On the face of it, Willie Peters’ selection is pretty straightforward this week – if Oliver Gildart is fit. The Hull KR centre limped off at Magic Weekend and Peters has admitted he remains a doubt heading into Saturday’s game at York.
If Gildart is fit, Jack Broadbent can go to full-back without any consideration. With Tom Davies and Joe Burgess back, Rovers’ backs would have a familiar feel, with Broadbent slotting in to replace the cup-tied Arthur Mourgue.
In the pack, again, it’s relatively straightforward with everyone available. The difficult decision is whether to run with Bill Leyland on the bench in the hope he can cause carnage against a tiring Catalans pack, or try to combat them with an extra middle to share the workload.
Things get complicated if Gildart doesn’t play. You would have to think Broadbent would have to remain at fullback, which would then see James Batchelor moved to centre. Kelepi Tanginoa would then start and a prop would be brought in to facilitate Dean Hadley having to play 80 minutes in the back-row.
The battle would then be between Jack Brown and Eribe Doro for that last spot. Doro impressed at Magic Weekend and all the sounds are that he is seen as a first-teamer of the future. But Brown has been ahead of him in the pecking order so far this season. The safe bet would be hometown forward.
So the big question is whether Gildart is fit or not. He didn’t seem too concerned about the injury in the minutes after the injury and Peters gave him a chance of playing midweek. Based on what we’ve got, we’re backing him to play. The players missing out are Danny Richardson, Jack Brown, Eribe Doro and Lee Kershaw.
Predicted Hull KR team for Challenge Cup semi-final : Jack Broadbent, Tom Davies, Peta Hiku, Oliver Gildart, Joe Burgess, Mikey Lewis, Tyrone May, Sauaso Sue, Jez Litten, Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, Dean Hadley, James Batchelor, Elliot Minchella. Subs: Sam Luckley, Jai Whitbread, Kelepi Tanginoa, Bill Leyland.