IT’S been quite obvious for some time that Hull KR’s performances have slipped this season, compared to the level at which they performed in 2025.
Until last Saturday they had retained their unbeaten home record for this season but it was always going to be severely tested if they came up against a team that was well prepared and committed, as Wakefield proved to be.
The Hull KR players seemed to be disconcerted by the performance of referee Chris Kendall, who appeared to penalise them harshly on at least a couple of occasions.
One of those penalties came from a Hull KR player not getting back behind his own players at the play-the-ball.
Referees have apparently been instructed to penalise players who don’t get back onside, even if they don’t appear to be influencing play.
We’ll have to see whether that approach is applied consistently.
But in the meantime I wonder whether the impending departure of Willie Peters at the end of this season has had some sort of psychological effect on the Hull KR players.
It can create uncertainty in a group of players when they know that the man to whom they owe their success will soon be leaving a club.
On the other hand, it may just be that the relentless nature of the season is just getting to some of the Robins stars, particularly in the prolonged spell of hot conditions that we are currently experiencing.
There is also the argument that the clubs that contest the World Club Challenge at the start of the season struggle afterwards.
We are certainly seeing that with the Robins’ World Club Challenge opponents, Brisbane Broncos, who currently lie in 14th place in the NRL ladder.
At least the Robins are still in the play-off spots, although they can’t afford too many more slip-ups.