Smith says more to come from Rovers

Hull Kingston Rovers Head Coach Tony Smith admits there is more to follow from his side following their match against St Helens.

The Robins went down to a 32-18 defeat against the reigning champions at the Halliwell Jones stadium, consigning the East Hull team to their seventh straight defeat.

However, despite being written off, the Robins gave the Saints a huge run for their money, with Smith praising the efforts from his team.

“We did alright for our second game, with not much footy under our belt,” Smith said.

“Some of these other teams have had a chance to get some continuity, flow and rhythm and it showed at times.

“I thought we were pretty rusty to start that game. Once we got hold of the ball for a little while, I thought we troubled them.

“To have a score like we did at half-time was encouraging for our team.

“Second half, we were a little sloppy. We struggled with a couple of back-to-back sets.

“I still think there is more to come from us. I like to think we will get ourselves into some flow and continuity then hopefully avoid too many injuries.”

The performance did come at a price for the Robins as a couple of their key players left the field due to injury.

Providing an injury update on his squad, Smith said “Adam Quinlan has broken his wrist and dislocated it.

“I am not sure how long he will be out for just yet but it will be longer than a couple of weeks, which is a huge blow for Adam.

“Mitch (Garbutt) was out today. He has had a little setback himself, with a little tear in his calf muscle from training so he will not be available on Thursday.

“Ryan Brierley looks to be out too but we just have to get on with it.

“The likes of Jordan Abdull and Mikey Lewis look set to return which is a positive.

“We have a four day turn around now and anybody with ‘knocks’, I will not play.

“Players’ welfare has to come first. We have some fresh players ready to go but it still means we have to back up some players from today’s game to play on Thursday.

“That is one of the trials and tribulations of rugby league.”