, Jamie Jones-Buchanan as an interim coach and Rohan Smith from April 2022 onwards. The Rhinos competed in both the 2022 Betfred Super League and the 2022 Challenge Cup.

Season review

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On 12 February, Leeds began their Super League campaign with a 22–20 loss to Warrington Wolves[1] followed by losses at Wigan Warriors[2] and at home to Catalans Dragons[3] before their first win came in Round 4 with a 34–18 victory at Wakefield Trinity.[4] Leeds had an early exit from the Challenge Cup with a 40–16 defeat by Castleford Tigers,[5] and their run of poor results leading to the departure of Richard Agar as head coach meant that by mid-April Leeds were 11th in the table.[6][7] Interim head coach Jamie Jones-Buchanan oversaw wins against Toulouse Olympique and Hull Kingston Rovers before the arrival of the newly appointed Rohan Smith.[7][8] Towards the end of the season, Leeds went on a run of six wins[9] before suffering a 32–18 loss to Catalans Dragons at the end of August. It meant that to qualify for the play-offs Leeds needed to avoid defeat in the final round of the regular season against Castleford, which they achieved with two late tries that gave them a 14–8 victory.[10][11]

Leeds began their play-off campaign by travelling to Perpignan where a hat-trick by Liam Sutcliffe gave them a 20–10 win over Catalans Dragons.[12] Leeds faced Wigan in the semi-final. At half time the score was 4–2 to Wigan, but a try from Jarrod O'Connor (his first for Leeds) and two from James Bentley saw Leeds reach their 11th Grand Final with a 20–8 win.[13] The Grand Final took place on 24 September at Old Trafford where Leeds lost 24–12 to St Helens.[6]

Results

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Pre-season friendlies

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W Win L Loss

Date Versus H/A Venue Result Score Tries Goals Attendance Report
Pre-season results
26 December 2021 Wakefield Trinity H Headingley W 34–6 [14]
23 January Bradford Bulls A Odsal Stadium W 30–12 7,237 [15]
30 January Hull F.C. A Headingley W 38–6 [a][16]
6 February Hunslet A South Leeds Stadium L 6–34 McConnell Sinfield [b][17]

Super League

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Table

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Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1 St Helens (C, L) 27 21 0 6 674 374 +300 42 Advance to Semi-finals
2 Wigan Warriors 27 19 0 8 818 483 +335 38
3 Huddersfield Giants 27 17 1 9 613 497 +116 35 Advance to Elimination Finals
4 Catalans Dragons 27 16 0 11 539 513 +26 32
5 Leeds Rhinos 27 14 1 12 577 528 +49 29
6 Salford Red Devils 27 14 0 13 700 602 +98 28
7 Castleford Tigers 27 13 0 14 544 620 −76 26
8 Hull Kingston Rovers 27 12 0 15 498 608 −110 24
9 Hull FC 27 11 0 16 508 675 −167 22
10 Wakefield Trinity 27 10 0 17 497 648 −151 20
11 Warrington Wolves 27 9 0 18 568 664 −96 18
12 Toulouse Olympique (R) 27 5 0 22 421 745 −324 10 Relegated to the Championship
Source: [1]
(C) Champions; (L) League Leaders' Shield Winners; (R) Relegated

Super League results

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W Win D Draw L Loss

Date Round Versus H/A Venue Result Score Tries Goals Attendance Report
Super League results
12 February 1 Warrington Wolves H Headingley L 20–22 Handley, Prior, Tetevano Martin (4) 14,135 RLP
18 February 2 Wigan Warriors A DW Stadium L 12–34 Austin, Prior Sezer (2) 12,575 RLP
24 February 3 Catalans Dragons H Headingley L 4–10 Austin 10,655 RLP
3 March 4 Wakefield Trinity A Be Well Support Stadium W 34–18 Handley (3), Fusitu'a, Gannon, Newman Martin (5) 5,040 RLP
10 March 5 Hull FC H Headingley L 8–31 Briscoe, Sutcliffe 11,552 RLP
18 March 6 Salford Red Devils A AJ Bell Stadium L 12–26 Handley, Oledzki Martin (2) 5,756 RLP
1 April 7 St Helens H Headingley L 0–26 6,519 RLP
14 April 8 Huddersfield Giants H Headingley D 20–20 Gannon, Martin, Sutcliffe Martin (4) 11,286 RLP
18 April 9 Castleford Tigers A Mend-A-Hose Jungle L 14–16 Martin (2) Martin (3) 9,372 RLP
22 April 10 Toulouse Olympique H Headingley W 25–14 Dwyer (2), Briscoe, Donaldson Martin (4) 11,167 RLP
29 April 11 Hull KR H Headingley W 12–0 Gannon, Prior Martin (2) 13,333 RLP
15 May 12 Salford Red Devils A AJ Bell Stadium L 8–23 Handley, Oledzki 4,473 RLP
20 May 13 Wakefield Trinity H Headingley W 24–6 Bentley (2), Austin, Fusitu'a Martin (4) 14,190 RLP
3 June 14 Warrington Wolves A Halliwell Jones Stadium W 40–4 Fusitu'a (2), Handley (2), Donaldson, Hardaker, Leeming, Thompson Martin (4) 9,984 RLP
10 June 15 Huddersfield Giants A John Smiths Stadium L 16–30 Handley, Hardaker, Sutcliffe Martin (2) 6,712 RLP
23 June 16 St Helens A Totally Wicked Stadium L 12–42 Newman, Thompson Martin (2) 11,288 RLP
2 July 17 Hull FC A MKM Stadium W 62–16 Handley (5), Leeming (2), Fusitu'a, Myler, Oledzki, Sutcliffe Martin (9) 10,682 RLP
9 July 18 Castleford Tigers N St James' Park W 34–20 Bentley, Handley, Myler, Prior, Sezer, Sutcliffe Martin (5) 36,821 RLP
16 July 19 Toulouse Olympique A Stade Ernest Wallon L 6–20 Dwyer Martin 4,230 RLP
21 July 20 Wigan Warriors H Headingley W 42–12 Bentley, Dwyer, Martin, Mustapha, Newman, Smith, Sutcliffe Martin (7) 13,368 RLP
30 July 21 Catalans Dragons A Stade Gilbert Brutus W 36–32 Myler (3), Dwyer, Sezer, Sutcliffe Martin (6) 8,165 RLP
7 August 22 Salford Red Devils H Headingley W 34–14 Martin (2), Handley, Myler, Newman Martin (7) 14,668 RLP
12 August 23 Hull Kingston Rovers A Sewell Group Craven Park W 28–20 Gannon (2), Myler (2), Dwyer Hardaker (4) 8,028 RLP
19 August 24 Warrington Wolves H Headingley W 24–18 Gannon, Handley, Martin, Tetevano Martin (4) 13,152 RLP
24 August 25 Huddersfield Giants H Headingley W 18–14 Austin, Martin, Myler Martin (3) 11,225 RLP
29 August 26 Catalans Dragons A Stade Gilbert Brutus L 18–32 Dwyer, Myler, Walters Martin (3) 9,802 RLP
3 September 27 Castleford Tigers H Headingley W 14–8 Sutcliffe (3) Hardaker (4) 15,418 RLP

Play-offs

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Date Round Versus H/A Venue Result Score Tries Goals Attendance Report
Play-off results
10 September Eliminators Catalans Dragons A Stade Gilbert Brutus W 20–10 Sutcliffe(3) Hardaker (4) 9,514 RLP
16 September Semi-finals Wigan Warriors A DW Stadium W 20–8 Bentley (2), O'Connor Hardaker (4) 12,777 RLP
24 September Grand Final St Helens N Old Trafford L 12–24 Leeming, Martin Martin (2) 60,783 RLP
Team bracket
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Eliminators Semi-finals Grand Final
2 Wigan Warriors 8
4 Catalans Dragons 10 5 Leeds Rhinos 20
5 Leeds Rhinos 20 5 Leeds Rhinos 12
1 St Helens 24
1 St Helens 19
3 Huddersfield Giants 0 6 Salford Red Devils 12
6 Salford Red Devils 28
Source:Rugby League Project

Challenge Cup

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W Win L Loss

Date Round Versus H/A Venue Result Score Tries Goals Attendance Report
Challenge Cup results
26 March 6 Castleford Tigers H Headingley L 16–40 Martin (2), Sutcliffe Martin (2) 5,112 RLP

Club vs Country

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W Win L Loss

Date Versus H/A Venue Result Score Tries Goals Attendance Report
8 October  New Zealand H Headingley L 0–74 9,125 RLP

Players

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Squad

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First team squad Coaching staff

Head coach

Assistant coaches


Legend:
  • (c) Captain(s)
  • (vc) Vice-captain(s)

Updated: 20 April 2022
Source(s): 2022 Squad Numbers


Transfers

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Gains

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Player Club Contract length Date
Ireland James Bentley St Helens 2 Years June 2021[18]
Turkey Aidan Sezer Huddersfield Giants July 2021[19]
United Kingdom Blake Austin Warrington Wolves 1 Year August 2021[20]
Tonga David Fusitu’a New Zealand Warriors 2 Years October 2021[21]

Losses

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Player Club Contract length Date
England Stevie Ward Retired January 2021[22]
England Kyle Eastmond May 2021[23]
England Alex Sutcliffe Castleford Tigers 2 Years September 2021 [24]
Scotland Callum McLelland October 2021 [25]
Fiji King Vuniyayawa Salford Red Devils October 2021[26]
Tonga Konrad Hurrell St Helens 1 Year October 2021[27]
England Luke Briscoe Featherstone Rovers October 2021[28]
Australia Robert Lui North Queensland Cowboys November 2021[29]
England Luke Gale Hull FC November 2021 [30]
England Corey Hall Wakefield Trinity November 2021
England Corey Johnson Bradford Bulls 1 Year Loan December 2021 [31]
Nigeria Muizz Mustapha
England Jarrod O'Connor

References

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  1. ^ "Betfred Super League Round-Up | Round 1". RFL. 13 February 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  2. ^ "Betfred Super League Round-Up | Round 2". RFL. 20 February 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  3. ^ "Betfred Super League round-up". RFL. 28 February 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  4. ^ "Betfred Super League Round-Up". RFL. 6 March 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  5. ^ "Betfred Challenge Cup Round 6 Round-Up". RFL. 27 March 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Saints make history by completing four-peat". RFL. 24 September 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  7. ^ a b "Betfred Super League Round 11 round-up". RFL. 1 May 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  8. ^ "Betfred Super League Round 10 round-up". RFL. 24 April 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  9. ^ "Betfred Super League Round-Up | Round 25". RFL. 26 August 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  10. ^ "Betfred Super League Round-Up |publisher=RFL". 30 August 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  11. ^ "Betfred Super League Round-Up | Round 27". RFL. 3 September 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  12. ^ "Betfred Super League Round-Up | September 10". RFL. 10 September 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  13. ^ "Leeds and St Helens to meet in Betfred Super League Grand Final". RFL. 18 September 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  14. ^ "Leeds beat Wakefield in Boxing Day Friendly". RFL. 26 December 2021. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
  15. ^ "Pre-Season round-up | January 23". RFL. 23 January 2022. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  16. ^ "Leeds Rhinos talking points: Win over Hull FC capped successful pre-season campaign". Yorkshire Evening Post. 31 January 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2024.
  17. ^ "Powerful Hunslet too strong for Rhinos". Hunslet RLFC. 7 February 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  18. ^ "Leeds Rhinos sign James Bentley from St Helens on 2 year deal". Sky Sports. 18 June 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  19. ^ "Leeds sign Aiden Sezer from Huddersfield on 2 year deal". SkySports. 19 July 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  20. ^ "Leeds sign Blake Austin from Warrington on 1 Year deal". loverugbyleague. 4 August 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  21. ^ "David Fusitua joins Leeds on 2 Year deal". SkySports. 18 October 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  22. ^ "Stevie Ward forced to retire due to concussions". Sky Sports. 5 January 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  23. ^ "Kyle Eastmond retires from professional rugby". Sky Sports. 17 May 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  24. ^ "Castleford Tigers confirm signing of Alex Sutcliffe". Sky Sports. 21 September 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  25. ^ "Castleford re-sign Callum Mclelland". BBC Sport. 11 October 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  26. ^ "Salford sign Vuniyayawa from Leeds". BBC Sport. 9 October 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  27. ^ "St Helens sign Konrad Hurrell on 1 Year deal from Leeds". Sky Sports. 22 October 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  28. ^ "Luke Briscoe returns to Featherstone". Sky Sports. 27 October 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  29. ^ "Rob Lui makes shock rugby league comeback". seriousaboutrl. 30 November 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  30. ^ "Luke Gale joins Hull FC on 1 year deal". skysports. 5 November 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  31. ^ "Bradford Bulls announce the signing of three Leeds Rhinos players". loverugbyleague.com. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
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