Leeds Rhinos’ Mikolaj Oledzki says it’s a “big honour” to make the Betfred Super League Dream Team for the first time - but he never expected to do so. The strong-running prop is the only Leeds player to make the cut in the 2022 side.
It is richly deserved given the excellent form he has shown this term, with the front-row making more metres (2,768) than any other forward in the competition. Oledzki is also in Super League’s top ten for tackling and proved a powerhouse again as Rhinos secured their play-offs spot with Saturday’s scrappy 14-8 win over Castleford.
The England international, 24, has had his best campaign to date and said: “I felt last year I played pretty good rugby. I really enjoyed my rugby last year. And this year, although we had a tough start, I'm really enjoying my rugby at the moment.
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“Since Jamie Jones (Buchanan) took over, Rohan (Smith) came in and the results started coming our way and it was easier to enjoy. This year I've just tried to take it game by game and build some consistency, knuckle down and stay above the water and play some good rugby every week. To be here today is a big honour and it is very rewarding. I wasn’t expecting it.”
Oledzki is in the Dream Team side along with St Helens prop Alex Walmsley and hopes to keep his push for a World Cup spot going as Rhinos head into the play-offs. They visit Catalans Dragons in Friday’s eliminator and he said: “It’s always tough over at Catalans. They are a physical team and obviously flying in and back on the day is another thing to add on top of the challenge.
“But we’re looking forward to it. We were scrappy against Cas - it was an awful match - but we’ve made the top-six and now we want to crack on.”
Rhinos were 8-0 down against Castleford entering the final stages of one of the worst quality games of the season. If they had lost, they would have missed out on the play-offs with Tigers taking the last spot instead. But, just as they rallied at Headingley to beat title-chasing Huddersfield late on recently, they came good at the death once more to make sure their season went on for another week at least. Captain Kruise Leeming crossed and then, in the final seconds, Aidan Sezer scrambled over to break Castleford hearts. Oledzki feels that bodes well as Leeds, who have won seven of their last eight games, prepare for sudden-death football.
“The last few games, winning in the last few minutes, shows how much resilience we have,” he said. “Before, it’d be easy for us to just put the cue in the rack and in the last few years that has happened. We’d lick our wounds and go again. But we built that resilience the last few weeks and that comes with confidence too. We know we can score points and finish games off.”
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