Hull KR

Hull KR boost as star signing arrives ahead of pre-season start date

by
Will Jackson
November 6, 2024

Hull KR - 03/10/2022 - New Zealand Training - Leeds Rugby Academy, Kirkstall, Leeds, England - Jared Waerea-Hargreaves.

Hull KR signing Jared Waerea-Hargreaves has arrived in the United Kingdom as he prepares to get started in east Hull.

The prop forward has penned a one-year deal with the Robins after spending his entire career to date in the NRL. Waerea-Hargreaves is 35, but with 310 games for Sydney Roosters under his belt and 33 caps for New Zealand, he goes down as arguably the most high profile Super League import heading into the 2025 season.

Rovers aren’t due to get their pre-season campaign underway until the final week of November, with six weeks passing between the Grand Final and the start of their 2025 preparations. However, the fact that Waerea-Hargreaves is in the country already will come as a huge boost for KR and Willie Peters.

The forward will now travel to Hull before using the next few weeks as a chance to settle his family into life in East Yorkshire and acclimatise himself to the colder conditions as autumn moves into winter.

Waerea-Hargreaves is one of eight signings ahead of the 2025 season, with the forward being joined at Craven Park by Rhyse Martin, who isn’t expected to join pre-season training until a later date given he is currently away on international duty with Papua New Guinea and is due to be involved this weekend against New Zealand in a Pacific Championships promotion/relegation play-off.

Tom Davies and Lee Kershaw have joined the club from Catalans Dragons and London Broncos respectively, giving Peters depth on the edges, while Micky McIlorum and Bill Leyland have joined from the same clubs. The hookers will compete with Jez Litten for a spot in the side alongside Waerea-Hargreaves. Eribe Doro has also joined from Bradford Bulls, while Danny Richardson’s loan from Castleford Tigers has been made permanent.

Hull KR won’t have to long to wait until they are in action, either, with their pre-season clash against York Knights due to be played in Amsterdam on January 25.