Hull KR boss backs Mikey Lewis for Man of Steel and hints at more to come

Hull KR head coach Willie Peters has backed star man Mikey Lewis to be crowned as Man of Steel and hinted there’s even more to come.

Lewis has been integral to the success that Hull KR have had this season with the playmaker leading Super League for try contributions with an impressive 19 tries and a league-leading 24 assists.

He’s now been announced in the Super League Dream Team, the first time that he’s achieved the accolade in his five-year career, with Lewis selected ahead of the likes of reigning Man of Steel Bevan French.

The Hull KR man has now been named by Sam Tomkins as his Man of Steel selection and that prompted the question to be posed to Robin’s boss Willie Peters after KR secured second-place in Super League on Friday night.

“I mean I’d be backing Mikey as well, there’s no doubt about that,” was Peters response following the club’s 26-16 victory over Leeds Rhinos.

Will Hull KR star be crowned Man of Steel?

Hull KR have only ever had one player to win the Man of Steel award but that came back in 1986 with Gavin Miller the sole Robin to win the accolade.

When the Man of Steel leaderboard went dark, Lewis was among the leading candidates and for Sam Tomkins, the Hull KR star deserves the award.

He explained: “I think Mikey Lewis has been the best individual player this year. He’s Man of Steel for me this year. I think he’s been vital in the success that Hull KR have had to this point.”

For head coach Willie Peters, he explained exactly how and why Lewis has had his best-ever season to date.

Peters said: “I mean the growth, as I’ve said all year, that I’ve seen in him off the field mainly, his maturity levels off the field and his growth off the field, it all starts there.

“When you’re a rugby league player, all your habits start off the field and he’s created a lot of good habits off the field and that’s flowed into his training and flowed into his game. He’s taken on a role this year.”

How good could Mikey Lewis be?

One of the reasons for Lewis’ success has been the addition of Tyrone May who signed from Catalans Dragons ahead of the season and Peters credited the former Penrith man too.

He explained: “Tyrone has taken on a role as well that he wasn’t used to. He was always playing alongside Mitchell Pearce from Nathan Cleary who game-managed and Tyrone’s taken that on but Mikey’s taken a large part of that as well with our last plays and kicking and that type of thing.”

Even if Lewis does not win Man of Steel this season, the Hull KR star seems to have arrived among the elite of Super League and could well contest for the award for many years to come.

The scary part, he’s still got room to improve according to Peters, who explained: “For me, he’s still scratching the surface, that’s the exciting part. We’ll see what he’s like in a couple of years’ time.

“Rugby League needs to be very very important over the next couple of years because if it is who knows where he can go?”