Leigh upset Leeds at Headingley as Super League set to spurn £7m-a-season NRL offer

Leigh Leopards defeated league leaders Leeds Rhinos at Headingley on Thursday in a Super League match, denting Leeds’ title ambitions. The result arrived the same day clubs were informed of an NRL investment proposal of around £7m per season, for the next five years.

The NRL offer would include a 10% stake in Super League in each year they invest, but clubs are expected to reject the opening bid, believing the competition’s value is higher. The NRL introduced broadcaster DAZN into negotiations on Thursday, while Sky Sports – Super League’s longstanding partner since its inception in 1996 – is set to show three games a week from the start of next year with DAZN potentially picking up the rest. Those involved say the talks could eventually revitalise Super League’s long-term financial picture and its broadcast future.

Leigh’s victory blew the top-of-the-table race open and left the Leopards six points clear of seventh-placed St Helens with just four rounds left. Leeds had not lost at Headingley all season before this defeat, and the lead in the match changed hands on no fewer than four occasions. Wigan can go joint-top with a win against Bradford on Saturday.

Leeds opened the scoring after three minutes when Ryan Hall capitalised on a Jake Connor pass, only for Josh Charnley to level three minutes later. Innes Senior finished a lengthy team move to give Leigh the lead for the first time, before Brodie Croft went through a gap in the Leigh defence to make it 14-10. By half-time Senior had claimed his second to leave the game level at the interval.

Connor’s second penalty of the night shortly after the restart put Leeds back in front, but Umyla Hanley’s long-range try with 25 minutes remaining proved decisive. Hanley’s score was the only try of the second half as Leigh produced a strong defensive display that prevented Leeds from breaching their line again.

Leigh’s resistance was exemplified by Hanley’s world-class tackle to deny Hall in the final minute, a moment that underlined how effective the Leopards were in defence when it mattered most. The match was described as an engrossing and high-quality second half with that single try proving the difference.

Clubs are set to hold a crucial meeting next Thursday where the opening £7m-a-season proposal is likely to be turned down, and NRL officials are due to arrive at the end of this month to continue negotiations aimed at narrowing the gap between the parties.