Hull KR know the League Leaders’ Shield will be theirs if they can see off Warrington Wolves at Craven Park this evening. The Robins missed the opportunity to wrap up the league last weekend, losing to Wakefield Trinity, but they know there’ll be no second chances this week.
The gap between themselves and Wigan Warriors currently stands at two points with KR having a points difference advantage of 41. As such, they need to beat Warrington this evening just to make sure of top spot as they look to complete the treble.
Warrington have nothing to play for but they’ll be reeling after being pumped by Hull FC last Saturday and they’ll be keen to restore a bit of pride on the final day of their season.
Sam Burgess has named a young squad, it’s fair to say, with Lachlan Fitzgibbon dropping out through suspension. Matt Dufty is named again, though, and despite missing out last time, he could be set to come in for one final appearance this season.
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It seems likely that James Duffy will get another start in the outside backs, while Ewan Irwin will play alongside Marc Sneyd, with Stefan Ratchford playing the final game of his career last week at Hull.
Adam Holroyd looks set to be the man starting in place of Fitzgibbon, while a young bench could well be made up of Tom McKinney, Max Wood, Lucas Green and the experienced Sam Powell.
Rovers head coach Willie Peters wasn’t best pleased after his side’s loss at Belle Vue, but he isn’t expected to make too many changes to his side. Rhyse Martin is available again after missing the last two games through suspension and he’ll be walking a disciplinary tightrope to avoid missing any more games this year.
That could see Jai Whitbread drop to the bench, with Dean Hadley pushed into the front-row. If Sauaso Sue is fit, he’ll play, but it seems likely that he’ll come off the bench having spent the last few weeks on the sidelines with a knee injury.
Predicted Hull KR v Warrington Wolves teams
Predicted Hull KR side: Arthur Mourgue; Tom Davies, Peta Hiku, Oliver Gildart, Jack Broadbent; Mikey Lewis, Tyrone May; Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, Jez Litten, Dean Hadley; Rhyse Martin, James Batchelor; Elliot Minchella
Bench: Sauaso Sue, Sam Luckley, Kelepi Tanginoa, Jai Whitbread.
Predicted Warrington Wolves side: Matt Dufty; Josh Thewlis, Toby King, James Duffy, Jake Thewlis; Ewan Irwin, Marc Sneyd; Joe Philbin, Danny Walker, Luke Thomas; Adam Holroyd, Sam Stone; Ryan Matterson,
Bench: Tom McKinney, Sam Powell, Max Wood, Lucas Green
