Smith double helps Leeds beat Wolves

Cameron Smith dives over for the first of his two tries for Leeds Rhinos against Warrington Wolves

Betfred Super League

Leeds (8) 36

Tries: Smith (2), Croft, Holroyd, Connor, Gannon Goals: Connor (5), Watkins

Warrington (0) 12

Tries: Thewlis, Currie Goals: Sneyd (2)

A rare two-try performance from forward Cameron Smith set Leeds Rhinos on their way to a fifth consecutive Super League win, piling on the misery for Challenge Cup beaten finalists Warrington Wolves.

Smith came off the interchange bench to break down some strong Warrington defence in the first half, and with the in-form Jake Connor adding the conversion and a penalty, the home side had breathing space at half-time.

The Wolves' spirited performance fell apart in the second half as Smith added another, and tries from Brodie Croft, Tom Holroyd, Connor and Morgan Gannon ensured Leeds stayed in touch with top two Hull Kingston Rovers and Wigan Warriors.

A superb try from Jake Thewlis had given Warrington brief hope, Ben Currie added a late consolation score, and Marc Sneyd's two conversions saw him overhaul Andy Farrell to go fourth in the all-time Super League kickers' list with 1,027 goals.

Warrington's morale-sapping late defeat by Hull KR at Wembley last week was compounded by the loss of full-back Matt Dufty with a fractured eye socket, but their performance in that narrow loss, and the return of George Williams for his first Super League appearance since 12 April, raised hopes for the rest of their campaign.

That optimism was underlined in a tight first half against a Leeds side whose defensive record is second only to that of Hull KR this season.

Both teams had chances thwarted by excellent defence in the opening half-hour and ironically it was a Williams fumble that set Leeds up for the opening score, Smith benefiting from Lachie Miller's sharp break to go under the posts, with Connor extending the lead.

All of the Wolves' fine defensive work in that opening half proved to be for nothing as Leeds stepped up a gear after the break and the visitors, who lost Arron Lindop to a knee injury, began to flag.

Within six minutes of the restart, Smith had barged over for his second try - only the second time in his nine-year career that he has scored more than once in a game - and Croft stepped outside his would-be tackler to put the game beyond Wire.

That sparked Sam Burgess's side into attacking life and they responded with a picturebook try, Thewlis racing clear after a slick passing move, but it was a momentary pleasure for the travelling fans.

Leeds roared back onto the attack and, after Smith was inches short of a hat-trick just before, Connor sent Holroyd through a gap before darting through for a try of his own to add to five successful conversions.

Ben Currie's 99th try for Warrington was a consolation, while Sneyd's kick saw him to 1,027 in Super League, ahead of Wigan legend Farrell, but Gannon had the final say, with Kallum Watkins given the conversion to get him on the scoresheet in his 400th career appearance.

'Tough and greedy' - post-match reaction

Leeds head coach Brad Arthur told BBC Radio Leeds:

"It was pretty tough and greedy, plenty of energy, pretty good balance and we played some fair footy at times.

"We left a couple of tries out there early in the game but didn't panic, and defended pretty well until we made some system errors in defence which we have to tidy up.

"Everyone's chasing that 80-minute performance but it's hard to get. The thing I like is that they want to get that, but as a coach I have to be careful not to be too tough on them.

"It was a good performance and we have to back it up next week. They know they've still got a bit more in them, and that they really care about the club, the jersey and their team-mates and want to really do well. That's the environment that's been created at the moment."

Warrington head coach Sam Burgess told BBC Radio Merseyside:

"The first half was a high-quality game. The ball was in play for a long time and it was small margins, but in the second half they just blew us off the park.

"Everyone can search for different answers and excuses but at the end of the day we have to turn up and play today.

"We have got to be better in some areas for sure. There are some areas I don't like but we were trying our backsides off and it just wasn't happening for us today.

"Leeds were very good, but it didn't work for us and we have to improve."

On a knee injured suffered by Aaron Lindop: "It's not looking great for Aaron. We'll obviously scan it and confirm it but the doctors are pretty good at picking stuff up."

Leeds: Miller, Hall, Newman, Handley, Lumb, Connor, Croft, Palasia, O'Connor, Oledski, McDonnell, Gannon, Watkins

Interchanges: Holroyd, Lisone, Bentley, Smith

Warrington: Thewlis, Lindop, Tai, King, Wrench, Williams, Sneyd, Yates, Powell, Vaughan, Fitzgibbon, Holroyd, Currie

Interchanges: Harrison, Crowther, Philbin, Wood

Referee: Chris Kendall.