A fourteen-point win would have been enough to take Adrian Lam’s Leigh Leopards into second spot at the conclusion of round two of Super League 2025, all that stood in their way was a Huddersfield Giants side looking for their first two points of the season after their opening weekend loss to the Warrington Wolves.

The Leopards were without captain Josh Charnley who is expected to be out for up to four weeks after suffering a neck injury but were, nevertheless, favourites with the bookies for back-to-back wins as they were handicapped by twelve points on the coupon against a side who showed strongly in defeat last time out.

As ever, there was a great atmosphere at the Leigh Sports Village, boosted by the news that the signature of Edwin Ipape had been secured until the end of 2031.

After being the best side from the first whistle, Leigh took just seven minutes to hit the front after Lachlan Lam threw a long ball to Keenan Brand to score in the right corner, Gareth O’Brien unable to add the extras from wide in a strong wind.

The Giants were back on level terms on twenty-three as Oliver Wilson chased a Zac Woolford grubber under the sticks and was the first to get a hand on. George Flanagan added the extras to put his side ahead by two points.

Five minutes before the interval, Flanagan added a penalty goal to double the lead as the weather conditions worsened.

In the last minute of the half, a successful captains challenge from Leigh saw them rewarded with a penalty under the sticks and O’Brien accepted the offer to kick a ten-metre penalty goal for a scoreline of 6-8 at the interval.

A minute into the second half, another Giants penalty, again from the boot of Flanagan, once again doubled the Giants lead to four points. It was nip and tuck.

David Armstrong grabbed the breakthrough for Leigh when he went through a gap left in the defensive line by a rushing Tui Lolohea and went thirty metres on the angle to dive over in the right corner. O’Brien was wide with the touchline conversion, the sides tied up at ten points apiece.

Leigh were held up over the line on forty-eight but on fifty-two they were given a penalty for a late hit on the kicker, O’Brien on target this time to put the home side int a two point lead.

A bad mistake from the Giants on sixty-six, a knock-on in front of their own sticks saw the ball into the hands of O’Brien who couldn’t believe his luck and fed Matt Davis to dive in under the sticks. O’Brien had the easiest of conversion for 18-10.

The game winning try came on seventy-five, Armstrong breaking the Giants defensive line on thirty and pulling the last defender before releasing Tesi Niu to scamper home. O’Brien added the conversion for 24-10, the Leopards maintaining their perfect start to the season.

With little to choose between the two sides in the first half, Leigh stepped up a gear oin the second forty and romped to a fourteen point win, just enough to lift them above the Warrington Wolves and into second spot on points difference. The Giants remain in ninth spot but will need to start winning soon or find that their season is over before it has even begun.

Leigh Leopards: Armstrong (T), Brand (T), Niu (T), Hanley, Hodgson, O’Brien (G 4/6), Lam, Trout, Dwyer, Mulhern, Halton, O’Neill, Liu. Subs: Hughes, Tuitavake, Davis (T), Ipape. 18th Man: Brogan.

Huddersfield Giants: Gagai, Swift, Hewitt, Bibby, Wallis, Lolohea, Flanagan (G 3/3), Burgess, Woolford, Wilson (T), Greenwood, Murchie, Cudjoe.  Subs: Golding, English, Rigers, Billington. 18th Man: Deakin

Half-Time: 6-8.

Full-Time: 24-10.  

Score Progression: 4-0, 4-4, 4-6, 4-8, 6-8 : HT: 6-10, 10-10, 12-10, 16-10, 18-10, 22-10, 24-10 :FT.

Lead Exchanges: Leigh – Square – Huddersfield – Square - Leigh.

Referee: Marcus Griffiths.