{"id":493813,"date":"2026-02-21T03:33:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-21T03:33:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/493813\/"},"modified":"2026-02-21T03:33:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-21T03:33:09","slug":"hull-kr-coach-makes-interesting-admission-on-nrl-future-nrl-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/493813\/","title":{"rendered":"Hull KR coach makes interesting admission on NRL future – NRL News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hull KR<\/a> coach Willie Peters<\/a> has declared his interest in becoming the inaugural coach of the incoming PNG Chiefs<\/a>, confirming he would welcome discussions about leading the NRL’s 19th franchise when it enters the competition in 2028.<\/p>\n

Currently contracted to English Super League<\/a> outfit Hull KR<\/a> until 2028, Peters has built one of the most impressive coaching resumes abroad.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In his fourth season at the club, he has secured a remarkable 73 per cent win record, guided Hull KR<\/a> to victory in the World Club Challenge and overseen a further three trophies in the space of 12 months.<\/p>\n

Despite being settled in England<\/a>, Peters has confirmed the PNG opportunity would pique his interest.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe short answer is I would be interested in that conversation,\u201d Peters told the Daily Telegraph.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s a unique opportunity because it is a team where you can create culture and a DNA of that club for many, many years.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut setting up the culture of PNG would excite me. Connection and care are the two values that I hold really closely to any team that I coach, and it’s what I value.<\/p>\n

\u201cLiving away from home, you will basically need to be a family in PNG and create a family environment.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat’s something I believe I have done well here at Hull KR<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Peters’ name has previously been linked to NRL<\/a> vacancies at the Newcastle Knights<\/a> and Gold Coast Titans<\/a>, while he is among a shortlist of experienced candidates \u2014 including Jason Demetriou<\/a>, Brad Arthur<\/a> and Adrian Lam<\/a> \u2014 being touted to lead the PNG franchise.<\/p>\n

Peters has served as an assistant to master coach Wayne Bennett<\/a>, an experience he credits as pivotal in his development.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving a feel for players and people is a massive part of rugby league,\u201d Peters said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou’ve either got that feel for people, or you don’t, and there’s none better than Wayne in terms of understanding the player.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’ve been very fortunate to work with some very good coaches, so I feel I’ve done my apprenticeship.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have deliberately taken my time and coached every grade in the junior pathways, which not many coaches do.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the time is right to coach in the NRL<\/a>, I’ll be ready.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to his Super League<\/a> success, Peters has strengthened his international pedigree, serving as an assistant coach for the Kangaroos under Kevin Walters<\/a> in recent months.<\/p>\n

While he insists he is comfortable in England<\/a>, the lure of returning to the NRL<\/a> remains strong.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe I’m ready to go,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe only way you can show that is by getting an opportunity in the NRL<\/a> and proving yourself. I’ve always been that type of person who lets my actions do the talking.”<\/p>\n

With the PNG Chiefs<\/a> representing one of the most significant expansions in the modern era of the competition, Peters believes the project holds enormous potential.<\/p>\n

\u201cPNG is a massive opportunity for the game,” Peters said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy family and I have really enjoyed being over here, but if the opportunity arises, I’ll certainly look at the NRL<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would be great to be able to prove myself back in the NRL<\/a> at some stage.”<\/p>\n

Get set for the footy with the FREE Zero Tackle 2026 NRL Season Guide!<\/a> Packed with 130+ pages of player profiles, team previews, insights and analysis, the 2026 NRL Season Guide<\/a> is built for fans who want the full picture. Download your free Season Guide HERE.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Hull KR coach Willie Peters has declared his interest in becoming the inaugural coach of the incoming PNG…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":439766,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-493813","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493813","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=493813"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493813\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/439766"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=493813"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=493813"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=493813"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}