The Robins went to Wigan without a number of their key men
16:54, 28 Aug 2026Updated 16:54, 28 Aug 2026
Hull KR coach Willie Peters. (Image: Getty)
Jamie Jones-Buchanan has dismissed the notion of tiredness being a valid excuse for Hull KR following Thursday night’s loss to Wigan Warriors.
The Robins went to Wigan with a weakened squad this week with Willie Peters handing out three debuts and resting some of his senior names who would ordinarily have been involved in such a fixture.
The changes came on the back of playing three games in nine days with Rovers having to play a rearranged fixture against Warrington Wolves in between home games against Catalans Dragons and Toulouse Olympique.
On top of that, having reached the Challenge Cup final back in May, KR haven’t had a week off all season, playing week in, week out, since the start of February.
Ultimately, then, Rovers’ season is at threat of grinding to a halt as they approach the final two Super League rounds on the back of three successive defeats.
They’ll be fresher for the visit of Huddersfield Giants next week, but Jones-Buchanan doesn’t accept tiredness as an excuse.
“They’ve rested and hopefully they come away from that unscathed and they throw everything including the kitchen sink at the rest of the season,” Pundit Jones-Buchanan said.
“I’ll be honest with you, I don’t really buy the tiredness thing. Go to sleep, get something to eat, get up and go again. That’s what you’ve got to do.
“I don’t think Wigan would have behaved like that. We’ve seen the champions playing this year against the prospective champions three times and it’s been a disaster, all three games.”
His colleague Jon Wilkin is a little more forgiving of the Robins, as he pointed out the positives to take from Thursday’s loss and the workload they have been forced to contend with.
“He takes rested players,” Wilkin said on Peters’ takeaways from the Wigan game. “The players that weren’t playing who are getting on the bus having not played tonight. That’s what he’ll take from the game.
“He doesn’t have another 80 minutes in some leggy players who visibly needed a rest.
“The Toulouse performance was such a tired performance from them and rightly so, their fixture list has been clogged.”
He added: “[Peters] must have belief and I’m sure he does because of the bank of evidence he has from 2025, that will give him inherent confidence. I just worry about going into the play-offs off the back of the form they’ve been in when other sides are visibly raising their intensity as Warrington did with George Williams’ return. Hull KR have waned in terms of energy and enthusiasm.
“I know Jonesy just wants a sleep and some oatmeal and then he gets back at, but there’s been a high volume of work gone through those players who are not conditioned to do that, it’s the first time they’ve done it.
“I think that’s the challenge, whereas dynasties like Leeds and Wigan are so used to going back to the bottom of the mountain and coming back up. It’s a very different challenge.”