Super League: Giants can leapfrog Leeds following local derby
Published:
Huddersfield Giants are ready to kick-start their season and leapfrog fellow strugglers Leeds Rhinos in their proverbial Super League four-pointer tonight.
Both sides have suffered awful starts to the season, and after coming into 2016 as semi-finalists and champions respectively, find themselves in the bottom three, saved only from taking up the last two spots by Salford’s points deduction.
When the sides met earlier in the season it was thought they would both recapture their 2015 form and climb the ladder, but it hasn’t happened as yet, with the West Yorkshire rivals only recording five wins from 24 games between them this season.
They do, however, seem to be getting closer to their usual selves in terms of performances over recent weeks.
Huddersfield beat league leaders Warrington 13-0 and pushed Wigan close last week, falling to defeat in the closing stages of the game.
Leeds, meanwhile, ended a four-match losing streak by beating Hull FC, but fell to a 38-34 defeat to St Helens last Friday.
Despite their upturn in performances and the return of captain Danny McGuire and former Huddersfield man Brett Ferres to their 19-man squad, Leeds trail in the betting, priced at 5/2 to win tonight, compared to Huddersfield at 1/3.
The Giants haven’t beaten Leeds in five attempts, and with the Rhinos still without a number of key men, they haven’t had a better chance in recent times than tonight. It shouldn’t be a runaway for the Giants by any means though, and 9/2 for them to win by 6-10 points is appealing.
One man who looked dangerous every time he got the ball against Wigan last week was Huddersfield’s England centre Leroy Cudjoe.
With the Rhinos missing their first-choice pairing on the left edge he will have plenty of opportunities to strike, and can be backed at 11/5 to cross the line and add to his tally of four tries for the season
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All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing
