Lucas Albert to replace Luke Walsh for Catalans Dragons

The 18-year-old Albert, who is tipped for a big future in the game, made 10 Super League appearances in 2016 - mostly as a replacement for an injured Richie Myler - but has not had a look-in so far this year, with Myler and Walsh enjoying an unbroken half-back partnership.

However, Walsh loses his ever-present record for the visit of Leeds to Perpignan after being banned for using foul language to a referee, and that has opened up an opportunity for Albert.

"I can't give Luke enough praise," said Dragons coach Laurent Frayssinous.

"Since he arrived in France, he impressed me in pre-season and he didn't miss a game and didn't miss a training session. He has been very good for the team on the field and very good for the team off the field so it's a big loss for us.

"But it gives an opportunity to young Lucas. He was injured at the end of pre-season but since then we've spent some time together working on a few things on his game.

"He's only 18 and I asked him to be patient and keep working hard and keep on learning. He can't wait to be on the field."

Albert has been included in Cologni's 31-strong squad for a training camp at Le Barcares on May 9 and Frayssinous believes he can force his way into contention for a World Cup spot.

"Definitely," he said. "He will play more games before the end of the season and the French national coach will be able to see him.

"I have already shared with Aurelien Cologni what he needs to do to improve and how he's improved over the last few months.

"You've got Theo Fages, Thomas Bosc, Stan Robin and Lucas Albert for the half-back positions, so it's up to Lucas to impress the national coach when he gets the opportunity to play at the top level."

The Dragons have slipped down the table after suffering back-to-back away defeats by Wigan and Wakefield, and Frayssinous is worried about facing another backlash from Leeds.

The Catalans were the first team to face the Rhinos after their 66-10 humiliation at Castleford in March and Frayssinous expects the Yorkshire side to respond to a disappointing home defeat by Huddersfield in their last match.

"The last time we played them, it was in the week that (Leeds chief executive) Gary Hetherington wrote a letter to the fans and, after that, they kept on winning," Frayssinous said.

"They are a quality team who are well coached and I'm sure they will want to bounce back because against Huddersfield they didn't play great.. Top class players, like they have, always react after a poor performance.

"We definitely want to get back to winning ways at home. But more than anything we need points to climb the table. It's a very important game for us.

"We want to perform consistently, starting on Saturday against Leeds."

In Saturday's other game, Leigh will have experienced prop Gareth Hock back as they look to halt a seven-match losing streak when they host Wakefield, who are seeking to complete the double following their 28-24 win at Belle Vue in March.