Hull KR coach Willie Peters was disappointed and proud in equal measure following this evening’s 9-2 Grand Final loss to Wigan Warriors.
Mikey Lewis scored the Robins’ only points with a penalty goal in the second half. Wigan led 7-0 before that through a dazzling Bevan French try, Adam Keighran conversion and Harry Smith drop goal on the stroke of half-time.
Keighran booted a two-pointer late on to complete the scoring and – speaking in his post-match press conference – Peters had no complaints about the result.
He said: “I respect Wigan and they deserved to win. Full credit to them, but I don’t think we are too far away.”
The Robins boss insisted: “I am proud of the players tonight and what they’ve done all season.
“We never gave in and that’s what Hull KR do. You have to work hard and be resilient, that’s in our DNA and we showed that.
“They are a very good team and took their moments but I’m extremely proud to coach this team and they didn’t let anyone down.”
Hull KR boss reveals where they lost the Grand Final
Credit: Ed Sykes/SWpix.com
On where the game was won and lost, Peters admitted: “One try was the difference, it’s fine margins in a Grand Final. They iced their moments and we didn’t.
“I was pleased with our start and thought they were on top, but then they scored that try and the field goal before half-time.
“We were positive around half-time but at 7-0 they were always going to be hard to run down.
“After our penalty, we only needed one try, but we didn’t handle that part of the game well and made some errors. At 7-2, there was an opportunity, but we just couldn’t get over the line.”
Mikey Lewis had an early touchdown ruled out for a knock-on by Tyrone May. Peters had no argument with the decision but admitted a try then – before either side had scored – could have made it a different story.
He stressed: “Wigan were outstanding, they defended their line extremely well and they are champions for a reason.
“We’ll learn a lot tonight and from this season. We have definitely come a long way and we believe we will be better next year. The growth we’ve had this year has set us up for next season.
“At the moment it hurts. We’ll look at ways we could be better, we need to ice the key moments.
“A lot of that is down to experience, I thought their experienced players stood up when they needed to.”
The Warriors are the 2024 @Betfred #SuperLeague Champions! 🏆 pic.twitter.com/mzBJxxDPwJ
— Betfred Super League (@SuperLeague) October 12, 2024
James Catterall
October 12, 2024 at 10:36 pm
Wigan were worthy of double the points difference. Thought they showed KR too much respect. Lewis was taught a lesson
Tony kelvin
October 12, 2024 at 11:38 pm
It was just a war of attrition;rovers are just short of a bean French in there team,he was the differnce
Anonymous
October 13, 2024 at 6:50 am
The big difference was Wigan’s big game experience, knowing how to win at any cost and that freak of a RL player in French. Whether he’d be as dominant in the NRL is another matter.
Eric T Cat
October 13, 2024 at 12:46 pm
The difference came down to two things, an instant of Bevan French brilliance to score a superb try, and the mentality of the Wigan team, their experience in finals gave them a marginal edge in playing the full 80 minutes, knowing how, when, to take their chances. For Rovers these are learning experiences, they will come back stronger. It is good for the game to see Rovers, Warrington, Catalans, Salford, Leigh making huge strides to join the likes of Wigan, St Helens, and Leeds in challenging for trophies. For Wigan itks an unparalleled story of earned deserved success, for ALL the other clubs, except Hull FC, it’s been a year of improvement, growth, change. For all Wigan won a clean sweep this was a season when anyone could beat anyone. London were done over by IMG before the first kickoff, but what on Earth is wrong at Hull FC, they started with a strong looking side on paper, then after the first game defeat by Rovers the fell off the edge, they didn’t look bothered. I’m a Rovers fan, there was a point the usual banter stopped being fun, it was pitiable. I’ve always felt the game is stronger for two good sides from the city. I hope they improve.