Don’t talk to Elliot Minchella about Hull KR’s consistency in the Challenge Cup, or even Super League for that matter. To quote the great Basil Fawlty, “I mentioned it once, but I think I got away with it alright.”
Minchella is as accommodating as they come, and as Hull KR club captain handles the media responsibility with the type of sensible approach you’d expect. Playing with a good poker face and an understated approach which serves him and the club well, it’s clear there’s a tell when it comes to the desire to get his hands on the Challenge Cup.
Talk of how close the club has been in the past brings a passionate response. You see, there’s no prize for being consistent challengers, and even if there was, nobody wants that award when there’s a Grand Final ring or a Challenge Cup winner’s medal you can wear.
“It burns me,” says Minchella in a manner that leaves me respectfully not wanting to expand on just how much.
“It’s good that we have been consistent for the last few years making the semis, making finals, but we haven’t won a Challenge Cup in that time, that’s what burns me. That’s what gets at me. I don’t sit at home thinking I’m buzzing because we’ve been consistent in reach semis and finals.”
The trouble is, while it may not appease the desire of Minchella and his team-mates, it is hard to not both appreciate the achievement, and when speaking to the players, underline, the impressive consistency of a club that have been turned into perennial trophy contenders.
From scrapping for Super League survival and arriving at Wembley just happy to be there for a moment in the spotlight before being handed a chastening 50-0 defeat by Leeds Rhinos, to now heading to Wembley as (whisper this quietly in the Wigan area) the best team in the country right now.
Four successive Challenge Cup semi-finals have resulted in two Wembley appearances in the last three years, while you can add the small matter of a Grand Final appearance last season to that list of achievements. Hull KR are back at the top table, dining as genuine equals with the likes of Wigan Warriors. Their presence as trophy contenders may be a reminder to some or a stick for others to beat them with that they are yet to win a trophy with this group, but it undeniably should be a source for great confidence and a reason for unbridled praise.
Sport is about enjoyment and hope. This Rovers team have delivered that and then some in the past few years. Now, someone just needs to convince Minchella and his team-mates of that!
“Losing the Challenge Cup final was the worst feeling ever. It may be great to play in them, but until we go out and actually get our hands on the trophy and win it then it’s just not good enough for me or this club,” responds the captain, with a look that suggests you’ll do well to deny him his goal.
“We know we are where we want to be as a club because we’re reaching finals, but we haven’t achieved what we set out to because we haven’t won anything.”
Rovers’ record is impressive whether there’s a trophy to show for it or not, but it’s easy to see why the players and staff are now so focussed on finally getting over the line. Coach Willie Peters, working with chief executive Paul Lakin, have built a squad that is certainly good enough to do just that. They just have to go out and play to their ability. Do that, and they’re a better team than Warrington Wolves.
“The message is to relax,” says Minchella. “Do what we normally do as that’s what got us here. Do what you normally do, but do it to the highest standard.
“Everything should look the same and you don’t want to try too hard, we can’t afford to play the occasion and be looking across at the trophy at Wembley. We know what we need to do!”