Elliot Minchella on how Hull KR will handle favourites pressure, 2023 lessons and why he wants to repay the Robins

Hull KR captain Elliot Minchella has shrugged off the pressure of being tipped to win at Wembley.

The Robins will go into Saturday’s Challenge Cup final against Warrington Wolves as hot favourites, but Minchella insisted the Super League leaders won’t buckle under the weight of expectation.

“It’s not hard to cope with,” Minchella said of Rovers’ favourites status. “These are privileged games to play in.

“A couple of years ago we were watching other teams run out and play at Wembley and in awe and envy of them.

“Pressure is what you make of it and for us it’s not pressure, it’s a real privilege to run out at Wembley in front of a big red and white army behind the sticks.

“We can’t wait to see it; it’s not pressure, it’s expectation within our group. That’s what we’ve built so far and it’s about delivering.”

Hull KR skipper reflects on his journey so far

If Minchella gets to write his name in Hull KR history this weekend, he will have done it the hard way.

After six first team appearances for Leeds Rhinos from 2013-2015, he had spells outside Super League with London Broncos, Sheffield Eagles and Bradford Bulls before joining the Robins ahead of the 2020 season.

“It was really tough at the time,” he recalled of his return to the top. “I ended up playing in League One at one point, so I dropped to the very bottom of the pyramid.

“It took a lot of determination and perseverance, but Hull KR gave me an opportunity to play Super League again and I’d like to think I have taken it with both hands.

“I love the club and am forever grateful for the opportunity they gave me. I want to repay them by bringing the trophy home on Saturday.”

He added: “Some lads play first team at 17 or 18 and they’re never out of the team. My journey has been a bit different, which is okay.

“There’s no perfect way of doing it and it makes it sweeter, knowing it has not been given to me.

“I appreciate every single day, because it’s not long since I had to get up and go to work and go train on an evening and play on a weekend.

“These days are the best days of your life and they are very quickly taken away from you so you have to enjoy it while you can and embrace it.”

Famously, Hull KR haven’t won a major trophy since 1985, but Minchella reckons they learned valuable lessons from their Wembley loss to Leigh Leopards two years ago and last season’s Grand Final against Wigan Warriors.

“Coming up short hasn’t been a nice experience, but sometimes it shapes you as a club and a team,” he stated.

“I guess we’ll find out on Saturday afternoon how much we’ve learned, but it’s about playing the game, not the occasion.

“It’s about performance – think about how it looks on the field and your performance and I’d like to think the result will go in our favour.”

The Robins have rebuilt since their agonising golden-point extra-time defeat by Leigh in 2023 and only six of the team on duty that afternoon are still at the club.

For the ones that are, the journey home after the final remains fresh in the mind. “There’s not many of us who experienced it, but the bus journey back wasn’t a pleasant one,” Minchella – who gave away his runners-up medal – recalled.

“It was quite a long journey from London back to Hull with a loser’s medal in our pockets, so we don’t want to experience that again.

“We don’t need any motivation for this Saturday, but we don’t want to be sat on a bus and be sulking for six hours either.”

London, HERE WE COME 🛣️

Unbelievable support from the Red Army today 👏#UpTheRobins🔴⚪️ pic.twitter.com/0Gt0LV5dWR

— Hull KR (@hullkrofficial) June 5, 2025