Leeds decide to play safe with McGuire

Leeds have decided not to play Danny McGuire in tonight's derby at Bradford. The Great Britain stand-off, who has been out for four weeks following a groin operation, was included in the Rhinos' initial 20-man squad for the match.

Leeds have decided not to play Danny McGuire in tonight's derby at Bradford. The Great Britain stand-off, who has been out for four weeks following a groin operation, was included in the Rhinos' initial 20-man squad for the match.

"Danny is not yet ready to make his return," the Leeds coach, Tony Smith, said yesterday, "so he will not be in the team for Thursday. However, he is not far off and could feature against Wakefield on Monday."

Also missing tonight is Jamie Jones-Buchanan, who has a knee injury. Gareth Ellis and Chris McKenna are fit to return. Leeds will have over 5,000 fans in the expected 20,000-plus crowd at Odsal, but Smith is playing down the importance of the game.

"Obviously, there is a lot of hype around this fixture, given that it's a local derby and a repeat of last year's Grand Final, but we can't afford to get caught up in that," he said.

Bradford will be without Paul Johnson for five weeks thanks to a shoulder injury, but the Bulls were boosted this week when Lesley Vainikolo pledged his future to the club despite a big offer from Gloucester.

Leigh, without a win this season, are searching for a replacement for Jason Ferris, who was released this week to return to Australia. The club's executive director, Derek Beaumont, said last week that there was no money for new signings. He has since resigned, along with his fellow director Steve Blakeley.

"We have to have a play-maker," said the club's general manager, Mike Callaghan. "We are scouring the market and looking everywhere."

Oldham, of National League One, will also be battling on despitefailing to reach a settlement with the Inland Revenue and Customs and Excise over a £180,000 debt.