Hull KR prop Sam Luckley has had his say on reports that teammate Michael McIlorum will turn to coaching once he hangs up his boots at the end of the season, saying he will be a great asset to any team.
McIlorum has not yet confirmed his retirement from playing, but reports from All Out Rugby League say he will be re-joining Catalans Dragons as part of Joel Tomkins’ coaching lineup for 2026.
The veteran hooker joined the Robins on a one-year deal from the Dragons, and has made 10 league appearances in 2025.
Teammate Luckley has spoken greatly on his influence around the squad, and how big of a boost his addition has been.
“I love him, yeah, he’s classy, he’s good crack actually, we get on really well,” he said, speaking to the media ahead of his side’s clash against Salford Red Devils. “I think having the wealth of knowledge that he’s got and the amount of games he’s played in, and when he speaks everybody listens. Sometimes it’s just little gems that he comes out with and you can kind of see the old-school Wigan mindset when he’s speaking, so it’s really good.
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McIlorum, combined with NRL legend Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, were both brought in to add experience and leadership as they look to push for silverware.
Luckley said: “It’s great to have him around and the same with Jared as well, when you’ve got players who have been there and done that, it adds so much to the group, not even just playing, but around the place, in video sessions and stuff.”
The Scottish international prop has said McIlorum has the ability and experience to be successful as a coach.
“I wouldn’t be surprised,” he said. “He’s just got a bit of an aura about him, kind of what a coach does when they walk in the room.”
“He kind of knows what he’s talking about, so I wouldn’t be surprised, but yeah, I guess he’s not really thinking about that at the minute, we’ve got ten games left or something like that, everyone’s focused on the one goal, but yeah, we’ll see in the end.”
