Hull KR are still unclear on when Dean Hadley will return to action after the forward failed his second HIA in a month, with Willie Peters offering an update after his side’s victory at Magic Weekend.
The Robins beat rivals Hull FC for an eighth straight match as they came out 26-12 winners, a scoreline that perhaps doesn’t do justice for how tough the Black and Whites made it in the second half.
Hull KR were without a number of key players, including Dean Hadley, and speaking after the game, Willie Peters confirmed that the club are still unclear on the forward’s return date.
“No, it’s still a process, so I can’t share anything at the moment. It’s still with the medical team,” he responded when asked if Hadley had yet seen a specialist, having failed a HIA in the Challenge Cup Final and in the loss to Leeds Rhinos.
Another forward that Hull KR were without was Sam Luckley but there was a more positive update on him and also on full-back Arthur Mourgue.
“Sam [Luckley] should be back,” Peters confirmed.
“Arthur’s going to start to get close, but we’ll just have to see. I’ll be able to share some possible news during the week of where he’s at. That’s about it, I think.”
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Another thing that Peters clarified post-match was the use of his interchanges, notably the fact that Noah Booth did not get on at all and that hooker Bill Leyland played just nine minutes.
“We had to manage our interchange differently this week,” Peters explained when asked about Leyland, who was visibly frustrated when he left the field after his brief sting.
“Bill was possibly a chance of not getting on the field at all. I didn’t know whether he’d get on, and I just felt there was an opportunity to put him on the field.
“It was only a short period, but I just felt momentum shifted when Jez went off. I just wanted to get Jez back on to get some momentum back, and that was unfortunate for Bill.
“I’d love Jez to be able to play 80, but I think when he’s coming off the interchange or when he starts, he still probably needs a spurt here and there, and that was the reason.”
As for Noah Booth, who had started in the absence of Joe Burgess last week but dropped to the bench as an unused sub this week, Peters explained that the youngster was there as cover.
He said: “It’s unfortunate when you have an outside back [on the bench]. Him and Bill were in that position.
“We found a way to get Bill on. Initially during the week, I was thinking Bill at 13. Probably didn’t train or didn’t flow as well as we liked, and then it was putting Jez at 13.
“…I didn’t want to take Broady [Jack Broadbent] off for not scoring the try. He had a couple moments, but then you bring a guy in that might need to feel his way in, but I thought Broady ended up finishing the game.
“It was just some little moments. They put some kicks across field, and he was in the game, so he knew just to make the catch, make the tackle.
“…It was unfortunate for Noah, but he was there for cover.”
