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Hull KR man unsure of future beyond 2023

Lachlan Coote joined Hull KR as a star in the spine but that spine has since developed and is becoming one of the best in the league.

Coote joined the Robins ahead of the 2022 season and became first-choice full-back having had huge success at St Helens, and that automatically rendered him a massive shining light in a youthful Hull KR side.

Since then Mikey Lewis has continued to develop, Jordan Abdull has retained fitness and form whilst the hooker tandem of Matt Parcell and Jez Litten has seemingly never been better.

Coote himself has displayed brilliant form having missed a lot of games last season, mainly through HIA protocol, but the full-back is back to his best now and has shone this season.

In turn Hull KR have become one of the bright sparks in Super League and their future looks solid with the likes of Lewis, Abdull and Litten but Coote isn’t nailed down beyond this year and he’s now expressed considerations of retirement.

The 33-year-old is one of a few veteran players that are not currently signed beyond 2023 with captain Shaun Kenny-Dowall being the other glaring one.

Ryan Hall has signed an extension and whilst Coote wasn’t against signing another he’s spoken about being open to all options going forward.

Asked if he was involved in contract discussions the Scotland international said: “Not so much yet. The club have been pretty good at not putting any pressure on or anything like that.

“There was a discussion briefly before the season started about seeing how the first half of the season unfolds and then we’d see where we were at physically, but that was the only chat we had.

“Probably over the next two months I’d say, because I think it’s only fair on the club whether I do stay or go just to know where they’re at, for if I do end up leaving or retiring then they can look elsewhere. It’s only fair on them that I make a decision sooner rather than later.

Were Coote to retire at the end of the season it would almost certainly see Rovers head to market to replace him given their recent swap deal that sent full-back Will Dagger to Wakefield for Corey Hall.

Coote also referenced his previous head injuries as something that’s a strong factor in whether he hangs the boots up at the end of the season.

“I think it’s a decision that I have to come to terms with, do I need to keep putting my body on the line and do I want to keep showing up and doing all those things it takes to be a professional athlete? Do I want to keep my family on the other side of the world and be away from all those cousins and relatives?

“For me last year having headaches and my concentration being affected. Those sorts of things hung around for a bit longer than usual which was a scary sign.

“It went in my head many times last year, it was a very frustrating year for myself and as a team as well. It was questionable and more so physical with what the effects have. The long term effect of concussion and what’s coming out about it was behind the thinking.”

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