Former Super League trio talk what’s next for Hull KR following Challenge Cup trophy lift

With their first Challenge Cup win since 1980, Hull KR have declared themselves a force to be reckoned with in 2025, according to a trio of former Super League players.

Sitting in top spot in the Super League table, Rovers were featuring in their third major final in three years, but with defeats in the 2023 Challenge Cup final and last year’s Super League final, they had no silverware to show for their improvements both on and off the pitch.

With that elusive piece of silverware heading back to Craven Park’s trophy cabinet, former Super League trio Kevin Brown, Jon Wilkin, and Jamie Peacock believe now is Rovers time to shine.

During the BBC’s broadcast of the Cup final, the three of them discussed what’s next for Hull KR.

Kevin Brown said: “It’s a dangerous time for all the other clubs now. I think they’ve broken the seal, and I think they won’t go away now.

“They’ve done it in incremental steps, they’ve got everything off the field set up, and now on the field matches off the field. It’s going to be an exciting time.

“I think it’s the start of a really successful period. We’ve seen them over the last couple of years competing, but now they’re dominating. They’ve lost one game all season, and they’ve even shown today when they’ve been challenged, Warrington probably couldn’t have played any better today.

“For me, watch out everyone else, Hull KR are the team to beat.”

Jon Wilkin echoed those thoughts and emphasised the journey that his boyhood has been on since he left back in 2002.

He added: “In sport, you have stories of success and repeated success, teams like Wigan, St Helens and Leeds who have been repeatedly successful over the course of Super League.

“Hull KR have been up and down and near administration, they’ve been on the brink, so to get to where they’ve got to is remarkable and like Kevin said, this could be the first step of many successful years, assuming they keep hold of Willie Peters.”

The key to Hull KR continuing their success? Keeping this team together for as long as possible, according to Kevin Brown

For Brown, he believes that the club now need to focus on retention for 2026 and beyond behind the scenes.

He said: “They need to keep hold of their best talents; them being picked off by the NRL or other top sides is the danger. Mikey Lewis is 23 years of age, he’s got to stay there long-term. That club is all around him, keeping players like him, Jez Litten and Willie Peters, keep the core group together.”

After speaking to winning Hull KR boss Willie Peters, the trio then discussed the impact of what it means for the East Hull side.

Jon Wilkin said: “I just bumped into Willie Peters on the pitch and he looked at me with pure emotion and had this look in his eyes of pure relief, and he said ‘You will never know how much we needed that’.

“It sounds obvious, but there was a desperation in his voice that told me more than what he had just said. He knew that had they not won this year under the circumstances, the damage psychologically that could have done to his team.”

Former Hull KR assistant coach-turned-player Jamie Peacock said that once you get that trophy, the expectations build from the fans.

He said: “The pressure just builds and builds.”

Kevin Brown agreed with Peacock, stating that the relief of having some silverware to show for your efforts is the most rewarding part.

He finished: “The hardest step is the last one, that last step to get a trophy, and they’ve done it now.”

🤩 Feeling good @hullkrofficial fans? #ChallengeCup pic.twitter.com/uipHK0Ev53

— Betfred Challenge Cup (@TheChallengeCup) June 7, 2025