WTF!

 

Super League 2026 goes off with a bang. Some people are suggesting it is the biggest shock in 30 years of Super League - York Knights 19-18 Hull KR. There are some horrible rumours that the Robins asked for the RFL for this fixture as an easy start to the new campaign. If that is the case, then I am even more delighted for York, because it is utterly derogatory, and worse still, it backfired spectacularly. In all honesty, this is the best result for Super League, and will generate a mound of interest like the 0-1 Wigan defeat last season.

10 days ago, I wrote the article Leopards are Massive: Is This the End of the Big Bopper? from that post I wrote " I was struck by how Hull KR adapted the old interpretation of the rules to their benefit. Four men in the tackle, fast advancing defence, and the slowest play-the-balls against them, due to the time to untangle 4 players from the ball-carrier. Four-man tackles will regularly get pinged with the new interpretation, and with faster play-the-balls, the Hull KR defence will get beaten out of shape. On the flip-side Litten and Lewis will love the chaos created by defences that have not had time to get set." 

Hull KR did not commit 4 men into tackles, but still compressed the defensive line and made 3 man tackles. Kyle Amor reckoned that KR got pinged at least 9 times in the first half for ruck infringements. What made it worse was that the players looked incredulous when penalised. Rhyse Martin protested, saying he had his hands up, whilst loitering behind the play-the-ball (a little hint you are supposed to be 10 metres away and not interfering with play). On the flip side, Jeremy Litten enjoyed the extra time to pinch easy metres when receiving quick ball. The same cannot be said for Mikey Lewis, who was largely anonymous for most of the game. Lewis did, however, make headlines for all the wrong reasons with a petulant trip on his opposite number Liam Harris. In the old days, tripping was a red card offence. This act ultimately changed the course of the game, and at 6-18, York went on to dominate the last quarter of the game, before Ata Hingano slotted through a beautiful drop goal.

Rugby League players are not renowned for great intellectual prowess, and if you doubt me, I suggest you take a look at The Bench Podcast Jake Connor and Mikey Lewis talk Man of Steel and Vegas! | The Bench

Needless to say, little Willie Peters was not impressed with Mikey costing Hull KR the game. “You get what you deserve in this game - and we certainly did,” head coach Peters said.“Mikey, doing what he did, let his team-mates down and he’s got to learn from it, that’s for sure. It’s about actions now. He needs to make sure he doesn’t let his team-mates down like that again and learns from this.It was a silly play. It’s something we’ll make sure he gets out of his game. People have got away with that before, but you make your bed and you’ve got to lie in it.”

The next few weeks do not get any easier for Hull KR, and they need to learn quickly or face the season going off the rails before it even gets started.