4th and 5th but Matt Moylan plays in the loss

Despite an energetic second-half display, Leigh Leopards fell to a heavy 18-10 defeat at the hands of an inspired Leeds Rhinos at Headingley.

Tries from Matt Moylan and Edwin Ipape brought the Leopards back into the contest after going 18-0 down, but it was too little too late for Adrian Lam’s men, who slipped to their second defeat in three games. The defeat also now widens the gap between them and the top six to five points.

It was a mixed performance from the Leopards as well. They did some things very well, but they struggled to reach their maximum. Here are our Leigh Leopards player ratings.

Matt Moylan – 8

Created some good chances tonight and could easily have had three assists (if it wasn’t for some desperate Leeds defending). He scored a try for his efforts as well. He brought a wonderful new dynamic to the Leigh attack.

Umyla Hanley – 5

Quiet show from Hanley tonight. He wasn’t given much of the ball to work with though.

Zak Hardaker – 6

Constantly threatened to break the line and gave Leigh plenty of ball in front.

Ricky Leutele – 4

He fought the whole game. Three decent chances to put Josh Charnley up for a try. He was later denied a score of his own and was denied by Fusitu’a, which rather summed up his night.

Josh Charnley – 5

Hungry for the ball for large chunks of the game, but did well with what he was given; including a wonderful line break in the first half.

Ed Chamberlain – 6

He often stepped in mid-dummy and generally did a good job. He grew into the game as he became a decent run option.

Lachlan Lam – 7

Once again, a threat at the line. His combination with Moylan at the back was a real strength for the Leopards and they combined well for the opening try. He also kicked well

Tom Amone – 5

He wasn’t at his usual best in his first stint. He lost the battle through the middle against his opposite numbers. It also led to Brodie Croft’s second try. Much better on the return but couldn’t get his side over the line.

Matt Davis – 5

Distributed well but Leigh’s attack works well with a new one going and lacked threat around the ruck.

Owen Trout – 5

Really quiet display from the former Leeds Rhinos academy man. He was beaten by Oledzki and Sangare on both sides of the ball. He had a busier second spell though.

Kai O’Donnell – 6

Typical running performance from O’Donnell. Added real punch to Leigh’s right edge (as always).

Frankie Halton – 6

He grew into the contest and linked well with the players around him, a solid performance overall.

Jack Hughes – 5

A really quiet display from Hughes, who struggled to get a foothold in the game.

exchanges

Dan Norman – 6

He did his job very well. He was very busy on both sides of the ball.

Edwin Ipape – 7

He did his usual job for the team. He brought a fresh dynamic around the ruck which in turn helped Leigh’s attack. He was just as strong when deployed at 13 and scored a nice try too

Brad Dwyer – 6

Standard Brad Dwyer impact from the bench. Fair performance by ‘nuggetty’ (sorry) again and was a menace around the ruck.

Aaron Pene – 8

Added much needed impact through the middle. He was carried very hard by contact and punched the defense. However, he gave away a needless penalty to give Leeds points.

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