Wakefield mark Super League return with shock victory over Leeds
Wakefield Trinity marked their return to Super League with a surprise victory at West Yorkshire rivals Leeds Rhinos, as an opening weekend filled with shocks continued.
The Rhinos have undergone another expensive off-season overhaul as they enter an eighth season since their last Super League title. The expectation here was that they would be too strong and too powerful for a Wakefield side not only playing their first game back in Super League since promotion, but without a number of key forwards due to an early-season injury crisis.
But Daryl Powell's side were magnificent and worthy winners to start their campaign with an excellent victory. After Leigh's historic 1-0 win at Wigan on Thursday and Hull FC's winat Catalans on Friday, this was the latest indicator that Super League could be shaping up to be more unpredictable than ever in 2025: which can only be a good thing for the competition.
Three tries in 10 minutes for Wakefield proved to be the difference. After a fairly even opening quarter, Leeds combusted in that 10-minute period to fall 14-0 behind in the blink of an eye. Wakefield broke the deadlock when they kept the ball alive superbly on the last tackle, leading to Max Jowitt crossing before converting to make it 6-0.
Three minutes later, Jowitt then finished a sublime break from Jake Trueman, who was the star on his Wakefield debut, to make it 10-0 before Mason Lino capitalised on a shocking Jake Connor error to touch down a loose ball to compound Leeds' misery.
The Rhinos narrowed the deficit two minutes before the break with a much-needed moment, when Harry Newman grounded a Brodie Croft kick to reduce the arrears to eight at half-time. But in truth, that was nothing more than a false dawn for Leeds, who seriously flattered to deceive all afternoon.
Sign up to The Recap
The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action
after newsletter promotion
They huffed and puffed with little success throughout a timid and laboured second half. Not even when Wakefield were reduced to 12 men after Mason Lino's sin-binning could they craft an opening to score again. By the time they finally did, when Sam Lisone powered over from close-range, there were just 20 seconds remaining and Wakefield saw off that period with minimal fuss to claim victory against the odds.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
'A no-brainer' deal but do Whites need transfers now?
We asked for your views on whether Leeds United need to act urgently in the transfer market, as the first of the two transfer windows comes to a close on are some of your comments:Dave: It would be nice to get a couple of signings sealed in this first window, as the longer a player is with us before next season begins the better. That said, the squad won't be back in training for a good while yet, so there's no reason to panic. I think the players we'll be in for are likely to be those where a lot of wheeling and dealing needs to be done, as we can't throw £120m at specific targets. I expect many of our signings will come at the back end of the second window rather than late in this one. I have faith it will be worth the Surely the most straightforward work is getting Manor Solomon secured back at Elland Road. There are so many other links and possibilities out there, but this seems like a no-brainer. I'm not sure what the hold up I don't expect any signings until after 1 July, when the new financial year starts for We definitely want one addition, just to prove that we're not going to sit on our hands over the opportunity! It would give hope to the fans that, despite the setbacks, we are interested in becoming a Premier League team and not a yo-yo Leeds are so frustrating at transfer time. Things always seem to go to the wire. Nottingham Forest went mad a few season back signing players right through the windows - and ultimately it has paid off. It gives players time to settle in and gel, so pull your fingers out Leeds!
Daily Record
14 hours ago
- Daily Record
Cyriel Dessers minimum Rangers transfer fee revealed as AEK set to spend big on statement signing
The Greeks mean business after takeover by Marios Iliopoulos but new Ibrox regime determined to turn a profit on Dessers Greek Giants AEK are preparing to push the boat out to land Rangers hitman Cyriel Dessers. The enigmatic Ibrox striker has blasted 51 goals in two years in Glasgow but remains a divisive figure among the Light Blue legions. Now Record Sport understands AEK are keen to offer him a fresh start in the Greek capital - and are willing to spend big. The Yellow and Blacks were taken over by shipping magnate Marios Iliopoulos last year and he's determined to make a statement signing this summer. They've identified Gers' 30-year-old Nigeria international as the man they want to spearhead their big push to recapture the Super League title they last won in 2023. But they will likely have to start the bidding at the £5million mark as Rangers' new American owners prepare to dig their heels in. The previous Ibrox regime spent £4.5million when they signed the former Feyenoord forward from Italian outfit Cremonese in 2023 and new sporting director Kevin Thelwell believes his record of scoring a goal-every-other game in Glasgow justifies a return on that investment. Dessers has been the subject of interest in recent windows, with his agent Stijn Franics revealing earlier this year that he had as many as TEN clubs sniffing about his signature in January. None could come up with the cash Gers were looking for and he stayed on to finish the campaign in Glasgow only one shy of the 30 mark. Selling Dessers would free up some fresh funds for new boss Russell Martin to spend. Andrew Cavenagh and his partners from the San Francisco 49ers have vowed to inject £20m of fresh funds into the Ibrox coffers, with CEO Patrick Stewart promising the new gaffer a 'decent amount' would be ring fenced for recruitment purposes. But Martin has been told he will have to move players on if he wants to raise additional funds for what is likely to be a considerable rebuild this summer. Record Sport broke the news last week that Leicester City defender Conor Coady could be the first new face in bolster Gers' backline. Ib Rox chiefs have already made contact with the Foxes as they look to kick off the Martin revolution with the experienced ex-England's capture. We also revealed how Rangers are in the hunt for £4 million-rated Israeli striker Dor Turgeman, who could be the man to replace Dessers. Talks with his club Maccabi Tel Aviv are on going as Rangers look to land the 21-year-old hit-man. Tune in to Hotline Live every Sunday to Thursday and have your say on the biggest issues in Scottish football and listen to Record Sport's newest podcast, Game On, every Friday for your sporting fix, all in bitesize chunks.
BBC News
17 hours ago
- BBC News
🎧A week for gardening - but still plenty to discuss
No signings, no departures and no new kits - but still plenty for BBC Radio Leeds' Jonny Buchan and Kaiser Chiefs' bassist Simon Rix to discuss on the latest episode of the Don't Go To Bed Just Yet pair discuss Max Wober's comments on his potential exit, chat about what additions the Whites will need to stay up and answer questions from to the full episode on BBC Sounds
