Hull KR head coach Willie Peters has provided an injury update and outlined the biggest selection issue he faces for Round One of Super League.
The Robins host Castleford Tigers on Friday night in front of a sold-out Craven Park as they start their season, bidding to finally end their trophy drought that dates back 40 years.
They came close in 2024 having made the Grand Final but they’re intent on going one step further in 2025 and that’s seen them recruit heavily with the Robins setting about one of the strongest recruitment cycles of any Super League side.
Stars such as Tom Davies, Micky McIlorum, Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and Rhyse Martin have all arrived at Craven Park and whilst it’s driven the standard up massively, it’s created a huge headache for Willie Peters.
The Hull KR boss confirmed that his biggest selection issue revolves around the fourth interchange spot with so many strong players competing for one spot.
Hull KR coach confirms selection dilemma
Credit: Olly Hassell/SWpix.com
Speaking to the media ahead of the game against Castleford, Peters confirmed that Hull KR have more or less a clean slate in terms of injuries meaning that selection is incredibly tough.
Asked about injuries, he said: “No, there’s one or two little niggles but we’ll name the team later on in the week, but on track at the moment.
“I think the major one is around that last interchange spot. There are a lot of players that could be in that position.”
Talking through his dilemma, he said: “Do you go another middle? Do you go a back row or do you go a utility back? So to be honest, you go any way of the players that miss out and you’re still in a decent position.
“We’re going to go with 17 players that we think can do a job this week, but there’s going to be players that will miss out that could easily be in the team as well.”
Among those players with squad numbers outside of the first 17 are Jack Broadbent, Kelepi Tanginoa and Jack Brown to name just three, highlighting the depth that Rovers have in 2025.
Peters previews Castleford Tigers
Credit: Will Palmer/SWpix.com
That depth is something that Friday’s opponents Castleford Tigers perhaps don’t have with Danny McGuire’s side already struggling with injuries and punch down the middle, something that saw them lose in Round Three of the Challenge Cup.
Former Hull KR man and current Castleford Tigers captain released a statement of apology after the game, such was the disappointment of the performance.
Peters claimed that the result did not matter with the Hull KR coach expecting his former assistants McGuire and Brett Delaney to bring an enthused and ready team to Craven Park.
He said: “There’s no doubt that they’re going to be looking to improve on what they did last week. We know it doesn’t matter who we play in round one, it’s going to be two teams that have had long hard pre-seasons, they’re ready to play and they’re ready to prove themselves and Cas will be no different.
“We’re a team and you’ll hear me say it every week but it’s true, we look at what we can control. We can’t control what Cas do and their response. It’s all about us approaching our first home game looking at what performance we want to deliver to our fans and what performance we want to deliver for each other.”
