What can you say - the weather meant it was never going to be a classic but I wasn't expecting something a poor as what was on show last night. For supposed elite RL it was a terrible advert for the game - two very poor sides showing why they are in the league positions they are.

The completion rate must have been well below 50% from both sides - I was not expecting a Salford side to perform that badly.

Leeds had a bit of luck that has deserted them in the past weeks - the Salford knock on over the line in front of the Southstand when it must have been easier to score. The Sau knock on in the second half when all he had to do was catch and run straight etc.

The effort was there but Leeds have played much better than this and got beaten - turgid would be an understatement for the game as a spectacle. The collective nail biting in the crowd shows how bad things have become.

This was a much stronger Leeds side with only 5 missing - I discount Hardaker now - yet any decent side would have blown them away once again. The attack simply doesn't function, something has to change we are clueless not just in the opponents 20 but at crafting clean breaks mid field. The defence was as it has been all season just the opposition didn't have the quality to expose it. Warrington/Cas/Wigan would all have put as many points on the defence last night as the did in the actual games they played. The notion that the defence is better the last two weeks is more about the two sides Leeds have played - both were well below what they are capable off - than the Rhinos improve defensive rigidity.

Garbutt had another excellent game, Falloon added something in defence, Galloway was committed but he so slow, it like watching a liner cruising on the ocean. Cuthbertson looks a shadow of the player he once was, if he is homesick then Leeds need to let him go. Of the rest Sutcliffe went OK bar the drop from the high kick on his own line - of the rest the less said the better.

The worst game between two of the poorest sides I have seen in many years - a win is a win.

Would agree with that, but there is no doubt for me the attitude has changed over last couple of weeks. There is a realisation about them it seems. As you said, I don't think the defence has improved that much, but I do think the desire and putting body on the line has.

We are a really poor attacking team though. I actually can't remember seeing a worse attacking side than us throughout the superleague years. Obviously there has been poor teams, but they always seemed to have a score in them, we just don't.

Watching last night Cuthbertson and Ferres could not have been fit, they just couldn't have been. Also same with Keinhorst which probably explained the bench. They all gave the effort, but something was not right. Galloway run himself into the ground, and that last ten minutes was quite frightening how exposed he was defensively, but he kept going.

Probably correct about Cuthbertson but if that is the case why play him - I presume Mullally was fit?

As for Ferres he just lacks quality - it doesn't help he playing in a terrible side but how he ever got to play for England?

Agree on the attack - Leeds have always had pace to get through a gap that pace has evaporated we look slow, ponderous, devoid of ideas. If for nothing else we need new coaching expertise to fix this up.

McDermott was in the long bar last night - he looks like a very lonely individual who knows something bad is coming over the hill.

McDermott is going. I actually think he is more relaxed because of it, and seems to have let the shackles go. He apparently asked to finish the season, and that is what they agreed.

Surely the best outcome for both parties

Whilst I agree with most of your post, did you see the Wolves v Hull Game? I watched it when I got home & there were just about as many dropped balls in that game - the difference being that they played in bone dry conditions! & this was the top two sides in the league! So your highlighted comment doesn't really stack up.

I thought Galloway was excellent, along with Garbutt

To quote Stevo, "lots of effort, intense but lacking in skill. That's rugby league!!".
Less than 60% completion rate for Hull and Warrington, apparently the "coating on the ball" was responsible for dumb offloads, a bucket load of forward passes, etc.
Leeds have gone backwards, no way the rest of the competition has gotten any better.

I'm amazed Sal and Gotcha find reasons to crawl out of bed on mornings.....reading their thoughts could make the most happiest person suicidal.

I tell it how it is - last night was diabolical, to see what was a great side to watch, win or lose turn into the impotent attacking team they are now is nothing short of tragic.

You may big up the effort - but you cannot defend the standard.

Even the win gives no real satisfaction - its like pulling an ugly girl

To be honest, I thought they'd just read the SkySports report on our game and not watched last night! Yes we dropped a fair bit of ball, but I never thought we looked like we were going to lose last night. You can only play what's in front of you, and in the conditions it was never going to be a pretty game, but you could see their confidence growing in defence. No we won't get out of the bottom 4, but if we can build on that performance, I am fairly confident we might be able to compete for 10th and a set of home advantage games.

I thought Falloon showed what he can/could bring to the team given an injury free run in the team.

He's not had a massive amount of game time and I think he's another that has been brought back previously when not fully recovered from his back injury, probably in part due to him wanting to impress, new overseas recruit and all that and that fact he's only here on a 1 year deal and McD was probably keen to bring him back too early to get a 'proper hooker' in the team and he's broken down before.

I think he could, given the chance turn a lot of fan's opinions round on him, a bit like Galloway has.

Like I said on the Farrah thread, I actually think if he continued like the hooker we saw last night, I don't think we'd need to bring in a new NRL hooker and instead could use the cash to try and get the halfback we desperately need.

I also think another of the 'favourite scapegoats' in Achurch was pretty good last night and got involved more and I remain convinced there is a good player in there somewhere if he can remain injury free.

He was certainly far from our worse prop/forward last night, that 'honour' would go to Cuthbertson who whilst clearly not looking fit, was gash and IMO his 'fall from grace' this year is as spectacular as Watkins.

I actually think Cuthbertson began to drop off towards the end of last year and couldn't put it down to whether it was the fact the teams learnt how to nullify his offloading game better or whether it was his wrist/hand injury that he seemed to keep playing with, or a combination of both?

Had this been his first year here, I can only imagine the amount of stick he'd be getting on here and at the ground, given the comments this year about other new recruits in Galloway and Falloon

Usually this is used when you've stuck 50 on poor opposition.

TBH my immediate thought on walking away from the ground was one of nostalgia. It felt like I was back in the 80s. Poor side getting a hard fought victory against another poor side in terrible conditions.

My two sons are 17 & 15 y.o. & have known nothing but massive success (the odd year apart).

I got more pleasure out of last night (for all the dropped balls, poor attacking options etc) than a 50 point drubbing of Salford/Wakey/HKR/London/Catalans et al over the last 12 years. Perhaps we need a period of being sh*t to get our feet back on the ground & re-appreciate any good times to follow.

Thanks for above. Missed game last night went to see Neil Young. Great gig. Came out and saw we had nilled them and was chuffed. My hopes of a great performance soon dismissed on here. Great to get a win, will do them a lot of good