Wednesday 22 April 2020 11:07, UK
How do you match the ‘Golden Generation?’ It is a difficult question facing any Leeds Rhinos academy product trying to break through the ranks.
It is a conveyor belt of talent that churned out Super League's record try-scorer in Danny McGuire plus the competition's record point-scorer and appearance maker in Kevin Sinfield, not to mention many other household names.
So when Gary Hetherington says the next crop of youngsters waiting in the wings at Headingley has the potential to be Leeds' best-ever team, you sit up and take notice.
Leading the charge for the new brigade is Harry Newman. He turned 20 in February, but there has been a buzz around the young centre ever since he became the first player born in this century to play in Super League.
It was a night to forget on the field as Leeds were pummelled 34-0 by Wigan, but aged just 17, the competition had its first glimpse of its newest star.
Rob Burrow coached Newman in the academy. He said: "He was always talented. He's got that element of not knowing what he'll do next and he has that X-Factor. He's got amazing talent and amazing ability."
"He needs to keep his head level but he's a great lad. I had no doubt from the first time I saw him, I thought he's going to be special."
He was always talented. He’s got that element of not knowing what he’ll do next and he has that X-Factor
Sky Sports rugby league expert and former head of youth development at Leeds, Barrie McDermott concurred with old team-mate Burrow.
"He wasn't a particularly big kid when he came through, but his bravery and his courage in his actions meant that he would just go through and he would do stuff," McDermott said.
"When he first came onto the scene, I remember Rob and I talking about him. And he was saying how impressed he was with his attitude, how impressed he was with his raw strength."
McDermott compared Newman to a former Leeds team-mate, Keith Senior.
"Very raw when he came to rugby league, but just powered his way through," McDermott added. "For me, Senior just got better and better with age."
Newman's first two Super League appearances actually came on the wing, before switching into the centres in defeats against St Helens and Catalans Dragons in 2018.
But it was his time at Featherstone Rovers, making the most of the dual-registration system, where he really caught the eye that season, scoring 16 times in 12 games.
John Duffy was Newman's coach at Featherstone.
"I could tell in the first training session he was going to be a Leeds first team player the way he presented himself and went about his business" Duffy, now head coach at Leigh Centurions, said.
"He was really athletic and powerful and a really coachable player. He scored some freakishly good tries for Featherstone.
"He was really dynamic and always willing to learn. He's a good communicator. The Championship can be tough as well, a bit physical, and he took that in his stride.
"Hopefully he'll keep his head screwed on and I'm sure he'll go all the way, I could tell that straight away."
He was really dynamic and always willing to learn. He’s a good communicator. The Championship can be tough as well, a bit physical, and he took that in his stride
When 2019 rolled around, Newman seemed to have few opportunities for game-time at the Rhinos. Captain Kallum Watkins occupied one spot in the centres with marquee signing Konrad Hurrell taking the other.
The Newsome Panthers product therefore returned to Featherstone, scoring five tries in six games across the early part of the season.
But injuries handed Newman his chance. First, he deputised for Watkins for two games followed by stepping up in April when Hurrell was ruled out.
From that point on, Newman never looked back. After featuring in the win over Huddersfield Giants in Round 11, he did not miss another Super League game while playing in his favoured centre position in all but three of those appearances.
That was helped when Leeds made a big decision mid-season - to let skipper Watkins join the Gold Coast Titans. Newman's emergence, making a name for himself as a Super League centre, helped the club's choice to allow one of their big earners and big names depart for the NRL.
"It was a really difficult situation for our club," Rhinos head coach Richard Agar said. "However it was going to pan out with Kallum, we felt we had a precocious young talent that had achieved everything in the junior game and shown some real promise in the first grade games he had played.
"I was really confident that a player like Harry could step into that breach and at 19-years-old, he's got an entire career in front of him."
Newman finished the season with four tries from 20 games and was rewarded with an England Knights call-up, featuring in the win over Jamaica at Headingley. He was also runner-up to Matty Lees for Super League's young player of the season.
He never carried an error into another game or let it affect his confidence. He always came out swinging and looking for more
Agar was certain he would make an impact, saying: "We knew he would make mistakes. We knew to get him up to speed quicker that along the way we would have to wear a few mistakes out of him. We got that last year. We got some defensive errors and some parts of his game with the ball were a bit erratic.
"But he's an ultra-confident kid. He knew when he'd made an error and he never let them grind him down too much. He never carried an error into another game or let it affect his confidence. He always came out swinging and looking for more."
His captain, Stevie Ward, has also been impressed, saying: "He's one of the most competitive players, especially at his young age. He's new to it all and wants to win at everything.
"He brings that to the side whether it's in training or in games, you can tell. Every little tussle or tackle he's involved in, he's trying to squat the players off him, trying to show his sheer strength and show him to be the best and strongest on the pitch."
With the No 3 shirt in the bag, Newman has kicked on in 2020, being one of Leeds' standout performers in what's been a bright start to the campaign for the club.
Newman has two tries in five games, four try assists and is producing big metres - an average gain of 8.27m from his 70 carries. That includes 34 tackle busts and six clean breaks.
"He'll be one of the best centres in the world," Ward said. "I think he's definitely got the potential. He'll be a powerful player going forward for Leeds and for England too."
The new England coach Shaun Wane clearly agrees with Ward, naming Newman in his first Performance Squad in March.
There is plenty of competition in there, with fellow centres Mark Percival, Oliver Gildart, Josh Griffin, Zak Hardaker and Reece Lyne for company. Watkins was included on the NRL watch-list before his departure from the Gold Coast Titans, while there is no Jake Connor this time around. Serious company, then, for Newman to keep.
How does Agar rate his chances of being selected for this winter's scheduled Ashes series against Australia? He said: "It's difficult to say. We've got a new coach in Shaun that's got to show his hand selection-wise yet.
"He is a very determined young man. He's not a kid that needs pushing to try and improve himself, to compete, to do his extras, he's very naturally gifted.
"Ultimately, he really wants it. He really wants to force himself into contention for that, he wants to win trophies at our club.
"It's too early to say, but if he continues on the trajectory that he's currently on, then he's probably going to be a player who is in those conversations when that time comes."
Burrow is certainly backing him. "If he carries like he is doing, then I think why not?" he said. "We need powerful centres to take on the Aussies. He's right up there."
So, the international stage is a clear target for Newman and with Leeds aiming to build a side capable of challenging again, the centre will be at the heart of any revival at Headingley.
But will he and some of his young team-mates live up to Hetherington's billing of the new golden generation?
