Hull KR won a first Grand Final after beating Wigan Warriors 26-6 at Old Trafford
Hull KR are the Super League champions. Not just that, they’re the Challenge Cup holders and the reigning League Leaders’ Shield winners, an amazing treble of success for a club that had to wait 40 years for a trophy.
Willie Peters’ side brushed off the reigning champions to complete a 24-6 victory at Old Trafford in the Grand Final, clinching a deserved win at the Theatre of Dreams.
The final hooter on Saturday night brought an out-pouring of emotion from the players and coaching staff alike as the celebrations started straight away. With the emotions still only just taking hold, here’s a sample of what the Rovers players told the broadcast media of the BBC and Sky Sports as they partied on the pitch.
Elliot Minchella
“The club got relegated nine years ago and we’ve just won a treble. Bonkers.
“Credit goes to the people at the top of the club who have stuck by it through thick and thin. They could have easily just walked away and said this is someone else’s job, but they did the complete opposite.
“I’ve been here for six years and the turnaround in that time has been astronomical, so I’m just so proud.”
Joe Burgess
“If I didn’t get that I would have held the record for five losses, but not tonight.
“The full year has been a lot to take in. It’s overwhelming and to get over the line as well. It was a please to play alongside Jared (Waerea-Hargreaves) and Micky (McIllorum) in their last ever games.
“This is what this city deserves. It’s unreal and it’s just crazy, I don’t know what to say.”
Oliver Gildart
“I can’t believe it. I didn’t think it’d go like that to be honest. Wigan have set the benchmark for a number of years now, I know what they’re like in big games, I’ve played for the club, they’re robotlike but I thought we were just too good tonight.
“A lot of people were saying we’re tired but if that’s tired then I won’t like to see us fit. The boys were awesome, we didn’t stop for the full 80 minutes. Wigan are a great side but the couldn’t live with us tonight.
“We never make it easy but we learnt from our mistakes early on, had a bit of reset early on in the first half and we just kicked on from there.”
Michael McIllorum
“This is absolutely amazing. I played a long, long time and never won a treble, so to do it in my last year is something amazing.
“They put their faith and trust in me. It’s job done. The likes of Jez and Mikey stepped up and showed their class.
“These are the best fans I’ve ever seen, it’s amazing.”
Sam Luckley
“It was nail biting, I think that was the slowest clock in the world towards the end.
“I can’t put the feeling into words, I feel like this feeling has been building for three years when the culture and the change in the club started to happen.
“They say it takes to lose a final to win one and I truly feel that. We had a different feel coming into this one than we did in the Challenge Cup and it was almost good enough to get here last time but we knew we didn’t make a big meal of it coming in this week. We just dug our heels in and performed.
“We’re a real strong group, we’ve got a strong bond, a strong connection and when we took the the field every time we believe we can win and that was no different for the final. You play the game not the occasion, just because you’re in a bigger stadium with more fans your principles shouldn’t change.”