Elliot Minchella has admitted Hull KR’s lack of discipline has been “the story of our year” after Warrington Wolves brought their Super League title defence to a premature end.
The Robins have now been dethroned from every domestic trophy in 2026 following a rollercoaster season under Willie Peters – a year on from their record-breaking campaign.
Rovers became world champions in February with a dramatic victory over Brisbane Broncos, but suffered heavy defeats in both the Challenge Cup final against Wigan Warriors and the Super League play-offs against Warrington.
Sam Burgess’ Wolves ended their title defence with a 35-12 victory at the Halliwell Jones Stadium in the opening week of the knockout stages.
And Rovers were forced to finish the game with 12 men after Peta Hiku was sent off in the second half for punching Warrington captain George Williams. The experienced centre has since been handed a two-match ban for the incident.
Minchella admitted discipline had been a recurring problem throughout the campaign, with Rovers only securing the final play-off spot ahead of St Helens.
“It’s been up and down,” he said. “We probably haven’t been good enough, really.
“In sport, you tend to get what you deserve and the best team won on the day. I thought we lacked discipline and that’s probably been the story of our year – lacking discipline when it mattered the most.
“If you do that against good teams, you’ll get punished.
“Warrington deserved to progress and we wish them all the best for next week.
“Internally, we’re just disappointed.”
The result means Hull KR will watch on from the sidelines when another side lifts the Super League trophy at Old Trafford on October 3, with Wigan Warriors, Leeds Rhinos, Warrington Wolves and Wakefield Trinity battling it out for the title.
It also marked the final game for head coach Peters, who will leave Sewell Group Craven Park to begin his next chapter with incoming NRL franchise the PNG Chiefs ahead of their inaugural 2028 campaign.
Peters has transformed the East Hull club, etching his name into their history and establishing Rovers as one of rugby league’s biggest success stories.
“I’ll be forever grateful to him. For what he’s done for our club and me personally, I can’t thank him enough,” Minchella said.
“I feel sad at the moment. There are some boys moving on as well who I’ve made some real memories with. It’s a bit of a strange feeling.
“He’s transformed the club. The things we’ve achieved you could only dream about achieving. We wouldn’t have done that without him.”