Hull KR gritted it out to make it to the Super League Grand Final as they beat Warrington Wolves 10-8 and the stats for one player help show how.
All of the Hull KR 17-man squad put in incredible shifts but one man took it to a new level and that was Dean Hadley.
For any non-Hull KR fans, Hadley’s name might not carry much weight but around Craven Park, ‘Deano’ is the man.
He was tasked with filling the void left by Elliot Minchella and he did so in impressive fashion with the forward clocking up an incredible 59 tackles. Of those, 14 came from marker which highlights those second efforts and workman-like attitude.
Atop those 59 tackles, Hadley also carried the ball into contact 15 times in the gruelling affair, making two tackle busts in the process.
Hadley is a man that Willie Peters regularly hails as integral to his team and the 32-year-old showed just why last night, even picking up the plaudits from the Sky Sports pundits.
Dean Hadley recognised for monstrous performance
Credit: John Clifton/SWpix.com
When assessing the Hull KR performance, Hull-born Jon Wilkin spoke to the effort that Willie Peters has instilled in his team before laying the praise on Hadley and on-field captain James Batchelor.
Wilkin argued: “Three of four years ago, Hull KR get beat here don’t they? It’s a testament to where Willie Peters has taken this team and the culture that he’s built within his team and the players that he’s recruited and their values in the team.
“It was really not pretty at times but just full of effort and that’s why they connect with the fans. It’s nothing flashy, it’s that desire.”
On Man of the Match Batchelor, who scored the first try, Wilkin said: “I thought him (Batchelor) and Hadley were so industrious, almost flawless in their effort. Minchella brings the quality to that back row but their effort was there for everybody to see.
“It’s not clever, and it’s not pretty, it doesn’t clip up so well, we can’t pour champagne on it, but the detail behind his performance and Hadley’s performance is something really special. It’s something we’ve marvelled at all year and it’s something that I said, and Willie Peters agrees, you can build a team around those two guys and have it work.”
How Hull KR have become ‘predictable’ in the best sense
Credit: Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com
Former England captain Sam Tomkins would have his say as well, labelling Hull KR as ‘predictable’ but not in the negative sense.
“They’ve almost become predictable, predictable in the fact that every time you come up against this Hull KR side then you’re in for a battle,” Tomkins argued.
One of the reasons why Hull KR have become so resolute was due to the adversity that several of their stars had gone through, Jon Wilkin claimed as he referred back to Mikey Lewis being released from the Hull FC Academy as a 16-year-old.
“Just to go back to that adversity that Mikey had at the start of his career. Look at Elliot Minchella, Leeds let him go. You have Dean Hadley who wandered around a bit. Batchelor too, all of these players have loads of adversity and it’s like a rite of passage in sport that you go through difficult times.
“They’re incredibly tough because of that. It makes you more resilient, more tough, more competitive, and when you get told you can’t do something, you probably want to prove to people that you can.
“It’s an exceptional story isn’t it for Hull KR.”
The Robins will now head to Old Trafford and face either Wigan Warriors or Leigh Leopards in their bid to earn silverware for the first time since 1985.
