Leeds Rhinos name strongest line-up to face Bulls (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Leeds Rhinos name strongest line-up to face Bradford Bulls

5:50pm Wednesday 16th January 2013 in Bulls

Leeds Rhinos have named their strongest possible side for Danny McGuire's Testimonial game against Bradford Bulls on Sunday.

Their line-up includes all seven of the Rhinos' England internationals, including national captain Kevin Sinfield, while new signings Joe Vickey and Joel Moon are also included in the starting line-up, with Mitch Achurch set to make an appearance off the bench.

Rhinos' head coach Brian McDermott believes that McGuire deserves a big turn out for his testimonial clash after over ten years outstanding service for the club.

He said: "There have been a few well-deserved testimonials at Leeds because there has been a conveyor belt of long-serving players, and there is a danger that people get used to testimonials and pay lip service to them.

"But if anyone deserves a testimonial, it is Danny McGuire because he has not just lit up Leeds Rhinos but Super League as a whole for the last ten years.

"He is the leading try-scorer of all time in Super League, which is a hell of achievement in itself when you consider that he is only just 30 and has a good few years ahead of him.

"To get a testimonial is a great milestone but to have done it in the style that Magsy has, winning big games for the Rhinos and scoring sensational tries, is fantastic."

McDermott is in the perfect position to judge the threat that McGuire poses having coached him and played against him.

Such is the reputation of the Leeds stand-off that his current coach says teams can over-compensate, which presents chances for his team-mates.

He added: "I once heard someone refer to Mike Tyson as 'a great', and the legendary boxing journalist Bert Sugar countered them and said he wasn't a great because he had not maintained his dominance at the top for a long enough period.

"Last season plenty of people were saying that Sam Tomkins is going to be a great of our game. Well as good a prospect as Sam is, if he is still doing that in six or seven years' time then he will be regarded as someone who has shown the class that Danny has done.

"As a coach preparing a team to face Danny McGuire, you can be guilty of concentrating too much on Danny, as teams are with Sam Tomkins now, because of the threat he poses. which allows other people to play well.

"Every single week that Danny McGuire plays, every team wants to take him out because he has such an influence on his team and the scoreline.

"Every single week, Danny has to be on his guard because defences are coming for him, and yet over the course of ten years he is still a massive influence on the game.

"He is not someone who goes under the radar - he is massively on everyone's radar and still he produces the goods, which I think is remarkable."

Fans can pay on the day on Sunday with adult ground entry priced at £15 and seats for £20.

Concessions are £10 and £15, with under-16s £5 for both ground entry and seats.

Tickets can be purchased by calling 0871- 423- 1315 or online at www.therhinos.co.uk/buytickets. Kick-off is at 3pm.

Leeds team: 1 Zak Hardaker, 25 Joe Vickery, 3 Kallum Watkins, 4 Joel Moon, 5 Ryan Hall, 6 Danny McGuire, 13 Kevin Sinfield, 17 Ian Kirke, 7 Rob Burrow, 10 Jamie Peacock, 11 Jamie Jones-Buchanan, 15 Brett Delaney, 12 Carl Ablett. Interchange: 9 Paul McShane, 16 Ryan Bailey, 19 Mitch Achurch, 18 Chris Clarkson, 20 Darrell Griffin.