This year’s Super League Grand Final will have an identical lineup to the one 12 months ago, but the circumstances surrounding one side in particular feel very different.
When Hull KR reached Old Trafford for the first time last year, it was difficult to shake the feeling that on some level, they were perhaps happy to just be there. Of course they wanted to win but on the night Willie Peters’ side fell short of the standards they had set throughout last year.
This time, it does not feel as though history will repeat itself on that front. Since they were last there, the Robins have shed their tag of being rugby league’s perennial bridesmaids by winning the Challenge Cup and the League Leaders’ Shield, ending their 40-year wait for a major trophy.
This squad are now just one win away from a historic treble after navigating a tricky semi-final against a St Helens side short on quality but certainly not on effort. Now, Rovers’ most ferocious test awaits them next Saturday: Wigan Warriors, who are seeking a third successive title.
There was a school of thought that the week off earned as a result of finishing top would prove to be the catalyst for the Robins’ form to tick upwards again after a drop-off in the final month of the regular season. That looked emphatically to be the case early on as Rovers returned to the levels of performance we are accustomed to from them.
St Helens did not even muster a play-the-ball inside Hull KR’s 20m area during a one-sided first half, with the Robins producing a defensive performance based on the kind of resilience and grit Peters’ men have become renowned for in 2025. By half-time, Saints were 12-0 behind and looking incredibly weary.
They briefly responded with Deon Cross’s try after half-time but by the time they scored again, the contest was over. There were some nervy moments with the semi-final finely poised at 12-6 but when Saints could not capitalise to score again, Rovers were able to rediscover their composure sufficiently in the final quarter.
Two tries inside eight minutes from Oliver Gildart put the contest beyond Saints and, despite a late try from Harry Robertson, it only ever really felt as if one side was heading to the Grand Final.
“I don’t think we were ready to win last year,” Peters said. “We’ve shown this year we’ve been the most consistent side.”
Peters said the Robins had needed their free weekend to reset, and if Wigan were watching on closely, they would have been impressed by what they saw in the first half. Rovers were near-faultless as tries from Mikey Lewis and Joe Burgess moved them 12 points ahead with little fuss.
The Robins’ only gripe at the break would have been that it could and should have been more. Saints had been suffocated and looked bereft of ideas, but Cross’s try shortly after half-time added a layer of intrigue into the contest. But in the end, a side who have not won at any of the competition’s top three all season were never really truly able to threaten a victory.
Attention will now turn to whether Paul Wellens will continue as Saints coach in 2026. They have underwhelmed in too many big games this year, and he was hesitant to say too much on his future. “It’s not something I want to get caught up in right now,” said Wellens, whose contract expires next month.
He would have been heartened by the grit his side showed but they couldn’t muster enough attacking threat to level the scores. Gildart’s two quickfire tries were more than enough to get the job done and while Robertson scored late on, by then, the celebrations among the home fans had already started.
