Liam Sutcliffe delighted to be given Leeds Rhinos No 4 shirt
Wednesday 24 January 2018 15:29, UK
Liam Sutcliffe believes he is close to finally nailing down a position at Leeds after the club awarded him the No 4 shirt for the 2018 season.
Sutcliffe broke into the first team in 2013 as a playmaker but his versatility meant he was often used as injury cover across the backline and in the back row.
That changed last year following Joel Moon's move to half-back, with Sutcliffe making the left centre spot his own during Leeds' run to an eighth Super League title.
"I was over the moon when I got the call to say I'd been given the No 4 shirt," said Sutcliffe, who signed a new four-year deal in September.
"I was massively pleased and am really looking forward to pulling it on this year and hopefully having a good year.
"The last few years since I came into the first team I've been dotted about here, there and everywhere.
"I've been in the first team a few years and my main goal for this year was to really nail down a position.
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"With the No 4 top I can go into this season knowing where I'm going to be playing.
"It's always handy to be able to fill in different roles but I really enjoy playing centre so going forward I'll hopefully nail it down."
The 23-year-old's promotion in the squad numbers was part of a reshuffle following the departure of club stalwarts Danny McGuire and Rob Burrow.
Both players had been synonymous with the Rhinos in the Super League era, but Sutcliffe insisted Leeds have suitably replaced them.
"The influence that they've had on the group in the last 10, 15 years has been absolutely massive and they were a massive reason behind the success the club's had," he said.
"They'll be massive losses but we've brought in two very good players in Richie Myler and Brad Dwyer to fill in those roles.
"They've settled in really well in pre-season and I'm sure they'll do very well for us this season."
Leeds found themselves in a relegation battle after losing Kevin Sinfield, Jamie Peacock and Kylie Leuluai at the end of their treble-winning season in 2015.
But Sutcliffe does not expect the Rhinos to encounter the same problem this year.
"Going from 2016 into last year people probably didn't think anything of us and we went on to win the Grand Final," he said.
"We're really confident where we can go this year as well.
"Every year Super League seems to get tougher. Warrington and Wigan had years that weren't up to their standards and they'll be wanting to have a massive year.
"Then there's the likes of Cas who had a great year last year and they'll want to replicate that. Wakey surprised a fair few people, so we know it's going to be another tough year.
"But we've improved as well and will hopefully get a lot better throughout the year."
