Quote: Once were Loiners "But the passive defence thing isn't a myth as some would try to make us believe - its been noted by a lot of commentators'"
Commentators see Leeds defending in their own half for large stretches of games, and mistakenly assume (IMO) this is a deliberate tactic. We are in this position more often than not because of errors with ball in hand and penalties given away in defence. The simple fact is that we have far too often been unable to respect possession - and that is the root of our need to rely on longer defensive stints.
I'd have to look again at some of the early season games - for example, the HKR game that we lost. If you watch the last few games it is clear that players are moving up and there is defensive intent and even aggression at times. We wouldn't be giving so many penalties away for offside and ruck infringements if we were simply waving the opposition down the field every set!
IMO Leeds need to prioritise respecting possession, moving up the field in yardage, building pressure, and last tackle options. If the coaching team is at fault it is encouraging a style of play that often results in players trying to score from every set. This is the cause of us being on the back foot too much.
Another problem is the lack of hard running forwards to get us out of our own half when we're pegged back.
