KR facing crucial month to maintain forward momentum
HULL KR have made terrific progress in the past couple of years.
From being at the bottom of Super League to play-off contenders is great progress, but maintaining that upward curve is harder than kicking it off in the first place.
With a new coach coming in next season in Willie Peters, the focus for Rovers is on evolution and progression, not revolution.
The hope is Peters will continue the great work done by Tony Smith and CEO Paul Lakin has already spoken about a continuation of the new Rovers ethos to ensure the change in coach is as smooth as possible.
To that end, recruitment is everything.
Tom Opacic is expected to arrive on a new long term deal at Craven Park, while a number of other names are in the frame.
With established players like Ben Crooks and Dean Hadley out of contract among others, there’s some big decisions which need to be made to ensure the club kick on next season and the new coach is given the tools he needs to get the job done.
It’s a crucial period for the
Robins, and one they have to get right.
Tony Smith will be having nothing to do with recruitment, which may leave some suggesting that Peters is not best placed to make a judgement on some of KR’S current squad given he hasn’t worked with them.
Yes, that’s true, but at no club I have ever been at does the head coach make all the recruitment decisions.
Lakin and even Neil Hudgell will have a say as the ones who control the budget, and the ones with their feet on the ground so to speak, with constant conversations with Peters.
Getting everyone on the same page is key.
You don’t want to be signing a player the coach isn’t keen on, which I know all too well about from when I moved to KR.
I’m sure Rovers will be having those conversations daily and Peters is in a great position that he can focus solely on recruitment without having to prepare a team for games.
All suggestions are Rovers are on the right path and they need to be if they are to take the club forward again.