Leeds Rhinos nostalgia: Loiners suffer their heaviest ever defeat at hands of rivals Trinity
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As rugby league struggled to get back to normality in the weeks after the end of World War Two, Leeds began the season with a run of seven straight losses, scoring only four tries and conceding 53.
A 36-5 defeat at Wigan was followed by a 9-2 home reverse against Featherstone and 10-3 setback at Hull KR, but rock bottom was reached against Wakefield Trinity on Wednesday, September 12, 1945.
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Hide AdThe club’s management were already struggling to raise a team and untested players were drafted in from across the north of England.
Leeds travelled to Belle Vue without Fred Harris, whose career at the club was ended by a broken jaw suffered against Featherstone and Dicky Williams, due to a back problem suffered in the same game.
The Loiners’ makeshift line up against Wakefield included only four of their pre-war team, forwards Stan Satterthwaite, Reg Wheatley, Alf Watson and Con Murphy, who was injured during the second half.
Wakefield fielded a strong side and showed Leeds no mercy in a 71-0 rout.
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Hide AdThe 17 tries Trinity scored remains the most conceded by Leeds in a game. It comfortably surpassed Leeds’ previous worst result, a 46-4 loss to Halifax in 1908.
It was also Trinity’s biggest win to date, outstripping a 68-7 thrashing of Bradford Northern in the 1928-29 campaign.
It is still the Leeds’ heaviest margin of defeat and they have conceded more points only once, in a 74-6 drubbing by Wigan in 1992.
Things weren’t much better three days later when Bradford Northern visited Headingley and romped to a 54-3 victory.
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Hide AdAt the time that was the most points scored against Leeds at Headingley.
It has since been beaten by Queensland’s 58-2 victory in 1983 and Bradford Bulls;’ 56-18 success 20 years ago.
Back in 1945 Bradford scored 14 tries, but Leeds conceded only 14 points in the first half before being overrun after the break.
Stand-off Eric Hesketh scored Leeds’ only try in the Bradford debacle.
Scrum-half for both games was Johnny Feather, uncle of future Leeds legend John Holmes.