In the early hours of Sunday April 21st, Hull KR returned to England following a 36-6 defeat against Catalans Dragons. Since then, the Robins have ousted two more members of the Betfred Super League elite and are firmly among those fighting at the top of the table.
Head coach Willie Peters could hardly have wished for a better reaction to that defeat against last year’s Grand Final runners-up than the team that beat the Catalans at Old Trafford, Wigan Warriors, 26-10 at Sewell Group Craven the following week Defeat Park.
This was followed by a 40-20 win against St Helens on home soil last Saturday, a result which left Hull KR level on points with the Super League leaders. Warrington Wolves, another side at the top, are next in line, although Peters is determined to stay grounded despite their impressive recent results.
“I don’t think two weeks determines your season and your location,” Peters said Sky Sports. “We are realistic about where we are at the moment and where we want to go, but to beat teams like St Helens and Wigan you have to enjoy it.”
“We won’t let ourselves get carried away because we have a strong team in Warrington on Thursday. We will certainly keep our feet on the ground and look forward to playing against Warrington, who are a very good team.”
“I’m happy for the players because they’ve worked hard in the last few weeks. There were a lot of questions about how we would compete against the bigger teams and we weren’t happy with what we did.” Catalans.
“Beating Wigan and now St Helens is a big improvement on where we were.”
That Hull KR are among the contenders for Round 11 should come as no surprise as they aim to build on Peters’ impressive first year at the helm in 2023, when the Robins are just 80 minutes away from their first Grand Final appearance were reached the final of the Betfred Challenge Cup.
All questions about whether they could follow in 2024 have so far been clearly answered. After 10 rounds of the season, Hull KR are the Super League’s top try scorers with 48 attempts so far and have the third best average gain of 6.88 metres.
Peters’ team’s approach in attack can be seen in the fact that they tied with the Salford Red Devils for the most offloads in the competition with 107, which undoubtedly helped the Robins manage more clean breaks than any other team with 55.
No team has made more runs from dummy halves than Hull KR either, with hookers Jez Litten (49) and Matt Parcell (28) both in the top 10 individual players in this category in the Super League in 2024.
We are realistic about where we are at the moment and where we want to go, but to beat teams like St Helens and Wigan you have to enjoy it.
Remarkably, almost 30 per cent of the tries the Robins have scored so far have come within the first 20 minutes of games and Jai Whitbread, man of the match in the win over St Helens, explained that this is something Peters is keen on valued.
“Something we talk about a lot is starting quickly,” Whitbread said Sky Sports. “In the times we were burned, we didn’t start fast, and that’s something we place a lot of emphasis on.”
“We have great support behind us on and off the field. That just makes my job easier, more than anything else.”
“I have some very talented players around me and they encourage me, so I don’t have to do too much, just concentrate on my job.”
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Highlights of Hull KR’s 26-10 win over reigning champions Wigan Warriors in the Betfred Super League
Hull KR have not only made progress on the pitch. The club currently records an average home attendance of over 8,000, the highest attendance in the Super League era, and has more than 6,000 registered members.
Peters, whose first post-play role in rugby league was selling sponsorship to NRL club South Sydney Rabbitohs, knows how success goes hand in hand on and off the club’s field and is aiming to be the first A great honor for the first time since 1985 to win the league title back to East Hull.
“We just want to continue to improve both,” said Peters. “A lot happens off the field; our board is very proactive and they are all very successful men and women in their own right.”
“We’re doing this right and it’s important for us as a rugby team and the rugby staff to make sure we get our area right.”
“We are getting there but in rugby league you have to work hard every day.”
Live Betfred Super League
Thursday, May 9th, 7:30 p.m
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